When I started my natural hair journey for the first time about 5 years ago , I loved the look of big curly hair and always said that I wish my hair was curly like it used to be when I was a baby. As my hair was breaking and my edges were thinning, I decided to grow out my relaxer (not knowing anything about the natural hair movement or correct natural hair care before this). Relaxers damage hair as they work by breaking down the protein bonds within the hair shaft to straighten the hair strand, literally breaking hair from the inside out.

 

As I grew out my relaxer and saw that my roots were more afro than curly I decided to texlax/texturize my hair to loosen it a bit and make it ‘easier to manage’ but this didn’t make much difference and I ended up with straight hair which I didn’t want. I then wore twist outs, braid outs and buns most of the time before straightening my hair more often resulting in heat damage. In the end my hair was a thick frizzy mess that consisted of some straight parts, some wavy parts and some slightly curly parts so I decided to relax my hair once again to make it all one texture, straight.

 

I soon got bored of straight hair and my scalp became extremely flaky. As I was firguring out what I had been doing differently I remembered I had recently started relaxing my hair again. Relaxers/texturizers contain harsh chemicals that have the ability to eat through and disolve aluminium. I gathered that this and the use of hair dryers and straighteners which dry out your scalp and hair shaft was having a negative affect on my hair and scalp so I decided to stop relaxing my hair again and go back natural.

 

Being natural for a few years before I relaxed my hair again, I had researched and learnt a lot about natural hair care and the science behind it. I decided to put my knowledge to use and look after my hair properly this time; so I began doing weekly hot oil treatments as a pree poo for the moisture benefits and to treat my dry, flaky scalp (I pre poo’d even when I wasn’t shampooing). I decided to switch up what I used and now avoid products that contain mineral oil, petroleum and silicones as these ingredients can clog your hair follicles and cause build up, suffocating your scalp (making my dry flaky scalp worse) so I started using Aunt Jackies Products. I’ve also decided to experiment with essential oils such as tee trea oil, rosemary oil and peppermint oil and started using organic or 100% virgin coconut oil religiously as it has natural anti-fungal properties and when dealing with dandruff you need to attack the root cause.

 

As I’m now using better products on my hair, products free from rubbish chemicals allowing nutrients and moisture to enter my hair properly, my new growth has grown in softer and as it’s gotten longer I’ve started to notice my curl pattern come through. This is something that I’ve never really seen before and didn’t even believe I had. I’ve also came across the max hydration method (which I haven’t tried yet) and noticed that even people with the coarsest hair types were achieving defined curly wash and go’s simply from extremely moisturising their hair. This now leads me to believe that most of us black people do have a curl pattern but lack of moisture and proper care leaves our hair stiff, dry and prone to breakage.

 

It’s now been over a year since my last relaxer and my natural new growth is around 6inches long. When stretched the hair at the bottom of my head it touches my shoulders. I want to big chop but I’m nervous about the shrinkage and how short hair will look on my big head 😐

 

Soften hair and define natural curls

• Co wash your hair reguarly to avoid the harsh drying chemicals that are in shampoo’s, while cleansing your hair and moisturising/conditioning it at the same time.

• Do a clarifying wash (wash with a sulfate shampoo, apple cider vinegar or bentonite clay) atleast once a month to completely rid your hair of any build up and product. Sulfate shampoos will strip your hair where as apple cider vinegar will naturally cleanse without drying your hair out. Bentonite clay will deeply cleanse and condition at the same time as defining your curls and making then ‘pop’.

• Deep condition reguarly to replace any lost moisture in your hair and prevent dryness and breakage. You should deep condition with a deep conditioner or deep treatment masque every wash day, especially if you have clarifyed . Don’t forget to L.O.C after you wash your hair to seal in all that moisture from the water and prevent dryness which leads to breakage.

• To perserve your curls over night, tie them into a loose ponytail ontop of your head (like a pineapple) or two, and then wear a satin/silk scarf or bonnet or sleep on a satin/silk pillowcase to avoid frizz, dryness and snags from the friction against cotton.

• Moisturise daily (I moisturise in the morning) using water, aloe vera juice or rose water in a spray bottle followed by a leave in conditioner or hair milk. Avoid brushing/combing your hair unnesserily, this will just cause frizz and can lead to damage. If you’re wearing your hair out curly you don’t need to comb/brush through your hair every morning, distributing products through your hair and working through tangles with your hands will be fine.

• Use gel’s that don’t contain drying ingredients (alcohols) such as eco styler or home made flaxseed gel to define and set curls.

• For kinky hair that lacks definition, smooth product through your hair in small sections with your hands and a denman brush to clump curls.

 

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