4. It’s long, now what?
If you are a typical woman, you like to switch things up. There is no real reason for this; it might be our hormones, or just how we are built. However, we like change.
Once you get to the goal, and you get settled into a mundane routine, you feel the need to color, cut, straighten – just anything to break up the monotony of hair care. You figure out that you are an obsessive compulsive feen for change, and that’s A-OK.
5. It’s just hair
Before you even say it, let me be the first to say, that of course it isn’t just hair; it is our crown and glory, our business, and all that jazz. But when it comes to making the decision on changing it, especially when deciding to cut it, then in that context, know that it is just hair, and it will grow back.
Cutting your hair becomes a temptation when things get especially bad with your long hair. A cut doesn’t have to mean a full on big chop, but it can mean bangs, tapers, layers, and pretty much anything that gives your hair some life.
6. The journey is what makes the process cool; it’s not the destination
We say this day in and day out: enjoy the process and every stage, because at every point, there are challenges, rewards, and some amazing stuff that you might miss, as you are focused on the long hair part.
To be honest, I think when women do a second big chop, the journey is completely different; they learn from the first time to enjoy the stages, even more so than they did before.
Once you get to the destination, which in our case might be a goal length, you start to miss the journey, and want to hop on it all over again. The difference is you might stay within each stage much longer than expected.
7. Long hair can start to thin
This isn’t a given, but for many of us, longer hair weighs down our curls, so that volume that we are used to diminishes. This is probably one of the biggest signs that tell you that you need a hair cut, especially if you are a girl that prefers volume over length.
8. You can have long hair in an instant if you do not have long hair
When man invented clip-ins, he invested freedom of choice. If you cut your hair to medium length, and you are having that waist length itch again, just get some clip-ins to satisfy the craving. With all of the new options we have in the hair care industry, there should be no reason not to have fun. Moreover, there should be no reason to obsess over hair length.
Don’t take this list as an excuse to walk away from your goals, even if it is waist length hair. Take it as an indicator that the hair journey is really where the fun is. The journey doesn’t end with that final length check, it is really just at a pinnacle of one of the many ups and downs you will experience.
Chase health over length, and have fun!
Fonda Edmonds Nesbitt says
I want to find out for myself.Let me have the long hair
Sheron Brathwaite says
Yesterday, grow your hair. Today, long hair sucks. Inconsistent much. Humph
BlackHairInformation.com says
Not really, posts are the personal opinion of the writer. I love long hair personally but it appears that Emily is sick of hers! 🙂
Lotty Jay says
I just think I’m not meant to have naturally long hair. It’s healthy strong and thick but my length stays the same to me. Haven’t straightened it in years. Maybe I should get a blowout to see the changes.
Crystal Danzey says
I have long dreads down to my but, and I find alot of the statements are true. I have thinning from the weight and no cool styles cause my hair is TOO long.
Kim Shader says
I had a hairstylist tell me my hair was so long it kept getting caught in the blow dryer when i was getting a blowout.
I wear my hair in its natural curl all the time except for this 1time.
The less i do to my hair the better. I believe in the natural state.
Do what is right for you not what you read in an article
Nilah Smith Jones says
I don’t think the aim of the article is to dissuade you from the goal of ‘long’ hair. It’s just making the point that it isn’t always as glamorous as it is made out the be. I had long, healthy-all be it relaxed- hair. It was a chore to maintain. It stopped being fun. And I began to realize that I was keeping my long hair for everyone else’s sake…even though it was making me miserable. My desire to cut it all off was met with complete negativity. But when I did it, I never felt freer and more myself.
If your goal is Rapunzel like hair, go for it. But if after that you discover you desire something else, go for it. Don’t let this universal desire for length make you feel obligated to keep yours. At least, that’s my take on it. Just do you…
Eboni Taylor says
I had long hair and felt the exact same way. I cut mine off in April.
MsCDwell says
I agree…just do you. I cut my shoulder length hair because I was not happy with it. I wanted more shape, more pizzaz, and I love it now. Most like it (thank you), some don’t (so sorry for you). Another thing I’ve noticed is that not everyone even looks good with long hair…almost like the hair is wearing the person 🙂 It may not even be their best style. The hair in itself is not the total picture that a person presents. It is only a part of the picture. I think healthy hair, styled right for you would be a better goal over length.
Shan McClendon-Askew says
Solution: cut it and donate it to me. .. win win
Sherelle Hendrix says
Don’t always feed into what the writer is saying. It is based on opinion and not always fact. If you love it then rock it if you don’t then chop chop lol. Do what works for you and not for anyone else. In the end it’s about making yourself happy. Take that with you everywhere in every situation that you face.
Kelly Nechelle Mcgruder says
My goal iz alwayz big healthy strong hair. I’m shur I don’t want long ass hair. It seemz like it would be alot to handle. Shoulder length iz gr8.
Carina Desiree Brooks-King says
I’ll be growing my hair long
MsWhite Hiddenheels Ellis says
1 and 3 YES
Mrs M says
I’ve notice women who have had long hair most of their lives tend to want to cut it when they get older and it’s ok because it’s their hair. I’ve seen black women who have long hair cut it into an Halle Berry cut and other black women would go off on them some to the point of not speaking to them and it’s sad.. There’s a former schoolmate of mine who always had long gorgeous hair when she was little now a grown woman who want to cut her hair but she have friends even family members of hers telling her she better not cut it..When do it get to the point of people controlling our own hair on our heads?
Malisa Grinston says
That’s the crazy thing I heard today!!!!!!
An'Mari Gray says
So true I get the urge to cut my hair all the time… I cut a bang instead or layers
S'ambrosia says
I totally agree with everything in this post. This is a basic principle that can be applied to many areas in life. You have a goal to be a millionaire, once you get there, you realize it really doesn’t satisfy you. You have a goal to find the perfect man. Once you find him you discover life isn’t perfect, it’s a struggle. Many people become a little disillusioned when they reach goals that they’ve spent so much time and energy on and it’s so easy to do that with hair too. I really think most people in the natural community have merely turned their obsession from wanting to have silky straight hair to wanting length (myself included at one time). Being natural is about a lot more than length! Thanks for sharing this reality.
MsKat says
I’ve had my hair to my waist, I’ve had it so short i styled it with my washcloth after my shower…meh, it’s just hair. I wear ti long for a while, I cut it in a style, I cut it in a shorter style…I cut it all off…it’ll grow back. I rarely use heat, and because it is very fine and curly I don’t wear it out a lot unless it is too short to put up.
Lexi Jackson says
Very true. Im struggling trying to find a new shape. And yesss tangles r the worst!!
Eboni Taylor says
I had long hair and I really didn’t like it. I got compliments on it and all, but I just didn’t like that I spent more time keeping up my hair than anything! Soooo, I chopped it all off into a cute pixie style. I love it, my boyfriend is obsessed with it, and I feel more free. I have experienced both ends of the spectrum and now I just focus on the health of my hair instead of the length.
Angie Marshick says
When I was a young woman,I prayed for long hair. I rubbed oils into my scalp,used hair “serums”,took vitamins,cut the ends, etc. My hair never got long and I felt like a failure. Now, as I look back, my goal then, should just have been to have healthy hair. I would have discovered its fine texture and nice color.
Steen How says
This article really speaks volumes. My hair is a little above APL and one of my goals now is to reach waist length when straightened. But I also noted after a few years of waist length get a Diva cut or even BC just for something different. I really liked when Emily said “The journey is what makes the process cool; it’s not the destination.” Which is so true!
Angie M. says
I think that black woman may view you cutting off your long hair, as disgraceful and see you as unappreciative. With you having long hair, (that’s real!!), you achieved something many black women can’t. Cutting your hair Must’ve been empowering.
Dee McGee says
I don’t like how this article assumes my gender. I am a man, not a woman. Men can have long hair too! Maybe try a psychedelic experience or a few years of meditation, then come back and write articles. 🙂