Psychosomatics of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS)

What psychosomatics says

Psychosomatics doesn’t explain why PCOS happens. It’s a hormone condition and it isn’t your fault: neither stress nor “wrong thoughts” caused it. A doctor prescribes the treatment, and it’s important to follow it.

In psychosomatics, the ovaries are linked to loss and attachment, and to the question “what does being a woman mean to me.” When the body gives “unfeminine” signs, many women spend years angry at it, embarrassed, hiding their hair and skin. That attitude to yourself can be looked at too.

Psychosomatics goes alongside a gynaecologist and an endocrinologist. It helps you see what you feel towards your body and take a first step towards becoming its ally.

What it is

The Kazakhstan Ministry of Health clinical protocol “Ovarian dysfunction” (2023) defines polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) as a polygenic endocrine disorder: the function and structure of the ovaries and ovulation are disturbed. By the Rotterdam consensus, the diagnosis is made when any two of three signs are present: an excess of male hormones (androgens), disturbed ovulation and signs of polycystic ovaries on ultrasound.

The UK’s National Health Service (NHS), which now uses the name PMOS for what used to be called PCOS, lists the main symptoms: irregular periods or long gaps between them, excess hair growth or hair loss, weight gain and difficulty losing it, difficulty getting pregnant, oily skin and spots, feeling very tired, thick dark patches of skin on the neck or armpits, depression and anxiety. Symptoms usually start in the teenage years.

Symptoms can be mild or severe, and sometimes there are none at all. The diagnosis is made with blood tests for hormones and insulin resistance and an ultrasound of the ovaries. The NHS says there is no cure for it, but treatment and lifestyle changes help manage the symptoms. The Kazakhstan Ministry of Health protocol advises exercise and diet when you’re overweight.

The word “cysts” on an ultrasound sounds frightening, but PCOS isn’t just that: the diagnosis rests on a combination of signs, not one scan.

How it shows up

• Your periods are rare, irregular or have stopped
• Hair grows on your face, chin and belly
• Spots and oily skin that don’t go away after your teens
• You gain weight and lose it with difficulty
• You can’t get pregnant
• Thick dark patches of skin on your neck and armpits

Start with a gynaecologist or a gynaecologist-endocrinologist: they’ll order blood tests for hormones and a pelvic ultrasound. Often you also need an endocrinologist and a fertility specialist. PCOS is treated by doctors, and treating yourself with hormones is dangerous.