Kerrie- Let me just say I'm not an expert or anything, but have been dealing with pcos for a number of years now. I am experiencing some really depressing issues with it currently, so can understand your frustration. I am a lurker on this forum, but haven't commented (note above about being an in-expert, lol). Really wanted to post to yours though since I have the same problems. Last year I went off bc (yasmin) because of the same thing- experiencing a migraine after my period that would be so bad I would spend the day vomiting. I do rather regret going off of it, due to worsening symptoms from the sudden upset in hormones from stopping it. I resumed taking them again in Nov, but this time starting the new pack after having my period for only four days, instead of seven. I suspected (and was confirmed by a specialist I go to) that the migraines were a result of my estrogen tanking from the whole week off of it (period week). It's worked wonderfully- not even the whisper of a migraine since. Have you thought of maybe going on a different low-androgen bcp? Were you wanting to go fully natural, or are you open to Western medicine too? --- Many doctors now agree that pcos is the symptom of a greater cause, insulin resistance, which is essentially the beginnings of pre-diabetes. Have you had a glucose test done before? You might consider having a 1hr/fasting glucose test to see where you are at with that. Even if the tests DO come back within the normal range one can still have insulin resistance- your just not bad off enough to have it show on the test. That was my case. I've since changed my diet (no sugar, hardly any grains and few starches) to help it from worsening. I'm also taking NAC (N-Acetyl Cysteine) which is supposed to help with insulin resistance/pcos symptoms. It's the same with hormone tests. Even if your tests do come back "within the normal range" it still may not be right for you- this was also my case. To reduce the androgens I went on the drug Aldactone (generic Spironolactone). My total T dropped from 95 in Nov. to 10 in late Jan. For a natural alternative you might try saw palmetto (which I also take, lol), as it is an anti-androgen. -- Ps. not positive, but I believe one may have BOTH high estrogen and androgen levels. My doctor said in Nov that my progesterone was a bit low and that my male hormones might be high for me (although in the "normal" range for most women. I've always thought that "estrogen dominance" is in relation to the estrogen:progesterone ratio, where there is a decrease in progesterone, thus making your estrogen the dominant one in that relationship. DIM (Diindolylmethane) is also good for general regulating of hormones. It's made from cruciferous vegetables, so is very safe. I've been taking it awhile too. I've got several pages collected of natural alternatives for pcos that I have come across, but I will refrain from posting more since I've likely been overly longwinded yet again, LOL. Again, I am not an expert. Just sharing some of my thoughts on it... ;-) CMK

I absolutely would use the Tylenol, and might even use the Vitamins, depending on how they look and smell upon opening. Google came up with this from the Harvard Medical School - Most of what is known about drug expiration dates comes from a study conducted by the Food and Drug Administration at the request of the military. With a large and expensive stockpile of drugs, the military faced tossing out and replacing its drugs every few years. What they found from the study is 90% of more than 100 drugs, both prescription and over-the-counter, were perfectly good to use even 15 years after the expiration date. A few exceptions to this are nitroglycerin, insulin, and liquid antibiotics. Here is a link that might be useful: Drug Expiration Dates

I'm supposedly anemic, but I don't do anything about it. I am usually just below the reference range and I don't have any symptoms except that they won't let me donate blood. Once I was within the reference range, but my blood pressure was too low. So I just can't donate blood. Anyway, unless you are very anemic or are having symptoms, you may not have to do anything. Remember that reference ranges were made by taking a bunch of supposedly healthy people and seeing what their PCV was. The numbers in the middle 95% are the reference range. You could be perfectly healthy and have a different number, because the reference range doesn't say anything about whether or not the number is good. For example, if you took 10000 average Americans and got their weights, and took the 95% most common range, the reference range would almost certainly be unhealthy because most Americans are over weight. Just because most people fall within a certain range doesn't mean that it is a healthy number. Your number may be different. Now if you are having symptoms, or if your doctor feels your PCV is way too low, then you should find out what is going on. Your body may not be making enough red blood cells for any number of reasons (iron is only one cause of not being able to make enough RBCs- kidney disease, bone disease, steroids, and many many many other things can also cause low RBCs), your body may be destroying red blood cells, or you may be losing red blood cells as with a gastric ulcer or something. Iron supplements only help with one of probably thousands of causes of anemia. It's best to find out what is going on rather than to self-medicate. Unless your doctor feels that you are otherwise healthy, you may just be slightly anemic like me with no problems.

No two people have the same nutritional deficiencies, it is therefore impossible to prescribe one regimen of supplements which will be effective for everyone. Multi-vitamins, for example, are a mere band-aid solution to a problem which needs careful analysis. To determine the needs and potencies of nutrients required to correct specific deficiencies, it is necessary to learn the symptoms of the deficiencies. As long as the symptom exists, there is a need to increase the nutrient in which you are deficient. For example, if you get cold sores and warts and have bushy eyebrows, you need to take vitamin B6. When the deficiency symptoms disappear, you know that you are taking enough of it. If you cannot be bothered learning about these deficiencies, you are better off working with a holistic practitioner like a homeopath.