My Natural Hair Transformation

      Growing up, I longed for the straight hair that white people had. On wash day sitting between my mother's legs as she detangled and plaited my hair I wished for straight hair just like all the other girls in my class. I begged my mom to let me get a perm or at least straighten it, but she told me it wasn't necessary because although my hair was thick it was manageable. My little sister on the other hand got her hair permed when she was 5. As I grew up I watched my other black friends transition out of the plaited hair to wearing their hair straight and here I was rocking long plaited pigtails in the 5th grade. My mother finally gave in and let me get my hair straightened before the end of 5th grade and I was hooked. I had to have my hair straight, bone straight at that. It took a lot of persuasion but I got my first perm when I went to 6th grade. Four boxes of the Just For Me Perm Box and I had the long bone straight hair I had longed for as a child. The only problem is I was an avid swimmer growing up and perms and chlorine don't mix. I remember the first time I noticed my breakage problem was right before my freshman year. My stylist said she needed to trim my hair because I was having a breakage problem. My trim turned into being a 3 inch cut. From there it went down hill. I started experiencing severe shedding, to the point my mom would always know when I combed my hair. My hair just kept getting shorter and shorter. From what was bra strap length hair went to being shoulder length. My junior year in an event to save my hair I stopped getting perms every 6 to 8 weeks to just 3 times a year. That helped a little bit, but my hair would still shed pretty bad. I was washing my hair one time and noticed my hair was wavy at the roots and straight on the ends. I liked how wavy my hair was and asked my stylists how I could get my hair to be wavy all over. She responded, that I had to go natural. I had no idea what that meant. She told me that I could cut all my hair off or transition. I wanted to cut my hair off and just start all over, but I was in high school. Guys liked girls with long hair so I opted to just transition.                 

        September 2010 I got my hair cut about two inches and stopped getting perms. When I started transitioning, I wore my hair straight. Then I had no idea that straightening your hair could give you heat damage. I switched stylists right before I went to college and she did my first natural hairstyle on me, a twist out. My first year of college I experienced the good, the bad, and the ugly with my hair. I did nothing but braid outs and twists outs and I would always set my ends on perm rods so they would blend in with my natural hair. May 2012 I got my first mini big chop and most of my permed hair was gone. My hair was great. A little short but I loved how my hair looked. I wanted to change it up before I started in the fall, so I got some color added to my hair. The first time it didn't come out the way I wanted to so I got it recolored a week later. BIGGEST MISTAKE EVER! My hair was a hot mess. My hair was limp, dry, and lifeless I couldn't even do a twist out on my hair. But with time and trial and error I got my hair back to a healthier state. I love my hair and can honestly say going natural was one of the best decisions I've made in my life. It wasn't easy and there were moments when I wanted to just perm my hair and be done, but I just pushed through. To those women who are just starting out and spend their nights watching natural hair videos. I was you and still am. I'm still learning things about my hair with the change of each season or any length or color I make with my hair. I'm fully natural, 3c/4a with thick hair and I still can't get my hair to perfectly create the styles I see on youtube tutorials. But I've learned how to do things with my hair that others can't. I salivate over the curls of 3as and am amazed at the styles that 4bs and cs can do. To me all hair no matter what your hair type is is beautiful, everyone's different, do what works with your hair.

NaturalChikana