So What’s It Really Like To Grow Up With Grey Hair

On most days having grey hair at a young age can be annoying! Every day I walk my door and enter the world outside people stare at my hair. Although I am kinda used to it, it can be really aggravating to catch folks in their moment of gaze. Some people totally deny it and look away the minute I give them a smile. Others begin to grill me with crazy borderline stupid questions that they honestly believe no one has ever asked me before?! (insert really confused face)

Once people get the actually stop staring and ask me a question, I can normally play them all out in my head before the interrogation starts. It goes like this,”Oh my God, that’s your REAL grey hair?”…”Oh my God, how long have you been grey?”…”Wooooooow, really!”…. “I bet you get this all the time!”…”Oh my God, how old are you?”….”Wooooooow, really!”….”Have you always embraced it?”

I’ll probably have blue hair forever.

Insert my legendary laughable side eye followed by a really kind but forced polite smile!

That last question always stumps me. Should I have been ashamed to rock my grey hair? People usually ask so assertively. Like, they know a tear-worthy story will soon follow. It kinda makes me rethink my childhood. But I promise you it hasn’t been a traumatizing experience for me to go grey. Maybe I’m not remembering things correctly?!

I wasn’t born with grey hair and it’s not my birthmark. Truth is… I thought everyone went grey at some point in their lives. Both my mother and father were grey at a young age. A few of my aunts and uncles are as well. My grandmother is grey. I just thought it was the natural progression your hair did in your early 20’s.

Kinda missing my bangs (& that waistline)!

Honestly though, if we really wanna talk about how I grew up…grey hair was the least of my worries. Growing up a “big girl” weighed more on my confidence than anything else. The idea of having grey hair was far from my mind. I was dealing with the unfortunate fact that I was 9 years old when I got my first menstrual cycle. I also wore a 36C bra. There was no training bra moment for me. My mother told this story to everyone not in our immediate family, “I sent that girl to visit her Aunt and she came back with someone’s fully matured body, what did they feed her!” I hope you read that with anger in your voice.

So sorry guys…I don’t have a horrific bullying story about my hair that I had overcome.

I look like Aunt Mable… Glad I found a better stylist!

But that’s not to negate the struggle of my natural hair journey. Each time I walk past a relaxer in Target I think about joining #TeamCreamyC. My hair is just as complex as my personality. I’m always searching for a product that won’t leave my hair crunchy and wet looking all day (special shout out to You Be-Natural’s products for always holding a sister down).

Plus add on the challenges that come with having grey hair—mainly the lack of products on the market specifically formulated to treat and care for grey hair. So every two weeks I wash my hair with a combo of conditioner, peroxide, and water (here’s that process explained).

Here’s what I can say about my natural hair journey. And it’s something that I don’t think I’ve ever said out loud.

I’m just grateful to be here… with hair!

As a beauty blogger, you’d think I’d be more responsible with my hair…but I’m not. I’m a rebel in every sense of the word. I’m also very much here to experiment with products so that you guys don’t have to. I’ve been lucky that nothing has gone wrong and I still have a full head of hair–some girls aren’t this lucky.

ANYWAYS… I could write a book about my hair journey (*adds to to-do list*) so I’ll push the wrap-it-up-b button on myself. *cues Oscar music*

READ MORE POSTS ON GREY HAIR:

What Products Do You Use To Keep Your Grey Hair Shiny?

What’s The Best Hairstyles For Women With Grey Hair?

Dear Celebrity: So You Wanna Dye Your Hair Grey, That’s Cute & All But…

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