Hairy fuzzy cheeks/neck/sideburns

strongernow · 11-19-2005, 06:55 PM

I always thought it was normal to have "fuzzy" cheeks and sideburns and near or just below your ear on your neck, because my sister used to shave hers (as far as I know she doesnt have hursitism) and I noticed my face has become alot hairier. Its fine blonde hair but its really long (i think I could braid it!) and there is a lot of it, kinda like a babies hair. It seems to be getting worse and when I put makeup on it cakes in those areas making it more noticeable. Well yesterday I went shopping and I saw a girl working at a store who had it really bad, and I thought to myself "is this what I really look like to people?" So today I shaved it all off..and oh boy did alot come off! Now I am scared to death of it growing back darker or prickley. I did this with my chin and upper lip, its blonde hair as well but now it grows in very prickley and I continue to shave it every other day..its very annoying and I cant do laser on it, I tried Elecrolysis but the hair is so light and theres a lot of it so it was hard to see for her I guess, and taking way too long

. Does anyone else have this cheek/sideburn hair? how do you get rid of yours, and has it gotten worse since you've removed it??

Becoming Sarah · 11-19-2005, 07:02 PM

I have fine blonde hairs on my cheeks and face. For a while it seemed like it was growing longer. It's not gotten worse though, in fact I think the hairs have shortened a bit and are more normal. It's just peach fuzz. I think I've noticed improvement with the peach fuzz since I've been taking Spironolactone and Yasmin. I've never shaved any part of my face. i get electrolysis for the peach fuzz and the few other thicker hairs that bother me on my chin, and that's worked well. Almost every girl has peach fuzz. Also, if you're really thin, sometimes girls grow more baby hair on their face because their body is trying to keep warm. My baby hair showed up when I was really underweight.

strongernow · 11-19-2005, 07:05 PM

so its possible for it to get better? I just dont want them growing into terminal hairs, they are fine but longer than they should be, or from what I notice on most girls. I am hoping to go onto spironolactone next month..hopefully it will make my face not so damn fuzzy.

Becoming Sarah · 11-19-2005, 08:23 PM

well, my peach fuzz has not turned into terminal hairs, except for on my chin. I had some fuzzy hair there that ended up turning into darker coarser hairs. I still have peach fuzz there too that is blonde and fine. from what I understand, if you go on medication that helps lower or block your androgen production, your peach fuzz will not progress into terminal hair. tweezing can make it worse. shaving doesn't make it worse, but it just makes the hair FEEL thicker and corser because the razor cuts off the tip of the hair so it's not soft.

rach3kids · 11-20-2005, 07:41 AM

I shave mine and they havent turned terminal. I found the fuzz was getting longer and more noticable, so why not shave it as I was already shaving goatee region. I think its plucking that causes the hair to become coarser.

Eva37 · 11-20-2005, 11:38 AM

hi

I shave my side burns, along with under my chin.
Eva

strongernow · 11-20-2005, 04:14 PM

thank you! I dont feel so much alone now

squidge63 · 11-24-2005, 02:50 AM

Many women who dont have pcos have the peach fuzz on their face. it is also a fallacy that if you shave your hair it will come back darker and more of it, it will feel coarser because it has been cut. I am on spironolactone and noticed that above my sideburns around the temple area of my head i actually had new hair growth, it is peach fuzz and doesnt bother me. A few people on here will have seen my other posts on here where I have explained why I grow my beard. I tried coming off the spiro as it didnt do much for me and i dont mind my hair, but have had to go back on it for other medical reasons.

strongernow · 11-24-2005, 04:30 AM

Hi Squidge-yes I have seen some of your posts and wish I had half the courage you do to just let all my hair grow and not care. Of course our situations are a bit different in the reasons and why I couldnt.. I know everyone has peach fuzz on their face but mine gets so long it sticks out and on my sideburns and cheeks looks thick, and looks horrid when I wear foundation. I am not too too concerned about it but I dont like the stubble feeling, it makes me feel manly and I dont want anyone touching those parts of me..its the main reason why I am not in a relationship because of the hair.

squidge63 · 11-24-2005, 06:02 AM

I hope the spironolactone works for you, I am sure it will. I was first put on it about 22 years ago and it did help with the hair growth on my face. At that time i was in the straight world and as you know being female and hairy is seen as not normal, but as I say what the hell is normal as it is different for everyone. So i would do the usual get rid of the body hair ritual we all know soooooo well, apart from my arms and the streak of hair that was a line heading up towards my belly button. I had boyfriends, I wasn't going to let some body hair stop me from having fun. At the time the spiro seemed to slow down my hair growth and it lessened any new growth. None of the guys I ever went out with said anything about my hair even if i had some stubble on my legs. When i was taken off the spiro the hair went back to its usual growing rate, just meant i had to shave more frequently, and somedays no matter what i did i had a 5 o clock shadow, again it never stopped me from getting a guy. OK embarrassing moment lol only one guy said ohhhh you have a hairy butt (peach fuzzy hair), its nearly as hairy as mine... (and he was hairy), so i said yes i have, and he said oh ok ... and he was fine about it... and also if ever anyone asked me why i was hairy, male and female friends or people i met i told them that i have a medical condition it causes the hairyness and other things.. they all went ohhh thats interesting i have never heard of that before...

Try not to let it grab a hold and stop you from enjoying yourself, I know it's easy to say that, but if you let it win it will only make you more unhappy, if that makes sense. I had plenty of times when i was in my 20's when i thought i was a freak or why did i have to have so much hair, but i still got up went out to parties and enjoyed myself.. I wasnt going to let some body hair ruin my life... hell (unless you have the disease where all your hair falls out everywhere on your body), we all have body hair male and female, my friends who dont have pcos shave their legs quite frequently, they shave their armpits, the majority of females on the planet have to shave at somepoint. So we grow it in some of the wrong places for a woman, it just means we have to shave a bit more. As one of my docs said to me many years ago, even without pcos you would be hairier than most.. some races of people are.

I know it is different for me than the rest of the wonderful women on this site, we have to go so through much and at times i know we think the world is caving in and you are the only one suffering from it... but look how many of us there are, we are still here, some if us have partners, some are married, some have kids, even though it may take a long time. Everyone of us on here are exceptional women, we have to be and it shouldnt inhibit you in anyway, go out there be strong and have some fun. If people query the hair just tell them, you will be surprised how many will understand you, i know its scary at first because you think, omg they have seen my hair, what do they think etc... but when you tell them why they usually understand.. a few times i was asked was i going through a sex change, so i told them no i have pcos.. when i finished the woman who asked me said, ohhh my daughter is taking after her dad, he is Italian and is very hairy.. and we sat there for a good 45 mins or more discussing hair and stuff..

Can't help you much with the make up, i stopped wearing that about 10yrs ago. I know they do hair removal creams, lotions, sprays etc.. for legs and bikini etc.. but maybe someone will know on here, do they do creams for facial hair? that might be one way of getting rid of it without it feeling coarse through shaving.. ?? I never had a problem with make up as i shaved sometimes 2 - 3 times a day if i was going out in the evenings.

strongernow · 11-25-2005, 03:09 AM

Thank you very much for writing that Squidge, your stories are very much enlightening. I think its more difficult to except when you are younger and have a lot of peer pressure along with comparisons to other girls who are "normal". The thing is I do have a very care-free attitude or atleast try my hardest to, I have dated quite a lot and been in some serious relationships, and I have always had a hair problem yet not this severe like now. It didnt stop me before, but I think I was pretty much oblivious to it before too. Now that I am more aware of it coupled with all the other symptoms..it just has brought my self esteem down so low that I dont want to even look at myself let alone get in a relationship and have to explain it all to a guy. I enjoy being able to not to have to shave all the time, the parts people cant see, because I am single and have no need to shave for someone.
Almost every guy I have known has been grossed out if a girl has too much hair or thinks every girl should be airbrushed and hairless like cover models. Maybe it is the bit of difference in culture in the US too for the reasons why many guys are anal about girls being hairfree. I once had a guy tell me that if a girl didnt wax he wouldnt date her because he couldnt stand feeling stubble. I know I shouldnt care and to think someone will love me for who I am, hairy or hairfree..but until that time comes and I find that person its hard for me to even except it myself.
I have tried depilitory creams on my face too, and it worked but still comes in stubbly, they also will give you hypopigmentation after a while so I stopped using them and went back to shaving.
I think I could deal with the hairyness if other people I knew excepted it more, I hate sticking out and calling attention to myself because I would rather be left alone and not questioned, but I have no problem opening up and telling someone something if they ask.. I just fear they will be disgusted, or worse use it against me sometime. But again I think it has alot more to do with me excepting it, I feel very unfeminin and "tainted" if you will, and I hate having to spend so much time on myself to look ok since I am a pretty simple girl and dont like wearing a lot of makeup or anything-I do it to cover acne and blotchiness, thats it.

squidge63 · 11-25-2005, 04:57 AM

I know it is hard and I get days of low esteem and low confidence, not to do with any of the pcos issues anymore, but other things in life. I was fired from my last job (I didnt like the job anyway, and it didnt help that after only 3 weeks of being there I had a month off sick thanks to the Metformin and its wonderful side effects lol).. In 20 years of working I had never been fired in my life, and that threw me right into a deep pit, 2 3 months earlier my girlfriend finished with me, and the month after I was fired, someone drove into the front of my car when it was parked and my car was written off... I know they say things run in 3's and boy they sure did.. I tried for other jobs and got interviews, but after being fired my confidence and self esteem were really low. I did get one job after a year of being unemployed, and just to build my confidence up again, it was for 4 hours on a sunday... when my references came through I then recieved a letter saying we are withdrawing our offer of employment due to unsatisfactory references... well my non existant self esteem and confidence dived even lower. What really made me mad is that one of the jobs I got a glowing reference from when i was going for the job i was fired from, then turned round and gave me a bad reference. Lucky they fired me really as I wouldnt have been there much as in 2 years i have had 5 operations and would have had to have time off. I am so petrified of going back to work now as it has now been over 3 yrs where i havent worked.

I have been there as well and know how you feel about the hair, and I agree there are many many men who think a woman has to be totally bald where hair is concerned (apart from your head of course...lol ), it is the same the world over. Mind you i watched a programme about 3 yrs ago on guys who search the world for women who are hairy as they totally love, adore and worship them.... I think the hair removal creams should come in nuclear strength, as whenever i tried any of the hair creams it took the odd few away and the rest it just made my hairs go crinkly and they hung in there for all they were worth, so that was a waste of time, and one of them i tried nair i think it was left me with blisters where it felt like it had burnt me. Didnt ever try it on my face as I have a sensitive skin.

I think you are pretty and it doesnt even look like you have a problem with hair on your face, I always had a 5 o clock shadow in my pics, dont suffer as much with that now as my hairs are predominantly white/gray now. When it was jet black it was a nightmare. I never really liked make up much but had to use foundation to cover the shadow up.. I agree with you though, it is about being happy with yourself, it has taken me a long time to get to where I am today, it didnt help having to tell myself i wasnt gay, then coming out and being me, and since then realising that I wasnt supposed to be born a female, being gay and the latter were locked away in my head for years and years before i could get to grips with it... I am sure it will come to you in time, we are all different. I used to think that people would think i was a freak if i told them about the pcos etc... and anyone i have told has been fine about it.. the way i look at it is if they are going to make fun or use it against you then thay aint no friend of mine... you should find that the spiro will help with the hair as long as the dose is high enough. At least you are not alone, you may feel it sometimes, but there are plenty of us on here to turn to if you need help or advice or just to get something off your chest..

Take care
Squidge

ScaredSally · 11-25-2005, 02:22 PM

Dont mean to interupt your convos girls

But with regards to the peach fuzz which I have also .. I wax hurts like HELL but no stubble ....I do it myself ... the worst part is the sideburns .. OWWWIEEEE

squidge63 · 11-25-2005, 02:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ScaredSally

Dont mean to interupt your convos girls

But with regards to the peach fuzz which I have also .. I wax hurts like HELL but no stubble ....I do it myself ... the worst part is the sideburns .. OWWWIEEEE

Owwwwwwwwwwwwww is all I have to say...lol Tried wax once on my face and it did nothing at all. Tried it on my leg and stomach and again it didnt do much, but it left me with lovely little red spots where it had managed to remove the odd hair, and then it was really itchy and sore.. I think you are extremely brave waxing, but i think waxing peach fuz hair is easier than probably waxing my facial hair which is tough, I tend to wet shave as an electric razor doesnt give me a clean enough shave when I do shave. You're not interupting at all, the thread is about peach fuzz and getting rid of it...

isenephthys · 11-25-2005, 03:27 PM

wow... ya'll are getting really deep into the conversation.

just wanted to add my two cents... nikki, i think you are just beautiful and i totally understand how you feel about the fuzz!

i think it is one of the aspects of pcos that bugs me the most (ok, a toss up between the fuzz and the weight gain.) i find that bleaching every couple of weeks makes the peach fuzz less noticeable (i'm extremely pale with black hair! argh.) i am also just about to begin my third month of diane-35. i have noticed a drastic decrease in the amount of hair growth. i used to have to pluck dark terminal chin hairs ever couple of days... now i pluck maybe one or two twice a week. the hairs on my upper lip are still darker than i would like, but they are finer and decreasing. i'm not having to use the delepatory (sp?) nearly as often. i still have my days where i feel like a fat, hairy freak but it is getting much better.

and squidge, you seem so confident and well-grounded. i really admire that. i love reading your posts. i hope that one day, i can feel that secure in myself.