Are you guilty of following every hair trend you see on Instagram? Do you head to the salon as soon as a new colour comes out, and you’re keen to emulate what you see on your news feed?

There is some bad news coming your way. If you’re a constant hair slave to fashion, you’re running the risk of long-term damage to your locks.

The latest hair trend to hit Instagram is an icy white hue which has those Nordic elements; we’re basically copying Daenerys from Game of Thrones here, but in the pursuit of hair fashion, whether a GoT fan or not, your hair is screaming in agony. The bleach! The toner! The constant maintenance! Not to mention the cost of it …

How often you colour your hair depends upon the colour you go for, your natural shade, and the type of style. For instance, a full dye should be topped up around every 4-6 weeks, highlights every 6-8 weeks, and a balayage can be left up to 12 weeks, for that natural look. But, even that schedule doesn’t allow your hair to rest. If you’re naturally dark haired and you hit the bleach every 4-6 weeks, you’re going to be stripping your hair of its natural oils and running the risk of dry and brittle locks for a long time to come. It can take months for the hair to recover from over-bleaching, often requiring a full grow out for the best results.

Not to terrify you, but have you read the horror stories of hair falling out in clumps? It’s not fiction, it’s actually real. Overdying is no good for your hair, whether its in fashion or not.

So, if you want to hit those fashion high notes, but your hair is trying to get you to go the other way, what can you do? How about emulating styles rather than colours? You can go for a cut if you want to be brave, but you could also try out new up-dos, such as plaits, twists and high ponies instead. Provided you’re not yanking your hair until it’s literally about to come out of your head, you’re not doing any harm, unlike a constant dose of bleach.

There is also the fact that just because a new shade is in fashion, it doesn’t mean your hair is going to agree with the trend. For instance, if you have dark hair, you cannot go icy white; it’s simply not going to work. You should always trust what your colour technician tells you, and not try and over bleach or over colour your locks in an attempt to high the fashion high notes. The chances are you will end up with a botch job that looks more like a failure than a success.

So, when you see pictures of icy blondes all over Instagram, do your hair a favour and pass on it!