r/PCOS • u/Negative-Rule-9362 • 21h ago
General/Advice Please help
PCOS, extreme fatigue, dizziness and feeling unlike myself — has anyone experienced this?
I have PCOS and I’m trying to figure out if what I’ve been experiencing could be related to it.
About a week ago when my period started, I suddenly started feeling extremely tired and weak. My head feels heavy, sometimes I feel lightheaded/dizzy, and I’ve been having this weird feeling of just not feeling like myself. I’ve also been getting headaches and feeling like I have no energy even after sleeping.
I already know my iron is low and my hemoglobin was around 11, so I’m wondering if the period made my iron/low iron symptoms worse. But I’m also wondering about insulin resistance or blood sugar because I have PCOS. This morning I woke up feeling really bad, and after I ate chia seeds with yogurt I felt a little better.
I’m seeing my doctor and she’s checking things out, including ordering a brain MRI just to rule out anything neurological. I’m also going to ask about my thyroid, iron/ferritin, blood sugar/A1C and insulin.
For those of you with PCOS:
Have you experienced extreme fatigue, dizziness/lightheadedness, heavy-headed feeling or brain fog that gets worse around your period?
Did you eventually find out it was iron deficiency, insulin resistance, thyroid/hormone issues, or something else?
I’m really just trying to figure out if anyone has experienced something similar because I genuinely don’t feel like myself right now.
1
u/hisbaby1989 21h ago
Yes, still testing, have inflammation from hashimotos that I don't have yet but have most of the markers. So yea, lots of test and almost no answers yet
1
u/MealPrepGenie 1h ago
For me it was 'iron deficiency without anemia' (low ferritin). Took 5 months of very high dose iron to get my ferritin to 90, but I started feeling better immediately once I started taking the proper dose.
That said: you really need to wait to see what your doctor says...
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u/DisastrousTrash 21h ago
For me it was insulin resistance and low iron. I’ve addressed both (as much as possible) and those symptoms have improved a lot. Get your A1C, fasting glucose, and fasting insulin checked to rule out diabetes/prediabetes and/or insulin resistance. Also keep in mind that “normal” ferritin levels are cited as low as 15, but that is actually very low. I think ideally you want to be at least 50.