When I was around 10 or 11, I distinctly remember the fear I had after a round brush got stuck in my hair. I wasn't even at my own house. If I were, it wouldn't have been as awful. Instead, I was hanging out with a neighbor, and her dad had to remove it for me. It made its way out, but trust me — I was panicking the entire time. Then there was the time I used an embarrassing amount of detangling spray on a friend's hair while pretending we worked in a salon. Her hair was soaking wet with the solution, and she was rightfully a little ticked off about the whole ordeal. Her mom also wasn't too pleased.
Kids and hair usually don't mix. There are so many temptations out there for children to get into tough situations when they make one wrong mistake. And even though Halle Berry likely knows many incredible stylists, they weren't around to help her daughter Nahla solve her big hair predicament. What happened was so bad that Halle Berry actually had to shave part of Nahla's head in order to fix it.
Let's look at the bright side. If anything, it gave Halle something entertaining to do. Plus, Nahla learned an important lesson that day. If I'm proof, every kid needs to suffer through a few hair incidents in their life.
Halle told the story on The Tonight Show, during a video chat with Jimmy Fallon. At first, Halle mentioned that her family, which also includes a son named Maceo-Robert, have been swimming almost every day since staying at home. But eventually, Nahla, who's 12, noticed a suspicious lump on her scalp.
"We’re doing her homework the other night and [Nahla] goes, ‘Mom, I’m scared to tell you this, but touch the back of my head.’ All her hair, which is past her shoulders, has shrunken up into a tight ball that feels like matted fur," Halle said. "I can’t even get my finger in it, and I’m pulling and she’s screaming."
They tried to condition the mat out, but supposedly adding product only made it worse. So Halle had to take drastic measures. She shaved it off. Nahla, supposedly, wasn't very happy about the solution, but they'd tried everything else before making the drastic choice.
"She was not cool with that, but it was our only option," Halle explained. "But now she gets it. I was like, ‘First of all, maybe you’ll let your mother help you. And second of all, you learned you gotta brush your hair. Every day, you gotta brush your hair.’"
Let that be a lesson to you, too. Some of us have been giving up on once-daily habits due to the stay-at-home orders, but this may be damaging in the long run. It's still important to brush your hair, brush your teeth, and take showers. Otherwise, you too may end up with a shaved head.
It's relatable when celebrities openly share their tough parenting moments. Kristen Bell has also had a lot of hair catastrophes to deal with between her two daughters, Lincoln and Delta. In February, she revealed that one of them chose to wash her hair using Vaseline.
From the eyes of a child, it makes sense. Vaseline seems like it might be an ideal styling product, and it's also readily available. "My daughter just washed her hair with Vaseline and I can't get it out. Has this ever happened to anyone?" Kristen asked her fans on her Instagram stories.
"I washed it three times now and it's not getting any better," Kristen added. She later explained that it was Delta who got into the Vaseline, and that dish soap was the cure. Well, sort of. Kristen went on The Ellen DeGeneres Show to explain more about what actually happened.
"How you get it out is this: Three rounds of Hello Bello shampoo, one round of clarifying shampoo, two rounds of dish soap, and then we still had to wait four days 'cause none of that worked," Kristen said. Nobody said parenting was easy. At least, much like Nahla, Delta learned a valuable lesson that day.
For Halle, the story was extra interesting since she's done a good job at making sure Nahla's life is relatively private. She's been especially vocal about paparazzi. Back when Nahla was a baby, the paparazzi couldn't help but try to photograph her.
"I have long since come to terms with the fact that choosing a career as an actress has made me a public figure, but my baby has made no such choice, and unless and until she does, I will do everything I can … to keep her out of the public eye," Halle said at the time, according to Nicki Swift.
These days, she's been a little more lenient. This past July, she was spotted out with both kids after a trip to Michaels. Even though Maceo is only 6, he likely has a pretty good idea of what his mom does for a living. And Nahla must definitely be used to the attention by now.
Did she expect her head-shaving story to be shared on television? Perhaps. It doesn't seem like Halle would want to hide that from her kids. But hopefully, everything's on the right track to grow back. That's the best part about hair mishaps — they don't last for long.
This should serve as a reminder that you, too, should try to avoid having a similar issue. It's tempting to try to cut your hair at home, but if you have no idea how to do so? It might be safer to wait until salons open up once again. Otherwise, you might end up joining Nahla in the hair-shaving club.
