Rehabs have been one of the biggest trends of 2008. We have seen our most famous celebrities go into rehab for drinking, drugs, sex addiction, racial slander (I still don't get that one), and exhaustion. I am most amazed by the short duration people spend in rehab. People tend to be in and out of rehab in a few days. A month seems like an eternity, 3 weeks is a lifetime, 2 weeks is the norm, but there is always the Berlitz course that takes five days or less. Usually there is the rather rough entry photo that appears in the press (remember Britney’s famous bald umbrella attack), and a more glamorous quick picture upon departure. The paparazzi are well rewarded for their most awkward shots. Substance abuse used to require months in rehab and often repeated visits. After release from rehab there would be the mandatory AA meetings and the 12 steps to keep them on the straight and narrow. This is now apparently old school thinkingHair color can be addicting. I have known many women who have been powerless over hair color. There are women who can't be blond enough, (Christina Aguilera, Pam Anderson, Donatella Versace), red enough, (Tilda Swinton, Marcia Cross, or Debra Messing), or dark enough, (remember Ashlee Simpson with her raven hair and prominent nose, Cameron Diaz in her post J.T. look, and who will ever forget Angelina Jolie with her raven black hair the night she planted one on her brothers' lips).

Before you make one of these dramatic color changes it is time to seek out the color expert in your town to be sure you are making the right color decision. Once you have made a dramatic color change and it proves to be the wrong color choice you have to seek the help of a power greater than yourself: the color professional. The color specialist will slowly bring your hair back to a more appropriate color. Any attempted rush hair color corrections will result in hair that is in desperate need of repair. Hair that is not healthy does not take color as well as hair in good condition. Rush jobs could make the color correction take twice as long.

Take a picture of yourself with the hair color that did not work. This will stop you from making any other rush decisions when you see a hair color that looks beautiful in a picture but is not appropriate for you. It will also help you to understand why the hair color choice did not work, which usually means it did not relate to your skin color. Dramatic hair color changes can be too invasive for some hair textures and result in bad condition hair. There is nothing uglier than hair in bad condition no matter what the color.

There are solutions for bad hair color decisions. You are not going to like all of them but they will help you retrieve your color.

1. See a professional and be open to their advice. Listen to how long the rehab will take and what it will involve. Write down the questions that you want answered. Listen closely to their answers. I know that people often have selective hearing during consultations. This can lead to more heartache and disappointment.
2. Cut your hair if you are emotionally ready for another change. This is the quickest way to speed up the color removal process.
3. Condition your hair with heat. Hot conditioners will help to remove hair color. I know that not too many people have bonnet hair dryers at home, but conditioning your hair in a plastic baggie and then wrapping it in a hot damp towel will do the trick. Change the hot towel after ten minutes and repeat procedure.
4. 4) Let your hair see the light of day. Use a sun block on your face but throw away your hats. Nothing will fade hair color quicker than the sun. Your new conditioning routine will keep your hair healthy.

Avoid impulse coloring. Make sure the color you choose is right for you. iVillage.com has a "Makeover-o-Matic" that will let you see how you will look in your fantasy color, cut and style before you apply the first drop of color or take off the tiniest snip of hair. It makes trying on a hair color as easy as slipping in and out of a dress. If you think you are powerless over the constant desire to change your hair color, the "Makeover-o-matic" is the perfect tool for you.