My Hair Care Regimen

Hi dolls.

Juggling my hair and college isn’t easy and I haven’t been taking great care of it in the last couple of weeks. I’ve been using too much heat on my hair and I’m starting to get split-ends which is really annoying. Over the Christmas holidays I’m going to get my hair trimmed (finally) when I go and visit my mum. It is basically impossible to find someone to do my hair properly here in Ireland. The major salons probably don’t have a clue about my hair and the African salons are just a no go for me (the service is awful). What I am doing for the time being to remedy my split-ends is to inspect my ends and then cut the split ends as I see them. I have been wearing my hair in a bun most of the time (it is currently straight) and I wear my satin cap, which I bought here every night before I go to bed.

Long story short, my hair regimen when I’m being good:

Weekly

-       Shampoo hair in sections and then condition hair in sections.

-       Leave-in conditioner/ heat protectant

I know it’s not anything to scream home about but it’s kept my hair in decent shape over the last couple of weeks. 

I’ve kind of had a major set back. I’ve recently noticed that my edges are kind of thinning. I got braids over the summer so I’m wondering if this is the root cause (pun intended). I want to try the tropical isle products especially the hair growth oil and reduce the amount of heat that I use for 12 weeks starting this December. It’s just been a little tough because I recently moved so money is a bit tight as well. I really hope this isn’t the start of a major problem with my hair. Whilst waiting to try the tropical isle products I am going to be using sample sizes of the macadamia natural oil shampoo, conditioner and deep conditioner. I recently ordered it so it should be here next week. I’ll keep you guys updated and also do a review on those products when I get a chance to use them.

Peace out!!

My Hair Journey So Far.

So here we are...The very first entry. 

I’m passionate about my hair. I’m passionate about everything to do with hair. All my black girls know what I mean when I say our hair is a big deal to us. It’s more than just a style or something that grows out of our scalps. To many of us it defines who we are, or how we feel about ourselves. I have had my fair share of experiences from wishing my hair was that texture to finally accepting what I do have. One of the earliest memories I have as a child was of getting a relaxer. I didn’t really know what it was but I knew that it was something that made my hair silky and straight. 

Every 4-6 weeks like a ritual, I would get my hair done at the salon and I never thought much of it. I never stopped to think about what my natural texture looked like, let alone going natural. To me being natural was like an urban myth. I didn’t think I’d ‘look right’ with natural hair amongst many of the excuses I used to justify my obsession with relaxers. My hair up until the age of 17 had never grown longer than shoulder length and I just accepted it because I thought black girls couldn’t grow long hair unless they were mixed. I’d never really stopped to think that it was something I was doing...or to put another way, not doing that made my hair break. I was never satisfied with the condition of my hair and constantly struggled to maintain the little hair that I did have. Going to a predominantly white school didn’t really help. I’ve lost count of the number of times I had to answer the question ‘Why don’t you grow your hair longer?’ Non of my friends really understood the issues us black women face in the quest for longer hair. To make it worse I didn’t really understand how to take care of my hair.

When I started college, I made the decision to start stretching my relaxer from 4 weeks to 12 weeks to save money. By the end of my first semester in college I decided to go natural after noticing how much thicker and stronger my hair was. I’d also been a long time sufferer of seborrheic dermatitis and the relaxers weren’t helping a single bit. Too scared to big chop, I decided to transition my hair, wearing protective styling most of the time and straightening my hair the rest. It took me a long time to come to terms with my hair, and to finally fall in love with what I was born with.

The last 3 years have been a whirlwind of discovery. I’ve learnt more about my hair in the last three years than the rest of my life combined. I couldn’t have done it without the help of my fellow sisters on youtube and on the hair care forums. Now I’m sitting at armpit length and I’m never looking back. Sure, I’ve had weak moments when I’ve literally dreamt about getting my hair relaxed but perseverance and conviction in what I have achieved for myself over the last three years always puts me back on track. Now, I’m not saying that relaxers are bad for everyone. They work great for others. Just not for me. I hope in writing this blog I can inspire others who are transitioning, or are already natural to keep at it. I’m writing this blog to detail my journey to waist length hair, setbacks and all so stay tuned. 

Here is a photo of my hair. The left side was from late last year and the right side is a month ago.

Be kind. I know my hair needs to be trimmed REALLY badly!.