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This is day 8 of 31 Days of Finding Joy in Depression. Yesterday, I shared about genetics and depression. Today, let's talk about PCOD.
What is PCOD? It's polycystic ovary disease. {It's also referred to as PCOS, polycystic ovary syndrome.} Shortly after Josh and I decided to stop preventing pregnancy in 2005 {though not necessarily pursue pregnancy} we discovered that I have PCOD. It is a hormone imbalance that presents with number of symptoms.
- Acne
- Weight issues
- Extra hair on the face and body, often thick and dark
- Irregular periods
- Fertility problems
- Depression
- Sometimes, cysts on the ovaries
{See here for more details. I credit my friend Jen for helping me discover and learn about PCOD many years ago.}
Did you catch that last symptom? Depression. Birth control pills mask PCOD and is often the treatment for PCOD for those who don't want to get pregnant. My wonderful OB/GYN who diagnosed me with depression is the same doctor who years earlier diagnosed me with PCOD. Maybe that's another reason that he was able to spot the depression in me, knowing that depression is a common symptom of PCOD. Of course, the infertility part brings many emotions on its own that deepen depression.
I have a feeling that there are many women who have depression who also have undiagnosed PCOD. Or vise versa. The point is that there are medical conditions that can cause or complicate depression. Left unknown or untreated, these conditions make managing depression more difficult.
Do you have PCOD? Infertility issues? Other medical problems? Do these affect your depression?
If you deal with depression, please comment and share your journey too. If you're a blogger, you can use the button and code below to share your story and link back on your blog. Feel free to leave links to your posts in the comments area.
I'm linking up with The Nester and others who are writing 31 posts this month on various topics. I'm not a doctor or a counselor and this is not intended to be medical advice. This is simply the story of my experience with depression.
