feeling depressed

i don't know if i'm just being a wimp about having had my
hair cut BADLY and TOO SHORT, but since the cut 5 days ago
i've been feeling really down.....as in, whenever i look in the
mirror i want to bawl like a 3-yr old.
i'd like to think i'm not such a pansy that this will be affecting
my life, but i guess i reeeally underestimated how important
my long hair was to me.
i thought 'an inch or so' off would refresh things a bit, but
obviously the stylist (in true arrogant, impatient, non
listening stylist fashion; no offense to the good ones out
there, cos my old stylist was fab) had her own ideas & just
did her own thing, hacking away like 5 inches & injecting my
head with horrible short layers (i've got coarse wavy hair, so
this does N O T work), leaving me looking like princess leah,
with 2 big poofy balls of short layers exploding out the side
of my head. *SOB* ....
anyway, i had to vent. i'm so upset.
am trying to be mature about this, but i just feel so crappy.
and now .... another 6months before it looks respectable
again.
i'm hoping that what i'm feeling is not toooooo extreme, &
that others having felt equally as traumatized and
depressed?
ok, thanks.

I'm sorry to hear you feel so bad. I understand. I had to get an ear length cut a couple of years ago, and I prefer mine long too. It's still not to it's former length. I didn't feel like I looked good at all with the short hair, and people even seemed to treat me worse!
But you know what I realized? People can somehow sense how you feel about yourself, and if you feel you don't look good, or don't have confidence in yourself, they can pick up on it (I don't know how, but they do). Then they kick you right when you're down because they sense you won't fight back. I guess when you're underconfident, your mannerisms change or something and people pick up on it without realizing it.

Well, I know you didn't say anything about that for you, but my point is - it does suck right now that it had to happen, and you have every right to be mad at the sylist who did that, but it will grow back eventually. No point in letting it ruin your life.

Try to have fun with it while you've got it, wear styles you couldn't wear with long hair, try straightening it,...if you're going to be stuck with it, you may as well try to have some fun with it. Hope you feel better soon.

Hello there,
I know how you are feeling...trust me.
One month after my haircut see; bobbed to long, in hair bloopers.
I was being brave and said 2 inches off well I got 5 inches cut off and not much layers so I look like a block head.
the cut wasn't touching my shoulders.
A month on I still feel depressed about my hair.
A few days again, 3 weeks after the cut I rang up the manager of the salon and told her I wasn't happy and that I wanted my money back.
She wouldn't give my money back and asked me to come back to the salon to get it thinned out etc.
I said no way I am too scared to get my hair cut again. I have a fab hairstylist and made the big mistake of trying someone new.
The girl that cut my hair hasn't sat her 3rd year exams yet and I told the manager I was charged top price for an apprentice and she said No "Mary" (not real name) is a senior which is not true.
She is also one of our top stylists (well I would hate to see there worst).
I know my money back won't make my hair grow back but it is the whole principle of the matter.
Have you gone back and complained to the stylist?
Trust me I know how you are feeling.
My hair only grows 5mm a month so the stylist took over a whole years growth off. She just had ideas of her own.
By the way when I stood up after my haircut I couldn't walk and blacked out and apparently I had a slight fit. I have never had a fit or blacked out before and this was caused because of the extreme shock that I got.
I hope things get better for you.

Sorry to hear yet another hairdresser lost her cool. Take good care of your hair (condition a lot - wil remove the coarseness and the waves a bit). Use wax or a hair gum to style and protect your hair at the same time. Have a lot of patience. Try experimenting a bit like Susan said too, making the most of what you've got (left).

It is OK to feel bad about a disaster haircut. That's only human. But don't start to feel bad about feeling bad. Do some harmless fun stuff with your hair and feel better about it. Never forget, your hair is only a small part of your image towards society. The haircut can be awful, the person on the inside doesn't have to be. Tame the wild hair until it's long again, let the beast on the inside out in the mean while.

I just want to say that it is perfectly normal to feel depressed after a disastrous haircut. This has happened to me countless times - to the point where I feel like I never want to get my hair done again because I'm too petrified. I feel so badly for you right now and I hope you start to feel better soon. I know it's not what you want to hear right now, but you will start to feel better and you will get used to making the most of the haircut.

Definitely call this salon or visit in person and let this stylist know that you are unhappy. You deserve your money back because you were not given what you asked for. I REALLY hate it when stylists don't listen to the client. Unless you gave this person clearance to do "whatever they want" to your hair, they should not have taken off more than you asked for and given you the horrid layers you can't deal with now.

It's always a shock when long hair ends up suddenly short, and I bet you don't look bad at all - but you're the one who has to be happy. Good luck to you, who knows - perhaps you may end finding a shorter style that works for you while you try to grow it back.

thanks everyone - i really appreciate the replies. sorry to hear u guys had to go thru the same ordeal, but @ the same time, makes me feel much less alone in all my grief & sadness; gee u'd think i was in mourning for a dead relative or something!!!
it's been a week now since the Big Hack - feels like a year!!! - and i ran crazily around the house this a.m. in search of a ruler to see how substantial an 1/8 of an inch is!!! (@ least 1/2 in. a month, right??) ...
still stuck in sad, obsessive, self-pity mode (baaad), & altho i cried a teenyweeny bit when woke this morning to see my already-short layers scrunched up even shorter due to bed head, is getting a bit easier now to accept that what's-done is-done...altho i still loathe to leave the house, which kills me, cos it's usually the opposite when i have a good cut; i feel confident & sexy & want to show myself off to the world!! ordinarily i would go back to the salon to complain (am a great believer in doing so) but i just don't see the pt this time 'round.
i know she's basically a good stylist - i've seen her work on some of my friends & she's got a solid reputation in the city (for whatever that's worth...). & besides, i noticed she's quite ... ohhowshallwesay ....****y, loud & domineering...so if i were to go back, she'd probably just insist/demand that i don't appreciate a good cut (she said it was a 'shag', but i look more like carol brady or keith partridge, circa 1974).
she's not the owner, but somehow she seems to run the place. hmmm.
have decided am not going NEAR a salon for @ least 6months ... a year ... maybe 10. hell, maybe i'll just buy a shack in the woods & let my hair grow down to my knees.
i plan to up my cardio, cut out sugar, re-invest in yoga classes (stress can't be good for the scalp!!), O.D. on kelp & brewer's yeast (mmmmm), give myself a 2X daily head massage & purchase some 'hair supplements' - has anyone tried hair formula 37? - to see if that gives my growth cycle a boost (please please please oh please).
basically, my entire life will revolve around my hair... now how sad is THAT.
anyway, rambling here. thanks for all your advice & words of comfort!!! v. much appreciated!!

You know, if you did want to complain, you could always call and ask to speak to the owner. If she's treating customers so rudely, the owner probably ought to find out about it.

hey susan ... yes i should say something, but i just feel way too intimidated this time 'round...& i think it'd pretty much be an exercise in futility, seeing that she seems to be revered as a goddess in that place. i dunno ...
but thanks.

I know exactly how you feel. I got my hair cut Thursday. I even brought in a picture and my hair looks nothing like it, almost like a mullet!!! I am so upset. I have been about it and I never cry about my hair. This is bar none the worst hair cut I have ever had. I am so upset because in 4 months I am going to New York on vacation and wanted to really look great, but now with this haircut, I am nervous that I will still look like this. After all, under the best conditions, hair only grows 1/2 inch a month. I wish there was something I could take or do to make it grow even a little faster. I am just so unhappy with my hair and have been so depressed about it ever since, and I never feel depressed after a hair cut. Anyway, I just wanted to share and get this off my chest and let you know that someone else is going through the exact same thing. I guess we will have to just hang in there, but it will grow back, right?

Sorry to hear about your mishap too! Is there anything you can do to make it a better cut?  Go for a different style?  I know that would be scary after such a bad experience at one salon, I don't know if I would risk it either personally, but if you feel so bad it might be worth considering if there's a chance it can make you feel good about yourself again.

As for making hair grow faster...there isn't a lot you can do as you already know, but increasing your amount of exercise a little may help some, and making sure your diet is balanced helps too.  Take a multivitamin a day if you don't already (just make sure not to overdo the vitamins, too much of some is dangerous and can cause hair loss).  Some people also take hair vitamins containing biotin (I didn't find they had any effect on me, but some people swear by them). 
Good luck!

I am going to a friend who is a stylist and she is awesome (should have gone to her in the first place, but the long drive deterred me, timing issue)! Anyway, I am hoping she can fix it. I feel so ugly and so unattractive!!! I HAVE to look awesome in NYC in August, I just hope I have enough time to get somewhat pretty again!

I already take a multi-vitamin (thank goodness and this will help me to remember to take it, too!). I already to excercise. I hope it works. Thanks for your kind words! I really need all I can get right now!

If you feel beautiful, you will look beautiful, no matter what your hair looks like.

im kinda going through the same thing...ive had a bad haircut before and i would have thought id learn from that mistake, but then i got another one recentley (and lost 5-6 inches) and i hate looking in the mirror, but its gonna grow back (i heard in about a year) just the only thing to do is wait and i guess not let it get the best of u. i miss having long hair but when i do get it back, hell im gonna wear it down every day and show off! but in the mean time eat,sleep,take vitamans or whatever, and wait 6-12 months. o and its probably not best 2 count down like each day, time goes by faster when your not noticing it.

Hi Violet,

So sorry to hear of your bad haircut. That sucks.  But you seem to have the right attitude about what to do.  I like the fact that you are going to wear it down every day and show it off.  You might take this opportunity to play with different styles that you might have avoided when your hair was a lot longer.  And I know I sound like a broken record, but hair accessories and headwear can be so much fun and really create a whole new look.  When I recently went through a horrible hair coloring event, I wore a variety of caps for a few days to cover up the color and I got lots of compliments and had fun.  I don't normally wear caps but I wore them and I also wore those long goofproof scarves that Britney and Jessica like to wear.  I got some big sunglasses just like their and viola, I was incognito and having a blast.

Hang in there.  Keep coming back and posting here so we can cheer you up and hear about your growing back journey.

Best wishes,

Karen

There's no ifs, ands or buts about it that stylist is just a bad hairstylist who doesn't listen to the desire of her clients.

I can't believe I found this topic now! I'm currently bawling my eyes out because of my haircut six months ago.... I just found an old picture of me with my old lovely hair down to my elbows and started crying because my hair's shoulderlength now... And layered... And a lot shorter in the front... And bleached... The hair dresser decided to do what she wanted although I just wanted an ordinary haircut and highlights. Now I'm going to get myself together and try to feel good about myself and my hair again, because just like Susan W wrote, people can sense how you feel about yourself and I'm going to let the know I feel great, long hair or not!