The Holistic Health Coach's Complete Guide to PCOS

The Holistic Health Coach's Complete Guide to PCOS

Effects on Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) one in ten women of reproductive age. In the USA alone, that's about the same five million women. As your health coaching business grows, you'll likely come across at least one client with PCOS.

As oneHealth coachIt's important that you are prepared to help your clients achieve their health and wellness goals, support them through health obstacles, and empower them to maintain overall well-being throughout their lives.

For some of your clients, PCOS may be a condition that they view as a barrier to achieving their health goals, or they may simply want to learn how to manage it more effectively. It may also be true that they have PCOS, but it doesn't matter to them.

How can health coaches be helpful in these different cases? What information can health coaches offer their clients with PCOS to help them feel comfortable and fulfilled?

In this health coach's guide to PCOS, we provide you with the most important information about PCOS and review the research behind itsuch as fitness, nutrition, weight and stressmay influence PCOS risk and symptoms. Finally, we offer concrete tools and recommendations for coaches to support their clients with PCOS.

What is PCOS?

PCOS is a health condition that results from an imbalance in the hormones that support the ability to have regular menstrual cycles and become pregnant.

In women without PCOS, hormones send signals to the ovaries to release an egg each month during the ovulation period of the menstrual cycle.

In women with PCOS Lower than normal levels of estrogen and progesterone and higher than normal levels of androgen cause the egg to either not develop as it should or not be released into the fallopian tubes. The lack of ovulation alters the levels of estrogen, progesterone, follicular stimulating hormone (FSH), and luteinizing hormone (LH).

As a result of the effects on egg development and release into the uterus, a woman may have missed or irregular periods. This can lead to infertility and the development of small, fluid-filled sacs in the ovaries called cysts.

Common PCOS Symptoms

Some of the most common symptomsof PCOS include:

Irregular menstrual cycles, including missed or irregular periods. Excess hair on the face, including the chin, cheeks, and upper lip. This is called hirsutism and affects up to 70% of women with PCOS. Chronic acne on the face, but can also extend to the neck, chest and upper back. Thinning hair or hair loss. Weight gain. Difficulty losing weight. Darkening of the skin, especially where the skin wrinkles. Skin tags, which are small flaps of excess skin.

While these are some of the most common symptoms, remember that every woman can experience PCOS differently and in varying degrees of severity. It is also possible for women to have no symptoms at all.

Causes of PCOS

The exact cause of PCOS is not known. There is also nothing a woman can do to permanently prevent the development of PCOS. Some factors that experts know influence the development of the condition include:

Genetics: If a woman has a family history of PCOS, she is more likely to develop PCOS too. However, the exact gene linked to PCOS has not been identified.
High androgen levels: While women naturally have low androgen levels in high concentrations, they are the hormones that control the appearance of male characteristics such as male-pattern baldness and facial hair growth. Women with PCOS have higher androgen levels than women without PCOS.
High insulin levels: Many women with PCOS have higher than average insulin levels because the cells cannot respond to the hormone normally.
High levels of the amino acid homocysteine: This correlates with low vitamin B12 levels and an increased risk of heart disease in women with PCOS.
Vicinity: While research is still in the early stages It's clear that our bodies are exposed to endocrine-disrupting chemicals through the foods we eat, beauty and cleaning products, the soil our food is grown in, and the water we drink. Unfortunately, consumers have little control over these factors at the individual level, but government and private sector regulations can reduce our risk.
Other conditions: Women with heart problems, diabetes, obesity and autoimmune diseases are more likely to develop PCOS, especially if there are problems with disease management.

The culmination of these factors causes oxidative stress, which leads to free radicals in the body. Free radicals cause cell damage and can exacerbate these factors, creating a vicious cycle ofoxidative stressandProduction of free radicalsand ultimately disease progression. The vicious cycle can be slowed or stopped with lifestyle changes such as diet and exercise, as well as some medications.

Important facts about PCOS

Here are some important ones Factsto consider the biological effects of PCOS:

PCOS is the most common cause of infertility in women. Women with PCOS are often insulin resistant; Your body produces insulin, but your cells have difficulty reading insulin to optimize glucose uptake. Women with PCOS are more likely to develop other health problems, including:
Type 2 diabetes
Gestational diabetes Heart disease High blood pressure High LDL for “bad” cholesterol and low LDL for “good” cholesterol Sleep apnea Stroke Depression and anxiety

As you review the list above, remember one thing: increased risk is not the same as a diagnosis.

In other words, if your client suffers from PCOS, it in no way means that he will also develop type 2 diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, etc. There are several factors that determine her individual risk for each of these conditions, and it is entirely possible for a woman with PCOS to effectively treat the condition without ever developing another one.

One of the most important elements in reducing the risk of other health conditions and improving well-being is treating PCOS through a healthy lifestyle and subsequent treatment as prescribed by a doctor.

What could a PCOS diagnosis mean for your client?

There are two things that apply to any PCOS diagnosis.

Although there are a number of signs and symptoms for women to have a PCOS diagnosis, no one experiences PCOS the same way. PCOS can mean very different things for different women. If for a woman, it could have a minimal impact on her life; Secondly, it could raise serious concerns about fertility and the ability to have children.

As a health coach, it is important that you consider both when working with a client who has PCOS.

PCOS can affect your client's well-being in many ways. We've summarized some of the potential impacts of PCOS on your clients' health and overall well-being in three different areas: physical impacts, social impacts, and emotional and mental impacts.

Physical effects

The physical effects of a disease refer to how a person experiences the biological effects on the way the body looks and feels.

Most symptoms are reported as physical effects on the body.

In relation to PCOS, this can mean:

Irregular menstrual cycles, including heavy or very painful periods. Infertility. Excess facial and body hair. Chronic acne on the face, but can also extend to the neck, chest and upper back. Thinning hair or hair loss. Weight problems, including weight gain or difficulty losing weight, that are not related to diet or exercise. Skin problems, including darkening of the skin, especially skin folds, and skin tags, which are small flaps of excess skin.

It is common for the physical effects of an illness to be the primary cause of its impact on other areas of a person's life. In other words, symptoms that cause pain or negative self-image can negatively impact mental health and even a person's willingness or ability to socialize.

Emotional and mental effects

The emotional and mental effects of PCOS can occur in two ways.

Firstly, as a direct effect of hormonal changes caused by PCOS. For example, the same hormones that cause heavy or painful periods (dysmenorrhea) can also cause Mood swings.

Second, experiencing the symptoms of PCOS could impact how a woman sees herself, feels about her body, and performs everyday activities. Here are some examples:

A woman with PCOS eats healthily and exercises regularly but gains unwanted weight. This can be frustrating and affect motivation. Your client is experiencing extreme pain during her period. She may want to cancel her sessions with her health coach, eat irregularly, and have trouble sleeping. The pain causes great fear. A woman and her partner have been trying to conceive for almost a year. She is depressed that her PCOS is probably the cause of her infertility. PCOS has caused the growth of thick, dark facial hair on a woman's chin and cheeks. She waxes and shaves but it causes ingrown hairs. The unwanted facial hair profoundly affects their self-image.

These are just some of the mental and emotional effects that PCOS can have on women. The examples above are not unusual circumstances. According to the research results There are more women with PCOS anxious and depressed than the general population, and women with PCOS who reported infertility often report depression.

A study found that of women with PCOS who reported depression, 66% said it was caused by negative body image. Therefore, emotional and physical support should be closely linked when working with women with PCOS.

Finally, PCOS can have an impact on a woman's female identity and group identity. If fertility is related to a woman's core identity and PCOS has an impact on her fertility, she may face trauma related to identity adjustment. PCOS may also be at odds with their core identity or have taken an important place in their identity.

Social influence

When a woman with PCOS experiences both physical symptoms and effects on her mental health, their relationships are often negatively influenced.

If a woman has a negative body image, she is more likely to experience anxiety when spending time with her friends and going out in public.

If a woman is depressed about her infertility, Her relationship with her partner may suffer because of fear and guilt.

What Health Coaches can do to support a client with PCOS

Once your client has been diagnosed with a health condition and is potentially being treated according to their doctor's instructions, health coaches can be vital in supporting clients affected by PCOS through life changes and lifestyle changes that can improve their quality of life and overall health and well-being.

Remember that you need to pay attention to important informationwhat you can and can't doas a health coach. Obviously, health coaches cannot make recommendations that go against a doctor's treatment, diagnosis, or treatment of medical conditions. However, you can support clients in implementing lifestyle advice that has been proven to support their condition, as approved by your client's primary care team.

In particular, health and wellness coaches can help facilitate important discussions with clients in five different areas: ffitness, nutrition, weight loss, stress management and general health.

Remember, only focus your coaching on PCOS management if your client has expressed this need. If your client mentions that she has PCOS on the side, but it doesn't affect her and it's not the main reason she came to you for support, that shouldn't be the focus of your wellness coaching plan.

Once you and your client have identified PCOS management as a goal, you can work with them in any area in which health and wellness coaches are experts. Below we explore each area related to PCOS to provide you with the knowledge and evidence you need for your clients.

Fitness and exercise

Exercise is one of the most beneficial lifestyle options for women with PCOS. It can help significantly relieve symptoms and even improve inflammation and control hormone levels.

What the research says

Exerciseis one of the most effective methods for treating period pain and dysmenorrhea. Research has shown that it is even more effective than taking analgesics.
The best studied benefitsfrom…... more about that in the next part.
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