The Heart (and brains) behind the The PCOS Newsletter #107

An intro to The PCOS Newsletter

Hello lovely people,

How do you feel about December? The month of reconnecting with your loved ones whilst dreading that big reflection point: how did this year go?

I have spoken about why I do this newsletter occasionally, but I have never poured my heart out. Here it is. My eyes watered writing this…

The heart

If I am completely honest with myself, this newsletter is written for my younger self. It’s a way of healing the frustration I felt with my body throughout my teenage and early 20s.

That frustration was so strong that I now dedicate 20h+ a week to writing in-depth articles for the newsletter, hoping that at least one woman reading this heals a bit of her frustration with her body.

The frustration came from not having control over what was happening and feeling powerless in front of doctors.

This feeling was further deepened when my dad got diagnosed with Stage 4 Lung Cancer 5 years ago, and I had zero power to help him.

My search for answers to his cancer took me to a deeper level of knowledge and made me enrol in nutrition school. I just wanted to know how to help him. Maybe part of me still blames me for not being able to find the answer for him before he passed away, even though, rationally, I know it doesn’t exist.

The brain

The brain took the heart’s frustration into its own hands and found ways to find those answers.

I started my career working in product management. I quickly diverted my full-time job to HealthTech. I have developed digital medical products alongside health professionals for type 2 diabetes, weight loss and behaviour change. I am currently working on a preventative health product in my full-time job.

In 2019, I enrolled into a 3-year Nutritional Therapy diploma whilst working full time. I spent hundreds of hours studying how the body works, the most common diseases and how to use nutrition to help them.

After that, I started this newsletter, where I have accumulated countless hours reading scientific papers, listening to other women’s stories and building impactful strategies for PCOS. The long-term goal is to make this a sustainable business so I can attend medical school.

What I love most: deep conversations, hiking in the mountains, spin classes, skiing, nature, walking, planning and chocolate.

What I dislike most: superficial conversations, arrogance, running, being late, stinky cheeses, crowds and noisy places.

I would love to learn more about you. What puts your heart on fire??

If you want to support my work, consider becoming a paid subscriber. I am running an intro offer for existing subscribers until the end of December. The paid version is built for women with PCOS who value high-quality information and want to be science-led in their PCOS journey. Expect interviews with doctors, PCOS stories, Meal Plans and video content.

This post format was inspired by Dr. Julie Fratantoni’s post on why she started Better Brain.

See you next Sunday,

Francesca