Women

24 Women Who Ditched The Dye Open Up About Learning To Embrace Their Gray Hair

You’ll be inspired by their stories.

Published December 30, 2021

Thanks to the lack of salon access during the pandemic, gray hair is now more in than ever, and as it appears, it’s not leaving anytime soon. Gray hair is beautiful; therefore, it’s about time we all change the narrative that equates it with looking older. Gray hair isn’t necessarily a look, it’s all about a mindset, and as long as you’re confident, you can rock it no matter what. Experiencing gray hasn’t been the easiest for some women, but most are now overlooking it.

Graying remains a natural phenomenon. As you age, the melanin naturally declines in the hair follicle, and cells that produce hair color then manifest as gray. While age is the main factor in graying, some studies have proved that stress can equally aggravate it. Well, accepting your grays can be pretty challenging, so it’s captivating to see these courageous women [compiled below] who have chosen to embrace it instead of hiding it. Have a look, enjoy!

#1

“I am learning to embrace it more and more every day. No one ever believes that I am this grey at 26! I am a teacher, and my little students are often baffled – ‘you don’t even have kids yet, and your hair is so grey!’ I blame them for stressing me out! But really, I should blame, or rather thank, my mom!”

#2

“I’m a 33yo Brazilian woman that lives in the Czech Republic. I have had gray hair since I was 13. I started dying my hair because of pressure from family and friends. About five years ago, I moved to the CZ with my husband and just got too lazy to keep dying my hair all the time and decided to embrace it! Now I absolutely love my gray afro!”

#3

“I found my first grey when I was 18 and was devastated. For over ten years, I continued to spend lots of time and LOTS of money making sure to hide my roots every four weeks. I came across the grey hair movement on Instagram and noticed so many young women my age embracing their beautiful silver hair. I wasn’t sure how mine would look since I never truly gave it a chance. Last year I decided to let it grow, and I freakin loved it.”

#4

“I was too young to be gray, I was too self-conscience, I would look too old, and I worried too much about what other people thought. These were the doubts and fears that kept me coloring my hair every three weeks. But in actuality, I loved seeing women with their natural grey hair, they inspired me, and I dreamed of the courage to take that step.”

#5

“I vividly remember finding my first grey hair in the car on the way to school. In April 2020, it dawned on me how many years I have left ahead of me in that constant cycle of dying my locks, just trying to delay the inevitable! So here marks probably the midway point of my Grombre journey.”

#6

“Someone asked me: Does your hair just do that? Um, yes, it does just ‘’do this.’’

#7

“About three years ago, I developed issues with severe weakness of my arms and legs, pain, & balance problems, to name a few. I’m almost 57 years old and my authentic self. My arms and legs have not fully recovered – there is permanent damage – but I got some resolution, and at least I can somewhat function. I’ve come to terms with everything, it was quite a journey, but I love my gray hair and will never go back.”

#8

“I’m learning slowly to accept that I’m not supposed to look like I did 20 years ago, as I am also not the same person I was 20 years ago. My gray is a part of who I am. All my joys and sorrows of the past 47 years.”

#9

“Hello, I am Jaqueline Bergrós, 30 years old musical actress from Germany. The more I colored my white hair, the faster they were visible again. Today I know: my white hair wants to be seen.”

#10

“It sounds ridiculous, but somehow, we have been conditioned to think, by some notion set by some unknown standard, that unless we have our grays covered up, we are not caring enough about ourselves.”

#11

“I feel like I read a ‘gray hair rule’ that said to not wear gray … that it’ll wash you out or something? Here is to breaking all of the rules then, because I am discovering that I love the way I look in grey (hair and clothes!)!! And any other color I want to wear!”

#12

“I am almost eight months in of being dye-free. And let me just say, it’s been a little terrifying, yet very liberating, to watch my signature dark brown hair fade away and witness the new silver making its way in for good!”

#13

“How did I do it? How did I become so okay with going gray?’ – these are the questions I’ve been regularly asked. But I still remember the beginning: vulnerable, caring too much about what others say, disliking my reflection in the mirror, feeling old and ugly.”

#14

Like her father and brother, this lady had silvery strands of hair emerging in her 20s. She always hid her grays until her husband said this to her: “I will always support you doing whatever you need to do to feel beautiful and confident, but would you ever consider just letting it go gray?” And indeed, she went gray!

#15

“Three years ago, I had to get a bone marrow transplant and decided to let my hair come in naturally. I’ve actually been going great since I was 15, but over the last 10 to 15 years, I have been dying my hair. Since gray is such a fashion statement now, I get a lot of questions from people asking if I get my hair done when the reality is all I do is take good care of my natural gray hair.”

#16

“Our gray hair doesn’t define our youth. I learned to accept me for how I am—skunk patch, thickums, and all.”

#17

“But for years, I colored my hair anyway. I was scared of how others perceived me because gray hair means old, and old means ugly. So much time, energy, and money wasted into hiding my true color, and it’s all done in the name of insecurity.”

#18

“Embracing my greys has been very empowering and liberating. I’ve learned to accept and love my imperfections. My motto is imperfection is perfection.”

#19

“I truly feel that growing out my grey has been one of the biggest lessons in patience that I have ever experienced. 16.5 months later, I am starting to feel like myself. A new, different, more patient version of myself.”

#20

“What am I supposed to look like?’ The beauty in this world is that you get to control what you look like. And I think you’re killing it. I think you’re beautiful. I think you’re doing a perfect job – and choosing exactly the right colors, and styles, and finishing touches.”

#21

“My daughter inspired me to stop coloring my hair as she is allowing her grey hair shine through. I have actually never seen my grey, and I must admit, I was nervous about what it would look like. I LOVE my natural color! If only I had known how great it would look, I never would have colored it!”

#22

“As we decided to end fertility treatments after years of unsuccessful procedures. A surprise natural pregnancy almost coincided with the full growth of all my greys. This maternity shoot, to me, celebrated both of these difficult journeys.”

#23

“24 weeks into my grey journey. Can you see the tiredness in my eyes? A long time ago, I realized that my eyes give away pretty much everything. A realization like that at a young age served to make me a particularly honest person.”

#24

“I’m currently 24. I found my first gray when I was 11, but my mom recently told me SHE found my first gray hair when I was 8! I have been growing out my greys since February 2020. I’m destined to be a silver sister, so why fight it?”