Delicia had a significant amount of uncertainty and frustration when walking through the high school hallways. While her peers seemed to be cruising through adolescence with ease, she was caught in a web of doubt, trying to figure out the mysteries her body was presenting.
Delicia couldn't help but feel envious of the other girls with their flawless skin and hairless faces. She wanted the same flawless skin and the ability to look in the mirror without noticing what she saw to be a distorted reflection looking back at her. As skin tags and acne joined her as unwelcome companions, marking her face as though to underline her perceived imperfections, her self-esteem began to dwindle.
Delicia listened to her friends whine about the annoyance of their monthly periods with a mixture of envy and longing. She thought of their oneness and the camaraderie they felt as a result of their common experiences as an unattainable ideal. She secretly hoped for the opportunity to experience her own monthly period so she could feel like a sister to other women.
She was baffled by the lack of a regular menstrual cycle. She began to doubt her femininity and young womanhood in general. Between the desire to blend in and the fear of standing out, she felt lost. Her body appeared to betray her by defying both the standards of society and her own ideals.
Delicia set off on a quest of self-discovery because she was motivated to solve the riddles she had within. She looked for answers to the concerns that troubled her, poring over innumerable books and articles in an effort to find hints that might shed light on her complex circumstances. She sought medical advice from professionals in the hopes that a diagnosis would shed light on her problems; nevertheless, she was unaware that the three-letter acronym PCOS held the secret to her knowledge.
Delicia's tension increased significantly as the days evolved into weeks and the weeks into months. She struggled about her failure to come up with a clear solution, worried that her body's protest was a symptom of a more serious, unidentified illness. As she struggled with the thought that she would never learn what was really going on inside of her, her mind turned into a battleground, filled with uncertainties and insecurities.
The mirror, which was once a place for self-reflection, now causes Delicia great distress. She averted her own eyes because she couldn't face the mocking reflection in the mirror. She wanted for the world to see past her outward appearance and recognize the depths of her existence as the whispers of inadequacy became louder and stifled her potential.
Delicia held onto the little reserves of power she had while going through this psychological upheaval. She encouraged the embers of fortitude that would not go out, resolved to look for solutions and find peace in comprehension. She had no idea that the path to self-discovery had only just begun, and that soon the darkness that had blocked her path would give way to the revelation's illumination.
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Note: This chapter depicts Delicia's perplexity and anger as she makes her way through high school without being aware of her PCOS. It highlights her search for explanations, how her physical ailments affect her self-esteem, and her growing desire to discover who she truly is.
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Blossoming Beyond PCOS: Discovering the Warrior Within
Non-Fiction"Blossoming Beyond PCOS" is a novel that explores the lives of people who have PCOS. This introduction prepares the reader for a moving examination of the challenges people with PCOS confront on a medical, emotional, and psychological level. Delicia...
