Bethany Burgoyne, 35, from East London, spent more than £51,000 removing her body and facial hair over 17 years, only to discover there was no medical reason for her hair growth. After years of hormone tests, she now describes herself as "just a hairy girl" and advocates for body-hair acceptance.
Years of Hair Removal and Testing
Burgoyne had been shaving and waxing since she was 10 years old. For 17 years, she spent around £250 a month on waxing, epilating, and bleaching to remove thick, dark hair from her stomach, legs, and chin. Convinced there must be an underlying reason for her hair growth, she underwent hormone testing for almost three years.
After repeated tests found no hormonal imbalance or diagnosable condition, Burgoyne said she was forced to rethink a lifelong belief that something was "wrong" with her. She said: "When I got to 26, I realised this was becoming a real problem for my mental wellbeing. I went to the doctors and had hormone tests for three years in a row, but there was no sign of my hormones being abnormal. We want to put everything down to hormones, but I'm really just a hairy gal."
Early Experiences and Struggles
Burgoyne first became aware she was different at around 10 years old when her mother suggested she start removing her leg hair. She said: "I remember sitting in the garden when my mum said it was time to get rid of my hair. I was aware everyone else seemed to have lighter hair or hardly any hair at all and I felt like a bit of an anomaly."
As a teenager, she became increasingly self-conscious. At 14, she developed a visible trail of stomach hair and recalls being teased by classmates. During a swimming trip, a new swimsuit became see-through and exposed her pubic hair, leading to cruel nicknames that followed her for years. She said: "There was definitely an age where people were picking on me because of my hair. I felt really self-conscious."
From Laser Dream to Public Advocacy
By 18, Burgoyne noticed hair growing on her chin and would spend hours removing it. She said: "I couldn't imagine anyone finding me attractive. There was a lot of hatred for my body. It felt like a constant battle." Over the following years, she spent tens of thousands of pounds on hair-removal treatments, with laser hair removal becoming her biggest ambition. She added: "When I was in my late 20s, laser hair removal was the dream. That broke my heart because there were so many things I could aspire to in life and this was number one."
Instead of continuing to save for treatment, Burgoyne decided to invest in creating content and speaking publicly about her experiences. This led her to appear on Channel 4's Naked Attraction, where she intentionally appeared as a visibly hairy woman because she felt that kind of representation was missing from television. She said: "I watched two episodes back-to-back and there wasn't any pubic hair on any of the bodies. I wanted to see a woman with hair. I wanted to be naked and hairy on television."
Building Confidence and Impact
Burgoyne said building confidence around her facial hair proved more difficult than embracing hair elsewhere on her body because society still struggles to view facial hair as feminine. However, support from friends, partners, and strangers has helped transform her relationship with her appearance. She said: "I have intimate partners who adore my hair and friends who'll say, 'wow, your beard looks great today'. It's taken about four years to build that confidence. I love my hairs. I love how they look and I love that I'm confident."
Despite receiving abuse online, including messages telling her she is "disgusting", Burgoyne said the positive responses had outweighed the negatives. Women approach her in public to thank her for her content, while others say seeing her online gave them the confidence to stop hiding their own body hair. She said: "I've had messages from women saying they finally wore shorts to the gym with hairy legs because they saw me online and that fills my spirit. I do it for the younger me who never saw anyone that looked like her."
Burgoyne believes beauty standards have left generations of women feeling ashamed of completely natural features and wants people to challenge the negative messages they tell themselves. She said: "When you don't have any examples, you feel like you're the odd one out and you have to change yourself to fit in. Allowing yourself to name an insecurity takes some of its power away. I mean, it's just hair!"
