Heal by Hair
From resources from The Blue Mind Foundation
Heal by Hair is an initiative to improve the mental health and well‑being of African women through the hairdresser’s chair - one client at a time.
In Africa, mental health is a taboo subject that affects 110 million people. Sixty percent (60%) of them are young women under the age of 25 who suffer from depression and anxiety. Of these 66 million young women, 85% do not have access to treatment. The Heal By Hair program was created to make care accessible to everyone in Africa.
Research with 714 women clients and 148 hairdressers in 7 French-speaking countries (mainly Togo, Cameroon, Ivory Coast), showed that 67% of women surveyed say they confide in hairdressers, 60% would trust a mental health ambassador hairdresser and 91% of hairdressers are ready to train in mental health first aid.
By training hairdresser ambassadors in mental health, the aim is to foster innovation in mental‑health care, equip hairdressers with essential knowledge, break stigma and silence around mental‑health disorders in Africa, and provide accessible information tailored to local contexts.
This helps give women “the power to act” regarding their mental health - the ability to make choices and transform their lives and their communities.
Heal by Hair training enables hairdresser ambassadors in mental health to become the first link in the care chain - and not health professionals. By learning to recognize the early signs of mental disorders, or the worsening of an existing disorder, they will learn to demonstrate active and compassionate listening, be equipped with appropriate behaviour and language, and above all, be able to accompany and guide clients in distress toward mental‑health professionals.
Starting in April 2022 in French-speaking West Africa, the training is three days, divided into six modules and two practical workshops e.g. role plays, covering the basic principles of active listening and mental health; developing relational skills and deeper knowledge about mental‑health disorders.
Hairdressers must attend all three days of training. Evaluation is carried out continuously throughout the training, including assessment by the psychiatric trainers. At the end of the three‑day training, a final exam makes it possible to issue certificates to participants who score at least 80%. The certificate is valid for 3 years.
See more details here.
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From resources from The Blue Mind Foundation, 27/05/2026