YOU ARE UNIQUE. YOUR HAIR? NOT SO MUCH

When it comes to our DNA, we are all unique. But just as we have similar personality traits with others, our hair has many things in common with other people as well. Stylists work daily with clients who feel their hair is particularly unique, or difficult, or strange. But in all honesty, their hair probably isn’t that different from what stylists see on a regular basis. And to an experienced professional, it most likely isn’t all that difficult either. Here are a few common misconceptions clients have about the uniqueness of their hair. See if they sound familiar to you too.

My Hair Pulls Red When Colored.
All hair “pulls red” when it’s colored. When altering the hair from its natural color, it will go through a process of turning what you may call “red,” “gold,” “orange,” or “brassy.” The reason for this is underlying pigment. Any time we lighten hair, we expose the underlying pigment, which is always going to be a warm tone. This happens when we use bleaches, permanent color, and even sometimes when we use demi-permanent color. It’s not cause for alarm and it doesn’t mean that your stylist made a mistake. It’s just the natural progression of things and you probably don’t need to warn your stylist that it’s going to happen.

My Hair is Falling Out in Handfuls.
Unless you’re going through something where hair loss is an expected side effect (chemo, pregnancy, see other temporary things here), you most likely aren’t losing a freakish amount. The average person loses anywhere from 50 to 100 strands of hair a day. Now think about how those numbers could add up if you don’t shampoo or comb out your hair every day. We also typically have one time of year where it seems like we shed a little more. Mine is in the fall. That is normal. Otherwise, unless you sustain an above average amount of loss for a period of time (say, more than 3 weeks), you are probably just going through a typical hair cycle.

My Texture is So Crazy.
The United States is a melting pot. Nearly every region has a grab bag of biological characteristics. Experienced stylists probably have experience with your texture, and with your curl. And even though your growth pattern is unique to you, most stylists have probably experienced something similar. My point is, your hair isn’t a lost cause. You don’t need to apologize for it, and you don’t need to overexplain it. If you’ve had problems in the past with other stylists not working well with your texture, mention those concerns when you schedule your first appointment and during your consultation. After that, trust your stylist to know the right method to address your concerns. If you continue to have negative salon experiences, there is most likely a miscommunication problem, or you are scheduling with inexperienced or apathetic stylists and, in that case, some thorough research or a trusted recommendation should solve the problem.

My Natural Texture Completely Changed
Hair can change over the course of your life, especially during times of hormonal upset, or after a traumatic period such as a medical treatment or procedure. This is not unusual. Sometimes, it’s just temporary. Hair can also appear to change because of how it’s been treated. For example, people may start losing their curl because their hair has suffered damage, is lacking moisture, or needs a fresh haircut to remove heaviness. Often they are surprised to see their curl “come back” when the problem is addressed. Another thing to note, if your hair “used to be straight” when you were younger and now it grows out of your head totally curly, it is not because of that perm you got 20 years ago. I promise you, that perm did not permanently change the texture of your hair. Your hair is just different now than it used to be (or you didn’t really know what it was like in the first place), and that is perfectly normal.

You see, stylists hear the same things all the time. You are definitely unique. But, the issues you might be having with your hair? Not so much. Your stylist sees these cases all day, every day. Trust your stylist. Do what they advise. I promise if you do, you will have the best hair of your life.