TikTokker Elyse Myers has perfect response after being criticized sporting her curly hair
At a time when inclusivity and individuality are being encouraged more than ever, you wouldn’t believe that something like the hair on someone’s head could be ridiculed. But alas, here we are.
Sometimes these casual remarks are a masked insult to a larger aspect of a person’s identity, such as their race or culture. In other cases, it simply perpetuates the stigma against what doesn’t fit extremely strict standards of beauty. Either way, it can be isolating, humiliating, and painful for those affected.
TikTok comedian Elyse Myers, who’s usually the first to come up with a self-deprecating joke, recently became the target of some hair-related jabs… and let’s just say she didn’t find it funny.
On the red carpet at the Podcast Academy Excellence in Audio Awards, Myers swapped her normally straightened hair for her natural curls. While the response has been mostly positive, some people have criticized her looks, with some even going so far as to offer the insidious compliment that despite the “shocking” hairdo, they’re still fans.
“It was a shock but after a few days… We are here because we want Elyse and whatever hair you have that day is a part of you,” the person wrote.
@elysemyers guys we did it 😂 #doitscared♬ Elevator Music – Bohoman
Myers finally threw back her own words at them, writing, “Please imagine if someone told you your natural hair is a shock and it took a few days but you’ve learned to accept it.”
She then released a follow-up video addressing the critics on a larger scale.
“The number of people who have made it their life mission to tell me they don’t like my hair is so incredible,” Myers says in the video. “And I have a solution for both of us. Next time you go to the hairdresser, don’t give them a photo of me and my hair as inspiration for your next haircut – and then I think it will turn out great.”
@elysemyers “I’m a big fan of yours but that hair is awful.” 🤍😂
♬ Original sound – Elyse Myers
Previously, in an interview with People, Myers shared that she was bullied for her curly hair growing up and had to do whatever it takes to shed it in adulthood. It wasn’t until after the birth of her son that Myers wanted to set an example of what true self-acceptance looked like. “It was my son’s upbringing that really got me looking forward to this season of ‘Okay, I’m either going to fully accept myself or I’m not, and I have to decide that now because he’s starting to understand what’s going on around him happened around’, and my hair felt like a really good place to start,” she told People.
Myers recalled that it wasn’t easy at first. “The first few times I did my hair, I looked in the mirror and saw the girl being teased. I couldn’t break away from that person in the mirror. I’ve actually tried getting my curly hair back a few times but I couldn’t get over the emotional block of hating myself.”
Being a curly haired person myself who has been told more than once that their head resembles a “rat’s nest”, I can wholeheartedly attest to the amount of soul work and self esteem boosting that it takes to get that straightener out of hand Laying once seemed to be the only thing standing between your head and a bully’s taunts. Honestly it takes time Years. No kidding—appreciating the unruly waves is an unspoken but almost universal (and yes, highly emotional) rite of the curly-girl passage.
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Maybe that’s why Myers felt inclined to clap back. Not so much to defend themselves as to encourage other people not to feel ashamed of their authentic selves. Looking at their other sane content, that seems to be their MO.
Negative comments about our appearance can feel very personal. So often it brings us back to a time when what made us special or unique somehow didn’t make us belong either. Hopefully Myers’ video is a helpful reminder that, damn critics, we can feel just as good as we are.