Denise D'Ambrosio is afraid to cut her hair.

"I haven't gotten my hair cut since ninth grade," said D'Ambrosio, a redhead with curly hair.

D'Ambrosio (junior-education) is plagued by haircut phobia. Bad experiences in the past have caused an aversion to sitting in raisable chairs, hearing snip snip and watching a light coating of her hair cover the ground. During the period she visited salons, she was wracked with nervousness and frustration.

Now she just does not go.

"I always felt that hairdressers hate people with long hair -- you know, they have these scissors and they just want to cut," she said.

This assumption may be tinged with paranoia. Hairdressers at Looks and Cut and Dried, 228 E. Calder Way, said they are unaware of any anxiety running loose among their customers.

Jena Adams, a hairdresser for six years, said communication is the key.

"I talk to them first, and I make sure they know what I'm going to do," she explained. "That way they end up happy."

But not all of the sufferers of this syndrome go away smiling. Lynn Gallagher said she has had haircut phobia since she was a young child.

"I remember once I got my hair cut before I was supposed to go to a birthday party and the hairdresser made my hair all curly," she recalled. "I started crying and I told the guy I hated it and ran out to the car. I left my mom in the salon to apologize."

Gallagher said her problem is basically technical. Because her hair is naturally curly, hairdressers like to bring out those bouncy locks. Unfortunately, she likes it straight.

"I tell them exactly what to do to not make it curly but they just poof it up," she said.

D'Ambrosio agreed one common dilemma in dealing with having her hair cut is the poof.

"They just love to poof, and poof high," she said.

But while Gallagher and D'Ambrosio are daily trying to overcome their anxiety, there are people out there who actually like to get their locks chopped.

"I used to be a little leery when I was in high school," said Kirsten Staats (junior-speech communications). "Now that I'm in college and I have found someone I can trust, I like to try new things. It's fun to try a new cut."

Tina Murges of Looks and Cut and Dried said an unfavorable experience can instill nervousness in a person.

"They get butchered somewhere else, one bad haircut, and they're ruined," she said.

As the day of a hair appointment approaches, Gallagher grows nervous and apprehensive and almost always brings a hat along to her appointment.

"I hate it so much I don't even like to walk home afterwards," she said. "I walk real fast and wear a baseball hat."

Because nature demands it of her, D'Ambrosio said she relies on a friend to give her a slight trim every six months. Haircuts, she said, are too stressful.

"They just never cut it the way I want to," she explained. "I say trim and they cut half of it off. And then they poof."

Michael Freeman of Looks and Cut and Dried said most people do not realize they can come in a have a free consultation before they even have a haircut.

"We're here for them to talk to," he said.

Adams said it is important to call the salon if you are unhappy with the results, or if you cannot do the styling yourself at home.

"A lot of people call and say, 'You have to help me, I can't do my hair, I look a furball under the couch.' " she said. "I tell them to come in and I show them how to do it."