Ya-hoo that you fould a great doctor. I wish you the best and please keep us posted. I am sending you positive thoughts...
Colleen

awesome news for you!!!

and a i ;light up a cig, i puff happily away,lol...ooops..lol..

I am glad things went well for you with your new dr. and things are looking up.

If you dont mind, I was wondering why you said that you having PCOS makes understanding and treating HS much harder. I have had PCOS for 13 years and HS for only about 2. The two and never crossed paths in terms of treatments or understanding from my drs. I was wondering if there was something that you might know that I might need to know that would help me? Thanks in advance

Hugs,
Destiny

Destiny, when my doctor and i were exploring possible deeply-rooted causes of my HS, PCOS was brought up and she tested me for it so there may be a connection there....even though all of my tests came back "normal"!

Hi @Destiny. I have been diagnosed with PCOS since the ninth grade. PCOS is more than just having cysts on your ovaries. It also involves an imbalance of hormones. Insulin is also a hormone. Your body's inability to absord insulin correctly affects proper wound healing. That is why wound care is so crucial in diabetics. Now you have HS also which also leaves you with poor healing sores and wounds, add the insulin resistence with PCOS and you've got one tough situation when it comes to wound healing.
I have scheduled an appt with my old endocrinologist (he was the one who told me I had PCOS and HS!) so I can get treat for the PCOS and get some sort of relief for the HS.
I hope I didn't make it too complicated! PM me if you have any more questions!

I hate prick doctors; congrats on finding a good one. The one I have now is pretty monotone, professional, and by the book. He's almost robotic and that works for me. Last thing I need to do is go to jail for assaulting a rude self-righteous doc, heh

I don't have insurance either and have to save $50 bucks just to see the guy...which really is a blessing because the other derms around here are an easy $250 a visit. I've been on doryx for a while but its starting to not work as well. Its a $400 a month prescription but my docs office gives me a discount card so its only $25.00 at wal mart.

I see him again monday at 2. I hope he changes my meds to something stronger.

Thanks for the reply. Like you I too was diagnosed with PCOS young, I was 15, I know all about it, all about the hormones and such. You are right, my wounds did take longer to heal and I am still having problems with them as I type this. I had surgery on 5/28 and let me tell you its been a long road.

For my PCOS im seeing a reproductive endocrinologist/obgyn. She will see me along my whole journey of trying to start a family if its even possible. And for my HS I see a wonderful general surgen who treats the HS and the symptoms. he isnt just out to do surgery, he has done alot of research and wants to the best for the patient.

Thanks for letting me know, if you want to know my PCOS story I would be more than happy to tell you, just let me know

Hugs,
Destiny

I wonder if there is a connection with the PCOS. I not only have PCOS but also Diabetes and HS. I do struggle with healing and I have some that just drain for years continually. It has been just one thing after another for me so I just wondered that there are a lot of us with both. I am so very ECSTATIC for you. I am glad you have found someone who might actually better understand our condition. keep us posted on how thins are going for you!!! :)

I'm another lady here with HS and PCOS. It definitely makes healing more difficult. I wish I had an Reproductive Endocrinologist...but I would have to travel to a different state to find one. Makes things difficult...I am glad you have found a great doctor. So far, I haven't. I've recently been scheduled to go see a pain management doctor on Tues, but I'm scared to death that they won't be willing to give me anything for pain relief. My body does not react to pain medicine the way other people's do....the only thing in pill form that I've ever taken that has helped with pain is Percocet 10, and if I walk in and tell the doc that-they'll prob think I'm a drug seeker. It doesn't make me feel high, it just takes away the pain.

I hope your new derm helps you a LOT with what you are going through!

anenkletos - I too had to go to pain dr. They did treat me very much like an addict. I think if you have the records to show what you have used in the past then I think you will be just fine. She looked at me like a junkie talked to me like a junkie so I took all my clothes off and showed her ALLLLLL of me lol. I then walked away with a script and a contract. Evidentally this is a contract that you wont get pain pills from anyone else including the ER. Even if they make you feel like a junkie just show them the goods. There is no way to deny that we suffer. And if all else fails start crying and I am pretty sure you will do fine. However the one thing I noticed is I am a little irregular in the bowels. After taking narcos for a bit you will be a little constipated. Good luck! please keep me posted. I would love to see if you had better luck than I did as far as people skills of your dr.

Just a thought on pain meds and having the bowels come to a schreeching halt, not fun. I think taking Miralax or Fiberall, something on that order will help things moving, hopefully. Being a caregiver I have seen horrible constipation. I know Miralax does help and one just needs to figure out the doseage that will keep you regular. It is finally over the counter which helps also.
Mllepoulet, you are so smart. Glad you're here.
Dustbucket, good luck with the meds, and yes you still make me laugh. Yee-Ha.

@Dustbucket, I fortunately work in healthcare so I have an advantage on weeding out the bad physicians! :)
the thing with oral antibiotics is just they aren't as effective as IV antibiotics. The oral meds can bind to food, so it makes you wonder if you're even getting the correct dosage to help fight it. What other antibiotics have you tried? have you had any cultures done? Cultures really are key to prescribing antibiotics.

@Destiny, I don't have a reproductive endo but he has an gyn and reproductive specialist in his medical office. How convenient is that? I am no where near wanting to be seen by the reproductive counselor yet but it's nice to know I have a one stop shop doctors office!

@anenkletos, be very careful when dealing with pain management physicians! Do some research and make sure they are reputable. Don't worry about them thinking you're a drug seeker. People who deal with druggies on a regular basis know who is and who is not a drug addict. I hope your appointment goes very well. Be sure to describe your pain as vividly as you can. People can look at HS, all your scars and wounds, and not really grasp just how painful it is. You need to put them in your shoes. Paint a picture for them because I think that's the only way anyone can get great care.

for everyone: If you're on pain meds, take a stool softener concurrently. We already have a hard enough time dealing with HS, we don't need problems pooping!