Hi, my name is Leila and my PCOS journey started in my late teens. After years of dealing with unpredictable periods, I was determined to find out what was going on with my body. I made an appointment to see my GP and, after several blood tests, was finally diagnosed with PCOS.

The news wasn’t delivered to me sensitively. All my GP said was: ‘You’ll find it difficult to have children.’ I was devastated, but as I wasn’t planning on conceiving any time soon, I put it to the back of my mind and carried on living my life (with unpredictable periods in tow). 

Fast forward fifteen years and the words of my GP came back to haunt me. At 34 years old, I was finally ready to start trying for a baby. It took months and months and months to get pregnant. Then, a week after my first positive test, I started bleeding.

Just bad luck?

Over the next five years, I experienced six miscarriages, all between 6 and 19 weeks. It was a hugely tumultuous time. There were moments when I felt like I simply couldn’t keep trying – and failing – to have a baby.

After my 4th miscarriage, I decided I could no longer bear to hear another doctor tell me it was ‘just bad luck.’ I was one of the 1% of women in the UK who suffer over four miscarriages: and this made me wonder whether I had the power to do something about it.

My lightbulb moment

Rather than sitting around being upset – although I definitely did a lot of that!  I started researching recurrent miscarriage, especially in relation to PCOS. Knowing that PCOS caused low egg quality, I was determined to find a solution. Finally, I came across a natural food supplement called myo-inositol. There were promising studies backing up its effectiveness in treating the many symptoms of PCOS, including improving egg quality.

So, I started to take it. And after a few months, I felt happier and my body was finally functioning properly.  It was a lightbulb moment: perhaps other women could also benefit from this amazing natural food supplement. I began to dig a little deeper, researching supplement suppliers and packaging companies. Amidst the pain of trying for a baby and waiting for a postive pregnancy test, it felt great to have something to focus on.

New beginnings

Our last chance saloon was to see a doctor who specialises in recurrent miscarriage. He diagnosed me with high levels of Natural Killer (NK) cells, which were attacking the foetus with each pregnancy. But under his amazing care, and with the assistance of steroids and intralipid, I fell pregnant. In 2017, I gave birth to my miracle baby, Louie - with his brother Luca arriving less than two years later.

But of course, it wasn’t just my boys who gave me hope and a new lease of life. We launched MyOva when I was pregnant with Louie, and it was the start of the most amazing journey. I’m so touched by the messages we receive from women whose lives we have helped to change – and I’m incredibly grateful that such a challenging personal experience has been a force for good.