PCOS – or polycystic ovarian syndrome – is a fairly common hormone disorder. Amongst the symptoms, someone with PCOS may experience excess facial and body hair usually on the face, chest, back or buttocks. This is because they’re producing too much of the ‘male’ hormone, androgen.
If you’re reading this, the chances are you have PCOS. You may feel embarrassed by the extra hair on your body, you may think people notice it. It may be affecting your social life or even your love life. You may feel you’re in an endless cycle of trying to get rid of your excess hair. You’re not alone.
Studies suggest PCOS affects up to 10 percent of women, with 90 percent having some level of excess hair. So, what can you do about it?
Shaving
This is a temporary method, and you may well need to shave every day so you don’t get regrowth. Shaving can cause irritation too, especially if you have to shave a lot. For women, shaving is not recommended as a way to combat facial hair. Shaving over a long period of time can also stimulate the hairs.
Waxing
Waxing has a longer lasting effect than shaving, as it pulls the hair from the hair follicle and the hair takes longer to grow back. You can pretty much wax any part of your body, but you may find that waxing your face brings you out in a rash. Of course, in order to wax your hairs, you need to grow them to a certain length first.
Depilatory creams
These creams use chemicals to dissolve the hair shafts. The good news is you won’t have stubble. But the chemicals may irritate your skin, and you definitely shouldn’t use the creams on broken or irritated skin. A patch test is important to ensure you don’t have a reaction when you treat a larger area, or your face.
Electrolysis
This treatment can destroy the hair follicle permanently by passing an electric current into the follicle via a fine needle. Electrolysis treats hairs one at a time, making it hard to treat large areas such as the back – because it’s such a slow procedure. It can also be painful. Electrolysis doesn’t always have permanent results, especially on thicker hairs.
Unfortunately, hair removal through shaving, waxing, plucking or threading can irritate the skin and cause scarring, acne, ingrown hairs and pigmentation.
Does laser hair removal work on PCOS related hair growth?
Laser hair removal
Laser hair removal is currently the most effective hair removal treatment for excess hair caused by PCOS. That’s because it can remove hair permanently. During a treatment, the laser beams heat up your hair follicles, destroying them and permanently preventing them from producing new hair.
It is not an instant fix. Hair follicles generate new hairs in a continuous cycle of growth and shedding, and the laser light needs to be applied during the growth stage when the follicles respond to the laser. It’s likely that you will need top up sessions after your initial course of treatment, because your hormones tend to stimulate new growth.
The bottom line is that you will need a course of laser treatments – and if your hair is particularly thick, you are likely to need more treatments than someone without PCOS. But the outcome could have a hugely positive impact on your life and self-esteem.
When your life is affected by a condition like PCOS, you want to know that you will get the best possible results. If you decide to go down the route of laser hair removal, there are several things to consider when choosing a clinic:
- What machines does a clinic use? For example, the Soprano Titanium Laser is ideal for both light and dark skin, while some machines are not.
- Does the clinic provide a free consultation to discuss your needs and explain what results you might expect?
- Are there any special offers for longer term treatments? Many clinics provide packages and discounts if you book a series of treatments. Some clinics will have a specific programme with reduced costs, available to those with PCOS.
- Is there a guarantee for results and your satisfaction? A clinic that offers a guarantee will only do so because they are confident in the skills and experience of their technicians, and the efficacy of the laser equipment.
- Age limit – some laser hair removal clinics have an age limit of 18, but young women under 18 also suffer from PCOS. If the clinic is also a medical establishment then it will be able to treat under 18s.
- Is the clinic registered with a clinical inspectorate like the Care Quality Commission?
If you would like to talk to one of our team about beating the PCOS blues and gaining increased confidence in yourself, you can book a FREE initial consultation where you will receive an honest assessment on the costs and likely results from your treatment. Call now on 020 8683 6730 or click here.
You are also welcome to look through our client testimonials which provide an overview of client satisfaction with the results from their treatments.
