should I cut my hair?

[picurn10]

Just trying to simplify my life as much as possible since I'm a single mom and will have to work through LPN school. I've been reading a lot about how you can't have your hair down on your collar for clinicals, and I just wonder if it'd be easier to do a short bob that I could either scrunch into curls (my hair's pretty wavy when it's short) or blow dry it quickly. Right now my hair is down the middle of my back, and it's really think. It probably takes a good 30min to blow dry it. What did you do with your hair if it was long?

[Daytonite, BSN, RN]

i didn't cut my hair for over 30 years. i used to put it up in a ponytail and wrap it in a fancy knot that i held in place with two long bobby pins. one of my friends did a different kind of knot as well. the advantage of this was that i used the topknot as a penholder. docs used to help themselves to the pen sticking out of my hair all the time.

since my fingers are now numb from the chemotherapy i had this past year and i can't feel what i am doing with my fingers, i was getting my hair tangled in the elastics i used to make the ponytails. after a couple months of agonizing over this (remember, i hadn't cut my hair in over 30 years) i finally got it all cut off to about an inch long, a little longer on top--no kidding! and, i love how easy it is to take care of! one of the criteria is that i can't use a curling iron because of the numbness in my fingers as it is a safety issue. with this cut, my hair dries in an hour, and don't laugh, but i give it 2 sprays of my cat's lavender scented coat spritz and i have gotten more compliments on how wonderful my hair smells! now i'm thinking that i should have done this years ago.

[rnmomtobe2010]

I cut mine and that was the best decision that I could have made. Less stress. Less worrires. Less trouble.

[mybrowneyedgirl, BSN, RN]

I think hair texture is a very important consideration when deciding to cut or not to cut. If you have straight fine hair, I would think a short cut would work great.

If you have thick spiral curls, you would spend way too much time and product on it.

Good luck with your choice.

[ViolettaCCU, MSN]

No! Don't cut it! - I did that and boy, do I regret it! My hair was midway down my back and I usually kept it in a ponytail. During Spring Break I had it cut (I wanted it shoulder length, mind you), but when the stylist was done, it was a bob up to my ears! Its four months later and, only lately, can I put it into a decent ponytail once more! And yes, shorter hair takes more upkeep and styling!

[polka-dot, RN]

I cut mine and that was the best decision that I could have made. Less stress. Less worrires. Less trouble.

Ditto! It takes 30 seconds in the morning to run some goop through my hair and one hour every month at the salon. Over the course of one month, I spend only one hour and fifteen minutes TOTAL on my hair. Seriously. When it was long, I'd spend at least 30 minutes each day futzing with it, and there was no guarantee that it would look good.

Short, short hair is definitely easier...but you have to go SHOOOOOORT (like a cute pixie cut) in order for it to be this easy. Depending on your face shape and hair texture this may be a great solution!

[ladynurse1]

I wouldn't cut it just for nursing school. Now if you have been contemplating cutting it, then yeah maybe I would. As long as there are ponytail holders and/or bobbypins, you can wear your hair up. If your hair is long and healthy, I would keep it. Short hair is very trendy right now but if you don't like short hair, don't cut it. If you don't have the face for short hair, then don't cut it. We have to basically give up our lives for the duration of nursing school already, why give up your hair too. Wash it and put it in a bun or ponytail. Short bobs often require more work to look good. Just my two cents.

[amjowens]

I strongly believe in maintaining who we are in NS and as nurses. Make yourself a priority. NS is tough and time consuming, sure, but don't start the habit of taking care of everyone else and not yourself.

If you think you'd feel good and look good with your hair cut, I say go for it! :wink2:

[SuesquatchRN, BSN, RN]

Tuck it back in a French braid and turn it under and secure it with hairpins. It's pretty, neat, and unless your hair is extremely oily you won't have to wash and style it every day.

[ShannonRN2010, BSN, RN]

You know, I am of the mindset that it is just hair and it will grow back

I cut my hair super short in nursing school...best thing I ever did.

[missjennmb]

If my husband did not have a severe aversion to short hair, mine would be short enough so that I never had to pin it back again.

As it stands, I did cut it just yesterday so that its just hitting my shoulders at the ends (hard to explain but its kind of layered so it hits my shoulders with one layer, but gets a bit higher so that it "flips out" a bit). My hair was about halfway down my back when I cut it. Even though it still will take some work to look good down, its the difference between 5 min under the hair dryer and 20, and it just FEELS better/lighter.

I would cut it, if it was me, and then just hop in for a quick trim once a month to keep it. I did dye my hair and regretted it, and am now about to "dye it back" so that its back to its natural color (I have a funky half and half thing going on atm) I would NEVER dye my hair during nursing school again lol, atleast not while caring for small children and working nearly full time as well.

[mama_d, BSN, RN]

I had hair down to the middle of my butt the whole time I was in nursing school...I would wash it the night before, and pull it up into a bun in the morning. Super easy and less muss than short hair!

Shortly after our two year old was born, I got it all chopped off. I have a picture of the ponytail of it lying next to the baby; the hair was longer than him by several inches! I loved it for about two days, then wished I could afford extensions. I just do not feel like myself without long hair. I'm now trying to grow it all back out.

[Dottie78]

I had my hair long for quite some time (down to the middle of my back), then I cut it into a stacked bob, and I absolutely LOVE it! It depends on the person and what their personal preference is, but IMHO, the shorter hair is easier for me. When my hair was long, it took much longer to shampoo/condition (not to mention, I had to use a TON of conditioner), and it took forever to brush out all my tangles (even with a ton of conditioner) and to blow dry.

My hair is very fine, so when it was longer, after it got to a certain length, it didn't look good anymore, and just brushing out all the tangles was a job in itself! Now that it's short, it only takes me a minute to brush the tangles out, and it looks so much fuller and healthier. I plan to keep the short cut when I go to nursing school too.