My hair is starting to curl under my hat, which means it is time for me to call and make an appointment with my hair dresser.

To those who know me, this may sound absurd.  After all, I have very little hair left on my head.  Bald jokes aside, it reminded me of a time when I use to experience anxiety while getting my hair cut.

I use to get my haircut at a local barber shop about 15  minutes out of town.  I got my first haircut there when I was a baby and my father and grandfather used to go there too.  Long story short, the son took over the shop and it wasn’t the same anymore. So for over a year I tried to find myself a hair dresser that would take the time and cut my hair right — most were lazy and left me looking like a conehead.

I think getting your hair cut  is a personal thing, you have to have some sort of rapport with the person cutting your hair.  Or at the very least feel comfortable with them.

I never felt comfortable with most of the hair dressers. I would often times get nervous and fear getting all hot and start sweating, which would make my hair wet and I would fear what they would think of me.  Looking back its a stupid thing to worry about, but I did worry about it.

I also, would get nervous about what to talk about, which made my stomach feel uneasy, which in turn I worried about having to  get up out of my seat to rush to the bathroom.  I’d than start worrying… asking myself where was the bathroom? Most didn’t have any, which would require me to leave the shop. What would they think of me, if I rushed out of the shop?

These all seem like ridiculous fears, but at the time they were real… and going to get my hair cut wasn’t a pleasant experience for the longest time.

My haircut anxiety stopped when I stopped worrying about what others would think of me and started to focus on others.  Instead of not knowing what to say, I would ask simple questions like “has it been a busy day today?” or ” have you seen that new movie?”.   I learned that I didn’t need to know what to talk about, instead I could ask general type questions I knew the hair dresser would already know and have him/her talk.  People love talking about themselves, so stop worrying about what to say, just ask them questions and listen.

Another thing that helped me overcome my haircut anxiety was to realize that I was always in control.  I was never trapped in that chair and if for any reason I needed to get up and use the washroom, I would and I couldn;t care less what others would think — even if I had to rush outside the shop to a nearby restaurant to use some public facility.  I was in control and I did not worry about what others would say.  Just knowing I was in control allowed me to relax and feel much better.

What about yourself? Have you ever experienced haircut anxiety? If so, feel free to leave a comment and share your story so we can let others know that they are not alone and that many people have gone through similar experiences.