So I know this has nothing to do with weight loss, but I just wanted to get some different opinions on it. (I've already mentioned it off and on to my friends and family.)

I keep considering shaving my head.

I am a woman and I have thick curly hair down to about my shoulders. (I was in a phase of trying to grow it long.) I live in the South and summer's coming! Thing is, I'd have to wear sunscreen on my head, or hats. I like hats, but not ball caps, and every day? I'm just not sure. Plus I have no idea what my skull looks like under there. What if I hate it?

But I don't really like my hair no matter how I wear it. Short, long, whatever. It just doesn't behave/look right on me. I get compliments on my hair now but it's always in my face.

I wonder, too, if people will think I'm a breast cancer survivor or something. (I have been treated with chemo in the past for my lupus, but the drug didn't make me lose my hair and I'm not on chemo now.)

So how would you advise me to decide what style is right for me?

What about a short pixie cut...just long enough to have a few curls and prevent your scalp from being exposed, but short enough that maintenance should be easy! I know a girl with the most adorable curly short haircut and she raves about how easy it is to care for!

If you do it, good for you! So brave! I have contemplated it before, but only out of utter frustration. I have very thick, coarse, wavy hair (obviously straightened in my profile pic...) and summers are NOT fun. I don't think it would look good on me. Maybe I'll reconsider that when I lose some weight (odd how those two correlate in my mind).

I 2nd Pixie cut but not shaved bald.

Ditto. Pixie cut.

I recently went from hair long enough to be in a fairly long ponytail (when it was down it was just below my shoulders), to a pixie cut. Long enough to add some height with product, but short enough that fluffing it out of the shower, and adding a little argan oil is sufficient. I love it. It is so easy, and feminine.

I wouldn't shave it entirely. Are you on pinterest? Do a search for "short curly hair" and you'll see loads of pictures and ideas.

Normally I urge women to do whatever they want in terms of their looks but a bald head is very symbolic in our culture, what exactly are you trying to convey to others when you do that? Stay away? Be scared of me? Be scared for me? I'm going through something? Whenever I see a person with a bald head I think one of the following:

1. Cancer patient
2. extreme politics (skinheads, gang members etc)
3. men who can't come to grips with losing their hair
4. Britney Spears having a meltdown and bashing cars with a baseball bat

Embracing your beauty can be very healing. My best friend has very curly hair and she goes to the salon for some kind of protein treatment that relaxes the curl a little, it doesn't straighten it but helps it become more manageable. I can ask her what that treatment is if you want.

I think you should look for a stylist that specializes in curly hair. I know a lot of women who have curly hair have had a lot more luck finding someone who knows how to cut curly hair.

And this shows a variety of pixie cuts on celebrities, including those with very curly hair
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/1...n_4144739.html

(although I'd say I slightly disagree with wannbeskinny about men shaving their heads because they can't come to grips with losing their hair, I see it more as accepting the baldness and going with it. I think men with shaved heads, not necessarily clean shaven, are pretty sexy... Like Jason Statham)

so "because its hot" is your argumentation for cuting your whole hair off?^^ thats not good enough! keep what god gave you, as long as you can enjoy it

I wasn't passing judgement on how attractive someone is based on their haircut, I hope that didn't come across. I loved Sinead O'Connor's shaved do and I cannot deny there is a beauty in a shaved head whether man or woman. But it is a very very bold statement and rebellious too. The men I know who shave their heads due to baldness feel like it looks better completely gone, or it's a pre-emptive strike. The feel that shaving their head is a bold take-charge move, while allowing their head to naturally bald is passive.

Well, you've hit all the negative points for shaving ones head...

But what about the positive?

1. Cancer SUPPORT
2. The Genuine WANT to shave your head! Speaking as a girl with massive amounts of thick hair I have often contemplated shaving my head. The middle of summer when its a million degrees and your head feels like it's on fire! So tempting to just get out the clippers and be done with it! I've never had the balls personally!
3. Nelie nailed it on the men part!
4. What about the many thousands of dusky ladies out there with thick curly hair who shave their heads? Did they have a meltdown or is it probably just more comfortable?

OP - While I agree with going for a pixie cut, who says you cant just shave it and let it GROW into a pixie cut? Won't take thaaaat long! Also, I think there are some websites you can try where you put in a picture of yourself and it shows you what different hairstyles look like, that could be worth a go.

Good luck. And its just hair, it grows back

I have VERY curly hair, but my daughter is even more curly than I am. We go to a salon owner who specializes in the deva cut (dry curl cutting). I also stopped shampooing my hair over 12 years ago and it has been "behaving" ever since.

I'd suggest reading Curly Girl and checking out www.naturallycurly.com for specific ideas. I've been a member of their forum for 14 years!

I think for men, it isn't always a bold statement. I think of it more as figuring out what looks best on them.

Munchy I have started cowashing my hair (washing with conditioner, not shampoo) in the last few months and it's a bit more manageable. I also use a sulfate free shampoo once a month or so.

I'm just frustrated with my hair. It's not super curly when it's short. But it looks bad to me short, long, whatever.

Hubby asked me to keep growing it out for now until I can do the sorts of things that made me want to grow it out in the first place...get into a proper pony tail, etc. He's seen me in a pixie cut and says it doesn't look good on me. And he says that way I won't always be second guessing...should I have grown it out?

I think I just hate my face and it doesn't matter what I do with the hair around it.

First, I really hope don't hate your face - sometimes I get frustrated with my appearance, but it's really temporary due to dry skin or some kind of blemish. I hope that's what you meant...

I'm a cowasher and use ACV rinse instead of sulfate free shampoos. Have you gotten a cut by a specialist yet? I highly recommend doing that before throwing in the towel. Find your curl pattern and look for a style that looks good on someone else. I have found the most success with devacurl and mixed chicks conditioners. They work so well with no other added products and the price shows!

People stop to ask me probably 3-4 times a week how long it takes me to twist my daughter's hair into coils. She's a wash and go (and can even sustain 5 day hair) so her hair takes almost no time at all. If I twisted all of her tiny curls, it would take me all day!