I'd just like to let you know that I've spent close to 30k out of pocket.. over the last three years.. attempting "alternative medicines"... this was with a PCOS specialist and a personal trainer. The most I ever lost was 30 lbs in 3 months.. and that was with a very restrictive, detox diet... that I could NOT keep up.

I bleed probably 50% of the month.. every month.. almost non stop periods.. I'm hair.. I carry all the weight in my mid section..

I was very distraught at first that I needed surgery.. that I was a "failure".. but I tried. I tried as hard as I could and could not stick with it..

Last month I woke up with 4-5 blood clots on my thighs.. and I was mid birth control pack... I said, 'Enough'...

I will be getting the VSG on July 8th.

Oh I'm so glad I found this thread! I am having the same issues! PCOS, PMDD and my hormones are out of wack! I had surgery a month ago and have already had 2 periods. I am finally feeling better and more "normal" after 3 long weeks! I too have lost inches but the scale is moving SO SLOW and didn't move at all for 2 1/2 weeks! Is this normal with the amount of hormonal issues? I am so glad you are feeling better and the scale is moving down for you!!! Being a woman is no fun sometimes LOL

Hey guys,

Thanks for the supportive and informative responses. This past Wednesday I met with an Endocrinologist. He's also a weight-loss expert and well known in the city for helping people to lose weight. I was in the office for a long time because they ran various tests to determine the next course of action. I didn't mention WLS to him yet because I would like to go through other alternative treatments before I undergo something as big as bariatric surgery. He drew blood and performed various tests to see what my metabolism is like. He figures that I would be good with a 1400calorie/day diet. I'm suppose to meet with one of his nutritionist at the office next week to work on a plan of action with my eating habits. I've been keeping a food diary, writing down everything I've eaten in a week. I hope something positive comes out of this.

The thing that I'm concerned about is trying to realistically count calories when I'm eating.

ok, i know... wls messes with your hormones.  estrogen is stored in the fat cells and when fat burns, all that estrogen is sent surging through your system.  after a long stall of losing inches but minimal weight loss, the scale seems to finally be moving down.  i'm losing but my hormones seem very much out of whack. 

i think the combination of pcos + hormonal shifts + pmdd= no fun at all.  af showed up 2 whole weeks early!  i was going through some bizarre emotions last week.  i was crying for no reason- for hours at a time and getting extremely snippish over nothing. i felt like i was going crazy... for real.  as in it's time to call my shrink and ask if i need to be comitted crazy.  then af showed up saturday night, which explained a whole heck of a lot!  but i am left wondering... i am ten months out.  is it normal to still be having such dramatic shifts?  i went through several months of readjustment in the early months following surgery when the weight loss was rapid but thought i had finally stabilized.

I had my surgery in Jan and was diagnosed with pcos in March. I had the irregular periods, skin tags, etc. I've lost about 43 pounds since my surgery. Its been a slow process on losing weight for me but I've been told its due to to pcos and insulin resistance. I am taking 1000mg of metformin. I started it back in May it has helped a little but not as much as I hoped it would. My symptoms haven't gone away actually they've gotten a little worse. I have facial hair, stronger body odor, and hair on my back,  oh yeah I just had some break through bleeding so it pretty much sucks. I have an appt with my Dr. so I'm going to have him refer me to an endocrindologist to get this taken care of. He was hoping it would go away with the weightloss but that doesn't seem to be working. So we will see.....just know that every person is different and though the surgery hasn't helped me maybe it will help you. Its worth a try.