The term hirsutism dose not adequately describe the plight of women who see themselves as excessively hairy; the distinction between affliction and suffering is ignored. The usual “laundry list” diagnostic approach to the hirsute patient unnecessarily complicates evaluation and management. We suggest an alternative schema based on a concept of overlapping pathophysiological entities of increasing severity. Based on this schema we suggest that 1) a minimal clinical and laboratory evaluation suffices for most individuals, and that 2) four simple principles of therapy (compassion, time, beauty care, and medication to reduce the androgenic milieu of the skin) can effectively reduce the woman's suffering.