As a teenager, I was so caught up in my appearance that it affected the things I did and did not do, and my entire mood for the day. I wouldn’t be able to even come downstairs to my living room with my family without straightening my hair and doing my makeup. I also was so afraid of wearing my glasses around people. Now, as I am ending my third year of University, I shamelessly leave my house without doing my hair, makeup, or even wearing contacts.
Why did I suddenly make this change?
I stopped straightening my hair because constantly using heat on it absolutely damaged it nearly beyond repair. Since I am Macedonian, I have very thick, curly hair. My hair is nearly ringlet curly. When I started styling it every day, my hair started falling out of my head in large amounts. Besides this, my hair constantly smelt fried, and it would always be hay-like at the ends. I damaged it so much, it no longer remained curly and was constantly flat; it had no body to it. I was so ashamed of myself, that I just stopped straightening it every day. I now mostly wear my hair up. Since I have chopped off all of my dead hair and stopped straightening my hair, it has grown four inches. My curls have become just as curly as they used to be, and my hair has even become less frizzy.
I stopped doing my makeup because I am someone who has struggled with acne for the majority of mylife. I was on Accutane for a year and nine months, but still break out due to having PCOS. I have very oily skin, but due to medication I use, I have some dry patches. As well as this, my lifestyle has changed and it was very hard for me to justify finding and buying all of this vegan cover-up that I would only have to wash away afterwards. I have never even been good at applying my makeup, and I have been so busy that I couldn’t afford any time to put it on. Since I have stopped using makeup, I have actually had less breakouts, my acne scars have been healing, and I have gotten more comfortable with having vitiligo.
Am I suggesting all people should stop doing their hair and makeup? No. I actually congratulate people for taking the initiative to put effort into their appearance and praise their talents. However, the pressures of maintaining what society deems to be ‘acceptable’ was so damaging and time consuming for my body that I made the choice to reduce the amount of time I invest into my hair and makeup. I have actually been growing to love certain elements of myself I never loved before thanks to my decision.