{"id":44041,"date":"2025-07-10T12:47:53","date_gmt":"2025-07-10T19:47:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/3rdactmagazine.com\/?p=44041"},"modified":"2025-07-10T12:47:53","modified_gmt":"2025-07-10T19:47:53","slug":"crowning-glory-making-peace-with-our-hair-or-lack-thereof","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/3rdactmagazine.com\/crowning-glory-making-peace-with-our-hair-or-lack-thereof\/current-issue\/","title":{"rendered":"Crowning Glory: Making Peace with Our Hair (Or Lack Thereof)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u201cGimme a head with hair,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Long, beautiful hair!<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Shining, gleaming,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Streaming, flaxen, waxen.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Give me down to there (Hair!)<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Shoulder-length or longer (Hair!)<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Here, baby, there, mama,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Everywhere, daddy daddy,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Hair!<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2014From the musical <\/span>Hair<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s something mystical about hair,\u201d muses 80-year-old, pony-tailed Michael Hagen. He cites different traditions around the world, from covering hair entirely to shaving it off. \u201cAnd look at Samson and Delilah. Hair plays a big part in the way we see ourselves and others.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It certainly does, and for many, age-related changes in our hair may not be an easy transition. \u201cWe are all neurotic about our hair,\u201d says, with a laugh, stylist Josephine Morales, 59, owner of Seattle\u2019s E*Clips Hair Studio. With decades of experience dealing with both the timid and the bold, her basic advice is, \u201cwork with what you have and own it.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

That doesn\u2019t necessarily mean going au naturale. \u201cUnless genetically blessed, hair can get thinner as each strand loses volume. Coloring hair changes the structure so it makes it appear fuller,\u201d she says. \u201cI recommend going half a shade lighter than what you usually have and gradually go from there.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

There are those who aren\u2019t ready to change and might never be. Sandra Driscoll, 74, started dyeing her hair in her 60s to keep the color she was born with, a medium warm brown. \u201cI simply like how I look with the color in my hair,\u201d she says. \u201cClearly, I\u2019m not doing it to fool anyone. I think I just look better with color around my face. Yes, it is expensive to maintain but I\u2019d rather cut back elsewhere than go gray.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Beyond color, how short or long to go can be another difficult decision. Morales suggests a very close cut for men with thinning hair rather than hanging on to a fringe or going for the comb-over. For women,<\/span> \u201ca shorter version of what you usually have will make it look thicker. Long hair can get stringy and flyaway.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Of course, there are exceptions. Meryl Nelson, 72, has almost never cut her hair, except for a brief fling as a teen when she trimmed it to \u201clook like Patty Duke.\u201d With sleek white hair to her waist, she goes for a conservative trim occasionally, but that\u2019s it. While Nelson enjoys the gift of great hair, it\u2019s also a hit with her grandchildren. \u201cThey like to brush it and braid it, put clips in it,\u201d she says. \u201cAnd for me, it\u2019s like getting a great massage.\u201d As for the convention of shorter hair on older women, it\u2019s just not an issue. \u201cI\u2019m not against anything, it\u2019s not about counterculture. It\u2019s just who I am.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

That can\u2019t be said for Michael Hagen. His long, wavy white hair is very much a statement. \u201cI\u2019m not exactly your 9-to-5 guy,\u201d he notes. As a young man, and conscientious objector against the Vietnam War, Hagen joined his generational tribe in growing long hair, a departure from his farming community roots.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMy mother was a beautician. I remember the ladies would come to our house and get their perms. The men all had short hair and wore hats,\u201d Hagen says. \u201cEvery summer, I\u2019d get a buzz cut and a new pair of tennis shoes. By fall, the hair was back, and my shoes were worn out.\u201d In high school, he went with the latest fashion\u2014buzz cuts (aka pig shaves), flattops, and crewcuts.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Then the \u201860s hit and his hair has been long ever since. Having grown a bit thin on top, Hagen now sports a dapper black beret. \u201cPeople sometimes ask me, are you a poet? An artist? It\u2019s just become my signature look.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

His partner, Terry Hudgens, was once a towheaded kid. At 75, she\u2019s now all silver and shine with an elegant bob. \u201cI\u2019ve never dyed it,\u201d she says. \u201cI\u2019ve had this style for the last 20 or 30 years.\u201d Change came nonetheless when Hudgens was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2019. \u201cI decided that saving my hair was really important to me so I opted for cooling cap therapy.\u201d Used during cancer treatments, the cap reduces hair loss by circulating cold liquid to the scalp, which in turn constricts blood vessels so that hair follicles take up less of the chemo drugs. \u201cThose treatments saved my hair,\u201d says Hudgens. \u201cIt was bad enough having cancer. I didn\u2019t want to go bald as well. It was expensive but keeping my hair was more important.\u201d An unexpected surprise\u2014her hair is now thicker than before.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

With so many options available these days, it might be time to have a little fun with whatever is up top\u2014pink stripe, a spikey cut, or maybe, like the song says, grow it \u201cdown to there.\u201d Observes Meryl Nelson, owner of the long, lustrous locks: \u201cAs you get older, it\u2019s a wonderful time to do whatever you want to do. Let it go and just see what happens.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Connie McDougall<\/span><\/i><\/b> is a former news reporter and current freelance writer\u202fof nonfiction and personal essays.\u202fA lifelong student and proud English major, she has pursued lessons in flying, scuba diving, tai chi, Spanish, meditation, hiking, and Zumba.\u202f<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Hair’s the Thing<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n