A fairy-tale fan inspired by Rapunzel has been growing her hair for 20 years, and now it reaches 90 inches long.
Aliia Nasyrova, 27, originally from Russia but now living in Latvia, says her long brown hair weighs about 2kg—roughly the same as her cat. It takes her an hour to comb and a whole day to air dry.
Her husband, Ivan Balaban, is so used to her extra-long hair that he treats it as “a member of the family.” At night, he makes sure to leave enough space for her braid in bed.
“I always sleep close to the wall to make space for her hair. That way, I don’t accidentally damage it,” he said.
Ivan even talks to her braid. “Sometimes I ask it to move a bit,” he joked.
Caring for her hair affects their daily lives. When planning vacations, they set aside an entire day just for hair care.
“Otherwise, we would lose a day of our trip,” Ivan explained.
Aliia admits her hair is so heavy it puts strain on her neck.
“It’s as heavy as my cat,” she said.
Despite attracting stares from strangers, Ivan is proud of her and loves her commitment to growing her hair.
Aliia was inspired by fairy tale characters like Rapunzel.
“Since childhood, I loved long-haired heroines,” she said.
To avoid accidents, she always braids her hair before going out.
“At home, I sometimes step on it. Outside, I never leave it loose,” she explained.
On social media, she often shares pictures of her hair, but not everyone is a fan.
“Some people message me saying, ‘Cut it, sell it, or get rid of it,’ but I ignore them,” she said.
She trims her hair once a month to remove split ends and gets free hair products to keep costs low.
Her worst experience? Getting gum stuck in her hair as a child.
“I had to cut a clump of hair out. It was a disaster,” she recalled.
Even with the challenges, Aliia has no plans to cut her hair.
“I don’t aim for a world record, but I think I have the longest hair in Latvia,” she said.