Trigger warning – This article includes mentions of transphobia, disordered eating, bleeding, menstruation and mental health problems.
I was diagnosed with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) after coming off the pill, which I’d been prescribed five years earlier to manage very heavy, painful and irregular periods. I would often skip months and then have a prolonged two-week period the next month. The bleeding was so bad I would leave the classroom at school, go to the toilet to pass out from the pain and then return to class.
PCOS is underresearched and incurable. The symptoms are not just ‘absent or heavy bleeding’ and affect all areas of life with symptoms of high-stress levels, muscle ache and depression.
