Getting Pregnant with PCOS

My second miracle*

Paleo is being heralded as the new goddess of fertility by many proponents, as learning a woman is pregnant after going Paleo is a pretty common tale.

That being said, I did not transfer over to Paleo until after my babies were born. My experience getting pregnant with PCOS is firsthand; my knowledge of getting pregnant on Paleo is from a secondary source.

My miracle babies came to me after I’d given up hope of every conceiving. Imagine my surprise when I got not one, but two kids while in the throes of my PCOS struggles. They are almost exactly two years apart, both being born in June (with a due date only one day apart). September is evidently my fertile month.

Before my first baby, I went on the South Beach Diet–pretty low-carb. I lost weight and did a so-so job of keeping it off. After four months I felt I was really starting to get a grasp on this weight loss thing with a net loss of 10 pounds. It was during this same time that I learned I was 9 weeks pregnant.

Before conceiving my second baby, I cut out added sugars from my diet and started exercising regularly (both of which improve insulin sensitivity, or so they say). I also started lifting weights and was following a modified CrossFit-style workout regimen. The sugars were out of my system for about 9 months and the CrossFit workouts were a part of my regular routine for two months. I took a pregnancy test and voilà, pregnant again. Needless to say, both children were shockers.

After getting pregnant the first time, several women said, “Oh it’s totally normal to get pregnant after losing 10-20 pounds.”

Really? How come I never knew this? But more importantly, why was this happening and why didn’t the doctors tell me in the first place? Perhaps because it’s totally depressing when you can’t lose weight in the first place.

I personally believe being overweight is a symptom of a systemic problem, rather than the actual problem. Weight gain/retention has a whole lot to do with insulin resistance and hormones. When the 15 pounds begins to melt away, it’s likely that insulin sensitivity is increasing and hormones are becoming more balanced. Getting pregnant just happens to have a whole lot to do with insulin sensitivity and regulated hormones.

If I were to have a do-over, I would go Paleo from the start. My insulin resistance has decreased tremendously and my hormones are finally starting to balance out. To anyone who is struggling getting pregnant, my very first suggestion would be to eat Paleo. I wish I had done so and saved myself all the heartache.

Obviously, I can’t change the past. However, I’ve been Paleo for 5 months now and let’s just say, considering my new lifestyle and 7-month-old baby, I’m being very careful in September. And all the rest of the months too.

* Photo Courtesy Rachael Pullman Photography