I tried to go a week without shaving

Holler if you dread summer because of one slight problem: S H A V I N G. If you are anything like me, then you know what an actual pain it is to constantly shave week after week, sometimes even multiple times a day to make sure not a single hair escapes.

My routine is actually pretty simple in Fall, Winter and Spring – I am au naturale with my wild hairs running all over the place. Just kidding, I typically wax it all off and it works out pretty well.

The actual problem occurs in summer. When I usually wax, it takes about a solid two weeks for the hairs to finally start showing again. That’s when things get interesting. The third week is the worst, because I want to shave, but I have to constantly remind myself that by the fourth week I can go get waxed again, and as you can tell, I am not the most patient person.

I hate having that stubble feeling on my legs and arms, because if there is anything that I truly despise in this world, it is the removal of body hair. I’ve considered other options such as laser hair removal surgery, hair removal cream, and even shaving but nothing works as great as waxing (or that is so cost efficient).

Recently, I started seeing all these articles about feminists who would go out into the world without shaving and still kick-ass. Seeing how I don’t walk away from a challenge, I decided to try this and see if I could last a week without doing anything to my body hair.

Day one – Tuesday

It was the first day of my no-shave week, and I had just found out that I was going to see Seth Meyers in New York City – damn. I couldn’t actually abandon this experiment on the first day so I decided to go, body hair and all. I had expected people to laugh and stare at my stubble-y legs and but honestly, no one cared. I guess it just felt to me that the entire world was staring, when they actually weren’t. By the end of the day, I had successfully made it through the city in a dress without shaving my legs. All in all, Tuesday went without a hitch.

Day two – Wednesday

Wednesday wasn’t problematic at all because I was home all day. It felt nice to be able to walk around the house in shorts and a t-shirt without worrying about shaving my pits, my legs or even my arms. I didn’t even mind running my hands through my forest of hairs because I was at home and no one could make me shave. That night, when we decided to go out for dinner, was when I first started to worry. It was extremely hot, and I had really wanted to wear a cute dress but in the end I settled for pants because I was too chicken. Still, at the end of the day, I was still winning because I still hadn’t picked up the razor.

Day three – Thursday

Third day in and I was dying. I could feel my hormones laughing at me, just yelling at each other More hair, more hair, make Atsi even more uncomfortable! To make matters worse, I was going to see my friends and it was 90 freaking degrees out, so I did what anyone would have done – I shaved. I know, I know, I failed! I couldn’t help it, my new razor was just itching to be used so I went ahead and within the hour, I had my perfectly smooth legs and pits back. I felt my confidence come back – that is until the next day.

Day four – Friday

Take two. I literally woke up the next morning and as I inspected my legs, I saw those little hairs start to pop right back up. I was shocked, it had been only 24 hours yet everything was coming back. HOW COULD THIS BE POSSIBLE?? By the time I went into the shower, I was furious. No, I was not going to shave day after day to maintain the smoothness of my legs; I decided to wait until the hairs were long enough to wax.

Day five – Saturday

My family and I decided to go to Jersey City, and of course, it just had to be so hot. I wore a dress out that day and I remember sitting in the car and just being able to see the hair – it was so frustrating. Never the less, I didn’t let it get the best of me. Sometimes, I felt people were talking about my legs, but honestly I would never know because no one came up to me and said, Hi do you mind shaving your legs? 

Day six – Sunday

Sunday wasn’t bad at all either because at temple I just wore jeans and a tank which I covered up with a blazer. I wasn’t too worried because I knew no one would notice, and if they did I was just going to retort back and say, You’re at temple, pay attention to God. I didn’t go out that much either, but when I did, I just wore jeans to hide my legs.

Day seven – Monday

My family decided to go out today again but this time I absolutely refused to leave the house. No way was I going into 90 degree temperature without shaving my legs. Jokes on them because I just sat in my shorts and a tank with air conditioning all day without worrying about my body hair.

Overall, I realized that this was not very easy to do, especially in summer. Everyday, either my friends or family members would want to go out and it was hard to dress appropriately for the weather without losing my comfort level. I guess I’m just not ready to be the no shaving type of feminist just yet.

So kudos to all of you out there who are able to slay with unshaven pits, arms or legs, because that is something I just cannot do. And for all of you out there (like me) who need to get rid of the hair, don’t worry, I am rejoining y’ll and picking up the razor because it’s time to get those smooth legs back.