Monday, June 8, 2009

PERSONALLY: the baby did it


It is no secret that pregnancy (and breastfeeding) messes with your hormones and your body. Truly, the whole thing is a little bizarre when you stop and consider it. You have a person living inside of you....weird. But the weirdness doesn't stop when the baby is born. Shouldn't the stretch marks and utter lack of sleep be enough? No, my kids messed with my hair too.


I've always been a brunette, but before I had kids it was a medium, auburn brown. Not anymore. Now nearly every time my mom sees me we have a conversation that goes something like this:
"When did you dye your hair?"
"I didn't dye my hair."
"Yes, it is much darker"
"Mom, I haven't dyed my hair in years. It got darker after the kids"
::Mom gives me disbelieving look::
Not only that, but I get baby hair too. I've only met one other person this happened to, so I guess I'm special. Or a freak. In any case, about 6 months after each baby came I got a line of new hair growth along my hairline. It is really annoying because it comes in very slowly and sticks straight up. The baby hair from Chunk is just now starting to blend into the rest of my hair.
But the biggest change is the texture. I've always had thick hair (to the irritation of every stylist who has had to give me an updo) but it was always straight. For the past year or so, even when I styled my hair like normal it looked bad. It wasn't cooperating with my normal routine and I didn't know why. Recently I had my hair cut a little bit shorter with layers, and the stylists made a comment about my natural waves. I had no clue what she was talking about, but I try not to argue with people holding sharp instruments near my face so I let it go. The next day, after washing my hair and letting it air dry I caught a glimpe of myself in the mirror and was shocked. I walked into the living room where my husband was sitting, and forced him to look at my head. "SINCE WHEN DO I HAVE CURLY HAIR?!??!" I shouted! And while "curly" may be a bit of an exaggeration (there are no ringlets or anything lovable like that, but definitely some major waviness) my hair is definitely no longer straight, which explains why it fought against my attempts at normal blow-drying. I don't know how to deal with this new hair of mine. I bought some curl defining spray, and while it might make the curls more defined, it mostly just feels kind of crunchy. But I'm at a loss for what else to do with it. I'm crossing all my fingers and toes and wishing for a super talented stylist to wisk me away for a complete makeover. Who wants to sign me up for one of those ambush style, reality TV makeover shows?

3 comments:

Jasmine said...

My hair has been coming in darker since I got pregnant. You are not crazy. Well, not because of that.

Bobbinoggin said...

I get baby hair on my forehead and if I don't reign it in, it turns into little curly q's. Nevermind the fact that the rest of my hair is as straight as a board.

YOu might consider purchasing a flat iron. My hair DOES not take a curl for the life of me. If I curl it, it's gone by afternoon. But if I use the flat iron, I have beautiful straight hair for two days (or whenever I decide to wash it). It's worth a try anyway. And if you're not into making the leap for buying something you're not 100% sure will look right, ask the hairstylist to use it on you next time you get your hair cut.

I think you should post a picture of your hair these days. I would like to see it!

mwah,
me.

Bobbinoggin said...

boy do I hear you on your experience with wavy hair. For now, I too have wavy hair postpartum. RARR. I don't know what to do with it either. Let's share advice with each other should you or I find something that works.

-M.