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Dye it

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To dye or not to dye, that is the question.

When I was a little girl I remember accompanying my mother to the hair salon. I can still remember the smell of the peroxide and hair spray and the neon lit glass cupboards of the brush sanitisers what function did they perform, I wondered. The hairdresser would always make a fuss over me and Mum would sometimes give me money to buy an ice cream at the corner store.

I used to wonder why Mum had so much grey hair at such a young age. She explained it was hereditary, that her mother and her grandfather each had lots of white hair for most of their lives. Having completely different hair colour and texture to my mother and her grandfather - theirs thick, straight and brown, mine wiry, fine and dark - it never occurred to me that I too would spend many dollars and much of my life fighting the grey.

I was 17 when I noticed my first grey hair. I remember feeling embarrassed - not something you expect to find when you are still at school. Still I was yet to learn it was the beginning of the end of hair au naturale for me. It began with semi-permanent rinses, which did not seem to have much affect and by 20 I began my life-long love-hate relationship with hair dye which continues to this day.

I listen with interest and a good dose of scepticism to the reports that come out from time to time concerning the possible links between hair colouring and cancer, or the effects of hair colour on the unborn child. I hope these reports do not ring true. I for one do not give it too much thought. For me it is simply one of those things, like the reports about the so-called dangers of antiperspirants on breast health.

So may call my addiction to hair dye extraordinary or farcical, but for me it's an essential part of being. Imagine the image I would portray as a white/grey headed 30 something female. I suspect the job offers and the dates would not come my way and I hasten to add my self-esteem might just hit rock bottom if I were to ditch the dye.

So when I hear debates about whether to dye or not to dye I think to myself, try living in my shoes for a while and see how that sits with you. Indeed, imagine my amusement when colleagues and friends complain about their "regrowth". They are usually referring to some natural colour they have coming through where the foils have grown out. This is in stark contrast to my strip of white hair, which when I am due to see the colourist is like the white line down the middle of a highway! Consequently, the notion of waiting months between colourist appointments is something I can only dream of. As my mother used to say about having so much grey hair at a young age, "It's a full-time job keeping it looking nice".

To dye or not to dye, there is no argument, the dye wins hands down.

Learn more about this author, Madeline O'Connor.
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