Reactions

After just four days, I already feel my hair growing back. I notice it gets darker every day. The very first day of shaved head, my hair felt like velcro and would catch on my clothes but it is already softening up. I'm afraid that I might get addicted to touching it because it feels so good right now.

There have been many additional, unforeseen benefits to shaving my head. Obviously, I don't have to spend any time doing my hair and it dries very quickly. No more going to bed with wet hair causing wet pillow and having hair stick to my face. But the feeling of taking a shower with shaved head is unsurpassed. I have just never felt anything like it and it is hard to explain unless you have actually shaved your head for the first time and taken a shower. My head must be very sensitive and I've always been a very tactile person.

The downside to all of this is that I am freezing. I love taking a shower but despise getting out of the shower because I get so cold. My head is really cold at work now too. I suppose shaved head helps me to stay cooler when I am outside in the heat but the majority of my time throughout the day takes place in air conditioned places.

When I am actually outside and do get to take advantage of the cooling effects of shaved head, I am suppressed with a great fear of mine - sun burns. I was so surprised by how white my skin naturally is (though I tan quite easily) and I just knew my ghost-white scalp was in jeopardy of burning like toast. The solution to this is easy (hats and sunscreen) but one moment of negligence will leave painful, burning memories. Has anyone ever had a burn in the part of their hair due to their carelessness - I have. It sucks. Constant vigilance is also part of my solution as well.

In terms of the reactions I have received, they have been surprisingly moderate. Initially, I was met with a lot of surprise and even some disbelief. But just a little more than if I had only cut my hair really short. Because anything would have been considered a drastic change with my boring hair before. But everyone gets used to it, eventually. I myself still get a little surprised when I look in the mirror and so does Brandon (when he looks at me - not in the mirror). Probably, by the time we get used to it, my hair will have grown out quite a bit.

Most people have thought my shaved head looked cool but there are a few who even though they don't say it, very obviously think I should have kept longer hair or that I look better with longer hair. I will be the first to admit I look better with longer hair. But I don't agree that I shouldn't have shaved my head at all. Life's not all about looks - it's about experiences too. And I wouldn't have passed this experience up for anything. I'm still glad I did it.

By the by, I forgot to mention in my previous post that I donated my hair to Locks of Love. If you are interested in donating your hair to cancer patients who have lost their hair while undergoing chemotherapy, click here. Ten inches is all you need (it's not as much as you think) and it's been an added bonus to shaving my head, maybe even the reason why I thought of shaving my head in the first place.