BODY SHAME
I hid away refusing to kiss my husband or let my son touch me after I grew a beard during pregnancy
A BRAVE mum has told how she went for years without kissing her husband after growing a beard during her pregnancy.
Svetlana Savchenkova, 33, refused to go outside without wearing a mask to cover up her serious hirsutism condition.
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Although she'd had it before the birth of her seven-year-old son, the condition seriouisly worsened after her pregnancy.
So ashamed of her facial hair, Svetlana wouldn't let her son such her face and refused to get close to her husband.
In a bid to get help, she bravely appeared on a TV medical show in Russia called "I'm Ashamed of my Body", on Channel U.
Before undergoing tests and therapy arranged by the TV show, she said tearfully: “I can't work or communicate with people normally, even my child.
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“I don't allow him to touch my face. Obviously, relations with my husband got much worse.
“He doesn't kiss me now because it is disgusting.
“Every year it is getting worse. I am afraid that our family will fall apart.”
No previous treatment had worked, with doctors telling her that she'd simply have to live with the hair.
Her husband pushed her to open up about her hormonal problem on the TV programme, which would mean her getting help from some of the best doctors in the country.
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On the show, Svetlana, from Volgograd, was put under the care of a multi-disciplinary medical team.
Over a year she received laser therapy, treatment for polycystic ovary syndrome, and was put on sex steroids.
Following their advice, she lost over 2st and she claims that the treatment offered has had a dramatic impact.
“I feel so happy now,” she said.
“I don’t need to wake up before the rest of my family to shave my face.
“I’m not afraid of losing my husband anymore because of my hairy face.
“ I walk outdoors with my chin up after a dozen years of hiding my face.
“I’m finally happy. and my son feels it - we hug each other finally and he can touch my face.”
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Gynaecologist Tatyana Rumyantseva, who led the medical team treating her said: “I’m so glad to see you without a mask.
“We have achieved the result that you - and we - wanted to see. But it was not easy for you…”
She admitted Svetlana had been through “scary” times before getting the right medical treatment.
Hirsutism is a common symptom of polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS).
While there's no cure for PCOS, it's commonly recommended losing any excess weight in order to calm hair growth down.
Stress also plays a massive role in the management of PCOS.
The NHS says that there are treatments available for getting rid of excess hair but they're often done privately at a hefty cost.
What is PCOS?
POLYCYSTIC ovary syndrome affects one in five women and has an impact on how ovaries function - meaning sufferers can struggle to release an egg to be fertilised making it often extremely difficult to fall pregnant.
For many, the only hint of PCOS is irregular periods, while in more severe cases sufferers can be left with embarrassing hair growth on their faces, chest, back and backside.
The condition affects how a woman's ovaries function.
It occurs when the sacs the ovaries sit in are unable to release an egg, which means ovulation doesn't happen.
Symptoms can include:
- irregular periods, or no periods at all
- excess body hair, including facial hair
- difficulty getting pregnant
- weight gain
- oily skin or acne
- thinning hair or hair loss
MORE ON HEALTH
They include electrolysis (where electricity is used to destroy hair follicles, which can be a permanent solution), and laser hair removal.
Eflornithine cream is also a prescription medicine applied twice daily that can help treat excessive hair growth on the face and under the chin.
You can find out what other options there are .
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