Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome (PMOS): Deep Dive with L. A. Sprague

PCOS isn’t gone, but the name is changing for a reason. We’re talking about PMOS, polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome, and why this new label finally points to what so many people have felt for years: the problem is bigger than ovarian cysts. If you’ve ever tried to explain your symptoms and got blank stares, this deep dive is meant to give you language that makes sense.

We walk through what “polyendocrine,” “metabolic,” and “ovarian” actually mean in everyday life, including how hormone dysregulation can ripple into energy, mood, weight changes, skin and hair changes, and fertility concerns. We keep it practical with a clear explanation of insulin resistance, why it can leave you fatigued and foggy, and why PMOS is often tied to cardiometabolic risk. We also talk about what’s commonly used for diagnosis: needing two of three key signs, plus tools like hormone blood tests and ultrasound.

Because PMOS can feel heavy, we also name the mental health side honestly, including anxiety, depression, and the emotional toll of feeling dismissed. And we end with hope, community resources, and a faith-centered reminder from the story of the bleeding woman: you are not disgusting, you are not rejected, and you are not alone.

If this helped you, share it with a friend, subscribe so you don’t miss the next deep dive, and leave a review so more chronic illness warriors can find us.

Sources:

• https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/pcos/symptoms-causes/syc-20353439
• https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/22002-androgens
• https://www.merriam-webster.com/medical/polyendocrine
• https://www.healthdirect.gov.au/endocrine-glands-and-their-hormones
• https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/21893-metabolism
• https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/22999-ovaries
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syndrome
• https://www.nyp.org/healthmatters/pcos-is-now-polyendocrine-metabolic-ovarian-syndrome-pmos-why-the-change

• https://www.patreon.com/c/CWCIpodcast
• https://www.buzzsprout.com/2552643/support

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Transcript

Welcome And Why PMOS Matters

SPEAKER_00 0:00

I'm your Jesus loving and potty host, Ellie Sprague. Welcome to Christians with Chronic Illnesses. Why hello there? Welcome to Christians with Chronic Illnesses. I'm Ellie Sprague, your host. As you heard in the intro, I feel like I repeat myself a lot. You guys probably know who I am if you listen to the intro. Which you had to listen to before getting to this point. Anyway, hi, how are you doing? You listening on the other side of this, maybe watching. How are you? Genuinely, I would love to know. And I know people say that, I know people say that, but I'm just saying, I actually want to know. So feel free to comment below or email us at CWCI Podcast. Let us know how you're doing out there, buddy. Listen, living with a chronic illness isn't easy, okay? So, how you doing? I'm glad you're here. Let me know. Today we're gonna be talking about a chronic illness. I'm doing a first the for Christians with chronic illnesses, our first ever deep dive on a particular chronic illness. And the reason that I want to do this particular one is because it had a recent name change, and I also have several friends who have this chronic illness and have also obviously done a few interviews with people who have had this chronic illness, and so I thought it'd be kind of cool to do a little deep dive on PMOS, previously PCOS, to see really what is it? What's with the name change? How does it affect people? And I know that this was a highly female-dominated chronic illness, but apparently men can have it too. I didn't know that. I did not know that. So I'm super interested in learning more. So I did a deep dive, I did some research for a few hours yesterday, you know, scrolling through different articles from Mayo Clinic, from Cleveland Clinic, and I have other resources as well. Of course, Wikipedia was in there, let's be so honest. Merriam-Webster definition. Wait, what are they called? Merriam-Webster Dictionary. It does give definitions and other things. So I will probably put the credit to those links in the description below. But yeah, so today we're gonna be talking about polyendocrine metabolic ovarian syndrome, formally known as polycystic ovarian syndrome. And I thought, what better way to start this than to go through and talk about the definition of the words in the diagnosis itself. So bear with me. Disclaimer here, I'm not a doctor, I'm not any form of medical professional. I was simply doing some research on the webs. Okay, do not take any of this as medical advice. This is simply for educational and informational purposes.

Breaking Down The PMOS Name

SPEAKER_00 3:05

Talk to your pro your doctor before trying anything you hear on this show. Okay, that being said, let's chat about because I'm actually super interested. So the first word, polyendocrine. Okay, hang with me because I know these are big words, but we're gonna figure it out, guys. We're gonna like go through these, we're gonna talk about what all these are. And if you have PMOS, again previously known as PCOS, I really hope that by the end of this episode, you'll be like, wow, I knew more, I know more about this disorder dysfunction now than I did before. That's the hope. So polyendocrine means affecting more than one endocrine gland. Okay, and you're probably like, what's that supposed to mean? What's an endocrine gland? Let's talk about it. So the endocrine system is also known as the hormone system. It's a network of glands in your body that releases hormones to regulate processes. So this can regulate things like growth, metabolism, and reproduction. What you need to know is that endocrines release hormones, and hormones are responsible for a lot that happens in your body, like growth, metabolism, which is essentially taking sugar and other things and producing into energy, and reproduction, i.e., having babies, if you know what I'm saying. So the problem with the PMOS, polyendocrine side of things, is that you are having a dysfunction of your endocrine system or of your hormonal system. Make sense so far? Alright, so the first word, polyendocrine, means that several of your hormone-releasing glands are having issues. Okay, so focus number one, hormonal issues. The second word in PMOS is metabolic. According to Cleveland Clinic, your metabolism, which metabolic metabolism, constantly provides your body with energy for essential body functions like breathing and digestion. So it's pretty important. So I looked up what metabolic means, and it is relating to the use of turning sugar into energy. And so, what you need to know is that within PMOS and the metabolic side of things, this means that your body is misusing sugar and not processing it for energy. And we'll learn later that this is due to problems with the processing of the hormone called insulin, which a lot of us might be familiar with because it is very common in diabetes. Having insulin issues is, I think, like one of the main defining factors of diabetes. Anyway, so what you need to know for the second word, metabolic, is that it's relating to the misuse of sugar for energy in your body. So number one, poly endocrine, it is affecting basically your hormones. Number two, metal metabolic, it is essentially affecting how your body processes different things like digestion and things like that, but specifically turning sugar into energy for your body. Now don't get bored, don't get lost in the weeds here. Trust me, trust me, we'll get into more like what this actually looks like on a day-to-day level. We'll get there. And I hope I'm explaining this in layman's terms. I hope you're getting me. And by the way, just as a reminder, if you're a doctor or a nurse or any sort of medical professional listening to get to know more about your patients with PMOS, we appreciate you so, so much. Your intentionality is so appreciated, and we need more doctors and caretakers like you. Ovarian is the O in PMOS. Ovarian means anything relating to the ovaries. And the ovaries are responsible for producing and releasing eggs for reproduction, and they secrete estrogen and progesterone, which are important female hormones. So essentially, ovaries or ovarian just means it's relating to your ovaries. So in this case, you're having some dysfunction of your ovary, and specifically, as we'll talk about later, you probably have ovarian cysts. So what you need to know about PMOS, polyendocrine affecting your hormones, metabolic, affecting your metabolism and how your body processes sugar into energy, ovarian, how your ovaries function, and syndrome. A syndrome is simply a set of medical signs and symptoms which are correlated with each other and often associated with a particular disease or disorder, according to Wikipedia. So that is kind of an extensive look at what PMOS means, the word and diagnosis in of itself. And when you look up different definitions of PMOS, a thing that's very commonly talked about is that there are too many androgens, which is a type of hormone that everyone has, but it's particularly more common and more numerous in men. And this works with things like voice deepening, hair growth, bone strength, red cell production, etc. But because they're specifically more plentiful in men, hence why they have beards and sometimes actually hair loss, right? With hairlines and things like that, voice deepening, when it is excess in women, that's why some women with PMOS, many women find unwanted hair growth in areas that are typically more masculine, like their jaw, like their higher thighs, like their chest, things like that. And this is again because of too many of the hormone called androgen. So I would love to talk a little bit about the name change because PMOS used to be called PCOS, which meant polycystic ovarian syndrome. And I'm gonna go ahead and try to condense why this change happened. I read an article that interviewed Dr. Recca Kumar, and she essentially, from the information I can gather from outside sources as well, and along with what she said, PCOS only represented the O in PMOS. That's just from what I gather, that's my conclusion. It only really represented the focus on it being an ovarian syndrome relating to the ovaries because it's polyystic ovarian syndrome. But if you look at PMOS, and we're gonna talk a little bit about diagnostic criteria and essentially what you need to be diagnosed with PMOS, the ovarian cysts are only a small part of what it means to have PMOS. And PMOS is actually really involved, again, as we talked about largely with the endocrine system, endocrine system, with the metabolism, and yes, also the ovarian system, obviously. But the reason, like when I was doing this research and I was learning more about how it affects your blood sugar and how it affects your energy and how it affects all sorts of things. I, even though I had interviewed people and they told me their symptoms, I didn't realize why or how that related to PCOS. Because with the word PCOS, it sounds like, oh, you have cyst on your ovaries, therefore you have PCOS. No, actually, you have to have at least two main signs of PMOS, and one of them isn't even relating to the ovaries. So I'll get into that later, but essentially the reason that PCOS was renamed PMOS according to Dr. Kumar is because this is not a condition defined by ovarian cys. It is a complex multi-cystin hormonal disorder affecting reproductive health, cardiometabolic risk, mental health, dermatology, and more. PMOS or polyendogrine metabolic ovarian syndrome is a new official name for what most people have known as PCOS or polycystic ovarian syndrome. Think of it as a syndrome of hormonal dysregulation, primarily driven by insulin resistance and an excess of male hormones like testosterone. The disorder happens to involve the ovary, but it is far from limited

From PCOS To PMOS

SPEAKER_00 12:05

to it. The reason for the change is scientific accuracy. The term PCOS obscured the wide-ranging endocrine and metabolic features of the condition, which caused delayed diagnosis, fragmented care, and stigma, while curtailing research. We have known for a long time that calling it polycystic ovary syndrome was a misnomer. Misnomer? Misnomer. Y'all know what I mean. You do not need to have cis to have PMOS. The name change should help with this, but it will take time for the culture to catch up. The name change also creates research momentum. Future research may further refine PMOS subtypes and enable more personalized treatment. So essentially they're doing it to help enable accuracy research and better treatment. PMOS is pretty common and it affects one in eight women, which doesn't surprise me because considering that two of my closest friends have PMOS, as well as I've interviewed several people who have PMOS. So this doesn't really surprise me, but what's surprising perhaps is what how little is known about it and that it was just now renamed when one in eight women struggle with this. It's kind of crazy because that name sort of led to a lot of misinformation and perhaps demeaning the severity and the condition, you know, itself. So it's kind of shocking that they just now changed it. But hey, they did whoop whoop, so we're celebrating. Anyway, so signs of PMOS can be insulin resistance. So we're gonna talk about insulin, what it does, and well what happens when it's not able to be processed. So healthy insulin function looks a little like this. You have your pancreas, which is an organ in your body, right? And that produces the hormone called insulin, which I think most of us aren't familiar with just because the awareness of diabetes is pretty common. So your pancreas produces insulin, and the insulin is supposed to help the cells use sugar for energy, right? Makes sense. So insulin helps your cells take that sugar that you ate and turn it into energy, and then your blood sugar levels stabilize because that blood sugar, the sugar that was in your bloodstream, got turned into energy. Yay! However, with insulin resistance, the pancreas still produces insulin. However, the cells resist the insulin. They're like, no, buddy, we don't want your help. Which then means that blood sugar levels increase because that blood sugar was not turned into energy, because the cells rejected the insulin and were like, we don't want your help. But then it's like, well, the insulin's like, Buddy, without your help, you can't turn sugar into energy. And they're like, What, what? So then the problem becomes that your blood sugar levels increase because they haven't been turned into energy, and then your pancreas is like, you know what I'm gonna do because I'm seeing that blood sugar levels are high. I am going to produce more insulin because then the insulin will maybe if I put more insulin in the body, it'll go help, you know, the cells, but the cells just keep rejecting it, so then it becomes this repeated cycle. And so that can look like low energy and fatigue and more. Also, hunger, weight gain, purple velvety skin patches are all signs of insulin resistance. So if you have any of those, maybe it's time to talk to your doctor. Talk to your doc. You know what I mean. According to Mayo Clinic, with PMO with PMOS, you may have many small sacs of fluid growing outside the outer edge of the ovary. Again, we're gonna talk more about this in detail. I know the scientific language is kind of, but we'll talk about it. Inside the small fluid-filled cysts are immature eggs, these are unable to regularly release eggs. Essentially, with P MOS,

Insulin Resistance And Energy Crashes

SPEAKER_00 16:35

you may have sexufluid on the outer edge of your ovary. Okay, your ovaries are responsible for the production and release of eggs, which have to do with your reproduction system, obviously, like getting pregnant and having babies, and also with your period. So, what can happen is that you have these cis, which are these fluid sacs, on the outer edge of your your ovary, and in them is something called follicle, which is literally just an immature egg. And what happens when you have an immature egg in a fluid sac on your ovary, is the result is that you are unable to release or develop eggs on a normal basis, which essentially means problems with fertility, problems with periods, problems with regulating hormones, and things of the sort. And so you're probably wondering, okay, I hear all the scientific language, I'm hearing what you're saying, it makes sense, but what does that look like practically? Well, we're gonna talk a little bit about symptoms. What do symptoms for PMOS look like? So symptoms vary person to person. According to the research that I did, some people never have a symptom, some people have extremely severe symptoms, some people have mild. And what's super interesting is because men can have PMOS, they could maybe have issues with their hormones and in issues with their metabolism, but not obviously have issues with their ovaries because they don't have ovaries. So symptoms obviously are gonna range because men aren't gonna have, you know, inconsistent periods and things of the such. But some symptoms can look like irregular periods or a lack of periods or an excess of periods, trouble getting pregnant, which is so sad. And then there's something called hirsuism, which is essentially, as we talked about earlier, male hair growth on the chin, sideburne area, upper thighs, chest, and male like hair loss and severe acne, as well as fatigue, because obviously your body isn't taking sugar, which is like one of the main energy sources for the body. It's not using sugar properly to turn it into energy, so you're not getting energy, so you're fatigued, and thus also have a lot of rain fog. The causes for PMO PMOS are unknown, but it could potentially be genetics, you know, obviously passed down from generation to generation in your gene pool, your lifestyle, which I'm not sure exactly what it's talking about. I know it mentioned that obesity can increase the severity and the likeness of developing PMOS, if I got that right. And then obviously, insulin resistance, according to this, could be a cause of PMOS, which is so rough. Some complications could be getting pregnant, pregnancy complications when you are pregnant, like because you're obviously gonna have high blood sugar, so then you're gonna have a higher risk of pregnancy-related diabetes, which I didn't know was a thing until actually recently. My friend Sam, who is studying to be a nurse, told me about that. And then I just so happened to come across it when I was doing this research. So you're more likely to get diabetes within your pregnancy. You can also potentially develop metabolic dysfunction associated steotic, steoptotic liver disease. Essentially, this is what happens when fat builds up in your liver, which is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. So, one thing as I was studying PMOS that is so annoying about PMOS, not only do you obviously have like major fatigue and inconsistent periods and hormonal imbalances, which can then cause a lot of mood disorders and mood shifts. Not only are you dealing with your current day-to-day symptoms, but you are at higher risk of developing some pretty severe conditions like this liver disease, like heart, see like heart disease. So I think that with PMOS, there's kind of an impending doom feeling that you could have if you're not able to manage your symptoms well. But other symptoms include sleep apnea, which are short periods of not being able to breathe when you're sleeping, depression, anxiety, eating disorders, because often people with PMOS have a hard time losing weight because their body's retaining so much of that blood sugar and they're struggling with weight gain because of the insulin resistance. And so when you're trying so hard, like I had a friend who said that since middle school, her and her mom would diet together all the time. And despite the amount of diets they did, she just could not get weight off. And so this would push you probably into a feeling of hopeless hopelessness and eating disorder. Maybe eating less than you should, or not eating at all, or maybe just a hopeless, you know. Of you know what, I can't help it anyway. Why not? I just eat what I want, and that could obviously add into a binge eating disorder and things of the sort. So that's pretty sad that on top of PMOS, you can develop all these mood disorders, including an eating disorder, you're at a high risk of ovarian cancer and of obesity. So there's some pretty severe diagnoses that can basically come along with your PMOS. And so it's definitely important that we don't generalize this as oh, like this is just a woman's issue, this is just a reproductive issue. First of all, we shouldn't be talking like that because women are important, our reproductive systems are important, and also this relates to everybody. Anybody can develop PMOS and it affects the entire body, it affects your hormones, which are in charge of a lot, including as we talked about earlier, growth and metabolism and things of the such.

Symptoms Complications And Mental Health

SPEAKER_00 23:05

So really, it sounds like PMOS has a lot of factors that are going on inside your body, and what could be going on inside your body in the future if you're not able to manage your symptoms well. So wow, for those of you with PMOS every single day, I think there's probably a lot that you've learned to manage because you've had this probably since you were a kid, because I think most people are diagnosed as like a middle school female typically. And so maybe since a kid you've just learned to grow with it, you kind of forget it's there, you're waxing your hair, you know, on a weekly basis without really telling anyone, and you just kind of go with the flow as the mood swings, and you're used to being obese and you know having weight gain, and you're used to your binge eating disorder and all these things. But I want you to know that you are important, and just because you're a woman, just because maybe you were diagnosed as a kid, does not make your diagnosis any less important, any less necessary for research and treatment and acknowledgement. So if you are a PMOS warrior out there, I know there's so much unseen and probably so much misunderstood, and maybe you don't even realize in yourself how it could be affecting your mood or your eating habits or your mental health. But I want you to know that this is a super, super important diagnosis, and it affects your whole body, including your brain, your hormones, right? It affects literally, if you think about it, it's affecting your mood and your mental health, which has a lot to do with your brain. It's affecting your metabolism, how you're digesting and processing foods, and well, maybe not quite to that extent, but you know what I mean, converting the sugar into energy, and then also what it is you can and can't eat and how much and all those things. So it's affecting your mind, it's affecting your gut health, it's affecting your bloodstream, and it's also affecting obviously your reproductive organs as well. This is really like a whole body diagnosis. So, whoever you are listening with PMOS, don't you ever belittle yourself, belittle what you're going through, or belittle your diagnosis. This is seriously a really complicated diagnosis, and I can see why so many people are initially misdiagnosed with thyroid issues, insulin resistance, diabetes, things like that, when in reality it's PMOS, which is a very complicated syndrome. So, anyway, I'm getting off my my rant here, but I just want you to know this is crazy, guys. Like, and then again, also like the impending if you're a hyper, what's that called? The people that they're always scared of being unhealthy, unhealthy, hypochondriac. If you're a hypochondriac too, and then you have legit PMOS, and then on top of that, you have all these potentially impending things like obesity, like liver failure, like heart failure, and you're trying to keep the weight off, and it's so hard, no wonder that it would lead you into depression, anxiety. Now, you're not hopeless. If you're listening, you're probably like, oh my gosh, okay, step off. I get it, I get it. But like you're not hopeless, okay. I want you to know that. I we we're gonna talk about obviously like potential treatment options and things like that, and then at the end of this episode, hopefully talk a little bit about encouragement during your time with PMOS. And also, I've interviewed several people with PMOS that I would highly encourage you to go listen to. One is Kylie Wicker, that one I think is particularly very encouraging, and another is Jordan. I think that one is pretty interesting as well. So I highly encourage you if you want more encouragement, if you want to relate to people that have PMOS, you can go back and look at those episodes, and they have a lot of encouragement and a lot of stories for you. But I just want you to know your diagnosis is important. This name change, I really hope is a game changer for you guys and the seriousness that this chronic condition is. And I hope that you give yourself some grace, dude. It's not just that, oh my hormones are just like whatever. I'm just like, you know, I'm just whatever. No, like, yes, it's your hormones, and that's a big issue, that's a big problem. So, like, just give yourself some grace if you're having extreme fatigue, if you're having, you know, a lot of brain fog and can't think straight, if whatever. Like, know that this is serious, know that this is real, and know that it is worthwhile to for you to research, for you to educate yourself on, for you to find people with similar symptoms and suffering and treatments as well. Okay, actually, now I'm off my soapbox. Okay, so we're gonna talk about the process of getting diagnosed very vaguely, but essentially you have to have two of three main signs. One is irregular or absent ovulationslash periods,

Diagnosis Criteria And Practical Treatments

SPEAKER_00 28:10

another is the extras of androgen, which again we talked about earlier. That's that mostly male-dominated hormone that produces hair growth and deep voice and things of such. Everybody has it, but if you have an excess of it as a woman, it can cause those unwanted things. And then third is polycystic ovaries, which is when you have those cysts on your ovaries, which hold immature eggs which cannot produce or release on a regular time. So you have to have one of these or two, two of these three signs to be diagnosed with PMOS. And different ways that they can verify this is a pelvic exam feeling around in your pelvis area, which I can imagine would be very uncomfortable, but very worthwhile to get this diagnosed so that you can get things figured out and potentially get medication or different treatments that could help you. Blood tests for hormones, right? They can measure your hormones, see if they're irregular or regular, and then polyate, and then an ultrasound, which can also help figure out if you have polycystic ovaries. Unfortunately, right now there's not a cure to PMOS, and I really hope someday that that'll change because this affects one in eight women and those kind of crazy guys. One in eight women's crazy, didn't have a cure for. But some treatment and a lot of these are preventative to prevent the onset of diabetes, of heart failure, liver failure, obesity, things like that. Early diagnosis, right? So if you see your child having some of these symptoms, I highly recommend you get them to a doctor. Weight management to avoid type 2 diabetes and heart disease. Reduce refined sugars, processed dairy, caffeine and alcohol, increase omega-3 fatty acids and other supplements, vitamins and such. But per us, I'm not a doctor. Some of these people who listed these things may be doctors, but they aren't yours. So please talk to your doctor first before trying any of these things, or at least do your research. Because they may interfere with other medications. Aerobic exercise, light walking, swimming, sleep schedules. Y'all trust me, I'm being called out here because I hate having a sleep schedule, and I used to do really good and I need to get back on it. I need to become the old lady friend again, acupuncture. Okay. Birth control pills, an attempt to regulate periods, hair growth, and other risk factors, other hormone injection pills, awareness slash information, focus on your mental health, and connect with others. And some other connections I'd recommend. Obviously, this podcast, Christians with Chronic Illnesses. We'd love to have you as a part of our community. Not only do we have this podcast platform, but we also have a Discord and a Facebook group listed in the description below. So please feel more than free to welcome Christians with Chronic Illnesses. Email us at CWC Podcast at gmail.com. Go to any of our socials. We would just love to have you. Some other ministries I'm aware of are broken and mended. They do small groups for Christians with chronic illnesses, and there are many other podcasts and platforms specifically for believers with chronic illnesses that are being put out there. So I highly recommend you make some connections. Some of those are also on our website, which is also in the show notes below. And please do your research. Look up connections in your area, look up different resources in your area of different support groups for PMOS, different shows and books, and just do your research. I know it can be overwhelming, but guys, we gotta. Listen, your body, I believe, is gonna thank you for the way that you were treating it. And it it feels good to try. So I believe in you. You got this, you got this, buddy. Now I know this all sounds kind of heavy, kind of crazy, and I hope that this has really helped you have a more comprehensive view of what PMOS is. Again, I am not a doctor, I'm not specialized in this. This is literally just for me doing a few hours of research yesterday in a coffee shop. So please take this with a grain of salt. And again, I will put the information below from where I got my sources from. But I want you to know that this isn't helpless, right? I'm very grateful to give you an opportunity to maybe help explain your condition to other people in more layman's terms, and hopefully, you know personally that it's more than just something that affects your ovaries. It can affect every part of you, really. It affects a lot. And so I hope that's encouraging to you to know that you're not crazy, you're you're valid and you have reasons why you're feeling the way that you're feeling. And I also want to encourage you again that you're not alone. Please feel free to go listen to the to the interviews I have with Kylie. She talks about the benefits of being dice with a chronic being diagnosed with a chronic illness and Jordan, where she talks about how God really drew her in with her diagnosis. Or you're more than welcome to listen to her other episodes like the halftime shows like You Called Me Out, which really talk about how having a chronic illness can deepen your compassion for other people. There's a lot of positive takes that you can see and get from your chronic illness if you really try. And so I highly encourage you to listen to those episodes. I also want to remind you of the story of the bleeding woman in the Bible. It's in several Gospels: Matthew 9, Mark 5,

Gospel Hope And Community Resources

SPEAKER_00 34:35

Luke 8, where there's a bleeding woman, she's been bleeding, hemorrhaging for years, and at this point I'm pretty sure the doctors didn't know what to do with her. And she was also an outcast from society. And I just want to remind you that Jesus did not push her away. When she crawled for the hem of his garment, she crawled through a crowd. Okay, this is what was happening. She was bleeding, she was like, Man, I want healing because not only am I in pain, probably, and also inconvenienced because you're constantly bleeding. And at that time, thousands of years ago, they didn't have simple things like pads and tampons, right? They had different ways that they needed to probably wash their fabrics and cloths that they use during that time of month. So not only was she inconvenienced, she was probably in a lot of pain, and also she was rejected by society because he was seen as unclean to be bleeding. And she went and touched Jesus' hem. And Jesus didn't reject her, Jesus wasn't disgusted by her, he felt the power of him flowing through him, and he healed her and loved her. And so I just want to encourage you guys, maybe go check out that story and remember that if you are an ill woman, if you are bleeding, if you have gone doctor to doctor and they don't know what to do with you, if you are rejected and belittled by your society as a woman who is ill and potentially bleeding a lot, you are not alone, you are not disgusting, you are not outcast, you are accepted by Christ Himself, he would not reject you, he would heal you, and he would look at you in the face, and I think he would tell you that he loves you. Okay? So today, just a reminder that's the kind of God that you serve. If you are a Christian and you believe in Jesus, that's the guy. Okay? He loves you, he's not gonna reject you, he's not gonna let you go just because you're a little different. And actually, guess what? You're not even that different. I hope that's positive and encouraging for you. One in eight women, okay? So if you're in a room of like a hundred women, that's like over ten women, I think. So you're not alone, you're really not alone, and you're not rejected. And I just it's okay to talk about what you're going through. What you're going through is serious, it is not hopeless. Okay, I hope you guys enjoyed this deep dive of PMOS. If you have anything that I missed, anything you'd like me to go back and cover or correct or talk about, please let me know. If you have any other chronic illnesses you want me to do a little deep dive on, like today, I would be more than happy to oblige to those recommendations. So comment your chronic illness, comment a chronic illness that you would personally want to deep dive on, and let me know if this was helpful. I love you guys so much. Per usual, thanks for listening. Goodbye. Thank you so much for being a part of the Christians with Chronic Illnesses community. Please remember to follow rate and subscribe to the show. You can also follow us on our socials at CWCI Podcast. And if you're interested in sharing your story, please email us at cwcipodcast at gmail.com. If you are interested in contributing to the production of Christians with chronic illnesses, please see the show notes below for subscriptions starting as low as $1 a month, or email us for a more direct way to give. This show is hosted and produced by Ellie Sprague, and our incredible logo, thumbnail, and overall CWCI artist is Brianna Middleton. This show is intended for entertainment and encouragement purposes only. Please talk to your doctor before trying anything you hear on this show. Until next Monday!