My Transition: Stage One

First, a transition is just what it is. My transition is me going from relaxed hair to my natural hair. My mother’s best friend, at the time, gave me my first relaxer at age 9. I thought is was great at the time, no more pressing comb! As it turns out, relaxers are bad for your hair. I had noticed years ago that my hair was thinning at the ends and very brittle. Relaxers do this to your hair. When you relax your hair, the chemicals in the relaxer strip your hair of nutrients and protein that your hair needs to grow and be strong. It took me a very long time to decide to stop relaxing my hair. What I did first was stopped relaxing my hair every 4-6 weeks. I began relaxing every 10 weeks for one year. There was some growth but not worth mentioning. The next year I was relaxing every 12 weeks and still the same. At this present time, I am 24 weeks post my last relaxer. I’m so excited!

My transition process will go very nicely, because I have lots of options for hairstyles while I go through this period. When you are transitioning from relaxed to natural, it is best to do low manipulation hairstyles. Low manipulation hairstyles are styles that require less usage of hair tools such as combs and brushes. Also, you may want to stay away from heated hair appliances like flat irons, blowdryers, curling irons, etc. I say this because your hair will be very vulnerable during this stage. The point where your relaxed hair and your natural hair meet is called the line of demarcation. You can choose to chop all your hair off where you see your natural hair begins and your relaxed hair ends. I do not want to do a “BIG CHOP”. I will allow my hair to grow, to a length I’m comfortable with, and as it grows, I will slowly cut away my relaxed ends until they are all gone. I do believe this way is longer, but my hair, my choice.

I mentioned before about low manipulation hairstyles, and there are so many. There are cornrows, roller sets, braidouts, bantu knot outs, flexirod sets, box braids, tree braids, senegalese twists, kinky twists, and the list goes on. I plan to have so much fun trying new hair styles. The best thing about this experience is I will definitely learn more about myself and my natural hair. I have not seen what my natural hair looks like as an adult, and this will definitely be a new challenge for me. I don’t think anyone could have suggested that I ” GO NATURAL” without me saying NO WAY! You definitely have to want to see some new progress in your hair, and for me my relaxers were doing so much damage to my hair. I felt like this was going to be the best thing for me. And there it is, the key words, “FOR ME”. I hope that as you all venture out on your own journeys, whatever they maybe, that you take from them more knowledge, strength, and courage to push you in the right direction. The path that’s opened up for your feet and no one elses. Be blessed & Safe journey!