NEW YORK (AP) — “Being bald is sexy. It’s an attitude. It’s a luxury. It’s a lifestyle.”
Brennan Nevada Johnson did. shaved her head Spontaneous 14 years ago, I’m launching a video podcast last November to celebrate the benefits of choosing the bald look.
Sensual, confident, and charming are not adjectives usually assigned to these women. cut hair. For centuries, many cultures have seen long hair as a symbol of femininity, health, and fertility. But more and more women are rebelling against traditional beauty standards and finding empowerment by baring their heads.
“Once you do that, it brings confidence into your life,” said Johnson, 34. “Every time you see someone who is bald and not wearing a wig, know that they are fully accepting themselves. I think that’s really hard.”
Her initial decision to go bald was pragmatic. Johnson played volleyball in college and noticed that the sweat she was sweating on the court was affecting the expensive hair-relaxing treatments she frequently used. But once she started shaving her hair, she was hooked. She was relieved to save money on going to the salon.
Johnson currently runs a public relations firm in New York. Her YouTube video podcast, Bald and Buzzed with Brennan, is an attempt to fill a void in social media content that affirms bald people. especially women. She says she always thought being bald was sexy.
This article is part of AP’s Be Well coverage, which focuses on wellness, fitness, diet and mental health. Read more Hope you are well.
“This is very much a fashion statement and a very strong look,” Johnson said.
Other women without hair, whether voluntarily or due to medical conditions, are also finding ways to support each other by attending conferences, joining “baldness” groups, and exchanging grooming and scalp care tips.
“There’s a whole community of us out there,” said Dash Lopez, a content creator who posts a weekly shaving routine video series called “Fresh Cut Friday.” “We need to talk about it because we find comfort and strength and beauty in what some people think is strange.”
redefining beauty
Lopez’s family said they admired the long curly hair she grew. While some of her friends played with different hair colors and styles, Lopez said she didn’t have the same freedom. And she didn’t like detangling her hair or spending long afternoons at the salon.
As soon as she turned 18 and could get a haircut without permission, she chopped off her hair and cut it into a pixie cut. Then, during the COVID-19 pandemic, she shaved it all off.
“It makes me feel powerful in the sense that I can distance myself from something that people value so much,” said Lopez, 29. “I’m not sitting here and planning, ‘Oh my god, when am I going to make my next color appointment? It’s going to cost $300. Oh my god, I have to get my hair done before I go to this event.'”
Lopez signed with the modeling agency in 2020, at a time when brands were looking to promote diversity. At the time, being bald was a professional advantage for her.
“Quickness was valued, and casting directors were looking for that whether you had a gap in your teeth or a bald head or a face full of freckles,” Lopez said.
Last year, she noticed that the tide had turned, with fewer modeling jobs being booked. “Honestly, the odds were stacked against me in the modeling world,” Lopez said. “My height on paper was 5’4” or 5’5” and I had no hair.”
A client suggested wearing a wig to get more work. Lopez didn’t want to do that, and she didn’t want to grow her hair long. Her modeling contract has ended. Since then, she has been sharing glimpses of her life as a bald woman on Instagram and TikTok, where some of her videos have been viewed millions of times.
“I feel powerful in the sense that I’m making my own choices,” Lopez said. “I’m doing it to empower myself. I’m doing it to gain clarity for myself, to gain a deeper understanding of what I value, and to gain a deeper understanding of what beauty means to me.”
Building a community
Many women face the question of how to define beauty when they lose their hair due to health reasons such as: alopecia or undergoing chemotherapy cancer treatment.
Felicia Flores, a flight attendant in Atlanta, was diagnosed with alopecia in 2001. autoimmune disease That causes hair to fall out. After 6 years, all her hair fell out. Initially, she wore a wig.
That’s when she discovered a group on Facebook called The Baldie Movement. “The women really inspired me,” said Flores, 47. “They really encouraged me and gave me strength. And they really gave me confidence.”
She finally decided to stop wearing wigs and embrace going bald in 2015 after a romantic breakup. “I was tired of being lied to. I felt like I was hiding something. I felt like I wasn’t myself,” she said.
To uplift and inspire other women, Flores founded an annual conference called Baldie Con. The fourth drawing drew more than 200 participants to Atlanta last month, which included a fashion show, guest speakers, a jazz brunch and a black-tied gala, she said.
Reaction management
Aicha Soumaoro, who works in Philadelphia as a nurse during the week and as a mechanic on the weekends, said some of her patients call her “sir” instead of “ma’am,” but she doesn’t mind that. “For the girls, this is their first time being bald.”
Soumaoro, 27, said after shaving her head, her mother told her that most men would not want to marry a woman without hair. Instead, she focuses on the compliments she receives in public, such as “You look confident in what you wear” and “Your face is gorgeous.”
“When you’re bald, it’s like confidence comes out of nowhere,” says Soumaoro, who gets his hair cut every Sunday. “It’s like a new skin, a new layer, a new personality. It just feels fresh. It’s like being reborn.”
She also hikes on Sundays and enjoys the feel of the cold wind on her scalp. “It’s wonderful to feel connected to the earth,” Soumaoro said. “I feel like I can hear all sounds more clearly. I feel like I can think more clearly when my head is bald.”
Tiffany Michael Thomas, an Atlanta-based performer with the stage name Amor Lauren, shaved her head to show support when her mother was undergoing treatment for pancreatic cancer.
Even after her mother passed away, Thomas continued to receive compliments from other women. She decided to maintain her bald appearance.
“Once I really started embracing it, I felt like I couldn’t stop,” Thomas, 37, said. “I don’t have anything to hide anymore. … It forced me to deal with all of my insecurities.”
If you’re thinking about shaving your head, don’t hesitate, advises Thomas. Women tell her they’re worried that their head isn’t the right shape or that they have lumps or scars. “Just do it without thinking,” she said. “Do it with fear. Everything in life should be done with fear. The best way to overcome that fear is to try it.”
___
Send your health questions or story ideas to (email protected). Follow AP’s Be Well coverage focused on wellness, fitness, food and mental health. https://apnews.com/hub/be-well.
