7 Unexpected Benefits of Going Gray From Dyed Hair

Inside: The top unexpected benefits of going gray from colored hair

5 years ago this month, I decided that I was DONE dyeing my hair.

I’d spent 25 years (or more) dyeing it – at first for fun, and then for gray coverage – and I was SO OVER it.

Did I ever consider going gray at all during those 25 years? Yes, many times!

But I was afraid to go gray – afraid I’d look old, afraid that I’d hate my new hair color, or hair texture, afraid I’d look messy, that my husband wouldn’t like it, or even that it might hurt my career.

Well, I’m here today to tell you that none of my fears came true, and to share with you the unexpected benefits I found (both physical and emotional) of ditching the dye and going gray.

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7 Surprising Benefits of Going Grey

Believe me, there are many more benefits to going gray than just the seven I’ve listed below.

But these seven benefits were so surprising – so unexpected – that I wanted to share them with you today so that you don’t end up (like I did) dyeing your hair for years past when you feel ready to quit.

My Hair Loss Stopped

I was in my late 40s when the hair loss started, and I was in the throes of menopause, so I figured the hormonal fluctuations were causing my hair loss.

But I know now that it wasn’t menopause – it was the DYE!

I know that because my hair loss completely stopped once I stopped dyeing my hair. I have thicker and healthier hair now – at age 55 – than I did as a 25-year-old woman.

And it’s not just me – I did a gray hair study recently, and nearly 25% of the respondents reported thicker hair after they went gray:

Thicker hair has definitely got to be one of the best reasons to stop dyeing, in my book.

My Dull Hair Became Super Shiny and Smooth

After all those years of dyeing, my formerly glossy dark brown hair had become quite dull.

I spent a fortune on shine sprays, glosses, and keratin treatments to no avail.
Nothing helped!

But once I stopped dyeing, that all stopped.

My platinum hair grows in shiny and smooth all on its own. I don’t have to use any products or get special salon treatments for it to look this way.

I’m saving SO much money and I’m putting fewer chemicals on my head – it’s a win-win situation!

And it’s not just me – according to my study, about 41% of women reported shinier hair once they went gray.

One of the best results of ditching hair dyes is that, for the first time in my adult life, I can air-dry my hair instead of blow-drying it.

I LOVE My Natural Gray Hair Color

But now?

I LOVE my hair color so much more than I ever could’ve imagined. I honestly get a thrill seeing my silver hair in the mirror.

Having silver hair feels like a superpower – like I’ve got mercury or Christmas tinsel growing out of my head!

And it’s not just me – other people love it, too – especially men, which was surprising to me.

My hair has dimension, it has depth. It’s like having natural highlights. It brightens up my complexion.

I can honestly say I have no desire to go back to covering it up with dye.

If you are gray, I hope you feel the same about YOUR gray hair. Believe me, it’s a huge relief.

And if you don’t love your gray hair, check out my post all about what to do if you hate your gray hair for some tips & tricks to help you love it.

Or you can go back to the dye – there’s no shame in doing that if it feels right to you.

I Stopped Worrying About Aging So Much

Going gray was the catalyst that really forced me to think hard about how why I’d felt so much PRESSURE to dye my hair all those years.

And I realized a lot of it was because I worried that I’d look “old”.

Even though I got my first gray hair around age 15, and had probably been fully gray since my early 30s, I really fell for the idea that gray hair is only for “old people.”

But seriously, what’s wrong with getting old? It’s better than the alternative!

I started thinking about the friends I’d had who died young – some of whom left small children behind. I knew that those women would rather be here on Earth – with their families – getting older – rather than NOT be here.

Thinking about those friends really brought home to me the idea that every day we have here on Earth is a gift – so I’d better enjoy the time I have left instead of fretting about aging.

To paraphrase one of my readers:

Allowing your hair to gray pushes you into the present – it forces you to accept and enjoy who you are NOW rather than chasing the person you used to be.

This change in mindset has been truly liberating – it makes me feel more like “me” than I have in years. Why?

Because I’m not afraid anymore! I’m not hiding a part of myself. I am authentically and imperfectly ME.

It’s a great feeling!

The Silver Sister Community

Over 71% of the people on this planet dye their hair, which means that many of us are the ONLY ones in our friend group with grey hair.

So I worried that I would feel isolated while GOING gray and also after being fully gray. But that hasn’t been the case at ALL.

Here’s what actually happened:

The night I decided to go gray, I posted what I was going to do on social media (I don’t actually recommend doing this unless you have supportive friends and family)… and one of my friends reached out to me to let me know she was mid-transition.

She turned me on to the HUGE gray hair community on Facebook and Instagram.

Having that online support system helped me immensely. Honestly, I don’t know if I could have done this transition without that support.

Seeing other women’s transition pictures, and getting their advice and encouragement was so helpful! And what’s really nice is that I made some great friendships along the way.

Many of those friendships started on social media but have extended into my real life – I get together with these women. We’ve got an unbreakable bond!

Also – and this is a BIG bonus – having gray hair is a fantastic ice breaker if you go to a party or event and don’t know anybody.

I’ve been to two blogging conventions in the past few years where I didn’t know a SOUL but – being an extrovert – I used my gray hair as a reason to go up and introduce myself to other gray-haired bloggers and we’d get to know each other that way.

It’s definitely one of the best and most unexpected side effects of embracing one’s natural grays.

Positive Emotional Side Effects

Even though there were many positive physical side effects of going gray, I have to say that what really surprised me the MOST about going gray were all the positive emotional side effects.

And I got my first hint of this on the first night that I decided to stop dyeing!

I’m not exaggerating when I tell you that, on the night I finally decided to ditch the dye after years of dithering, I honestly felt like a huge weight had been taken off my shoulders.

I didn’t realize how much all that worrying and stressing about my roots showing was weighing me down until I stopped doing it.

Deciding to stop gave me a feeling of euphoria that lasted throughout my whole transition!

And honestly, that feeling hasn’t abated. I still feel great!

I’m not kidding when I say that going gray has been one of THE most LIBERATING things I’ve done in my life. I feel freer now than I have in years.

Going gray, despite my fears, and having it all turn out OK was also a good lesson to me.

It forced me to start thinking about other limiting beliefs I had – what else was holding me back – and to make positive changes in other areas of my life.

And I’m not alone in this – these positive emotional side effects happen to many other women! It’s one of the most popular topics in the gray hair Facebook groups because it is honestly one of the BEST side effects of ditching the dye.

And now on to #7, which could NOT have happened without the positive emotional side effects I experienced while going gray:

Going Gray Was a Catalyst for Other Changes

Those feelings of self-confidence, authenticity, and liberation had a HUGE impact on my life.

I started my gray hair transition about 3 years after a very stressful life event – the near death of one of my children. (He’s OK now, thank goodness).

That event threw me into a depression and made my anxiety much worse. When I was feeling depressed and anxious, I did NOT feel like “me.”

I’d always been a pretty self-confident, creative, and happy person.

When I started my gray hair transition, I was starting to feel a little bit better but I still didn’t feel like myself, and my self-confidence was shot.

But let me tell you – there is no confidence booster on EARTH that is more powerful than having the guts to go to work every day – in LOS ANGELES – with a GLARING skunk stripe and multi-colored, fading dyed hair.

I often laugh that if I could do that – I could do anything!

That confidence I got from going gray unleashed something in me – I felt more creative than I had in years.

I started this blog and, to everybody’s shock – including my own, it took off in just a few months!

I never dreamed that in my 50s I’d FINALLY find a career that would be interesting, creative, fun, and draw on all my strengths!

And I’m not alone in this – I’ve met many other silver sisters who started new careers after going gray – many of them became models, others started acting, and others went back to school.

It seems like going gray opens the creative floodgates for a lot of women!

And it forces other positive changes as well.

For example: By age 50, my artificially dark hair really overpowered my face – and I wore WAY too much makeup to try to match it,

But the silver hair really makes my skin glow, so I’m able to wear less makeup – and in lighter colors – and it is so much more flattering.

I also started exercising more and eating healthier.

And I started thinking harder about the chemicals that I put on my hair and in my body. So I started trying to move to mainly clean beauty and hair products.

Other women in the silver sister community have told me that they’ve experienced this as well. It is definitely one of the best side effects of embracing your gray strands, that’s for sure!

Conclusion

Ditching the dye and embracing your natural color is definitely not for everyone.

It takes time and patience, and you have to deal with the quite real cultural stigma against non-pigmented hair.

But if you are sick of worrying about having to get root touch-ups before your vacations… if you are tired of spending a lot of money at salon appointments….or if you are simply DONE with dye stains on your hands and chemicals on your head and you want to enjoy all the benefits I’ve listed above…then going gray might be for you!

Not sure if you’re ready – take my quiz to find out!

And if you have gone gray and you love the results, let me know in the comments below!