Neither my general practitioner nor OBGYN had advice on this. I realize I can't get professional medical advice here, but hopefully there are folks here in similar situations that can give me examples of their stories. Here goes:

I am a hirstute female with coarse male-pattern hair. An ultrasound showed PCO, but blood tests show all hormone levels as normal. I have no other signs of PCO other than the hair. OBGYN prescribed birth control pill to assist.

Has anyone here had PCO, hormone levels ok, and tried laser or electrolysis to rid of the existing hair?

Will it be a waste of money to get LHR if I decide to discontinue the BCP in a couple of years?

Laser and electrolysis both kill hair that's currently there. What you should be concerned with is the fact that you will need touchups afterwards for any new hair that your body develops. Have you been to a reputable endocrinologist? Many regular doctors have a hard time diagnosing PCOS.

There is no reason not to remove the hair with either laser or electrolysis, as appropriate. Just have your expectations set correctly and realize that if you're not taking something that regulates whatever is causing the growth in the first place, you'll need touchups for any new hair your body develops.

Btw, make sure to do research well on what areas need laser and which need electrolysis.

Thank you lagirl I haven't seen an endo yet (its next on my list), but pco was found via an ultrasound.

Good to hear EHR/LHR isn't necessarily a lost cause, I'll just need to come to terms with being on meds for a very, very long time, and to expect frequent touch ups.

Oh not to worry, I've been lurking for a while here, and have a grasp of which areas (or hair thickness/amount/density) are recommended for electrolysis vs laser. In fact this board has been one of the most helpful resources in my hair removal research. Thank you for all of your thoughtful contributions here, lagirl!

An Endo can give you a better idea. PCOS is hard to diagnose. Make sure your Endo has experience with PCOS.

Also monitor your diet very carefully. I met a woman whose daughter had suddenly came down with PCOS symptoms. She attended college in Canada. She moved back to the US after graduation and started showing the symptoms. They took her off of normal dairy and replaced it with organic. Everything cleared up in a matter of months. Scary stuff.

Goodluck.