Washing my hair six times led to a stroke, says woman suing hairdresser for £1m
A WOMAN is suing a beauty salon in a £1 million legal action after claiming that having her hair washed six times led to her suffering a stroke.
Lawyers for Adele Burns, who had her hair washed repeatedly during a £200 “cut and colour”, allege that the impact of the sink on the back of her neck caused her to collapse from a condition described by experts as “beauty parlour syndrome”.
The 47-year-old nurse, from Mid Calder, West Lothian, has now begun a civil case against the Rainbow Room International salon in Glasgow.
She said her life had been “turned upside down”, adding: ”With backing from my doctors, there is no doubt in my mind the salon caused the stroke. This hasn’t just left me isolated from society, I’ve been isolated from my own body.”
Her visit to the hairdresser in April 2016 was organised by Campbell, her husband, as a treat. However, stylists were said to have washed her hair six times after failing to get the colour right. When she left the salon with a headache she put it down to not having a chance to eat during the appointment.
But the next day she lost her sight and felt dizzy, before passing out. She was taken to St John’s Hospital in Livingston, where doctors told her she had suffered a stroke.
Solicitors Digby Brown said the cause was dissection of the vertebral artery – a clot caused by trauma in the neck which stops blood getting to the brain.
The mother-of-two told how the stroke had left her unable to drive which meant she could not work and she and her husband had to sell the family home. She also struggles to speak, read and write.
She added: “A stroke isn’t like a leg break where you take time out and heal, then carry on as normal. It changes your life and the lives of those around you. I’ve completely lost my independence and sometimes feel like my life is no longer my own.”
Mr Burns, an IT manager, said his wife was an active and vibrant person and it was hard to see her “fight to keep the sparkle in her smile and eyes”.
Court papers state that salon staff never asked Mrs Burns to attend for a “strand test” before her appointment which would have prevented the need for her hair to be re-washed six times.
Documents also accuse the salon of negligence by failing to offer her a front-facing sink or to provide neck protection during the treatment.
Jennifer Watson, a lawyer at Digby Brown who specialises in beauty treatment problems, said: “Thousands of people will seek beauty treatment like this every year and Adele is incredibly brave in speaking out as a way of alerting others to the risks.
“Strokes caused by hair washes are not unheard of, as there have been a handful of similar cases across the globe… I’m not aware of anything similar [appearing] in Scottish courts.”