DISCLAIMER: A lot of people will have mixed feelings about this topic and that’s fine, but PLEASE DO NOT read this if you are instintent on judging my way of life. PLEASE DO read this if you are interested in learning about the topic at hand from someone who experiences it daily. What I am asking is that you be respectful of what others decide to do with their body, and that you don’t judge them for choosing to be confident in their own skin. Spread love, not hate. With that being said, here is my story.
When I was younger and just starting to hit puberty I saw that I was beginning to develop stomach hair, and of course like any pre-teen girl would be, I was very embarrassed and ashamed about it. Around the same time my mom taught me how to shave, so I assumed that shaving would fix all of my “hairy” problems. If you are a veteran shaver as I am myself you can probably guess that that wasn’t necessarily the case. As I got older the happy trail grew darker, and I began to develop hair on my chest as well. At the time I was very confused and scared that people would find out and see me as less than a girl or not attractive at all, so I told myself that I would never let anyone see such unsightly hairs on my body no matter what. I have kept that promise for 9 years, and I will tell you right now that after shaving for so much of my adolescence, I can no longer see the point of it.
Looking back at it now, I only shaved because other people told me to. I only ever shaved because society deemed it necessary for women to be completely hairless on our body, but God forbid we have short hair on the top of our head, at that point we lose all femininity and are no longer seen as “attractive” to the male eye. To the world around us the ideal woman should be a size 0 with perfect skin, and no hair on her body except for the top of her head. I can truly say that I am sick and tired of conforming to the social norms of society after living by it for so long. I hate how society determines what women are “supposed” do with our body based on what others before us have deemed as acceptable. As I have gotten older and matured in mentality I have learned that it truly doesn’t matter what others think about you, but rather what you think about yourself. People can talk about what they think about you all day, but if you don’t believe them then it’s the same as if they were commenting on the appearance of a brick wall. And I am not saying that I am the most “confident person in the world” when it comes to my body, no, what I am saying is that I am very self conscious about the hair on my body, but I’m just choosing not to care what others or society think about it anymore. I think that I am beautiful with or without body hair, and because I have taken that first step into accepting it, I no longer care about the opinions of others concerning what I do with it, because at the end of the day it’s my body.
Let us not forget that body hair is NATURAL and has a reason for being on our body in the first place. Another reason that some women may have more body hair then what would be considered normal is due to genetics or an underlying medical condition such as Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), and that is still okay. Having body hair and being able to publicly show it off is not giving anyone the permission to ridicule you or, my favorite, question your hygiene. No woman’s hygiene should be in direct correlation to her body hair, in no way is that acceptable. So, if you see someone with body hair on social media and have a problem with it, then learn not to say anything and keep scrolling. If you see someone with body hair in public and have a problem with it, then either keep your negative opinions to yourself or just walk away, it’s as easy as that. But, if you are a supporter of the body positivity movement, then please go ahead and comment on that post, give that person positive reinforcement, because no matter how strong we are we will always need a support system on our journey to body acceptance.
The biggest thing that I would like you to take away from this is that society shouldn’t dictate how we live or what we do with our body. Although you may not agree with what someone does with their body, you should still be respectful of their choices. Please do not judge someone for choosing to be confident in their own skin, because you lack the ability to see what hardships they had to overcome in order to get to where they are today. If you want to flaunt your body hair, then do it! If you want to rock it hairless, then go for it! All should be accepted in this diverse world that we live in, and that goes beyond body hair. My body, my choice. My hair, my pride.