I am supposed to go to the mikva this friday night and have never had a friday night tevila yet. I’m extremely concerned because my hair is knotty and long and obviously I can’t comb it before tevilah. I am so stressed about it that I got a heter from my rov to delay tevilah if my husband agrees. I’m so torn; is there any halachic/practical advice you can offer regarding knotty hair?
Answer:
There’s no reason for being stressed.
We are generally careful to ensure there are no knots etc. before the tevillah, but if you ensure before Shabbat that you hair is straightened out, there is no concern that the degree of knotting that will happen over the short time until your tevillah will be a problem.
There will probably be other times of tevillah on Shabbos (statistically), so you should best get used to the idea. It is also a very special time from tevillah.
Best wishes.
