I was the first to grow hair under my arms, even before my brother. I grew hair on my vagina before all my girl cousins. I had the hairiest legs out of all my friends. And I grew facial hair before I even knew that girls COULD grow facial hair.
Basically, For as long as I can remember I have always been a hairy girl. It’s one of those things that has always made me feel self-conscious and alone. It seemed like every girl in the world was blessed with smooth skin except me. I would be in the mirror for hours just staring at my face wishing I could get rid of those embarrassing strings of hair.
Eventually, I learned to warn the guys I liked about the hair that grew on my neck, chin, breasts, belly, and wherever else, and I learned to crack the jokes before anyone else got the chance to.
Flashback to high school:
A friend and I were sitting with this guy I had a HUGE crush on and she whispered something in his ear. Moments later he was leaning over in my face staring at my chin in disgust. “Ewww! She does have hair on her chin!” He laughed with her. I was so embarrassed. I went home and shaved my face immediately. (And I also stopped being her friend. She was obviously not someone I needed in my circle.)
Another embarrassing moment:
While chilling with some of my guy friends in the school gym, I happened to stretch my arms up a little too high and my shirt came up with it. “Damn you so hairy!” One of the guys said, twisting up his face. “You need to shave, bruh.” He said, shaking his head. My happy trail wasn’t even that bad! I was so ashamed of myself.
I could go on for pages listing embarrassing moments/experiences I encountered growing up as a hairy girl. I’ve been called a “he/she”, a “grizzly bear” (that one was actually kind of funny) and many other things.
People have tried to make me feel like less of a woman because I had a little more (or a lot more) body hair than some women.
As if it isn’t normal for humans beings to grow hair.
Because of this, I went through a stage where I was completely obsessed with making sure I was as smooth as a baby’s bottom. I used razors, Facial Nair, tweezers, scissors, wax strips…anything I could get my hands on. I even considered using my refund check to pay for laser hair removal during my freshman year of college.
It wasn’t until recently that I finally realized that regardless of what “manly” traits I have:
I am still a woman. I am still beautiful.
The amount of hair on my face, legs, arms or whatever doesn’t just somehow make my vagina disappear, so it doesn’t somehow make me any less of a woman.
Don’t get me wrong, I still go through the process of removing my facial hair. But now it’s less about everyone else and more about me. If I forget to shave (or I’m just lazy and don’t feel like it) and my little stubble starts to grow, I let it do its thing! I do not let body hair control me or influence my self-confidence.
No man, friend, family member, or social media post can make me feel any less beautiful for not shaving regularly. I truly don’t care, and it truly doesn’t bother me.
So, no my fellow hairy ladies. You’re not alone. You’re not a freak. And you DON’T have to change anything about yourself unless YOU want to. Being “ladylike” is overrated anyway.