Wednesday, June 8, 2011

My Natural Hair Journey

September 2009, I was fed up with the dry scalp, itching like crazy. I am scratching holes in my scalp and my shirt, the back of my chair that I sit in at work is covered with flakes. No matter what dandruff shampoo or treatment that I use does not work and I an miserable. On top of the itchy scalp it is also sensitive to the chemical relaxer that I have been applying to my hair and scalp since I was in elementary. Basing my scalp, not scratching my scalp didn't make a difference. I was still a victim of burning and the soreness that came after the relaxer and styling were complete. I dreaded when it was time to retouch the new growth with the relaxer. After years of this touchier I decided that I could not take it anymore and I started transitioning in September 2009. I started educating myself on going from relaxed to natural and found support groups online through different websites that were designed for women with natural hair. The search for the products for conditioning and moisturizing began. I also searched for styles to wear since I was not ready to cut off all the relaxed strands because I had just relaxed a month earlier, so there was not much new growth. The first months of my transitioning I wore braid outs and then I read a girls blog where she wore blow outs the whole time that she transitioned. So that is what I did until March 2010 when my little sister who had went natural after I decided, but she big chopped without transitioning, she talked me into big chop. I did have a significant amount of new growth and I was very comfortable with my decision to go natural, especially with the support of the ladies that I worked with. SO I DID IT!!!!!! I have to tell you that I felt rejuvenated and so confident, the feeling was awesome!

After my big chop ceremony, I was left with this hair that was a stranger to me and did not know how to deal with it. It was dry and hard, I began to regret that I made this decision. I got a lot of advice from my little sister, because although she was natural, this was not the first time she ventured in this territory. She helped me find my moisture balance and she told me that just because a product works for one person does not mean that it will work for me. With this advice and more online research I fell in love with my hair and more and more in love with the growth and NO ITCHY SCALP!!!! The shedding was to a minimal which I loved as well and to my surprise I had a very nice texture. I was co-washing and prepooing everyday and it like my hair and scalp was in love with me because of the respect that I was showing.


I have gotten so many compliments about my natural hair than I did after relaxing and styling. So many women want to go natural but are too worried about what other people will think. They actually say that they are scared. I just tell them to just do it, but I find that it is not that easy for other people to do. I have been able to convert 4 of my friends and my daughter and they are not looking back. And neither am I.