What A Day…
A day to embrace ‘what a day” it has now become.
A day that has evolved around the confidence I gained throughout.
A day to myself. I feel safe. I feel protected. I feel me.
A day to develop true happiness with the acceptance of all of me.
I feel at peace. I feel beautiful. I feel me.
A day to exist and live life to the fullest to be me.
-Diana Dupelord
Once we complain about our physical being in many aspects, insecurities begin to transpire. We allow our outside appearance to define who we are because validation from others seems accurate enough that it synchronizes in today’s society.
Hair insecurities are an aspect of our appearance that we can allow to define or empower us. You do not feel or see society’s viewpoint on ‘what is beautiful?’ or ‘who is beautiful?’ You see you. You create a space in your head that allows you to initiate a positive conversation on who you are.
Let me tell you a story.
When I was in high school, I limited myself on what made me happy because I accumulated so many insecurities. My hair played a big tribute because if I did not have hair extensions or braids installed, I did not feel equally beautiful. I began to hate my hair and how I looked with it. I put a restriction against my hair because I believed it could only do so much. At the beginning of my senior year, I faced great turmoil in my life and put it against my hair, (or so I thought) I went to the shop and decided to cut all my hair off. One part of me felt free in that shop and the other felt scared because it was a transition I never thought I was going to ever do.
I always wanted long hair, so why am I sitting in this chair getting my hair cut? I walked out feeling happy and sad. All these thoughts in my head, “Maybe they would think I’m a different person…they probably don’t like it?” All these negative comments about my hair, but I only questioned how others felt about it. I never asked myself, “Diana do you like it?” The only opinion that mattered. I began to accept my short hair and myself. It made me feel empowered to do anything, to be anything. I was representing women that second-guessed who they are as people.
Since then, I became the Diana I never thought I would be. The negative thoughts turned positive because I learned acceptance. It did not take just a haircut to learn how to accept myself, but a different mentality that shed enlightenment. I had to train my mind to speak positivity. It all coordinates with how you see yourself. “You should be a model.” “You are beautiful.” These are the words others used to reassure me of who I am and what I can be.
Overall, I went through various transitions. From hair designs, bad haircuts, to shaving my hair. (Yes I shaved my hair twice within one year.) All to say that your insecurities deprive you of being who you are. ‘Hair Insecurities’ is a big issue because we put an emphasis on long hair and hair extensions that we begin to forget who we naturally are.