The informant is at the sink wearing black gloves and holding a bowl full of lavender hair dye which she is brushing into her hair.  A bottle of purple dye sits on the sink next to her.  She makes concerned faces in the mirror as she applies the dye. 

Me: How long have you been dying your hair “unnatural colors”?

Informant: Since high school.  I stopped for a little while but started it up again during my master’s program.  It’s one of the few things that makes me feel like I have any control over my life.  Like, I bleached my hair a couple weeks ago because I’d had a rough couple days and just needed to do something.  I also think it’s a form of self-care for me.  I read this essay not too long ago about a woman who every evening would rub coconut oil into her skin and take twenty minutes just to be present with herself.  Even though I don’t do this every night it forces me to interact with myself in a way that the day to day doesn’t encourage.