I love my hair, it’s one of my favorite physical traits about myself. Growing up, I was always very attached to my hair, it turned into a bit of a comfort object for me. When I’m bored or stressed, my hands got straight to my hair. Back in elementary school I used to cut my hair short all the time. I would grow it out super long and then donate it to a nonprofit charity, Locks of Love. They take human hair donations and make them into wigs for children with medical reasons for hair loss. I loved my hair and wanted other kids to be able to have hair too. The first time I donated 11 inches, the second I donated 13 inches. When I wasn’t growing my hair out to donate it, I was cutting it short for swim team.
Middle school is when my hair really started to get long. I stopped doing swim team and donating my hair. It was my baby. I have virgin hair and I have never done anything crazy with it. I started using conditioner and other hair care products religiously. The longer my hair was the happier I was. I didn’t make any large cuts to my hair again until my junior year of high school. Even then, I only went to shoulder length. I realized that I had started to hide behind my hair. I decided that it was time to embrace my chubby cheeks and let people really see my face again. After that cut, I started growing my hair out again so that it would be ready to style for prom.
Once again, I became protective of my hair. I slept on satin pillowcases and I almost never used heat tools, including blow dryers. This year I started to get irritated with my hair. It was always staticky and I never did anything with it other than messy buns as I rushed to class. I realized that once again, I was keeping my hair long for the sake of having long hair. While I was home on break I decided to chop it off. We’re talking a big cut, about 7 inches of hair. My hairdresser was excited, I was nervous. I wanted a change, needed a change; something to take me out of my comfort zone. I’m so glad I cut it short. This cut forced me to embrace myself and saves me a lot time. Do I plan to grow it put again? Definitely. But, maybe I’ll enjoy the short length for a little while longer before I do.