Mami & Me: As a mom to a toddler boy, haircuts are the ultimate meltdown

My son's first haircut was just one of the many unforgettable firsts that come with parenthood. Initially, I had imagined his experience as a heartwarming moment of bonding with his father but boy, was I wrong. 

When my son turned one, my partner decided to take him to his barber, who, like many other barbers, uses scissors and loud clippers to cut people's hair. As parents, that was our first mistake for assuming loud sounds wouldn't be a problem.

The second trigger for his subsequent meltdown was the loud compressor machine the barber uses at the end to remove the hair. That was probably my son Levi’s last straw. The only positive aspect of his first haircut was the lollipops he received at the end. Although his first haircut wasn't the best experience, it was definitely a learning lesson for me and my partner.

When my son turned two years old, we decided to take him once again and give him a different haircut experience. Considering that the loud noises were an issue for his first haircut, I decided to look into locations that cater specifically to kids’ haircuts. 

I decided to take him to Cozmo Haircuts in Bakersfield, which offers haircuts in car seats and has TVs at every station. When the stylist started trimming my son's hair with the scissors, Levi was a little afraid that he would cut his ears but with time he realized that wouldn’t happen. When the stylist moved on to the silent clippers, it was as if we were back to square one. 

Although this meltdown wasn't as bad as his first one, he was still afraid that the clippers would cut his head. At some point I had to hold my son's head so that the stylist could finish his job. This was the first time I felt embarrassed by my son's behavior. 

When Levi was finally done with his haircut his attitude changed and he was back to his normal self and even thanked the stylist for his haircut. When we got to the car, he also thanked me for taking him to get his hair cut and was very happy with the results.

Levi’s hair grows slowly, so we usually treat him to a well-deserved haircut just once a year. By the time he turned three, we returned to the same place as before—only to relive the same stressful experience, if not worse. Now, he refuses to wear the haircutting cape, which means hair ends up all over him. 

For some reason, haircuts seem to trigger something in him; he screams, squirms and refuses to sit still. At this point, I’ve accepted that it’s probably going to be like this until he’s older.

If any moms and dads have any tips, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me at amairani@latinomedia.org. Follow more of my Mami & Me columns here.