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The PCOS Workbook: Your Guide to Complete Physical and Emotional Health
The doctor said I'm insulin resistant. What does that mean? Will I ever be able to have a baby? I hate my body. Will it ever change? I try to lose the weight, but I m hungry all the time. Why can t I just stop eating sugary, fattening foods? I don t have diabetes? Why do I have to watch my sugar intake? Why do I have hair growing everywhere and will it ever get better? I am so depressed and moody. Is this related to my PCOS? If any of these statements sound familiar, this workbook can help you! The PCOS Workbook, a practical and comprehensive guide, helps you understand not just the physiology of PCOS, but what you can do about it. Step-by-step guidelines, questionnaires and exercises will help you learn skills and empower you to make positive changes in your life that might not get rid of PCOS, but will help you live with it Lose weight, take control over your eating and improve your health Understand your medical treatment Improve your fertility Manage the stress in your life Be mindful with your eating and in life Challenge body image myths and insecurities Overcome obstacles to becoming more physically active Cope with the challenges of infertility ...and get closer to living the life you want to live!
172 pages, Paperback
First published June 26, 2009
53 people are currently reading
294 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
December 20, 2015
I wish I had this workbook when I was diagnosed five years ago, because it would have made an incredible difference in the years that past after my diagnosis. While this is a workbook to help with guidance of emotional health, it is insightful with information that we all need to know. Such as understanding the syndrome, nutrition with a guideline that is best suited for those of us with PCOS, and the importance of body image, coping with infertility, and managing PCOS.
Each chapter has thorough information, followed by activities to complete throughout it’s length. While I appreciated the workbook as a whole, I found the first chapter to be incredible valuable because it breaks down the basics, and explains PCOS. It explains everything from the cause of the syndrome to a normal cell compared to an insulin-resistant cell, and information on the medications available for treatment, as well as knowing your numbers when it comes to lab work. Too often I wonder what my numbers should be, or lose track of what they previously were, so I found the tracking form in chapter one to be a great resource for keeping track.
The nutrition information and activities in this workbook were needed, and put to use. As someone who struggles to get control of my emotional eating, and staying mindful of my eating habits, the section was so valuable to me. I learned a lot about food and insulin-resistant, and why even those who aren’t diabetic or insulin-resistant should be aware, and still take action now, rather than later.
This is a book that should be available at every appointment when someone is diagnosed with PCOS. People need to be aware that this book is available for them, and that it will make such a positive impact on their life. It’s not just a book that you read and try to make changes on your own; it’s a book to relate to, interact with, and truly think about how you are going to make changes, while guiding you along the way. It’s a thorough book with so much thought and knowledge put into it.
Each chapter has thorough information, followed by activities to complete throughout it’s length. While I appreciated the workbook as a whole, I found the first chapter to be incredible valuable because it breaks down the basics, and explains PCOS. It explains everything from the cause of the syndrome to a normal cell compared to an insulin-resistant cell, and information on the medications available for treatment, as well as knowing your numbers when it comes to lab work. Too often I wonder what my numbers should be, or lose track of what they previously were, so I found the tracking form in chapter one to be a great resource for keeping track.
The nutrition information and activities in this workbook were needed, and put to use. As someone who struggles to get control of my emotional eating, and staying mindful of my eating habits, the section was so valuable to me. I learned a lot about food and insulin-resistant, and why even those who aren’t diabetic or insulin-resistant should be aware, and still take action now, rather than later.
This is a book that should be available at every appointment when someone is diagnosed with PCOS. People need to be aware that this book is available for them, and that it will make such a positive impact on their life. It’s not just a book that you read and try to make changes on your own; it’s a book to relate to, interact with, and truly think about how you are going to make changes, while guiding you along the way. It’s a thorough book with so much thought and knowledge put into it.
September 29, 2010
I am SOOOO glad I found this book. It was so very helpful in changing the way of thinking to control my PCOS. I have learned that this isn't a full life disease but that I can over come it and then all my dreams will come true. If I ever meet Ms. Grassi I am going to give her a great big hug! I have already started placing her ideas in practice. I can't wait for it all to start working!
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October 7, 2025Dealing with PCOS is a never ending battle. I found this to be a good resource that promotes a lot of introspection. It helped me to build some new perspectives and provided me with a stronger sense of empowerment.
May 25, 2023
I wish I had this book when I was first diagnosed with PCOS. It truly covers all the PCOS things from explaining what PCOS is, what happens, the science behind it, to what foods benefit your body the most, mental health, infertility, etc. I bought this book as an ebook, knowing that I mostly read on my iPad and I wasn't really planning on using the workbook portion. If you are (it does seem beneficial) I would almost suggest the paper version. This book is a comprehensive PCOS resource and I can see why the authors suggest you might want to take your time with it. I've had PCOS (officially) for a few years now. I've done what feels like all the research in the world about it. That being said, a lot of this wasn't exactly news to me. I still found it to be a very helpful resource. The way it is written seems like the info will stick around in my head more than other books have. While I didn't fill out all of the workbook parts, I highlighted so many things in this book that were nice refreshers, nice to learn, and also things that I want to implement in my own life or learn more about. So while this book isn't the magical answer to solving all of your PCOS woes, it's a very good resource full of helpful information (even if you've done all the research in the world).
January 2, 2019
Good book for individuals just learning about PCOS or with a new diagnosis. The workbook format helps with understanding of ones own thoughts and behaviors in relationship to well being and how that affects PCOS
June 20, 2021
A great and quick overview of PCOS with ways to treat it medically and naturally. I liked the first few chapters the most — the overview of the biology of the diagnosis and diet recommendations. The rest was helpful but nothing super groundbreaking for me personally.
July 30, 2023
This is an awesome book. Its very comprehensive and includes information for PCOS on nutrition, exercise, body, image, mood and stress management. I like that it’s written by a educated and experienced dietician….highly recommend
January 23, 2022
Typo on page 100. Should be lose, not loose.
October 28, 2024
Very helpful and about of information that I needed and will help me get on the right track now
February 10, 2025
Very helpful, for someone who does not understand this disease. Helped me see the struggles.
December 22, 2020
*I read the updated 2nd edition of this, which is what I reviewed below.
This book is a good overview of PCOS. It goes over different types of effects it has on weight, nutrition, stress, sleep, mood, etc. I found the Nutrition and Infertility chapters most helpful as these are my main things I am working to address. The Infertility chapter, in particular, was spot on with how a lot of those tests and treatments can make you feel- which in a way was comforting knowing all those feelings are expected and common.
I am not a huge mindfulness person, so I did not write out answers to a lot of the workbook questions. I read over them to get a general overview of what mindsets to be wary of when dealing with PCOS, but I got more out of the practical information the book provided. I also appreciated the list or resources at the end.
If you are very informed about PCOS, this book may not be detailed enough for you and you may want to look into a book that addresses your specific concern (diet, mental health, etc). I thought it was helpful and will use it as a good go-to resource for me when navigating bloodwork results and fertility treatment options. I may look more into the diet book recommendations for more food ideas, though.
Note: I thought it was thoughtful that they addressed men with PCOS in the book and offered suggestions and resources for them as well.
This book is a good overview of PCOS. It goes over different types of effects it has on weight, nutrition, stress, sleep, mood, etc. I found the Nutrition and Infertility chapters most helpful as these are my main things I am working to address. The Infertility chapter, in particular, was spot on with how a lot of those tests and treatments can make you feel- which in a way was comforting knowing all those feelings are expected and common.
I am not a huge mindfulness person, so I did not write out answers to a lot of the workbook questions. I read over them to get a general overview of what mindsets to be wary of when dealing with PCOS, but I got more out of the practical information the book provided. I also appreciated the list or resources at the end.
If you are very informed about PCOS, this book may not be detailed enough for you and you may want to look into a book that addresses your specific concern (diet, mental health, etc). I thought it was helpful and will use it as a good go-to resource for me when navigating bloodwork results and fertility treatment options. I may look more into the diet book recommendations for more food ideas, though.
Note: I thought it was thoughtful that they addressed men with PCOS in the book and offered suggestions and resources for them as well.
March 1, 2020
As an RD I’m always excited to find well written resources from credible sources by actual experts in a field. There’s so much misinformation out there. When I was diagnosed with PCOS after starting to have health issues, I of course wanted to know specifics of what I could do to make things better, and this workbook (also bought the cookbook and RD guide) were the standout resources. I loved the way the workbook was laid out, going through nutrition but also basics of the condition, fitness, mental health and reproduction. It was very informative regarding all the categories, but also informative to realize how I myself felt about things and helped me work through them. Highly recommend for anyone with PCOS and those who need something to recommend for clients.
March 10, 2011
Amazing book. I wish that everyone I knew was reading it because they would all understand me so much better. Every page is like 'ah ha!'. If you have PCOS buy it now!
September 16, 2012
Great guide to your health! Would definitely recommend to help women keep track of labs, diet, and ways to stay proactive with regard to helping yourself and exploring your diagnosis.
July 13, 2016
This was helpful information for me. I appreciated the information on diet, exercise, and emotional eating.
August 4, 2022
Reliable information on PCOS. Very validating in regard to emotions and symptoms surrounding the diagnosis. More detailed info on the usual recommendations like food options and lifestyle.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews