One, “I ran out of shampoo and didn’t have enough money to buy more.” 

Two, “I was channeling my 2007 Britney Spears.” 

Three, “I’m a biology major; I don’t have time for anything else.” 

I shaved my head two weeks ago, and these are just a few of the witty responses that I have come up with to answer the popular question: “Why did you do it?” 

I did it because I wanted to, and that was a good enough reason for me. 

I have wanted to shave my head for years now, but until now, I never had the courage to follow through with it. I think the main reason for holding back is how our society has defined beauty in the past, but that definition is quickly evolving. 

There have been a bunch of stories in the media recently about influential women shaving their heads that I have been reading in order to try to put my feelings into words. Something I found in common with my and all of these other women’s experiences is that we have never felt more free than we do now. 

There is no more hiding behind our hair, using it as a shield to hide ourselves from the world. It has released us from the pressure of trying to fit in and we are giving the world the rawest versions of ourselves, which is extremely empowering. The freedom that comes with not abiding by the rules of feminine beauty that society has laid out has given me and many other women confidence we didn’t even know we had. 

One thing that model and actress Cara Delevingne said after shaving her head that has stuck with me is this: “It’s exhausting to be told what beauty should look like. I am tired of society defining beauty for us. Strip away the clothes, wipe off the makeup, cut off the hair. Remove all the material possessions. Who are we? How are we defining beauty? What do we see as beautiful?” 

We cannot conform to the idea that our beauty is defined by the length of our hair, because we are so much more than dead skin cells. I strongly believe that your beauty comes from the kindness and joy that you spread through your personality. I am not saying that everyone should go shave their heads right now, because everyone expresses themselves in different ways. Mine just happens to be with no hair. 

I feel confident, I feel beautiful, I feel free, and most importantly, I feel like I’m finally me. 

Written by guest writer Isabelle Graessle