A teenager says she now uses coffee granules to colour her hair after a horrific allergic reaction to black hair dye left her unable to see.
Georgina Paraskeva's had to be rushed to the hospital when her face doubled in size after reportedly dying her hair with a Clairol Nice 'N Easy product, last November.
The 18-year-old had suffered a severe allergic reaction to Paraphenylenediamine (PPD) - a chemical commonly found in dark hair dyes - which left her unable to see for two days.
The online jewellery store owner says she is speaking out to warn people of potential risks.
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Georgina, from Bristol, said: "It felt horrible and made me feel like I had zero confidence. I hated going out and felt really self-conscious and like people were staring at me.
"I made the conscious decision to stay inside as I hated going outside and feeling like people were looking at me, it was awful."
Georgina said she had used the dye before with no problems and was enjoying a romantic dinner with her boyfriend, Josh Cox, 21, when she began to feel itchy.
Over the next 48 hours her face ballooned and her desperate mum, June Kellett, 54, rang for an ambulance on the Friday when she was rushed to Southmead Hospital, and hooked up to a drip.
Georgina said: "I had blisters on my scalp and the skin on my hairline was really crispy.
"Later that week the swelling got worse and when my eyes started to swell up and I couldn't open them, that's when I felt really panicked.
"When I went to the hospital it felt like I had glass in my eyes and I went full-on blind.
"I couldn't see a thing for two days, it was horrible."
Three months on from the traumatic incident Georgina says she only uses coffee granules to tint her brunette locks.
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She said: "I've started using natural remedies on my hair now and use coffee granules to colour it, it works really well.
"I want people to be aware that things like this can and do actually happen.
"A lot of people don't realise what's in hair dye and that it can be really dangerous, I'm really lucky and super grateful that it didn't escalate.
"Since this happened I've read up on it and I could have permanently lost my eyesight and it's scary to see that people have died from it.
"I'm also a lot more cautious about the things I use on my skin and I just make sure I read everything and make sure it contains natural ingredients."
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A Clairol spokesperson said: "The safety of the people who use our products is our first and most important priority, so we were very concerned to hear about Ms Paraskeva's experience with Nice'n Easy No Ammonia when we were first made aware of the incident last November.
"Unfortunately we were unable to get in touch with Ms Paraskeva at the time.
"Allergic reactions are very rare and hair colourants are extensively researched to ensure they are safe when used as directed and it is imperative patch tests are conducted at least 48 hours before each colouring occasion.
"Details of how to perform this test are included with each of our products to help minimise risk to consumers.
"We remain happy to discuss the matter with Ms Paraskeva should she wish to contact us on our customer helpline."
Topics: Science, UK News, Interesting