September 2 marked six months of me being natural thus far & I have to say I absolutely love it. I constantly tell people it's one of the greatest mistakes that ever happened to me. I never truly intended on going natural because I felt it was too much work & maintenance. Although, I'd admit it does require some time and patience, there's nothing more liberating than knowing that I no longer have to perm my hair to be 'accepted'. Nonetheless, these past six months have learned quite a few things about my hair:
- I have high porosity hair. When it's moist, it's moist. When it's dry, it is.. dry.
- My hair absolutely loves water. For the first few months of being natural, I'd cowash my hair daily with Aussie Moist & just rock my wash & goes. If I don't wash my hair daily, like I've been doing lately, it just requires my water + Aussie Moist spritz bottle to bring my hair back to life.
- Oils, oils, everywhere. I find that oils help retain moisture for my hair more than that of hair butters. My hair loves all oils -- Jojoba, EVOO, Vatika, Avocado, but i think EVCO has to be the favorite. Gives my hair great shine, softness & all the moisture I'd need to last me throughout the day.
- Detangling is optional. For the most part, I'll detangle my hair every two weeks when I wash with shampoo. But when I do detangle my hair, it is always a breeze when wet. Haven't tried to detangle dry, don't think I will.
- Single Strand Knots.. I think not. I have yet to find a Single Strand Knot in my hair & I'm very thankful.
- Silicones are optional. My hair doesn't mind the water soluble silicones in Aussie Moist. But, I have noticed that when I use silicone free conditioners, my curls do pop a little more. But I do appreciate the softness I get from Aussie Moist.
- Day 3 Twist Outs always look the best. I've noticed that usually by Day 3 of my Twist Outs my curls are popping & my hair is way fuller. I've also realized when it comes Two Strand Twist my hair prefers dry twist outs, as opposed to wet.
- A trim does my hair good. This just reminded me that it's about time for a trim. But when I did get my hair trimmed a few months ago, I did see my hair starting to grow noticeably faster it seemed.
- My hair type is still questionable -- but for now I'm going to stick with 3c/4a. The back of my hair going towards the middle of my hair is a 3c, whilst the sides and front are definitely that of a 4a.
- Shampooing Bi-Weekly isn't a big deal now. I went practically five months without putting shampoo in my hair. When I had product build up, I'd just do an ACV Rinse & be on my way. Now that I've been using my Avalon Organics Clarifying Lemon Shampoo, my hair actually likes that & doesn't mind being cleaned twice a month.
- My hair can take a good beating. By beating I mean, there are days where I don't really do anything to my hair, including moisturizing it (gasp) but it still hangs in there with me. I don't suffer from any real breakage from it being dry luckily. My hair's a trooper. It knows eventually it will get water.
- I can't keep my hands out my hair & it doesn't seem mind. I suffer from that Hands In Hair Syndrome. Seriously. It's like my hands are always in my hair doing something -- most the time two strand twisting it & then untwisting it within seconds. I feel like by somehow always keeping my hands in my hair, I've been constantly stimulating my scalp thus making it okay! Plus, like I stated I don't experience much breakage or shedding luckily.
What are some things your hair has taught you?
Some things my hair has taught me:
ReplyDeleteLeave In Conditioner. Kimmaytube method or nothing. My hair likes nothing else.
Porous.
Loves any conditioner with shea butter.
10 different textures
Paying attention to your hair is the most important thing i've learned since being natural. It will tell you exactly what it needs and when it needs it. It's great that you've learned all this in just 6 months.
ReplyDelete