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Q: I’m 36, and I’ve been on the Pill for years. I stopped taking it about three months ago, because it was making me feel hazy and completely putting the kibosh on my libido. Well, in the shower last week, I spotted several dark hairs have cropped up around my nipples. It’s made me pretty self-conscious (I’ve kept my bra on during sex), because I’m nervous to remove them with wax or tweezers that could damage the sensitive area of skin. Is this normal, and if not, what can I do?

Girlfriend, take off that bra! You’re beautiful and perfect just the way you are. It is totally normal for a woman to find a smattering of dark strands of hair around her areola, usually as the result of androgenic hormones (like testosterone), which are normally exist in smaller concentrations in women. Because you were on the Pill, chances are that the Pill was masking the effect of your body’s natural androgens on your nipples by decreasing ovarian production of androgens and increasing sex hormone binding globulin, which can bind free testosterone and make it less biologically active (thus keeping your nipples hairless). By going off the Pill, your body’s own hormones are now making their voices known, which is nothing to be concerned about.

As long as you don’t have hair in the middle of your chest, severe acne, a noticeably enlarged clitoris, or irregular cycles which could signal abnormally high levels of androgens or polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), your nipples hairs are probably something to love, not fear. Try doing a breast blessing -- affirming daily that your breasts are gorgeous and that you are grateful for all they have to offer you.

If you can’t bring yourself to love your hairy nipples, try saw palmetto, a supplement that can suppress the conversion of testosterone to the more hair-inducing dihydrotestosterone (DHT) and reduce hair growth.

Spearmint tea may also help by reducing the effect of androgens on hair follicles. A small study published in the British Medical Journal found that women with extra body hair who drank two cups of spearmint tea for just five days before ovulation saw significant lowering in blood levels of free testosterone—the form of testosterone that is metabolically active in the body. As a result, women reported less body hair growth.

Hair removal methods, such as tweezing, waxing, or threading, can also help.

Just remember love, you're not alone!