by Jacqueline Price

Created on: March 06, 2007   Last Updated: October 31, 2008

I wish it were as simple as "hair today, gone tomorrow." Unfortunately for many women, including myself, hair removal is not that easy and we are condemned to endure all manner of torture in the pursuit of removing those pesky hairs.

While some people might think hair removal is a form of vanity, for those suffering from hirsutism (excessive hair growth) it can be physically and emotionally debilitating and can wreak havoc with your self-esteem. It is very hard going through puberty being hairy - especially as a female.

When I turned 14 I was so happy that leg warmers became fashionable and I could at least cover my embarrassing hairy legs - at least in the winter. But spring and summer weather meant discarding the woolly leg-warmers for long pants, long skirts, and long-sleeved shirts.

I tried bleaching my leg hairs with hydrogen peroxide, but that was so time-consuming and not very effective. One of my most embarrassing moments was while I was conducting this procedure when one of my girlfriends came round with her boyfriend. I tried hiding my legs unsuccessfully behind the door, but my friend's boyfriend exclaimed, "I've never seen such hairy legs!" I could have died. That decided it. No more leg bleaching. It was the razor for me.

So I began shaving my legs. I still remember that feeling of silky smooth skin after my first shave in the bath and wondered why I had waited so long? But then a few days later I started to feel hard prickles as the regrowth began. Then little red dots started to appear as the hairs broke through the skin surface. I lived in long skirts the rest of the summer and thick tights under my school uniform that fall and winter.

In my late teens I discovered waxing at a professional salon which painfully ripped the hairs out from the roots. I endured this torture on a regular basis as at least the benefits lasted longer than with shaving. But there was still that in-between time when the hairs would grow back and drive me crazy with itching and irritation. Also, I would have to time everything so carefully around these waxing - especially beach vacations. I could normally get a good two weeks out of a waxing and possibly stretch it to three if I had developed a nice suntan, and the hot sun would help bleach any early breakthrough. Hairs growing back after waxing are generally less stubbly and softer than after shaving.

But as you can see, waxing, although an improvement on shaving, was not the perfect solution. I did use bleaching products

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>