Depression Hair Is Not A Trend: Why Fashion’s Latest Obsession Misses The Point

Of late, we came across the term 'depression hair'. And it left us surprised (if you think here's a  headline that shouldn’t be a headline, you’re definitely not alone!). Wondering 'what', 'why' and 'how’ are perfectly valid questions to pose here. Meant to describe hair that is unkept, messy and dishevelled, it's a controversial trend that refers to a look seen on international runways, where looking this way is the deliberate choice. Case in point, the recent Prada Fall-Winter 2025 womenswear showcase, when models sported messy and limp hair, reportedly at the behest of artistic liberation. The term has whipped up buzz on the internet and we’ve honestly had enough of it. Here's why... 

Irony Rakes Its Head

Screaming, “I’ve given up on life...but make it fashion,” is irony at its finest–also spearheaded by the very generation who champions the importance of self-care and mental health. Fashion is meant to be provocative and challenge norms. Fashion is also political. But never spineless. Millennials who’ve spent decades mastering the art of the perfect blowout are left scratching their heads. Gen Z’s “I’m sad and I want the whole world to know that, through my 4x4 grid’ just got worse.

There’s this Gigi Hadid close-up, from last season’s Miu Miu Spring runway featuring glossy, unkempt hair with the text: My culture is not your costume that has been doing the rounds on social media with little to no consideration about the actual perils of depression and related mental health disorders. The comment sections are even worse, with tone-deaf emojis by people who’d flourish more without internet access. Let’s call it what it is–a straight outta bed look after maybe a night of emotional turmoil or a hangover. Or both.

When you’re going through depression, the last thing you want to do is put effort into your appearance. And for many, hair can be a reflection of that mental state. 

Pain Is Not A Trend 

When you’re going through depression, the last thing you want to do is put effort into your appearance. And for many, hair can be a reflection of that mental state—dishevelled, unkempt, with no energy to style it. But here’s the thing: there’s a fine line between representing a real struggle and using it as an aesthetic. And in no way is this targeted at the brands–their messaging had no affiliations with this distasteful commentary. It’s just the godforsaken habit of people on the internet running to trivialise one’s psychological pain by calling it a trend. It’s not relatable. The 2K likes on your post aren’t representative of our collective mindsets. So please step out of the ego bubble maybe–it’s refreshing, try it once!

And then there’s the much-needed reality check on the intersection of depression and appearance. It’s no shocker that depression often manifests in the form of neglected hair and personal hygiene. So if someone online is going to make a statement about mental health just because they’ve not washed their hair in one week–just try speaking to someone riddled with the same problems, but for real. Keyword: real. And yes, it’s never not that deep.

Gen Z Losing The Plot?

Everything being branded into an aesthetic just because we like parading our half-baked opinions is rather stifling as a concept, if you ask me. While fashion and beauty are on the brink of evolution every single day of the moment, this very commodification of mental health issues makes me wonder, are we really pushing forth positive conversations to the forefront (as Gen Z likes to portray on their politically-correct Instagrams) or just throwing around words they don’t fully comprehend? For the sake of ‘humour’. Guess we’ve really lost the plot.

Also Read:

Why The Fashion In The New Show About Kennedys Not It

How To Deal With Airplane Anxiety