I’m in my 30's and I have a crapload of grey hair. I just spent 10 minutes trying to get the right angle to show y’all.
Why? Because I wanna talk about the concept of “anti-aging”. It’s marketing bullshit. And it’s usually sexist.
Recently I was approached by a representative of a company that sells skincare products. I have a cut ’n’ paste response that I send to these people because a) I’m not the least bit interested and never will be, and b) I get pitches like this all the time.
This time, though, the “anti-aging” language used in the pitch pissed me off enough to respond without using my usual canned response.
What’s wrong with looking your age? What if we celebrated the concept of the aging female instead of denying it? Why are 99.8% of these “anti-aging” products marketed entirely toward women? Why do we not see ads suggesting men worry about their “fine lines” and wrinkles and age spots and spider veins? How can we fight back against an industry that relies upon women hating themselves?
I’m not completely sure. But as a big “Fuck you!” to the concept of “anti-aging”, here’s my grey hair in all its glory. There’s a lot for a 32-year-old. I’ve even been nudged by hair stylists during routine trims to consider colouring to mask the grey. My closer-to-40 husband, in comparison, has one single grey hair. Why do I have so much? No idea. Don’t care. Don’t want to waste precious mental energy on it.
And the truth is, I kinda like it. Contrary to what we see in the media, it’s perfectly fine to enjoy aspects of aging. I have nothing against people who choose to use “anti-aging” methods like dying their hair or using skin serums. If it makes you feel more confident, happy, and comfortable, all the power to you. Just make sure you’re doing it for you, not because of some bullshit marketing trying to make you believe that you’re somehow inferior for “looking your age”.
Not everyone gets to experience aging. As Annick Robinson said in her phenomenal post that went viral in 2016, “Aging is a privilege”. I intend to respect that as best as I can.
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