Lena Dunham revealed the real reasons behind her shaved head phase
Lena Dunham has been open about her journey with chronic illness and pain over the years. She’s been vocal about her struggles with endometriosis and fibromyalgia, and more recently revealed that she also lives with a genetic disease called Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. On Sunday, she shared another update about how her health issues have affected her life. Alongside a photo of her now long and full head of hair, Dunham posted on Instagram that when she shaved her head two years ago, it wasn’t as much a style choice as it was a last resort.
"2 and a half years ago, I shaved my head. Not in a fun sassy way but in a 'my hair is all falling out from my autoimmune disease, better rush to the nearest barber shop and pay them 7 bucks to do this' way," Dunham wrote.
Dunham went on to explain that this was an isolating time for her when she “didn’t have very many health answers” and wasn’t sure how to bring her struggles up with others.
“I also didn’t know how to express my fear to the people around me,” Dunham wrote.
So instead of being met with understanding, Dunham explained that people likely thought her shaved head was just, “Lena getting another erratic hair cut.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/B87BwzhH8Ob
Now two years after that moment, Dunham’s post doesn’t only look back at where she used to be, but it also celebrates where she is now on her journey of both hair and overall health.
"My hair growing has been a living metaphor these last few years- all I did was leave it alone and something I had lost all of came back to be," Dunham wrote. "I’ll carry that knowledge forward and then, you know what? I’ll probably shave my head again. Just for fun, this time."
Dunham also made sure to note that although her hair growth has been an empowering experience for her, an absence of hair is in no way an absence of beauty.
“Let me just say, bald is fucking beautiful, and it’s a full myth that ladies are meant to have long luscious hair,” Dunham wrote. Amen.