after the weight loss, dose your face hair go away and your head hair come back?

Hello My name is Dee Dee, I'm 22 and have PCOS. I have not had any surgeries nor on pills, but I'm on a low carb diet and seems to be working on the weight problem, but I'm wondering on the face hair and head hair. After you loss all your weight dose your head hair grow back and dose your face hair go away? Thanx  ^=^

I haven't started losing my head of hair yet but I was secretly hoping I would lose hair other places.  I hope some fellow RNY members with PCOS will reply.

After my RNY, I lost about half my hair on the head.  I am over 2 years post op, and yes alot of it grew back, but it is still alot thinner than before I had surgery.  I used to have the fullest, thickest hair, but now thin, and I have to use product to make it look full.  The hair on my face still grows like it always did, along with other places I wi**** would slow down.  I can get by with plucking the chin and side of face,  and a wax every 2 weeks on my eye brows and upper lip.

Dee Dee, have you also been checked for other hormonal imbalances or thyroid issues?  I am having these checked as soon as I am able after my DS on January 9.  I read somewhere that an underactive thyroid can mock the symptoms of PCOS as well.  Good luck!

Hi Dee Dee, Sorry to say that none of my facial hair went away after my gastric bypass. The abnormal hair growth associated with PCOS isn't related to the weight gain... it's all hormonal. The weight gain is caused by the PCOS, and losing weight will 'help' with the symptoms. It's a vicious circle. Yes, things (periods, etc) normalize with the surgery, but it's not a fix for PCOS. My periods continued to be very irregular even on the pill and every other birth control/ hormone regulating thing that my doctor tried on me. I would assume that the hair growth on your head wouldn't be affected much by weight loss either. I don't have any first-hand experience with that because that was never an issue for me. I think that has a lot to do with genetics... I know people with PCOS that are experiencing hair loss whose fathers were balding, etc. My father isn't balding, so maybe there is some connection there? Anyway, good luck to you! I know it's a pain.. my tweezers are used way too often. Melissa

hi deedee :) first of all. my doctor explained this all to me. PCOS IS directly related to your weight.  all that fat around your intestines is blocking the production of female hormones and therefore producing male hormones.. lose the fat = lose the male hormones = lose the pcos symptoms why are you not any medication?  go now, get on Glucophage to help you with your insulin resistance which pcos women naturally have.. low carbing is a great thing to do by the way.. and get on Spironilactone which supress the male hormones! you'll see noticably less facial hair and body hair and after a while, less hair loss and perhaps some growth.. you also need to get on birth control, that will further regulate your system and do more in terms of blocking those awful androgens/ male  hormones.  if your doctor doesnt know the first damnest thing about pcos, get another one! my dr deals with a lot of weight loss surgery patients and he told me that he has seen women tht looked like middle aged men! he said full beards, barely any hair on their heads, and after they lost all their weight, their beards fell out and their hair grew back. he said sarah, i swear to you, i've seen it with my own eyes!  why would he lie? keep low carbing.. but dont do it in a way where you're gonna freak out and binge on a bag of reeses cuz you cant take it anymore. please, please, please go get on medications!!! trying to control pcos by low carbing alone is just not the way to go. and by the way, i've had pcos since i was about 12. been noticably bald since i was 15. contact me i can share massive amounts of helfpul info!  xox sarah

i have been dealing with PCOS since i was 12 years old although the doctors then didn't know a dern thing about it. I was put on many medications throughout the years and none of them worked for me. I had WLS 3 years ago and i have not had any relief of the problem of hair on my face and body. i started losing the hair on the top of my head when i was 21. none of it has came back since my WLS. the follicle is dead and will never regrow. it's impossible. if it's caught soon enough then i think the devastating effect may be reversible but once the follicle dies there is no hope. i have resolved to shaving my head and buying wigs. i look at the bright side of it that i can change my hair style anytime i want, have any color i want, have any length i want at any time. it can be fun. bad hair days are a thing of the past. i did the hair club for men and women thing for a while but that became too expensive. i joke with my husband that when we are in a public place that if i don't get my way and he tries to argue with me i just say "don't make me take my wig off" hehe..........i quickly get what i want.  all my friends and family know i wear a wig, i'm not ashamed of it. it makes me feel good and even makes me feel pretty. i am not ashamed of showing anyone my bald head either. it's me and although it took many years to learn it, i love myself..........baldness and all. Cherie

Wow! I think I love you! I hate all the shame in this world and we need more real people like you! Thanks for recognizing your issues in a real way AND working through them! You're wonderful!

There is also a new FDA approved drug, Vaniqa, that works on unwanted facial hair, by helping at the follicle level with hormones, to suppress new hair growth.  So, wax or tweeze, as normal, and then add the cream. Not sure how effective it is, does state it takes 4-8 weeks to start to show improvement, and will revert back with time, if you quit.  But after trying everything else, I figured "what the hey!" and am giving it a try. Don't have an issue with the hair on my head.. just this darned goatee... *just kidding.. sort of..*

Hi -- Vaniqa works, slowly, but it does helpsome (at least it has for me). It doesn't make it go away, but it becomes more fine and less bristly I guess would be the word -- I have to shave EVERYDAY and have a five o'clock shadow by 3 pm -- with the Vaniqa, it is much less noticeable. I used it everyday for a while, but when my prescription ran out I didn't get the refill -- I AM AN IDIOT -- hair came back with a vengeance -- I have gotten the refill and am using it again, but it does take about a month before you notice anything at all.