The Hairy Truth About PCOS
By Rachel Muse
IN THIS EDITION: Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) affects somewhere around 10% of reproductive-aged women, and up to 70% of women who are affected are undiagnosed. PCOS is a chronic, hormonal condition that can cause hormonal imbalances, irregular periods, and infertility. One common symptom many with PCOS deal with is an excess of facial hair, which can have a big impact on confidence and self esteem. Today, friend of Flamingo Rachel Muse shares her experience with PCOS and offers advice on managing unwanted facial hair.
I ONCE SAW SOMEONE COMPARE PCOS to that one annoying guest that crashes the party, no one knows why they showed up, they refuse to leave, and they mess up all your stuff. This uninvited guest was wreaking havoc on my body long before I even knew it was there.
For years, my body had been a puzzle that I couldn't solve. My period operated on its own schedule—one month it would show up late and the next it would ghost me completely. Meanwhile, I was unknowingly growing a beard better than my little brother. At first, I brushed it off as a one time thing—a rogue hair here, a suspicious stubble there, but then, the tiny invaders multiplied.
Every doctor I saw had a different theory: “Maybe it’s just stress,” “Try changing the way you eat,” or my personal favorite, "Maybe this is just how your body is." Super helpful. Meanwhile, I was dealing with fatigue that made me want to take a nap while literally already taking a nap and trying to figure out if I should just fully embrace my unexpected facial hair. Some days, I want to own it. Other days, I was furiously attacking my face with a pair of tweezers.
Plucking quickly became a part of my daily routine until I started noticing it irritating my pores. Waxing? Ouch. Threading? Ouch, but fancier. I looked to laser hair removal immediately. After 10 treatments and no improvements, my wallet was hurting and so was my heart. I was caught between desperately wanting to manage my facial hair and feeling like I shouldn't have to. Why did my body insist on making me fight so hard just to apply my makeup smoothly?
My story of how I got diagnosed with PCOS is a unique one. I will never forget the doctor holding my hand telling me I would likely never be able to have kids naturally. I’d be lying if I said I wasn't scared at that moment, but I’d also be lying if I said the diagnosis didn’t give me a sense of relief, that this feeling that something was “off” wasn’t just a trick my mind was playing on me. Two weeks after that moment in the office, we figured out I had been pregnant the whole time. The one gift that my PCOS gave me is that I was almost through my first trimester when I found out—that irregular period paid off for the first time in my life.
After finally getting diagnosed, I decided to share a little bit about my experience with PCOS. Turns out, I wasn’t some rare, malfunctioning human. I was part of a massive sisterhood of girls all dealing with the same wild, frustrating symptoms. We bonded over our shared horror stories about clueless doctors and our hair removal method of choice.
That reminds me: after trying everything under the sun for my unwanted facial hair, I finally found something that works for me. One late night trip to Target landed me in the hair removal aisle and I decided to buy one of the Flamingo reusable dermaplane blades. The most simple, cost effective solution there is, and it worked perfectly. It’s rare for my sensitive skin not to have a reaction to new things. But after the first shave with it, I have never looked back. It’s become a part of my routine. I try to stash them everywhere for those “I forgot to shave” moments.
Some mornings, I meticulously manage every stray hair. And on other days, I let it be and remind myself that beauty standards are weird anyway. There’s something oddly comforting about knowing that, somewhere in the world, another woman is looking at her bathroom mirror, debating whether to pluck, shave, or just let it grow, just like me. Yes, PCOS is a pain (literally and figuratively), but it’s also given me a community of strong, confident women who remind me that I’m never alone in any of this. If we have to battle our own hormones every day, at least we’re doing it together—one chin hair at a time.
 |
Rachel Muse is a Florida based lifestyle creator & business owner who loves to share the behind-the-scenes of her life as a mama, wife, friend, and homeowner. |
