Excessive Body and Facial Hair in Women

Excessive hair growth and irregular periods are consistent with an overproduction or overexposure to androgens. Your doctor will want to order some blood androgen levels, including a blood test for testosterone (male hormone).

Next, we need to know if your menstrual cycles were once regular or if they have always been irregular.

If your periods have never been regular, it suggests that there is increased androgen as a part of puberty. This suggests a condition called polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).

If increased hair growth begins later in life and your menstrual periods had settled down to a regular pattern, but now, in your twenties or thirties, your periods have become infrequent and unpredictable, your body may be producing too much androgen. This is the least frequent of all the scenarios.

Have your menstrual cycles ever been regular?

Yes, my menstrual cycles used to be regular.

No, my menstrual cycles have never been regular.