To wear my hair long at 40

What decade have you time travelled in from to have seen this nonsense? Or is it the same fantasy land where at 40 you now look in your thirties and not 20’s 😂

I am 37 have waist length hair and for probably the last 10 years I've used solid also free shampoos and my hair is better condition than it was in my early 20s. I also only wash my hair every 5 days or so. I have used quite a few different solid shampoos and am currently using kitsch and kinkind they are pH balanced so I don't have to worry about the waxy feel that some shampoos give at the start

I also only blow dry it a few times a year, no straighteners, curling tongs very rarely

OP you can do what you like, keep it long, shave it off, or dye it purple. Nothing will happen. You won’t be put in prison, or explode, or be banished from society.

40 is just the number of years you’ve been alive for. There are no laws to say what you have to look like past this age. I personally think everyone should dress and style themselves however makes them happy. Let’s face it, as women we tend to hate enough of our looks as it is. Say fuck it to what you think you need to look like to conform or whatever, and do what makes you feel good.

I’m 55 and have longish hair. If anybody told me to cut it they’d be responded to appropriately. I remember when my mum turned 40 and my Nan told her she had to go and have a short cut and set because it was more dignified “at her age”. My mum had the most beautiful head of red ringlets and was a former model so was in her absolute prime at that age. My Nan couldn’t understand why she didn’t want to do this 😆

Can you walk me through the process? Do you leave it in overnight and wash out or leave it in? Do you put it on the roots?

I wash my hair and pat dry with a towel. I then add slightly warm coconut oil to the damp hair and leave wrapped in a towel for a few hours. People add an essential oils too (I don’t but you can) I then wash again and condition. Any brand will do, I get a massive tub for not much at the shop I buy my spices from.

I’ve had long hair my whole life (now 38). I had a friend tell me repeatedly throughout my 20s that it was time to cut my hair as I was getting too old for that look. Grrrr!!!

I have long hair varying between mid back and waist that I put in different braids, I like to switch it up and feature my Mallen streak. Today I'm going with Heidi braids wrapped around my head. The old skool thinking that women should cut their hair after 40 has mostly disappeared, I get quite a few compliments on my hair.

Volumizing product. I'm in the US so I don't know if these are available there. OGX volumizing shampoo with biotin, Mane and Tail herbal volumizing shampoo, Cocomagic Detangling Mist is the best detangler ever, and L'Oreal 8 Second Wonder Water Lamellar shine rinse. Conditioner is Marc Anthony Grow Long Hair conditioner. I do scalp massage when I shampoo.

Hair thinning is the main reason. Short pixie styles are easier to manage. Thin, straggly long hair drags the features down and emphasises jowls. If older women have thick hair it looks good, properly styled.

I'm 57 dark hair past my tits. Couldn't give less fucks tbh.

I'm 53 and have long red hair. Not really much grey in it yet. I hate the uniform short hair grey look for older women. Men and women seem to have hairstyles that are interchangeable when they age. I'm not doing it. I don't like short hair and especially on me. I'll wear my hair in a bun if I have to.

My scalp is itchier too. Must be something to do with drier skin?

I’m simply saying we should dispel this mad idea of an age looking like an age, or even a decade. A person looks their age whatever it is, because they are that age, so that is what a 20, 30, 40, 50 etc yr old looks like.

I had waist-length hair at 40, but when I entered peri in my early 40s my hair started to thin around the hairline, changed texture, and just didn’t look as nice. I still wear it past my shoulders, but it’s nowhere near as long as it used to be.

That sounds great do you have a certain brand and do you put it on dry hair or after you have shampooed?

My dad got this stupid notion from somewhere. I loked at him as if he was mad. I inherited his wavy course hair and he wanted me to cut it. What? It's better longer, because I can manage it better. I really don't have the patience to style short wavy hair.

My mum has had bobbed hair since her 40s. Maybe she said it first.

I’m always a bit baffled by these threads. I turned 40 this year, every woman I still have social media contact with from school/uni who are also turning 40 (around 20-30) pretty much without exception have hair ranging from between shoulder and waist length. It’s an absolute non-issue.

Most 50 year olds I know still have long hair too. It’s only those around my mum’s generation (she is nearly 70) who fall under the “older = short hair” stereotype.

How old are these people telling you to cut your hair, OP?

I'm in my 50s, mine is very long, thick and dark. I have every intention of leaving it long and am hoping it will go a nice white at some point.

I'm 70 with long hair. Nobody has ever suggested I get it cut and I don't use any special shampoos. I think the OP has been paying too much attention to click bait adverts.

i appear not to have got this memo!! I’m 42 and have hair which goes down to my waist. It takes a little more effort to maintain good condition, but it’s not hard. I use olaplex when I wash my hair, but I only wash it every 4-5 days. I do fortnightly hair masks, as my hair is fine. I also dry it on a low temperature but will only straighten it for special occasions, as it blowdrys pretty straight. I’m also really careful about how I style it- I don't put hair ties in the last 4 inches of hair, as whenever I have done, the hair dresser has to cut so much more off.

I had my elbow length hair cut to a chin length bob at 25 , because my ex h convinced me I was too old for long hair .. the hairdresser cried! My oldest DD 54 has long hair,I'm now pushing 75, and it's shoulder length,both my girls absolutely hated my hair short. I disagree about only a model can get away with long grey hair. Met a lady yesterday walking our dogs, she was well into her 60s, with very long,thick slightly wavy grey and black hair,it was fabulous.

Faith in Nature are a fairly cheap chemical free brand. I'm always getting compliments on how shiny my hair is. The combination that works best for me is the rose shampoo and the coconut conditioner. The shampoo is very calming and the conditioner makes it shiny. My hair is waist length and I only condition up to my shoulders, otherwise it gets a bit flat and greasy.
I'm 60.

This is not 1950. I am 59 and I have long hair. I used to have a fringe, but grew that out as I felt it was a bit dated. I put my hair up for work, but wear it down for going out. It looks a bit like Koo Stark's hair.

I do have one or two colleagues the same age as me who have short hair, and I think it's aging and dated. Another colleague has delightfully witchy long hair which has gone white in two streaks - fabulous in my opinion.

I use Head and Shoulders shampoo to keep my hair white, and Tigi Queen for a Day thickening spray to give it a bit of lift at the front.