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Woman embraces facial hair in quest to accept herself

Harnaam Kaur wasn't always proud of her beard.

The 23-year-old British woman started growing facial hair when she was 11 due to a condition known as polycystic ovary syndrome, which causes excessive hair growth in women, among other symptoms.

Her teen years were marked by merciless bullying, leading to self-harm and suicidal thoughts. Classmates would call her “beardo,” “shemale” and “sheman.”

“I didn’t want to go outside my house because I couldn’t take the stares from strangers so I’d lock myself in my room," Kaur tells Bancroft Media. “It got so bad that I just didn’t want to live any more.”

Initially she tried to hide her beard in shame -- shaving, waxing and bleaching twice a week -- but after those treatments proved to be ineffective, she gave up the grooming process all together at age 16.

Also see: Bearded mom: When women grow full-blown facial hair

Several years later, the teaching assistant now proudly flaunts her beard while trying to raise awareness about self-acceptance.

Kaur credits her decision largely to converting to Sikhism, a religion that does not allow the removal of body hair.

“My mum and dad didn’t want me to do it – they didn’t think I’d be able to have a normal life if I had a beard,” Kaur explains to Huffington Post. “They worried I wouldn’t be able to get married and that I’d never get a job."

Despite intense pressure from her extended family to continue removing her facial hair, she stuck to her beliefs, citing that she was sick of hiding from the world.

“I feel more feminine, more sexy and I think I look it too. I’ve learned to love myself for who I am," she says. "Nothing can shake me now."

As a teen, Kaur would hide her body with baggy clothes to cover up the hair on her chest and arms. But now, she sports feminine dresses, painted nails and a fresh coat of makeup.

Also see: Health conditions frequently confused with beauty issues

She gets plenty of stares, mostly by people who confuse her for a man or children who ask where she bought her beard.

While Kaur has received threats of physical harm and even death, she notes that there are those who are inspired by her.

"I’ve also had a lot of positive messages from women in the same situation as me. I’ve had loads of nice comments from men all over the world," she says.

Kaur admits that she thinks her beard prevents her from finding love and a husband. Men who are part of her community give her grief, but she has no intentions of shaving again.

"I would never ever go back now and remove my facial hair because it’s the way God made me and I’m happy with the way I am," she says.