Person Shaves Niece's Hair Off Without Mom's Permission

A person admits to shaving their niece's hair off, via a stylist, in a Reddit AITA post, and the reactions are mixed. Here's the full scoop.

Jun. 6 2023, Published 5:20 p.m. ET

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Most folks would agree that when making decisions regarding a child, it's best to consult with their parents no matter what.

Truth be told, life issues can sometimes get in the way, but there is no excuse to not speak with a parent — especially when you’re taking care of a child for a certain period.

So, it comes as no surprise that social media users are divided about a Reddit user revealing that she got a stylist to shave her niece's hair off. Let's dive into the situation.

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On Reddit's "Am I the A-----" (AITA) forum, a user shared that they decided to get their niece's curly hair shaved off.

Unfortunately, the poster said that their sister's husband ended up being hospitalized and she’d been a wreck over the new circumstances. The sister has a 4-year-old daughter, Lexi, and it appears that the stress of her husband's hospitalization took a toll on her ability to care for her daughter.

"I was visiting with some pre-made meals and noticed the house and Lexi's hair was a mess," the poster shared. "My sister wasn't doing well so I offered to take Lexi for a bit so she can focus on her husband."

The poster revealed that Lexi's curly hair was severely matted and, despite their best efforts, they couldn't fix it. The poster ultimately decided to take the little girl to the hair salon so they could remedy the matter.

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"I went to a hair salon to see if they could fix it but it would be 50 dollars an hour for them to brush out the hair," the poster shared. "My sister wasn't picking up. So, we had her head shaved the next day. I sent pictures when it was done and that finally got her to respond."

Keep in mind, the poster confirmed the timeline and stated, "I got her Tuesday morning, went to the salon on Wednesday, and then did the cut today. She had three days to respond to all the calls and texts. This didn't happen in an hour."

Apparently, the poster's sister went postal about her daughter's hair being cut. However, the poster shared that Lexi seemed fine with the cut and even said that "her head was hurting her."

The poster shared that "I wasn't going to leave her in pain since her mother wouldn't pick up."

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On one hand, most folks understand why the poster felt the need to get their niece's hair shaved off. After all, the little girl expressed that she was in pain, and trying to comb through her hair was an impossible mission.

As such, many believe that this Reddit user was "NTA" (i.e., "not the a------").

"NTA, you gave the mother three days to react. Detangle experts need to give up sometimes. It would have been pure torture for your niece to sit for hours to detangle her hair," one person commented.

"NTA, I'm probably going to get downvoted but it's a pretty extreme situation. You tried everything, attempted to contact her mother on multiple occasions without success over three days, and she was in constant pain .... hair will grow back," another person commented.

Interestingly, the comment section was divided once the poster revealed that the niece's hair has a 2C hair texture — which is described as wavy hair with S-shaped curls that are on the thick and dense side. This hair type is also known to be frizzy, with tons of volume.

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The thought is that since 2C hair is not as densely packed or curly as type 3 and 4 hair, some folks believe that the niece's hair could have been preserved, instead of shaved off.

"I have 4a/4b hair and I’m finding this a bit ridiculous. I’ve gone over a week without combing it. It takes time, but it detangles," one person pointed out.

As the poster previously made clear, the choice to shave the girl's hair was to relieve her pain. Not to mention, the poster did give the mother three days to respond. So, does the fault lie with the mom for being MIA?