Four months postpartum, my hair started falling out. There was hair all over my bathroom and my hair suddenly had a really odd texture. After wearing it in a bun for a couple of weeks, I knew I needed to get a mom hair trim to feel better about my appearance.
What I did next I regret so much! It was 7pm on the Thursday before Mother’s Day. I asked my husband if he could watch our baby and I jetted out the door to a walk-in hair cutting place that I won’t name but I’m sure you can figure out the type of place. It was open till 8pm and I knew I could get that trim I so desperately wanted before they closed.
I asked for a trim for my long hair, but when the hairstylist faced me toward the mirror, I watched her cut a few inches off a piece in the front and I spoke up saying, “that seems a little short.” I knew something was very wrong when she responded, “don’t worry it’s still long in the back.” Wait, what??? And that’s how I ended up with what could only be described as two haircuts in one. Basically, a blunt bob in the front and a longer 1990’s Jennifer Aniston inspired haircut with tons of layers in the back. To make matters worse, it was the hairstylist’s birthday that day, so of course, I gave her a generous tip and thanked her for the haircut.
Once I left, I pulled back the super short front layers in a half updo and figured maybe she just styled it weird with the hairdryer. Perhaps it wouldn’t be so bad when I got home and put a hair straightener to it. I was wrong. It was worse. I then went on TV that weekend with this awful haircut and started tearing up when I watched the video. I do many TV appearances, and have never looked that bad. I realize this sounds very vain and it was a terrible camera angle, but maybe some of you can relate. Hair is so important! Yes, I know I’m lucky to have hair at all and there are people going through chemo and have it worse. There are also some people who have wonderful experiences at the haircutting place I went. I share this not to complain but to blog as a real mom who learned an important lesson about myself.
I learned it’s easy to feel rushed as a new mom. Instead of putting my needs first, I let them be an afterthought. I should have just scheduled a haircut! I’ll confess, I was probably being cheap too. For weeks I did nothing. I complained daily to my husband how much I hated my hair. I finally had enough of feeling bad for myself and took action. Thank god my cousin is an amazing hairdresser! I texted her photos and asked her about my options. Should I hack off the hair and get a Victoria Beckham bob or could she fix it? We opted for blending it so that I could still put my hair up easily. She blended it as well as she could and now I just have some big chunky front layers I’m still trying to grow out almost four months later. My 2.0 haircut is so much better! She worked miracles, as you can see from the before and after photo. If you want her contact info, reach out to me. She is a full-time nurse and does hair as well for select clients.
I even took my baby to my hair appointment with her. I totally regret not going to her in the first place and the only positive I can take from the experience is that I have a funny story. I’m still self-conscious about my hair but I doubt anyone notices except me. So there you have it–I have mom hair and I care! I think in about six more months we can blend it back to normal, and in the meantime, I’m on a mission to learn how to use a curling iron and buy as many cute hats as possible. My favorites include Tasty Salt and Tiny Trucker Co. Is this a life-altering blog post? No. But it’s real life and I’m sure I’m not the only mom who has had to grow out a bad haircut.
