Once that ran out, she found a German gynecologist who prescribed her Diane 35 - a birth control pill the doctor called 'the strongest on the market.' During her first year in Europe, she used the birth control she'd been prescribed back home. She moved to Germany from her home country, Canada, at the age of 21. She liked that she'd been prescribed birth control - it meant she could have sex with her boyfriend without too much worry. In the following years, Laube didn't think much about her cysts. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Diane 35 and metformin Although men carry these hormones in higher amounts, women have androgens, too - in fact, too low levels of androgens can cause problems for women, resulting in low or nonexistent sex drive, fatigue and muscle loss.īut too high levels can cause unwanted symptoms that can be hard to treat. The only feature necessary for a PCOS diagnosis is higher androgen levels, which can be tested by sampling the blood.Ĭonsidered 'male' sex hormones, the most well-known example of an androgen is testosterone. Although this is a classic sign of the disorder, it's not necessary for diagnosis. Some women with PCOS, like Laube, have cysts on their ovaries. Women with PCOS are more likely to struggle with their weight - around 80% of those diagnosed are obese.

It is a hormonal disorder marked by irregular and infrequent periods, excess body hair, stubborn acne and lack of ovulation. 'I suspect you have cysts on your ovaries,' her doctor said. An ultrasound proved the diagnosis right. The doctor didn't put a name to her condition it was the late 1980s, and information about polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) - which Laube would later find out she has - wasn't widespread. Laube was prescribed a birth control pill.Īlthough PCOS affects up to 13% of women of childbearing age, many do not know it exists. At the age of 16, Tanya Laube had acne all over her chest, face and back, and although she wasn't eating more than average, she had trouble controlling her weight.

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