Hair

[brandelynmarie]

I own that book! It is one of my favs .

[faithcecelia]

[quote name='Antigonos' timestamp='1317237261' post='2311789']
Has anyone found that wearing a headcovering -- toque, veil, etc.-- resulted in hair loss? Having the hair covered all the time is supposed to predispose to that.
[/quote]

No, but it can cause dandruff, especially when you cant choose your own shampoo.

[IgnatiusofLoyola]

[quote name='faithcecelia' timestamp='1317239703' post='2311819']

No, but it can cause dandruff, especially when you cant choose your own shampoo.
[/quote]

I'd never heard that wearing a veil could cause dandruff. But, don't most Communities wear some kind of cap or underveil so that the dandruff wouldn't show on a dark habit? I hope so! In a cloistered Community, I assume that the Sisters get used to each other, and know that the veil might cause dandruff for some people, but in an active Community, the secular people that the Community works with wouldn't know that, and a Sister with dandruff might be remarked on (just as a Sister who didn't wash herself or her habit often enough might be remarked on).

I've also never heard anyone say that wearing a veil could lead to hair loss or thinning hair--and I think I would have heard that by now if it did. After all, it's not only Catholic religious who wear head coverings most or all of the time. Then again, there are LOTS of things I don't know!

[OnlySunshine]

[quote name='Chiquitunga' timestamp='1317235829' post='2311776']
Thought you all might enjoy this from [url="http://www.amazon.com/Therese-Lisieux-Helmuth-N-Loose/dp/0802838367"][i]Therese and Lisieux[/i][/url] <-- an incredibly beautiful book!!! Sorry it's blurry on the one side, but hopefully it's readable. Actually I noticed on Amazon you can see a preview of that page (143) too, if you're signed in.

[img]http://i55.tinypic.com/2dhv503.jpg[/img]


As for me, I can't wait to have my hair super short again! In one community I was in I had a buzz cut, and it was great! So fast in the shower! When I came home, I actually had it cut like that one more time and wore a bandana. Now my hair is waist length. Hope to donate it before I go again.

From St. Teresa's Constitutions, "They should keep their hair cut in order not to lose time in combing it. They are not to use mirrors, nor any other curious thing, but they are to live in complete self-forgetfulness." (Chapter VIII, paragraph 55)
[/quote]


I always wondered what color St. Therese's hair was. It looks like an auburn color -- brown with red highlights.

[Feankie]

I don't believe it was the veil itself that caused hair loss, etc. I have two rather elderly good friends who are Sisters and were in habits for over 40 years. They also wore all the headgear that the veil sits on top of. When their order abandoned the habit in favor of street clothes, one of the Sisters did (and still does) have a permanent crease in her forehead from where her bandeau was tight. She also lost skin off both her ears from the constant rubbing of the headgear. The other Sister's hair is very patchy (and not do to age) from the constant covering, no air circulation, etc. It took them a few years to regain their peripheral vision once the guimpe, veil, etc. was off.

Oh, and the PCPA's do cut hair at investiture. One of the Sisters ties it up very prettily with ribbons, boxes it up, and sends it to the new Novice's mother.

[AccountDeleted]

I doubt that wearing a veil causes dandruff, but it probably doesn't help when one has any kind of scalp or hair condition... and if dandruff shampoo is not available then this could make it hard to cure the problem. All the convents I was in provided access to dandruff shampoo as well as regular. I think that if one let their NM know of any head problems, they would provide the appropriate help.

Francis Clare's comments about the headgear causing other problems is spot on though... I imagine it would depend on the type of headgear though. The modified veil caused my ears to hurt more than the toque and veil, but it was easier to hear things.

[OnlySunshine]

[quote name='Francis Clare' timestamp='1317260585' post='2312048']
I don't believe it was the veil itself that caused hair loss, etc. I have two rather elderly good friends who are Sisters and were in habits for over 40 years. They also wore all the headgear that the veil sits on top of. When their order abandoned the habit in favor of street clothes, one of the Sisters did (and still does) have a permanent crease in her forehead from where her bandeau was tight. She also lost skin off both her ears from the constant rubbing of the headgear. The other Sister's hair is very patchy (and not do to age) from the constant covering, no air circulation, etc. It took them a few years to regain their peripheral vision once the guimpe, veil, etc. was off.

Oh, and the PCPA's do cut hair at investiture. One of the Sisters ties it up very prettily with ribbons, boxes it up, and sends it to the new Novice's mother.
[/quote]


I often wondered if the headgear was terribly uncomfortable. I saw many pictures of plastic or other stiff headgear and I thought, "I don't think I could get used to that." Thank goodness, it's no longer the norm with most communities. I know a few that still use the plastic, stiff ones like the Sister Servants of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus:

[img]http://www.religiouslife.com/images/vocationsearchmembers/30_lrg_2008.jpg[/img]

[TeresaBenedicta]

I worry about headaches for the first few weeks. I can get them just from having too tight of a braid (or any at all!) or wearing a headband.

I worry about headaches for the first few weeks. I can get them just from having too tight of a braid (or any at all!) or wearing a headband.

[MissScripture]

My sister said she got headaches for the first couple weeks after receiving the veil, until one of the professed sisters was looking at it for some reason (they had to order more of some piece for some of the sisters, because they didn't fit correctly) and it was discovered she was pulling part of it waaaaay too tight. Since then, she hasn't had any problems with it.

[faithcecelia]

I had fewer problems than I had expected, the weight was only ever a problem if I was already feeling under the weather or if it was slipping. Most of the sisters liked a bit of hair showing at the front and my NM tried to get me to push it back a little when I was first clothed, but I found it far more comfortable right on my hairline. Actually, I do the same with scarves now. The bands I had to pin my veil to (Q has old style veils without a tocque, so there is a band, cap or scarf - own choice - to pin the veil to) were cotton, about 4" wide, but tied at the back with thin ribbon. Within a few months I had a little bald patch at the back of my neck, but that had less to do with the veil/band itself causing harm and more with me whipping it off without undoing it!

[faithcecelia]

This will sound crazy, but just writing there about pinning my veils has brought back a big wave of memories, there is something lovely about it that I cannot explain.

[brandelynmarie]

[quote name='MissScripture' timestamp='1317413514' post='2312950']
My sister said she got headaches for the first couple weeks after receiving the veil, until one of the professed sisters was looking at it for some reason (they had to order more of some piece for some of the sisters, because they didn't fit correctly) and it was discovered she was pulling part of it waaaaay too tight. Since then, she hasn't had any problems with it.
[/quote]
[quote name='faithcecelia' timestamp='1317414128' post='2312955']
I had fewer problems than I had expected, the weight was only ever a problem if I was already feeling under the weather or if it was slipping. Most of the sisters liked a bit of hair showing at the front and my NM tried to get me to push it back a little when I was first clothed, but I found it far more comfortable right on my hairline. Actually, I do the same with scarves now. The bands I had to pin my veil to (Q has old style veils without a tocque, so there is a band, cap or scarf - own choice - to pin the veil to) were cotton, about 4" wide, but tied at the back with thin ribbon. Within a few months I had a little bald patch at the back of my neck, but that had less to do with the veil/band itself causing harm and more with me whipping it off without undoing it!
[/quote]

I am hypothetically (since I haven't worn one yet!) more partial to softer veils as seen in my avatar. K.I.S.S. Keep it simple sweetie! But that's just me .

[Sister Marie]

I wear a very simple modified veil and it has a headband sewn into the front part which you can take out to wash. There have actually been days at morning prayer when all the sudden I think..."Do I have my veil on?" It really is that comfortable for me. When I get a new one it feels strange, but once it molds to my head - I can't even feel it. Now collars are a whole other situation... ugh...

[maximillion]

I used to pull my bonnet strings too tight too, untill a sister noticed and showed my how to get it right. After about two years I had a small patch on the crown of my head where the hair just broke off short all the time because of the weight of the guimpe, headbands and veil. Some of the white veils had for some reason (probably economy) been made from a very heavy cotton. I used to dread it when I saw one of them was on top of the pile in the cupboard and I had to take it and wear it.
(We had clothing in common untill final profession).

[AccountDeleted]

[quote name='Sister Marie' timestamp='1317509541' post='2313524']
I wear a very simple modified veil and it has a headband sewn into the front part which you can take out to wash. There have actually been days at morning prayer when all the sudden I think..."Do I have my veil on?" It really is that comfortable for me. When I get a new one it feels strange, but once it molds to my head - I can't even feel it. Now collars are a whole other situation... ugh...
[/quote]

I like the modified veils but like faith, I need to wear them closer to the front because of the shape of my head - if I don't, they start to fall off the back! I haven't work a collar - only a toque, but I would hate to have something rubbing against my neck! The toque rubbed more under the chin, and because we had the type that use pins, sometimes when one would start to come undone, I would stick myself!


[quote name='maximillion' timestamp='1317549521' post='2313810']
I used to pull my bonnet strings too tight too, untill a sister noticed and showed my how to get it right. After about two years I had a small patch on the crown of my head where the hair just broke off short all the time because of the weight of the guimpe, headbands and veil. Some of the white veils had for some reason (probably economy) been made from a very heavy cotton. I used to dread it when I saw one of them was on top of the pile in the cupboard and I had to take it and wear it.
(We had clothing in common untill final profession).
[/quote]


Maybe that's why the Carmelites in Melbourne decided to make their veils out of a really flimsy material - almost see through. I call it a shower curtain veil because it reminds me of the flimsy shower curtain material, but they probably find it quite comfortable. I had a cotton one as a postulant in Nedlands and it was razzle dazzle and comfortable.