Is Natural Hair Really The Answer to Healthy, Strong, Drama-free Hair?
Lets face it, its kind of cool to see more of us rocking the natural do. A lot of women are now willing to make it work! And it can be liberating to re-discover your hair and build a relationship without any cover-ups or disguises. But be warned, this is not necessarily the answer to all your prayers or the end of all your hair woes. The battle rages on. Only this time the elements are somewhat threatening since for some of us, getting acquainted with our natural texture is like walking into unfamiliar territory.
Texture is the key word. We all have variations of that word so depending on what you are working with you could have an easy transition or you could find yourself working harder than ever to make the good hair days outnumber the bad ones.
Natural hair especially the kinky tightly coiled type tends to be extremely dry and constantly craving moisture so the myth about perms and colors being the main reason why our hair dries out is out the window. Even your natural hair can absolutely rebel against you if its not well conditioned and moisturized. The tighter the curls, the more sensitive and surprisingly weak the hair tresses tend to be so the other popular belief that natural hair is so strong that it can take almost any kind of abuse including permanent color is not quite true. I can personally attest to that!
The process of going natural is one that can make or break you. It literally turns into this turbulent love affair. The good days are absolutely fantastic and the bad days are frustratingly bad. You will have moments of undeniable bliss and moments of pure hell. Bad hair days that involve natural hair can easily make you almost call out of work or cancel a date whereas relaxed hair for the most part can be somewhat tamed. But through it all it’s important that you realize that natural hair vs. processed hair is another mythical battle. The truth is that going natural is by no means better or healthier than having a relaxer or a texturizer. And sorry to bust the bubble out there but texturizers actually process the texture of your hair to some degree so your hair is not really in its “natural state”. Natural hair is hair that is devoid of any chemicals that can potentially alter your curl pattern.
The point is that no matter what lane you choose to cruise on, you can still accomplish the same goal of nice, long, strong luxurious hair as long as you give your head of hair the attention and care it deserves and needs. Having natural hair can be fun and rewarding but be prepared for what comes with dealing with your particular hair type and don’t beat yourself up if you decide that its not for you. Hair is an accessory so you have permission to change it up and settle on a style that works for you. Either way looking FAB is the objective! Be it ‘fro or sleek.
I think the answer to healthy, strong and drama free hair is taking care of what type of hair works for you. That include relaxed and natural hair. My hair is tex-laxed and I have very healthy hair I never had a break off and my hair s strong ( I get tex-laxers two – three times a year). Over all I love natural and I love relaxed hair I think that as long as you take care of your hair then you can have strong hair that you can be happy with.
This is great advice. I was natural for 3/4 years and now I get relaxers say 3/4 times a year but my hair is still doing great. Your hair only does great if you’re able to manage it effectively…going natural when your hair gets more stress from simply trying to manage it is counter-productive imo.
I am half Nigerian so my hair is extremely kinky in comparison to my Black American friends (and family members on my mother’s side). I wore my hair natural as a child for many years before it was ‘popular’ to do so (like it is now). I found that my hair didn’t break as much when it was relaxed as it did when it was natural. So in addition to it being easier to manage, it was actually healthier and less dry with the chemicals! Again, that was my experience. I think people should wear their hair anyway they want and do what works for them. They shouldn’t be pressured either way.
Great article!
Sorry to hear most of you hate your natural hair…YIKES!
Sure I have bad hair days, but for the most part I am in love with my natural hair. I have been natural since 06, and wore a buzz cut up until October ’10. I don’t do the classification bs, but I have very coily, nappy (yes nappy) hair that does it’s own thing most of the time. It’s in a box cut now and I absolutely adore it. I don’t look like most of the chicks in my city, relaxed or natural, and it allows me to express my individuality and style even when I’m dressed down, or riding through the city on my bike. It’s all about making what you have work for you. I’m never going back to the creamy crack.
If you take good care of your hair you should be fine natural or relaxed. It’s just a matter of texture preference. I had healthy relaxed hair but I always put curly weaves in my hair. I thought, why not go natural since I love curls? So I went natural and I really love curls now. People should chose whatever is best for his or her lifestlye. People should just chose what they want and f what others say
This article is completely biased. Permed and natural hair BOTH have good and bad days and BOTH require a lot of work. Why would I change what God has given me? Am I going to bleach my skin too? Because that is changing what God gave me, just like perming hair is. I am tired of seeing people hate on what is naturally ours and unique to our people. Perming hair is not easier or healthier and just seems so because the relaxed hair hides damage. BOTH natural and permed hair require moisture and love and attention and good physical health to grow strong. And lets not even bring texture into this. I am all Black, and my hair is coily and kinky and I dare someine to say it is Nappy. This texture talks leads me to believe that if I am biracial my hair is suddenly “easier” to manage and I hate that self-hatred way of thinking. Love you. You are all you got!
And I am in the military and I have been rocking my natural hair for five years. If my busy ass can manage this hair while working for Uncle Sam in a world that does not understand my hair because it is mostly lily white and puts a lot of restrictions on hair (especially natural, Black hair), then ANYONE an manage to rock their God-given selves, ie, NATURAL HAIR.
Stop the biased madness. All hair takes WORK.
To sailortaylor,
I am a sailor and I wanted to ask you, how do you style your hair? My natural hair is about 12 inches. I was thinking I might have to put a bun for depolyments. I have box braids with my own hair and since my hair curl on its own, it doesn’t touch my collar due to shrinkage. Do you find yourself trying to find other styling options within regs? I love braids but they can’t be too long to fit under a hat.