Is anyone else dealing with this. I don't know what to do anymore. I don't want to spend a ton of money on this problem. For those who are dealing with this....what are you doing to control it or how did you get it to stop?? I am curently waxing my face...but there are other places on my body that I want to get rid of the hair.....

I'm feeling so frustrated and it almost makes me feel like less of a woman....if you know what I mean.... :c(

"What can I do to get rid of the excess hair?
If you're overweight, lose weight. Losing weight reduces the amount of hormones in your body that cause increased hair growth. Other ways to eliminate or hide excess facial and body hair include the following:

Shaving is the safest and easiest method of removing hair. However, you will have stubble unless you shave every day. Your skin may become irritated with frequent shaving. If your skin becomes irritated, apply a small amount of 1% hydrocortisone cream.

Depilatories, or creams that remove hair, can be used. They leave no stubble. However, these creams may irritate your skin. To test how sensitive your skin is, apply a small amount of cream to the inside of your wrist. Wait for one day before applying the cream to other parts of your body. If you don't have a bad reaction to the cream on your wrist, it's probably okay to use it.

Bleaching paste may also be used. Apply the paste to your skin and let it remain for about 10 minutes. Then remove according to the directions on the label. Bleaching products may irritate your skin.

Plucking and waxing can cause skin irritation and make the hair grow faster by increasing the blood supply to the follicle. These methods aren't recommended.

Electrolysis gets rid of hair permanently by delivering a small electrical current through a needle placed into the hair follicle. Electrolysis is expensive and time-consuming. If you choose to have electrolysis, make sure the operator is qualified and licensed. Home electrolysis products and electronic tweezers don't work well and are not recommended.

Laser hair removal uses a laser light to damage hair follicles so unwanted hair falls out. This also prevents the hair from growing back. You'll probably need multiple laser treatments over a number of weeks, and the results may not be permanent. Laser hair removal is very expensive and can only be done by a licensed practitioner. Side effects of the procedure may include redness, darkening or lightening of the skin, and scarring.

Are there medicines to treat hirsutism?

Yes, your doctor may prescribe a medicine called an anti-androgen to help control the male hormones that cause hirsutism. Anti-androgens usually take at least 3 to 6 months to work. They can decrease the amount of new hair growth, but they are less likely to change the amount of hair you already have.

There is also a medicine made specifically to slow down the growth of facial hair. It is a cream that you apply to the affected skin on your face and chin. This medicine can start to work as soon as 4 to 8 weeks after you begin treatment, but it may take longer in some cases."

http://familydoctor.org/x1837.xml

Although I do not have this symptom yet, it is associated with polycystic ovarian syndrome. It is one symptom the dr. looks for when diagnosing this condition. Also skin tags and obesity and male pattern baldness or thinning hair.

Irregular periods and elevated levels of certain hormones can show that this condition is present. If so certain hormones can be adjusted to alleviate the symptoms.

Best of luck, Cathy

PCOS (http://www.4woman.gov/faq/pcos.htm)

You know Cathy, thank you. I have had cysts, since about the time I started gaining all my weight, and I never bothered to look up info on them --because I was so young when I was first diagnosed--. It explains alot about me, and I joke that I am a hobbit --since I realized my feet hair is getting to thick for my comfort, as is some hair on my thighs and bum--. I just have to think of it this way though. My friend has alopecia and has no hair, and is so self conscious about it, I have to think even if I am a hobbit, its easier then not having any hair. One woman she knows with alopecia talks about how it isnt fair that the only hair on her body, grows on her toes.

I can understand when you say Trixie that it makes you feel like less than a woman, luckily I dont have facial hair, but the hair I do have makes me feel that way too.

Well tomorrow I go for my results of all my hormone tests and the lovely internal to find out for sure if I have PCOS. I wont be surprised if I do because of the bad meds I was on for years. I have left temporal lobe epilepsy and I was on valproate acid for many years, both of which leads to PCOS.

The only bummer is that it can lead to long term effects that can be dangerous. At times we over look how crucial our hormone balance can be for our health. Excessive weight is just one on a very long list, including cancers ect..

I have to say that I am still not a hairy person, but I have lost a lot of head hair and have other symptoms such as high levels of prolactin as well as messed up periods.

I will let you all know the results of my lovely test tomorrow. Proactive medicine is always better than reactive.
:)

My sister and my aunt have Alopecia. Currently my sister is wearing a wig, as this is the 3rd time in her 19 years that she's gone completely hairless all over for a few years. Unfortunatly, she's also had a tumor on her petuitary gland, (I think that was the one) and she also has high prolactin levels. Me on the other hand I have to shave my armpits every day and even when I do my sister cracks that it looks like I didn't by noon. It's strange the luck of the draw that comes with genetics. Me, I'd take my hairy armpits over the complete baldness. But about the hair on other parts of the body...I know what you mean. I don't know what's a normal amount of hair and what's excessive. These days the media pushes for the prepubescent look, if you know what I mean. But to me that's kinda creepy and promotes predatorial like behaviour amongst men.
*sigh* the woes of being a woman. I hope all goes well on your test me2!

Hi all,

i too have issue of unwanted and alot of hair. i have always had that issue, my doctor has always told me he can't do anything unless i lose weight (i don't see him anymore). I think you need to look around you. I am australian, and work with people from all cultures, and most women have this problem, of unwanted hairs all over the place. In fact, i have seen some beautiful gorgeous women, who have dark hairs on their backs, and stomach. i feel quite normal actually, it is just that society says we shouldn't have stray hairs, and we should all look like models, when actually, 98% of us have stray unwanted hairs, and we don't look like magazine models.

anyway, i have been waxing my neck, plucking everywhere else, but waxing irritates my neck, so i think i will have to use something else now. d
8-|

I always been diagnosed with PCO's as well. I am also being treated for Insulin Resistance which goes with PCO's. I am being treated by an Endocrinologist for the Insulin Resistance and PCO's. That is their speciality.

Insulin Resitance is a metabolic disorder. It is also know as Type 2 Non Insulin Dependent Diabetic. Your body makes too much insulin therefore your cells become resistant to it. So the food that you eat turn into fat cells faster then they can be used for energy.

Each time that I go see my endocrinologist my glucose levels are checked. If your body continues to make too much insulin then one day it will stop all together. Then you become a Type2 Insulin Dependent Diabetic.

PCO is something that doesn't go away with just losing weight.It is a lifelong disorder for women. Don't let anyone tell you differently.

http://diabetes.niddk.nih.gov/dm/pubs/insulinresistance/
http://www.obgyn.net/pcos/pcos.asp

Well I had a good appointment with my doctor. Although some hormone levels were still off, specific ones he did, suggest no true signs of PCOS.

I am relieved at the moment but still watching for the signs because of my history and high risk factors.

He told me my testosterone level was up .2 over the healthy number. So that was a tad bit elevated, however he said if the unwanted hair doesnt start appearing then it shouldnt be an issue. So far I am O.K.

I think many women have this condition and blame themselves for obesity when really there are other factors leading to it. I just hope my doctor was correct and I am alright for the time.

Ria, thanks for the info. Hope all goes well for everyone, Cathy :)

I'm an esthetician and wax faces all the time. Waxing is preferable to shaving because it does, over time, help to thin the hair.

That said, when I was diagnosed with PCOS and had excess facial hair, I opted for laser hair removal. I was so bad that I was getting a 5 o'clock shadow -- at 3 o'clock! The laser treatment was not painful (under the nose is a little tender) and after 1 treatment, I saw a big difference.

The clinic I used had a 5 treatment package over 6 months, followed by 2 years of touch-up every 12 weeks. My daughter also had this package. The cost for each of us was $1,200.

It worked beautifully for me, but less so for my daughter. She is back to regrowing facial hair. We now live in another country so she will have to wait until she returns to the US for college next fall to resume her treatments.

I hope this answers some of your questions. I know that dealing with the issue is tough, and the laser treatment is expensive.

Kathy