I did something. Something I have been wanting to do for over a year. Something I was so afraid of doing. Something many people told me I shouldn’t do; I cut all of my hair off.
I had been contemplating shaving my hair off for over a year. But many things had stopped me:
- I was afraid of what others would say
- I was afraid guys wouldn’t like me anymore
- I was afraid I’d hate it and have to deal with it for months because what can you do besides put a wig or a hat?
- I was afraid of missing my hair
I watched countless videos and read countless of articles to try to see the pros and cons of cutting my hair. So, I will give you a mini summary of everything I read and watched and my experience.
“Guys won’t like me anymore”
Look, men who care about the length of your hair aren’t men worth your time. Why is hair such an important part of your worth to them? One of the girls I watched said that yes, many men will stop liking you or show no interest, but it just helps to weed the guys that aren’t worth your time. But there will STILL be men that will be interested in you. From my experience, I told a guy who was interested in me about it and he hated it, he said, “I just think women are meant to have long hair, they look better” SAYS WHO?! Whereas, one of the last guys I talked to said that he thought I should do it. So, although there will be men who don’t like it, there will be men who do. But let me tell you, men’s opinions shouldn’t be a part of what you decide to do.
“My family and friends don’t want me to”
Well, it isn’t their decision, it’s yours. My parents were not big fans of this. They were against it at first but it’s MY hair. They finally understood later on. A lot of my friends said that “I would never do it” and I simply thought, good for you, you’re not the one doing it, I am. I also told one of my male friends I was cutting my hair, and he made me feel bad about it. He hated the idea. But hair shouldn’t be such a big deal to people who love us, they should love us regardless of what we look like, so just remind them that if they’re being hard on you.
“But what if I don’t like it?”
This one is a tough one. I bought myself a wig just in case, so you could do that too. Also, if you do it around this time (Fall/Winter) you could wear beanies and other hats.
Why I Did It
- I don’t care what men have to say, I am done trying to feel validated by them.
- If someone truly loves me (family, friends, love interests), they shouldn’t care about how long my hair is.
- I have always hated my hair; it was very damaged. It needs to heal.
- I heard that it helps with self-esteem, I believe that. I read so many women felt more confident after doing so.
- I am not a fan of my side profile and I have been wanting to be more motivated in working out, so I am killing two birds with one stone.
My experience after doing it:
I have read that some people believe your hair holds everything, Shannon from Naturally Curly said “our hair is a window to our souls–it carries many memories”. This is something I believe as well.
After I shaved my head I took a shower and I listened to two songs, “Clean” by Taylor Swift and “Sicker” by Laye. “Clean” is about finally letting go of a lover and feeling much better. “Sicker” is about wanting to love yourself. I felt these two songs were very appropriate. I have been through a lot of heartaches and since I believe your hair holds memories I should let go of, I had to cut it off. I feel better. I have been on the self-love journey for a while now. So, I am in love with “Sicker”. Some of the lyrics are, “I wish I could show me love/I’m gonna pull me closer/I wanna win me over…/I don’t wanna need someone/To validate what I’ve done/ I wish I could love me like them”. Such a powerful song. Like I said, I have been on this self-love journey in which I haven’t succeeded yet, but I believe doing this, cutting my hair off, it will help, at least a little.
A video I really liked that China Anne McClain posted on her TikTok August 15 said something very important… other people should watch what they say about women “not being as pretty” with buzzcuts because you never know why that is. If there are women with cancer that hear you say that, how do you think that will make them feel? Most had no other choice so please keep those incredibly insensitive comments to yourself. Please go watch it if you’re considering shaving your head, her account is, @chinamcclain.
These are the links to two articles and two YouTube videos that helped me figure it out, if you’d like to check them out. One of the videos I watched said that a reason why you should probably shave your head is that you watched the whole video, so I will tell you the same. If you have considered it, just do it. We are young, hair grows back, you can cover it up if you end up hating it (but I doubt you will), you should do it at least once. I hope you enjoyed reading this, I am not saying you have to shave your head but don’t be afraid to do so if you do want to.
Here are some links of the videos & articles I read:
https://www.allure.com/story/what-i-learned-from-shaving-my-head