Nine Women in their 30s Discuss the Reasons Why They Decided To Embrace Gray Hair

After I became tired of hair dye chemicals damaging my scalp, I began to embrace my grays at the age of 32. I’ve had a friend tell me that growing my hair out would make me look “too old,” and some family members and friends have even said I’m “too young” to do this. Many people have complimented me. (In fact, some think I dye it this color on purpose since it’s a trend.) I’ve also figured out how to use and invest in products that keep my gray hair healthy and not frizzy, because learning how to embrace it means learning how to care for it too. —Alex Tran, 39

It got to a point where the dye wasn’t even effective anymore.

I would see my roots within a couple of days after applying touch-ups. My hair was damaged, brassy and dry. So I decided it wasn’t worth it—for the sake of my hair health—to keep concealing my grays.

Now, I have gorgeous, silky hair unique to me and I love it! On social media, I sometimes get comments that I look older. But I am exactly the same age. This one decision has helped me grow in many ways. —Blakely Jones, 35

I no longer cared about “aging” myself, and my grays added to my mystique.

As a teen, having cool, unique, silver hair was something special. But a few months before my 30th birthday, I became worried that I looked older because of the grays.

The first time I tried to cover them, it was a disaster. When I washed the product out, it felt out of sync and I felt as though I washed away my initial doubts. Not long after, I transitioned from my loose curls to locs, and it was like falling in love with my natural hair all over again—grays and all.

Ultimately, it’s all about perspective. I often refer to my grays as “silver strands” or “glitter.” I remind myself that they’re a beautiful gift that I’ve inherited. I’ve also adopted a new approach to the unsolicited curiosity about my age: I simply don’t engage with it anymore. —Arielle Stewart, 34

My gray hair has become a symbol for triumph after a difficult medical procedure.

I had a brain surgery in 2021 for severe normal-pressure hydrocephalus, which is an excess of fluid in the brain. This left a scar on my right side. This is the side on which I have gray hair and the surgery has resulted in me having even more. So I wanted to embrace not only my scar but the silver strands in that area too, since they’re symbols of my ascension from a really, really tough time in my life. —Amy Stretten, 39

Game of Thrones It looked cool when fantasy characters had silver hair.

For a long while, I considered going gray. This was especially true when I began to notice more and more fantasy character wearing silver hair. I finally decided that it would be better for me to embrace my grays when I was in my 20s, rather than spending $250+ at the hair salon every 9 weeks.