I hate to even link to this because I don’t want it getting any more clicks, but when I saw a New York Times article titled “Mom Hair: It Exists. Now What to Do About It” I was confused.
Was this an Onion article? Had they mistakenly written Mom Hair instead of Mom Jeans? What the heck is Mom Hair?
Want a fresh haircut like Kristen Bell’s? Are you a mom? Then don’t bother, says the New York Times. credit: Universal Studios
According to Bee Shapiro, author of the article, Mom Hair is an absolute epidemic that’s sweeping the nation among new moms.
An actual quote from the article: “You’ve likely seen it at suburban malls: the longer-in-back, slightly–shorter-in-front bob that should read sleek but is inescapably frumpy. And even the city-dwelling mom isn’t immune. Perhaps she has added her own twists like blunt bangs or extra layering, but the ’do still falls short of flattering.”
As if new moms aren’t already being told by society over and over again that they’re doing it all wrong, now they’ve also got Mom Hair to worry about.
What’s that? You just left the salon, where you spent a glorious two hours by yourself(!), and, despite your sleep-deprivation and spit-up stains, are feeling pretty good? Think again!
“The first thing new moms want to do is cut their hair off,” the article quotes Juan Carlos Maciques, a stylist at the Rita Hazan salon in Manhattan, as saying. “They’re feeling lousy about their bodies, and they just want to get some sense of self again. But, usually, to cut off your hair is a big mistake.”
Everything about this article rubs me the wrong way. The continued need to criticize women and fuel the mommy wars by creating terms like “Mom Hair.” The insinuation that a mom who just gave birth has nothing better to do than fret about her hair because she feels so “lousy.” The suggestion that a woman’s post-birth hairstyle is so important that she should start planning for it during pregnancy. Give me a break.
Read the article if you want. Or ignore it, kiss that beautiful baby that you heroically gave birth to and give yourself a big pat on the back for being a damn good mom, no matter what the heck your hair looks like.
