Jurie

About me: I'm 18 and hairy! I have been hairier than other girls since I was 10 years old (before hitting puberty). I have thick black hairs all over my legs and especially my thighs. I shave them off and they're back the next day, sometimes even before that! I have a lot of hair on my lower back and butt cheeks. I hate hair on my stomach. I hate hair on my sideburns that I bleach every week. I have upper lip hair that I thread every 2-3 days (even so, I can't get every hair because some are still too small and are growing, so it always looks like a mustache).

I've looked into PCOS. But, I don't seem to have the symptoms:
- Irregular or no menstrual periods: NO! I've been keep tracking of my periods for about a year, and they're regular - once a month.
- Acne: Not really.
- Obesity: I've never been obese. I have gained 20 pounds but I'm still average weight and healthy.
- Excess hair growth: YES (unfortunately!)
- Weight gain: Yeah, when I moved to America I gained weight but I lost 10 pounds this summer, so...
- Oily skin: Not really.
- Dandruff: Not really, sometimes...
- Infertility: Don't know. lol.
- Skin discolorations: Nope.
- High cholesterol and elevated blood pressure: No.
- Abnormal hair growth and distribution: YES!
- Hair loss (head): Nope, my hair on my head is pretty thick!


So then I thought perhaps it has something to do with my Middle Eastern heritage. But NONE of the women in my family have my problem. I grew up in the ME and I was always the hairy girl in my class with a mustache!

So what can it be? Perhaps I just have a hormone imbalance?




How can I find out? What kind of doctor should I visit? And what do the tests usually consist of? Somewhere I read that they collect blood and somewhere else I read that they collect Saliva. And I'm hoping that I won't have to show them my body hair (I'll probably faint from embarrassment!). If I just have a hormone imbalance, can it be cured? (oh, how I hope...).

Thanks! I don't know how much longer I can take this and stay up at night or wake up early to remove hair... so freaking unfair, I can never wear shorts, tank tops, skirts, etc!

Kamesha

I don't think you have PCOS but there are many many causes of hirsutism...including heredity. Start with your family doctor and your gynecologist. Good luck!