A few weeks ago I got my hair cut in a hair salon for the first time since before MCS got severe in 2004!
It felt like a huge milestone on my healing journey. No mask of course. :-)
Here's a picture I took before going in:
I brought my own shampoo and conditioner but other than that, I made no accommodations at all to MCS.
There were people around me getting highlights and it was wonderful to be able to just relax, knowing that my body can handle that kind of exposure now, with no ill effects.
My appointment took 1 hour and 15 minutes because my hair is very thick and long.
I wore their cape, sat in their chair, was surrounded by the products used by the salon... and I was just fine. :-) No reactions while there or afterward!
It was so exciting to feel so 'normal' and be able to do a positive, self-esteem boosting thing like getting a nice hair cut.
For those who are not at this stage yet, and want a hair cut, many towns have hairdressers who make house calls for people who are less mobile. It generally isn't advertised. I have found that service by calling various hair dressers or seniors residences and asking if anyone has heard of someone who gives cuts at your house. If you have a yard or balcony, they should be able to do the cut outside so that you don't need to bring them into your home (if you would react to scents on them).
If you are lucky enough to live in a city that has an eco-friendly or chemical-free hair salon, they may be an option for you. Check out this great article about that type of salon on Planet Thrive here: Less Toxic Hair Salons
That's terrific, Libby! Congratulations! It's amazing how layer by layer, it just keeps getting better. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing this Libby. Visiting a Hair Salon without any reaction is a GREAT milestone and I hope you are delighted with your cut! I think you could now go anywhere you want and hope your future holds many pleasures and adventures, both small and large. Looking forward to hearing about them! Have a great Summer.
ReplyDeleteBrenda x
hi T-Can, Thanks for celebrating with me! It definitely does keep getting better and better. :-)
ReplyDeleteHi Brenda,
ReplyDelete'milestone' - that's the exact word I had been looking for to use for this post! Thanks :-)
Your continued comments over the years have been one of the main things that have kept me posting - even though it has become so infrequent now. I know that there are many adventures ahead of me and I do intend to keep sharing them.
Thank you, as always, for motivating me!
This is a HUGE milestone! Congratulations Libby! You are an inspiration to me and many others. When things were so dark with MCS and other diagnoses, your joyful postings gave me hope. Thank you! I am not far behind you in this healing journey and so appreciate your efforts to blaze a trail for others.
ReplyDeletexoxo Suzanne
Hi Suzanne,
ReplyDeleteI appreciate your comment so much. Thank you for letting me know that my postings gave you hope in a dark time. That has been what I have most hoped that this blog would do.
I am so very happy to read that you are far along this healing journey too! I have a big grin on my face right now.
Congratulations on your healing progress, I know it must have taken dedication and hard work.
wishing you well,
Libby
This is tremendous Libby! I have so happy for you and it gives hope and inspiration to me. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing the joy with me V! I'm so glad it gave hope to you. I have a vision of your future in which you are living in a house that is safe, comfortable, beautiful and affordable for you. I am holding that vision for you. I know it is possible.
ReplyDeleteWishing you continued healing.
♥
Libby
Thank you so much for sharing your experiences with MCS. I'm still learning to live with it and have not given up hope that I will heal. My sensitivities are not as bad as many but it still prevents me from conventional employment and being out in public with out feeling the effects. I'm so, so glad that you were able to heal yourself! Brava!!
ReplyDeleteDear Rebecca,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your comment.
I'm so glad that you have still got hope that you will heal! I've lost count of the number of people with MCS that I know of now who are healing in big ways and able to engage life more easily now. I envision you among them. May it happen soon :)
Wishing you all the best,
Libby
Hi, I am currently suffering from pretty severe MCS, mold illness, etc. I found this blog after googling to see how I can possibly get a hair cut. I tried going into a salon last week and did really horribly and had to leave without doing anything. Also been homeless for a long time and don't have a safe place to live. Basically lost everything to this illness and others. Anyway. Reading this just gave me some hope. Can you tell me how you were able to get better? Or others? I also have lyme disease and other things added to the mix. Also, have you found any hair dyes that ate safe to use if one has MCS? I would love to color my grays. It's been really hard to except letting my looks go but I've been so I'll that I know it's the least if my worries but it Still doesn't help me feel like me. I already don't in many ways.
ReplyDeleteAnyway thank you so much.
Hi,
DeleteFirst of all, I'm so sorry that you are without a hinge. That must be incredibly hard.
MThe main techniques I used were very simple (though not necessarily easy). I outlined them on the blog.
After initial participation in groups to get info on safe products and tips for how to deal with exposure, as part of my ongoing recovery I don't really talk about mcs much, or participate in the online communities anymore, but luckily I've got stuff on my blog from when I did 🙂
http://movingbeyondmcs.blogspot.com
On the right hand sidebar, there is a list of things that I feel contributed to my improvements. Today I believe that the most important ones are the first 3, as well as having a positive non-mcs related focus on my life (for me it was art but it could be anything that creates good emotions)
Oh yes, avoiding news, negativity, talking about illness, and anything to do with reading about dangers in the world or about mcs were critical. All of those feed physiological cycles that prevent our bodies from being able to enter a parasympathetic nervous system state (the state healing happens in).
The programs for retraining - such as The Guota Program and Annie Hopper's brain retraining - can feel overwhelming but it can be pretty simple 🙂
one challenge that I see facing you in particular is that you may not have access to something that you can play DVDs on to watch one of the brain retraining programs. However, my healing was started long before I even got the Gupta program and realized that much of what was in it was stuff I had been doing on my own, so I believe that you could heal on your own.
I'm wishing you all the very best and I hope that you experience improvement and recovery like myself and many others have. There is hope
Oops. Without a **home. Not hinge. It won't let me edit my comment.
ReplyDelete