A WOMAN who embraces her body hair has shared her summer experiences.
Esther Calixte-Bea, 28, grew tired of the social norms that expect women to be completely hair-free, so decided to ditch the razor six years ago when she was in her early twenties.
And having body hair in the summer does not faze Esther or impact her enjoyment of any activities she chooses to do.
Gone are the days when she refused to go swimming as she hadn’t shaved.
Now, she completely embraces her fuzz and doesn’t let it get in the way of her femininity.
“It’s part of me. It’s part of my ancestors and it’s part of my beauty and that’s how I view it,” Esther, from Canada said.
My advice to somebody who’s self conscious about their body hair during the summer is that no one’s forcing you to keep it.
Esther
“For me, my body hair makes me beautiful.
“When I’m wearing a dress, when I’m wearing a skirt or whatever, I feel beautiful with my body hair because I know it’s feminine on my body.”
In the summer of 2022, Esther travelled with her family to Ivory Coast, where she wore a bathing suit with her hair on show for the first time.
She says she felt incredibly confident – like it was a challenge she’d overcome – and it has become one of her most memorable moments.
Esther’s advice to others who want to embrace their body hair is to think about wanting to be the best version of themselves.
She said: “If hating your body hair is having a negative impact on your mental health. It’s important to deal with that first.
“For me, it was all about starting to encourage myself and embracing my body hair, which made me more comfortable.
“No one’s going to question a man who’s wearing shorts when it’s summertime. If a man can do it, why can’t I?
For decades, women have been shaving their body hair, but is there actually any benefits to the hair?
Well, sort of.
Between the ages of 10-12 for girls and 11-14 for boys, hormones called androgens are triggered by the pituitary gland. This triggers the apocrine sweat glands to begin functioning – this is the gland that’s associated with armpits and the public area.
Vellus hair follicles you have in childhood to help your body regulate it’s temperature become ‘terminal’ meaning they become thicker and darker in colour.
Leaving the hair in place means you’re pheromones – a chemical that plays a role in sexual attraction – can fester there. According to Healthline: “By leaving the armpit hair intact, you’re helping trap odor, since moisture (sweat) attaches to hair. This makes the pheromones even stronger.”
Other benefits include no friction during physical activity such as running or walking, and it can prevent some health conditions such as
“I’m not afraid to go out in shorts or a skirt that might show my leg hairs.
“My advice to somebody who’s self conscious about their body hair during the summer is that no one’s forcing you to keep it.
“It’s important to understand that you must be ready to change and you must want to change. You must want to challenge yourself.”
She added: “I didn’t want to be insecure anymore. I didn’t want to feel that anxiety, ‘Oh, it’s summertime I need to remove everything.’
“If you personally love your body hair, you shouldn’t be afraid just because it’s summer.
“Like I say, my body hair is part of me. It’s part of my beauty. It’s not something you should feel self conscious about.”
