Facial Hair

Hello Kim, I am new to this site and also still pre-op.My first consultation with my second surgeon is August 11.I am only 19 years old and I was diagnosed with PCOS at the young age of 14 and I have tried just about everything.I have tried bleaching,waxing(can't do it I can't stand waiting for the hair to get long enough),nair for the face.I take 1500mg of Glocophage a day along with 200mg of Spironolactone a day I still have to shave it daily it has not gotten lighter nor has it slowed down.Lately I have been using Dove Facial Cleanser to shave with and after I shave and get out of the shower I right away put on the Dove Nightly Moisturizer.I found that it has helped alot I shave maybe every 2 days now.Hope this helps you. Becky

I have some bad news for you ladies, unfortunately had to find this out for myself first hand. The hair growth that has already started will never stop. Once a hail follicale has been stimulated and begun to grow hair that's it, it's a never ending cycle. I have suffered from the awful effects of PCO since I was a little girl. I've been on all the medications. Actually I was in studies that helped find the medications to use for PCO. I used to think I was going to grow up to be a man! I can tell you one thing that works. Electrolosis. I noticed that some other posts stated that it didn't work for them but I have to wonder if they used it correctly. It is a long process! I had always known I had hair on my chin but I just decided to pluck it. I kept getting horrible ingrown hairs and scars from my personal surgeries on them. My mother who has PCO and had electrolosis many years ago finally realized how bad my hair was and sent me to a technician. Electrolosis is a commitment. I had to stop plucking. This was very hard for me. And as I learned that your hair grows in cycles I saw that I had much more hair than I ever thought possible. I had a full thick haired gotee. I was astonished! I had no clue. And the hairs were thick, Some thicker than my leg hairs. Upon seeing that, I decided enough was enough! I went pretty much once a week for an hour for what turned out to be about a year. I'm telling you I had a lot of hair!!! That was all on my face, not including my upper lip. I can proudly stand before completely free of unwanted hair for over a year now. I don't even have scars. I'm sure you have learned as I have that with PCO and obesity that nothing is a quick fix. But I can assure you that this is a worth wild investment if youre able to make it. I had tried laser and the hair was back. and you know the other stuff is only temporary. I can't begin to tell you how it has effected me. My self esteem is improved and i have much more confidence. Please feel free to email me if you have any questions. If you're in the San Diego area I can recommend an excellent tech. I hope this helps.

Well, I keep saying I'm going to make an appointment for electrolysis but I have yet to do so. ::sigh:: I need to get it overwith because my skin is getting damaged from all the plucking and pulling also. I have to pluck almost every single day...it's so annoying. Did you have to let it all grow out thick and walk around like that or were you able to bleach it between? I'm just not wanting to walk around with thick whiskers on my face for a year! Dina

I personally have fought with pcos since my early teens. Unfortunately, it wasn't diagnosed until I was 28 years old. I'm 4 months out now, and still have all the facial hair I had pre-surgery. I have hair in the male pattern...beard and mustache. I shave in the shower daily...I don't even have to look anymore. Of course I use decent razors...not the flimsy disposable...the fancy ones they advertise on tv for women's legs. A light application of foundation after covers the little redness I have from shaving. I've tried hot wax and Nair but they really irritated my skin and it hurt a lot. I've never tried electrolysis mainly because it is mega-expensive and there is no way I could ever afford the amount of sessions I would need! LOL! For years I thought I was alone in this and I too felt more like a man than a woman. My self esteem was nil until I finally had a diagnosis. Now, I'm married and will hopefully have children. My periods have been very regular since my surgery in June '04, which is a good sign. I was taking Metformin and Spironolactone. Neither worked very well. If I have to live with it, I might as well live happy. God bless us all. Michelle 288/214/160