Since I was sixteen, I’ve been dyeing my hair. I’ve experimented with different colours, had my fair share of mishaps and found a few colours I have loved and worn for a while. In autumn of last year, I made the decision to stop dyeing my hair completely. This is coming from my own personal experiences and I wholeheartedly acknowledge that everyone’s hair is different.
Colouring your hair can be a great way of expression, but in my case, it was worth it to ditch the dye and go au natural for a new way of hair care for myself. It can be better to just preserve the color with a color shampoo instead. Here are the five reasons why I decided to stop dyeing my hair.
1. A sensitive scalp
My scalp has always been sensitive. When I look back now, I realise colouring my hair for my sensitive scalp was a mistake. Whenever I used colour, I’d experience burning and itching for days after use; this was a sign that something just wasn’t right. I found a brand that was more gentle, but the burning and itching still continued, even though it was less harsh than before.
A scalp soothing shampoo helped reduce the irritation, but only if I used it consistently for a few days. I came to the conclusion that if I wanted to properly care for my scalp and hair, putting a myriad of chemicals and colours on it wasn’t going to help.
2. Maintaining my hair’s health
In the beginning of last autumn, I began experiencing minor hair loss. At first I dismissed it as my hair’s natural shedding cycle but just a little more than usual. However, as time went on the loss got worse and before long, my hair was shedding everywhere. I knew this wasn’t normal for me. Concerned, I made an appointment to see my doctor, where I discovered I had an inflamed scalp.
There are many causes of an inflamed scalp, such as infection, pollution and skin conditions such as psoriasis or dermatitis. Also among these causes are damaged hair follicles and I was prescribed a medicated shampoo to help with the issue. As I already have a sensitive scalp, the dye could have played a big part in damaging my hair.
3. Growing out black hair dye
Anyone who’s dyed their hair black will know how hard it is to get it out. The more you dye your hair, the darker the pigments get on the rest of the hair as opposed to the roots. As I’d been using black dye for a while, this presented a big problem. I used colour stripping products, yet the ends would still be black, almost like a reverse ombre style.
As I didn’t want to spend a small fortune on bleaching in a salon, the only solution for me to remove the black was to have it cut off. So that’s what I did. At the time, my hair was down to my chest, and I had it cut to shoulder length, currently letting the rest grow out before its next cut.
4. Saving pennies!
It’s a truth universally acknowledged that whether you’re at the salon or opting to do it yourself, dyeing hair can be a pricey business. Since I’ve stopped dyeing my hair, I’ve been able to save the cash I would have used on colour and put it towards other things.
5. Seeing the natural me again
My natural hair colour is a dark brown with copper and auburn tones. Long story short, I wanted to see it again completely, as opposed to just the re-growth. Changing your hair colour is a great way of expression. Over the years I’ve certainly had a lot of fun with it, but it got to the point where I was hiding behind the colour. I felt like I had to dye it because it was just the done thing. So all factors considered, my expression manifested in embracing my natural hair.
It was a big step to not reach for the colour but it’s been worth it so far. My hair feels softer, stronger and less damaged since I’ve stopped using dyes. I feel better in myself knowing that I’m putting myself and my health first, and in embracing my natural colour again, I feel more comfortable in my own skin.
