DISCLAIMER: This is not a paid review. I am not affiliated with Monat in any way. This is my personal opinion & experience, as well as what I have researched about the product. Take that as it is, not as anything more. I hope this review helps you decide whether or not you would like to try Monat! 

I’m sure you’ve heard all the hype about the magical Monat shampoo that changes your hair dramatically!

I decided to give it a try to help you guys decide whether or not it would be something you would like to try.

I started using my shampoo and conditioner on January 14th. Before beginning, I got 6 inches chopped off and did two days of clarifying shampoo to make sure I was starting from a clean slate (with no split ends or leftover from other products)

My Pre-Monat Hair

• Healthy. I don’t use many heat products, or really products in general. I’m an air dry and let it go kind of girl.
• Flat and straight. I’ve always had hair that lays pretty flat against my scalp, which stresses me out. This was one thing I was hoping to change.
• Sticky. This was a recent thing that happened, and I am still trying to figure it out. My hair is alright after washing, but after about half a day, my ends are very sticky and gross. Even after a fresh hair cut, it was still doing this so I don’t think it was because of split ends.
• Frizzy. Most of my frizz seemed to be at the top where I had new growth from my postpartum hair loss.

My Monat Expectations

• Volume. I was hoping for lift and bounce in my hair.
• Texture. I was hoping that my lifeless, straight, stick-like hair would have a little more beautiful body.
• Better ends and less frizz.
• Crazy fast growth.
• Less maintenance. Pre-monat washing hair every other day… 2nd day usually had to be a messy bun from all the grease 🙂
  

  Right: My pre-Monat hair

  Left: 1.5 months of using Monat exclusively

  

“My hair looked irresistibly touchable… (I) felt much more confident.”

My Monat Results

• YES! Volume. As soon as my hair dried, my roots seemed more lifted and my hair more bouncy all over! Absolutely loved this. However, I noticed that after one day my hair would fall flat again which shows me that the shampoo was coating my hair with something, not actually changing the composition of my hair.
• YES! Texture. The texture of my hair did change, but not as much as I was hoping. This was one of my disappointments. While my overall hair was softer and bouncier, my texture was still stick straight and hay-ish looking, which was a bummer. I was hoping that the more health I had, the more wave would happen. This was probably a crazy thing to assume a shampoo could do, but what can I say? I had high hopes!
• SOMEWHAT! ends & frizz. The shampoo made my hair start growing like CRAZY. I’m talking sprouts all over my head. Unfortunately, this just contributed to more and more frizz which was frustrating, especially since I’m a messy bun kind of mom. I noticed that my ends were better the first day, as well as the volume. The second day my hair was flat with sticky ends again. But overall, the health of my hair seemed to better with the shampoo. It was nice having at least 24 hours of soft, manageable hair instead of 0! 🙂
• SOMEWHAT! lower maintenance. While I still had to wash my hair every other day, I would say that my second day hair was more like my first day hair used to be. So first day was significantly better and beautiful, where second day hair was more like it used to be… not amazing, but manageable. I could sometimes get by with a third day in a bun and some dry shampoo if needed.
• YES! fast growth. I encountered tons of baby chunks of hair. I’m talking THICK chunks shooting out of my entire head. So crazy. But overall growth, as you can see in my before and after picture, wasn’t amazing. I wouldn’t say it was any more than normal. I would say instead of overall quick growth, there was more new growth which I found interesting.

Things I Loved About Monat

• Smell. I think this could go one way or the other. At first I wasn’t a big fan, but after a few days I got to like it. Lots of oils. It totally depends on your personal preferences.
• Thicker looking & feeling hair. Because I experimented and stopped using it for a week in the middle of the 3 month trial, I know that my hair was not actually thicker. A few days after stopping using it, my hair was immediately back to it’s original state. However, WHILE USING the shampoo my hair looked irresistibly touchable the first 12 hours or so. Even after that wore off and it started looking shabby, it still felt better and thicker than normal.
• Pretty, soft, manageable hair. My hair did look great, and I loved it! Felt much more confident with it and liked it better down instead of hiding it with buns and curls.

“The way that that the shampoo actually works is by using a plant to imitate estrogen in your body… Estrogen is directly related to the thickness & growth of your hair.” 

Things I Didn’t Like About Monat

• Price. For a shampoo and conditioner retail value = $70 + shipping (about $80). If you are a VIP member you get them for $60 + free shipping! If you are a MMP, you get 30%, which would be $49 + free shipping.
• Manipulation (company – not my MMP). I signed up to be a VIP member so I could get in on a specific deal. I had to pay $20 to sign up, which I thought sounded fine. When I wasn’t super thrilled with the shampoo, I thought about returning it. I was told that it takes 3 months to “detox”, so you need to wait those 3 months to see if it works. However, you only have 1 month to return it. Now that I don’t want to continue buying Monat, I have to pay $25 again to “unsubscribe” to my membership. The membership agreement says that if you don’t purchase two orders of $84 they have the right to “recapture” the fees, whatever that means.
• Hidden dangers. My least favorite part of MLM products, which I have seen in EVERY product I’ve tried, including the one that I actually sold for awhile, is that there is so much manipulation. These products are seen as magical, and they are not. The affiliates are told that these products are flawless and work for everyone, which is not true. Some of the things I learned about Monat:
  • Allergies. Because the product is toted as “all-natural” they tell you that it is safe for everyone. But people can be allergic to natural things, obviously. If you get a rash, sores or itches from using it you might be allergic to one of the oils or plant products in the shampoo. They will tell you to keep using it through a “detox” phase. Be careful. You can be allergic to ANY shampoo or conditioner. This doesn’t make that product bad! It just make you allergic.
  • Hormones. The way that the shampoo actually works is by using a plant to imitate estrogen in your body. Red Clover Extract is used in post-menopausal women to make them more comfortable when their estrogen levels drop. Estrogen is directly related to the thickness and growth of our hair. This is why post-menopausal women often struggle with thinning and fragile hair, while pregnant women (who are SURGING with estrogen) are known to have very thick and gorgeous hair! When estrogen drops after pregnancy, hair loss and thinning is incredibly common. While this is a great idea to make hair thick and beautiful all the time, it can also be very dangerous to have your estrogen levels heightened if you do not need them. It can cause heavier periods, worse period symptoms, and potentially miscarriage.
• High Maintenance (if you want perfect hair). My hair looked much better and was nicer to manage with just the shampoo and conditioner! However, Monat says you must ONLY use their products for it to work properly. And in order to get the luscious, gorgeous hair that all the MMP’s and models have, you have to use a HUGE assortment of products to fix every single little problem. The shampoo and conditioner in themselves only provide the baseline… which is GOOD. Using them alone did improve my hair overall, but it wasn’t as magical as I was hoping. That’s because I wasn’t spending $500 every 3 months on my hair care.

“Using them alone did improve my hair overall, but it wasn’t as magical as I was hoping.” 

My Overall Conclusion on Monat

I really liked what it did to my hair! However, I had to stop using it just short of the three months because I was having very painful cramps and heavier bleeding, terrible acne, strange discharge, nausea, bloating, and breast changes that were all unusual for me. I didn’t want to believe it was the shampoo, but within two days of quitting Monat, the symptoms disappeared. The shampoo made my hair look like when I was pregnant, but I also felt pregnant. While I don’t know if this was dangerous or not, it makes me a little nervous and I decided it wasn’t worth it to find out.

In the end, the negatives outweighed the positives for me. The results from the shampoo and conditioner alone were not good enough to outweigh the estrogen symptoms and the price, in my opinion. I am hoping I can find something that has a similar effect on my hair for a more affordable price!

I would HIGHLY recommend Monat to you if:

• You have low estrogen for any reason, such as post-menopausal or PCOS
• You can afford it

I would warn against Monat use if you:

• Are already on birth control or other medication that messes with your hormones, particularly estrogen
• You are allergic to a lot of things, particularly essential oils, or have really sensitive skin
• Have had estrogen receptive cancer in the past

If Monat sounds great to you, and you have bad hair, go for it! Remember to watch your symptoms closely to see if anything hormonal changes for you and to watch your skin for reactions, just as you would with ANY other beauty product.

WARNING: If you have had any sort of estrogen receptive cancer (breast/ovarian/etc.) DO NOT USE MONAT. This is incredibly dangerous for you.