Battling PCOS Harnaam Kaur Style

1 in 10 women is diagnosed with PCOS. Here’s how to feel “pretty” when you have a hormonal disorder

Harnaam Kaur was 11 year old when she first began to grow a beard as a result of PCOS. Harnaam is now a body-confidence and anti-bullying activist and she fully embraces her unique look and hopes to encourage others to do the same (Photo: Instagram/@harnaamkaur)

In its most severe form, PCOS strips a woman of nearly everything that society sees as womanly. She might probably become fat, have a moustache or other facial hair, get acne in weird places, might not be able to have children. She is seen as sexually unattractive, is ridiculed and subject to much derision.

1 in 10 women in India is dealing with these issues on a regular basis - and these aren’t just cosmetic. Diabetes, high blood pressure, cholesterol and metabolic syndrome, depression and anxiety, abnormal uterine bleeding, cancer of the uterine lining, and painful periods are just some of the other physical symptoms that women suffering form PCOS might endure.

Here’s how you can beat the body blahs:

Be Mad, Be Sad, Cry

To stop feeling bad about it, you have to consciously feel bad about it first (Photo: iStock)

It might look like the stages of mourning and might sound cheesy. But stick to it. It’s okay and even important to acknowledge the things you wish you had but probably never will. And it’s fine to feel crappy about yourself. You probably won’t hold the grudge against your body forever.

This is basically a way of getting closure and being able to let go of unreasonable ideals in order to accept that your body is how it is. When you understand why you’re upset or where your hangups are coming from, it makes it easier to combat those gross feels.

There is Nothing Like a Perfect Body

There are probably a million lovely things about yourself and everything is worth celebrating (Photo: iStock)

Big boobs, no boobs, big feet, thinning hair, amputations, stretch-marks, too tall, too short, too skinny, too fat, crooked teeth, hairy face, hairy body, etc. Not everything has to be symmetrical and fit in with society’s predefined idea of beauty. Put things into perspective and remind yourself : It’s just a body and the way that it looks or even functions does not give or take away your worth. Cliche? Maybe.

Important? Definitely.

PCOS is Different For All

To take that extra care your body needs and to feel that tenderness for it, you’re gonna have to eventually not hate it (Photo: iStock)

There is no actual cure for PCOS but it can be managed with medication and lifestyle changes. The disorder affects everyone differently. So if your friend is not able to conceive after PCOS, in no way does it imply that you will not be able to make babies either.

Voices inside your head can get quite dramatic but stress is just going to make the condition worse. It is alright for your partner to feel your chin stuble or discover your breast hair. While it is just a body, there are probably a million great things about experiencing life through that body — even when you’re dealing with a chronic illness. All the positives about it are worth celebrating.

Turn to Harnaam Kaur For Inspiration

“Body positivity” for patients of PCOS is hard to achieve. It’s a much discussed ideal, but often in the context of a conventionally beautiful woman with the gentlest of curves or a wisp of armpit hair.

After years of painful teasing and vigilant waxing, bleaching, and shaving, 24 year old British woman of Indian descent, Harnaam Kaur decided to keep her beard and step forward against society’s expectations of what a woman should look like.

“I used to keep my beard for religious reasons, but now I keep my hair to show the world a different, confident, diverse, and strong image of a woman.” - Harnaam Kaur (Photo: Instagram/@harnaamkaur)

...And the bride wore flowers on her beard. The 24 year old was decked in a floral-themed bridal spread, for a wedding blog. She’s proudly growing her beard since the age of 16. (Photo: Instagram/@harnaamkaur)

Being obsessed with banishing every single last strand of unwanted hair, will only make it grow back faster. All that plucking, threading, and waxing can cause hyper-pigmentation scars and pimples.

You don’t want a bumpy chin with ingrowth from all the salon abuse. Instead make solid lifestyle changes. Exercise, eat right; doctors say these can reverse the effects of PCOS in 3 out of 4 cases.

Sporting a full beard is obviously not for everyone. Some look at hair laser removal for a more permanent solution. Whatever your struggles, it is all about eventually finding peace with yourself.

I do not have PCOS, but I have a huge admiration for the fortitude of Harnaam Kaur. And sometimes, on the days I do feel a little down on myself, I scroll through her Instagram and just bask a little in her body positivity.

It just about always does the trick.

Also Read:

PCOS is a confusing and complicated syndrome. If your first doctor says, PCOS cannot be treated, don’t blindly trust him.