So I'm a curly girl (very). I'll soon be starting clinicals and would like to avoid even having this discussion with my professors unless I have to.
As many curly haired people know, there is a fine line (often dictated by a .10 point change in barometric pressure or wind direction) between having beautiful springy curls and looking like a bat-**** crazy bag lady.
Now, many of my curly haired brethren rely on air drying their hair (which for me can take anywhere for 1 - 8 hours lol).
Is it totally unprofessional to show up to work in a medical setting with wet or partially wet hair? Is that allowed? Unsafe?
There is a long discussion about this on a naturally curly hairstyle site I participate in, but most of the discussion is focused on office jobs, which doesn't really apply to this type of work, so I figured I'd ask here!
Oh I feel your pain. I have spiral ringlet curls, and my natural haircolour is a white/ashy blonde (I dye it black). What I do, mostly since I like it better, is straighten it. Then, since I live up north, land of freak snowstorms that would make the vikings cry for mommy, I either overload on hairspray, or put my hair up in a hood, scarf, or hat. It saves you from looking like medusa.
man oh man i know how u feel!!! gaving natrually curly thick hair is a blessing and a pain!!! i plan to let it air dry and wear it pinned up or in a ponytail because the last thing id wanna do it fling my wet moosued up hair in a patient, classmate, or my own face while starting an iv!!! i know it sucks... but i think ponytail holders will have to be our best friends in clinicals!! :redbeathe
I don't have too many hair problems, but when it was a bit long, I had ~ 30 commute. I would turn the car vents/heater up full blast and aim it @ my head. Also used a wide toothed comb and brush to keep redistributing the water. It still wasn't dry when I got there, but it was dry enough to "put up".
Oh yall thanks so much for participating in this ^^ I felt really stupid making this post in the first place.
I really don't want to outright ask my clinical instructor up front and say "oh hey can I come in with wet hair" because I'm certain the immediate response will be "absolutely not", without them having seen it to know that it might not be as dramatic as it sounds. In reality an outright "no" or "absolutely not" or something of that nature would effectively shackle me to an additional 10 hours a week of hairstyling and hundreds of $$ on treatments and products.
To be honest, my hair isn't even really that unmanageable. The only time its unmanageable is when it needs to be dry by a certain time or straigtened or coiffed to a certain standard. Its just gorgeous (not to toot my own horn but ) when I wash it and leave it the hell alone. If only social and professional standards accommodated that!! grr.
Its been a mixed bag of advice so I think I'm going to:
a. Flatiron for a bit to stay under the radar.
b. Show up one day with my wet (not soaking) hair, but with supplies to remedy just in case and gauge response.
c. Repeat a & b until I either get a "stop doing that" or a go ahead. Or perhaps ask on a day that my hair is wet if its ok to be in that state so it can be SEEN while the judgement is being made.
I still can't get over how stupid this whole thing sounds, but I simply cannot fathom the idea of waking up at 4 in the morning and sitting on the couch every day waiting for my hair to dry. Hopefully I can land a 2nd or 3rd shift job when I graduate and not even have to worry about this (amongst other reasons.)
Thanks again everyone clinicals start very soon and I'll be sure to let you know how the whole thing pans out.
You can always use a blow-dryer with a diffuser attachment. They're kind of made for curly hair.
I've got 4 diffusers. A Solano, A Sedu, A T2 and a Conair. Not one of them really helps me dry my hair any faster, Unless I'm in a high humidity situation which in Pittsburgh is a little less than never wahhhhhh. Diffusers DO on the other hand make my hair BIGGER. doublewahhhhhhh
Wow, this thread opened up a whole new world to me!! I am a 3B and never knew it!
Trying to find a picture similar to my work hairdo, but came up empty. Here's what I do (it's a bit longer than shoulder length): I pull it back to the base of the neck, roll like a French twist, but instead of tucking the ends in, I let them pouf out like a little ponytail. Then I oil the curly ends into a neat pouf and gel back from my hairline.
It looks neat and professional, whether it's damp or dry, and it's quick.
There's that Hunger Games braid thing going on now that could work too.
) when I wash it and leave it the hell alone. If only social and professional standards accommodated that!! grr.
wahhhhhh. Diffusers DO on the other hand make my hair BIGGER. doublewahhhhhhh
ZeroNightskye
33 Posts
Oh I feel your pain. I have spiral ringlet curls, and my natural haircolour is a white/ashy blonde (I dye it black). What I do, mostly since I like it better, is straighten it. Then, since I live up north, land of freak snowstorms that would make the vikings cry for mommy, I either overload on hairspray, or put my hair up in a hood, scarf, or hat. It saves you from looking like medusa.