Episode #186: How to Reclaim Your Glow This Summer by Reversing Your PCOS Symptoms From the Root

Hi, and welcome back to the PCOS Repair Podcast.

I’d like to ask you something kind of personal. When was the last time that you felt genuinely good in your body? I’m not talking about perfect. I’m not talking about your goal weight. I mean genuinely good—energized, comfortable, like yourself.

If you had to stop and think about that for a second, then this episode is for you because today we’re going to talk about your PCOS and how it steals the glow from us. And I promise, this has absolutely nothing to do with what you think it does.

So let’s dive in.

Welcome back to the PCOS Repair Podcast. I’m Ashlene, and if you’re new here, I am so glad that you found this corner of the podcasting world where we talk about PCOS in a way that actually feels good. No shame, no punishment, no restrictions, no one-size-fits-all solutions—just real conversations about what’s actually going on in your body and what genuinely helps.

Today’s episode was inspired by how I want to feel this summer.

When I think about all the different ads for “6 weeks to a better summer butt” or “6 weeks to summer abs,” it brings up a lot of feelings, especially in the context of women with PCOS. There’s a lot of pressure—an invisible pressure—to show up in summer looking a certain way and feeling a certain way. We all kind of want that summer vibe.

And when you have PCOS and you feel exhausted, inflamed, foggy, and just kind of flat, that pressure can feel really heavy.

So today, I want to take a whole new meaning to this word that I’ve been seeing around a lot on Instagram: glow.

And I think by the end of today’s episode, the whole situation of your PCOS health will feel a whole lot lighter.

One of the things that I think is so frustrating about PCOS is how it really steals a sense of ourselves.

If we think back to before we started noticing the effects of PCOS—for me, that was probably somewhere around age 11 or 12, which is my daughter’s age right now. She just turned 11.

When I think about how carefree she’s heading into her summer and compare it to the last time I felt like that, you realize how much PCOS can weigh us down.

Because when I talk to women who are struggling with PCOS, the things that come up over and over again aren’t just the physical symptoms. It’s this deep-down sense of disconnection. The feeling of, “I don’t feel like me anymore,” or “I don’t feel like the way I picture myself.”

Women describe it in different ways.

Some say they feel flat, like the color has been turned down on their life or like the music is playing in the background but it’s boring and muted.

Others say they feel exhausted in a way that sleep doesn’t fix.

Some say they feel puffy, heavy, inflamed, and uncomfortable in their own skin.

And a lot of women say they feel like they’re watching their life happen, but they’re not really living it. They’re going through the motions, but they don’t feel engaged or connected to it.

Does any of that sound familiar?

Because here’s what I want us to talk about today.

This has nothing to do with motivation or willpower. It’s not a weakness. You’re not being dramatic when you say these things about how you’re feeling in your body.

That’s your body communicating that something is out of balance.

PCOS, at its root, affects our hormones, our metabolism, our inflammation levels, our blood sugar, and our adrenal system—our stress response. And all of these things have a profound impact on how alive and connected we actually feel in our day-to-day lives.

PCOS has a way of stealing our energy almost before anything else, without us even really noticing it.

And when our energy is gone, everything else tends to go with it.

Our mood.

Our confidence.

Our motivation.

Our sense of who we even are.

So if the idea of summer feels heavy instead of exciting right now, I want you to know that makes complete sense to me.

And I also want you to know that it doesn’t have to stay that way.

Okay, so let’s talk about the word glow.

I’ve heard this word used all over the internet in different ways. People talk about having a “glow up” and all sorts of different versions of that.

Working in aesthetics and dermatology for a long time, I always associated the word glowing with skin. But seeing how it’s being used today, it’s become more about the emergence of a woman’s whole personality again.

And I think the wellness industry has done a good job of trying to capture that feeling.

The problem is that it hasn’t always given us practical ways to actually create it.

So it can almost feel like one more thing we’re being left out of. One more thing we’re not achieving.

And I’m going to tell you something.

It doesn’t come from a restrictive diet.

It doesn’t come from detoxing.

And it doesn’t come from a six-week workout challenge.

So I want to offer you a completely different approach and a slightly different definition.

What if our PCOS glow came from our energy?

Our level of happiness?

Enjoying ourselves and being engaged in our day?

Feeling good in our body?

It doesn’t have to mean that our body has reached some specific metric, even if we still have goals.

It can simply mean that today my symptoms feel better.

Today I’m caring for myself.

Today my inflammation feels lower.

Today I feel less weighed down and heavy.

This is what helps a woman actually radiate and glow because her smile resurfaces.

That’s what I believe the word glow is really talking about.

That’s how the word glow shows up in my mind.

When I think about women who are truly radiant, it’s not because of how they look. It’s not because of a size.

It’s how they carry themselves.

It’s the warmth in their eyes because of how they’re feeling about themselves.

It’s the fact that they’re actually present in the conversation.

It’s the energy they bring into the room.

That’s the glow.

And it comes from the inside out.

I don’t think it’s something we can force.

I think it’s something we become by how we care for ourselves—by how we actually get down to those root causes and improve how our body is interacting with its environment.

And here’s what I find really interesting from a physiological perspective, because I love the science.

When your body is well supported, inflammation goes down.

When your blood sugar is stable.

When you actually get nourishment rather than running on fumes.

You literally look and feel different.

Your skin changes.

Your posture changes.

The tension in your face softens.

Your eyes brighten.

You smile more easily and more genuinely.

It’s not magic.

It’s biology.

Glow is not a state of perfection.

Glow is what happens when your body finally feels safe and supported.

So what gets in the way of that for us?

I think about this a lot because we are the first generation with this level of convenience.

We have access to more convenient food, more information, more stimulation, and more comparison than any generation before us.

And while a lot of this can be incredible, it has also created a constant environment of overwhelm.

Constant noise.

Constant pressure.

And our nervous systems and hormones were never designed for this kind of nonstop stimulation.

So here’s the invitation I have for you.

We get to pioneer how we use these things responsibly in a way that isn’t detrimental to our health and happiness.

Let’s look at a few of the things that steal our glow.

Because there are some big ones.

Number one: chronic stress and cortisol.

These stress hormones interfere directly with how we feel.

They interfere with our sex hormones.

They leave us stuck in fight-or-flight mode.

And your body starts prioritizing survival over reproduction, over beauty, over that glowing sense of vitality.

When we think about women who seem vibrant and alive, often their reproductive hormones are in a healthier state of balance. And while reproductive health isn’t the only thing that matters, it can be a signal that the body as a whole is functioning well.

Chronic stress is one of the first things to shut that down.

Number two: blood sugar instability.

When blood sugar is spiking and crashing all day, our energy is spiking and crashing all day.

You get the 3:00 PM slump.

The brain fog.

The mood swings.

Your body is working overtime just trying to stay regulated.

And that takes a huge toll on how you feel.

You end up with that constant almost-headache, almost-exhausted, overstimulated feeling that follows you around all day.

Number three: being undernourished.

And I don’t necessarily mean eating too little, although that can absolutely be part of it.

It can be years of calorie restriction.

It can be mineral depletion.

Protein deficiency.

Or simply not giving your body the raw materials it needs to build healthy cells, healthy hormones, and sustainable energy.

Number four: inflammation.

All of the things we’ve already talked about can increase inflammation.

And chronic low-grade inflammation is incredibly common in women with PCOS.

It affects everything.

Your mood.

Your energy.

Your skin.

Your weight.

Your mental clarity.

Sometimes you can’t even put your finger on it.

You just look in the mirror and think, “I just look… blah.”

Sometimes that’s inflammation.

Number five: the punishment cycle.

This is a huge one.

When we don’t feel good in our body, our instinct is often to punish it.

Restrict more.

Detox harder.

Push further.

Do the extreme thing.

But the body responds to punishment by moving deeper into stress mode.

That’s the opposite of what creates healing and vibrancy.

Our bodies are simply responding to the environment they’re living in.

So the question becomes: How do we change that environment?

How do we create one that allows us to find that radiance and that feeling good in our body again?

So before I jump into what actually supports that glow, I want to quickly tell you something I think can really help.

One of the most overwhelming parts of PCOS health is figuring out what supplements are actually worth taking.

There are so many options, and it’s easy to spend a fortune on things that never really move the needle.

That’s why I put together the PCOS Supplement Guide.

It walks you through which supplements are most commonly beneficial for PCOS and even breaks them down by root cause.

You can grab that through the link in the show notes.

Now let’s get back to creating that glow.

Because here’s where things get good.

When I think about what actually makes a woman feel vibrant, alive, and genuinely glowing, it’s not complicated.

It’s not expensive.

And it’s available to us.

I like things that feel easy and gentle.

Things I can maintain.

Things that feel kind.

Things that support my energy rather than punish me.

Because those are the things that lift me up and bring back joy rather than feeling like another burden.

So instead of focusing on what I need to stop doing, I like to ask:

What can I do that will help me feel better?

One of the easiest places to start, especially heading into summer, is hydration and minerals.

People talk about hydration all the time, but not enough emphasis is placed on how important it really is.

Most women with PCOS are walking around mildly dehydrated and mineral depleted.

Our bodies simply can’t function optimally without adequate water and electrolytes.

Summer is a perfect time to focus on this because the heat naturally increases both dehydration and mineral loss.

Adding quality electrolytes, sea salt, or magnesium can make a huge difference.

Your cells will thank you.

And you’ll feel so much better.

Then there’s protein.

You know I say it all the time, but I can’t say it enough.

Protein is stabilizing.

It helps steady blood sugar.

Supports energy.

Reduces cravings.

Aim for protein at every meal, especially breakfast.

Start your day with high-quality protein and watch how different your energy and mood feel.

Then there’s sunlight and movement.

Summer naturally invites us outside.

Even ten minutes of morning sunlight can be incredibly powerful.

It doesn’t have to be an intense workout.

A quiet walk while you drink your coffee or sip some water can be enough.

It helps regulate your circadian rhythm.

Supports cortisol balance.

And helps you feel energized from the start of your day.

Sleep is another big one.

For me, sleep gets harder in the summer.

I probably need better blackout curtains, but I also love the sunlight.

After such a long winter, I don’t want to block it out.

The downside is that I don’t always sleep as well.

But sleep is where most healing happens.

Hormone regulation.

Recovery.

Restoration.

Even as summer activities increase, protecting sleep matters.

And finally, nervous system support.

This one gets overlooked the most.

Especially for women with stress-related PCOS.

Deep breathing.

Quiet moments.

Rest.

Saying no to things that drain you.

Creating unscheduled space in your day.

These are not luxuries.

They are medicine.

And it’s amazing how much energy and creativity return when we create a little space.

Small supportive habits compound dramatically over time.

You do not need a massive overhaul.

You do not need to change everything at once.

Pick one or two things that speak to you and start there.

Your body doesn’t need punishment.

It needs care.

And honestly, that’s really what PCOS health is all about.

Before we wrap up, I want to touch on something that doesn’t get talked about enough.

The emotional experience of feeling good again.

For a lot of women, feeling good in their body is so unfamiliar that they’ve stopped expecting it.

Maybe when I asked that question at the beginning of the episode, you realized you honestly don’t remember the last time you felt good.

Maybe you weren’t actively miserable, but it’s been a long time since you genuinely felt vibrant.

Maybe the last time you felt that way was when you were a child.

And when your body starts feeling supported again, something shifts.

Not just physically.

Emotionally.

Women talk about feeling calmer.

More hopeful.

More comfortable socially.

More present with their families.

More willing to make plans because they actually have the energy to show up.

That’s what we’re really seeing when someone shares a transformation online.

What draws us in isn’t the weight loss or the outcome.

It’s the joy.

The realization that they didn’t understand how much of themselves they had lost—or how much of themselves was still waiting to be found.

Feeling good in your body changes your posture.

Your mood.

How you speak to yourself.

How you walk into a room.

Your relationships.

Your capacity to engage.

This is the glow I want for you.

Not a number on a scale.

Not a dress size.

Not a skincare routine.

The feeling of being genuinely, quietly alive in your own life again.

And I believe that is absolutely possible for you.

Because your body is not broken.

It is responding to the environment it’s living in.

When we begin changing that environment with gentle, consistent, nourishing support, the response can feel almost miraculous.

So where do you start?

Start small.

Stay consistent.

Hydration.

Protein.

Morning sunshine.

Sleep.

Reducing unnecessary stress.

Creating space.

Those are simple places to begin.

Sustainable healing often feels calmer and more supportive than we expect.

We expect healing to be hard and restrictive.

But often, those extreme approaches disconnect us further from ourselves.

So what if feeling punished is actually a signal that it’s not the right path?

What if the better path is often the gentler one?

This summer, my hope is that you start feeling connected to yourself again.

Connected to what your body needs.

Connected to your energy.

Connected to your life.

If today’s episode got you thinking about what might be driving your PCOS symptoms, a great next step is taking the PCOS Root Cause Quiz.

It will help you understand some of the deeper factors we touched on today.

But regardless of where you are in your healing journey, I hope today’s episode reminded you that caring for yourself in a gentle, kind, and supportive way matters.

Thank you for spending this time with me today.

I truly know your time is precious, and I don’t take that for granted.

If this episode resonated with you, I’d love for you to share it with another woman who needs to hear it.

And if you haven’t already, hit that subscribe button so you don’t miss a week of PCOS healing and encouragement.

I want you to have a summer where you feel good.

Not eventually.

Not after you’ve earned it.

But right now.

Until next time, bye for now.