New *2009* Transitioners Support Thread!

[MrsLack]

7 months today!!! And boy did I have a serious detangling session yesterday and its not the new growth that gives me problems. These relaxed ends are no joke!!!I realized I can no longer wash all my hair at the same time. I am going to start with 6 sections until I get the hang of it. I haven't experience any breakage so thats good. I pretty much wear it up all the time, sometimes braiding the ends or something. I haven't used heat except for one small section in the front. I am training for marathon and sweat so much, so I don't see the point of using heat (I am starting to miss it though). I am going to start roller setting and see where that gets me.

Good luck ladies!

 

[Sweet1977]

Hello. This will maybe be my third time trying to transition. I have a goal of 6 months at least before I cut (if I can't take it anymore). Otherwise, I will just be cutting one inch every three months. We'll see which route works.

I'm just going to style my hair every week b/c I get bored with buns. Well they are better now b/c I have bangs, so that helps.

I'm seven weeks post now with a long way to go. Wish me luck ladies!

Last relaxer Feb. 20th

Aug. 21st will be six months.

GOOD LUCK!!

 

[l_choice2001]

UPDATE: i am 13 weeks post!!! im excited so far so good

i am learning how to detangle properly and im still in search of a creamy conditioner but im getting the hang of everything

 

[Determined22]

I was thisclose to doing a BC yesterday. I'm 4 months into my transition and I'm loving my natural coils. I'm going to try to hold out another 3 months before I BC. I really don't think I'm gonna make a year transition, and I think it would be fun to have a TWA.

 

[blacklove0607]

Ok so im going into week 25 and im starting to notice some breakage...have you ladies found any staple products that had curb your breakage?? im doing protective styling and before i know i was manipulating too much now i need some advice?!?!

Aphogee stopped my hair from being on the bathroom floor practically overnight! I purchased the shampoo, 2 minute reconstructor, protein treatment, moisturizing conditioner and leave in. Big difference was noticed the next day!

 

[blacklove0607]

Transition can be hell!!!

OK, so how did I come up with this bright idea to transition? Oh yeah, because I've been using chemicals for 25 years and I'm ready to give it up! Why is so difficult? I have yet to find a protective style that I can handle - still working on that. I called Khamit Kinks yesterday and was told I would need another month of new growth to get the style I want so the braids won't slip out. I appreciated their honesty and this confirmed for me they are true professionals! In the meantime, Im using too much heat in my hair! I work out nearly 4-5 days a week and after workouts on Tuesday & Thursday my hair is so wet I have to wash it to remove the salt and nasty sweat - then blow dry and flat iron. BC isn't an option and hair isn't long enough to phony pony or much of anything appropriate for a mature woman. Also my hair is growing a different rates and the back has a lot of shrinkage soft, but shrinkage non the less. Just needed to vent for a few!!!

 

[Quita]

blacklove0607,

I feel you girl, I'm 6 months post and new to doing my own hair and BC is not an option. Have you considered a wig or braids. I wear a wig now and under the wig, my hair is conrowed; I can was it as often as I want and not have to worry about heat; my hair was breaking a lot from the blowdrying and flat iron but since I got the wig oh and I found out that protein is my friend my hair is doing well and the wig is easy to manage. just a thought

 

[blacklove0607]

blacklove0607,

I feel you girl, I'm 6 months post and new to doing my own hair and BC is not an option. Have you considered a wig or braids. I wear a wig now and under the wig, my hair is conrowed; I can was it as often as I want and not have to worry about heat; my hair was breaking a lot from the blowdrying and flat iron but since I got the wig oh and I found out that protein is my friend my hair is doing well and the wig is easy to manage. just a thought

The braids, the place I wanted to go to told me I need more new growth so the braids don't come out...

Cornrows are not really an option -my style has to very conservative....the less it looks like braids the better - I work with white conservative men that need to be eaaaaaaaaaassssssssseeeeddddddd into the hair thing - can't take chances! My desired style is in my avatar.

Wig shopping is probably going to be something I consider this weekend ...this is not good .....

Thanks for listening to the vent!

 

[Brownchiq]

Hello everyone!
I have been transitioning since August 2008 so its been about 8 months!
I kinda decided on it after not having a touch up after 4 months. I hadnt made an appointment because I had been lazy and unfortunately my beloved hair stylist passed away. So kinda as an ode to myself and he, I decided to transition.

It actually has been an extremely easy process for me thus far. Its been 8 months, yet dealing with the two different textures has been a breeze. I have a simple regimine that some may not find too popular yet my hair has thrived and is EXTREMELY healthy and growing fast.

What I believe that has helped is not only the products that I put on top of my hair but the fact that I eat an extremely clean diet and I workout 5-6days/ weeks.

I conditioner wash 1-2x/ week and I may through in a sulfate free wash if my scalp causes for it. But I will only poo wash after doing at least one conditioner wash before hand.
I deep condition with Tigi Brunette Goddess and my hair LOVES IT. I comb it through, let it sit with or without heat, rinse it out and apply once more and rinse/ comb out.
I then add all my products to my rinse hair in this order:
* Elucence condish as a leave in
* Chi silk infusion
* Namaste thermal silken
* Namaste Moisture shield
* REdken Heat glide

I comb through (the comb glides through my hair at this point), brush the sides very gently, twist my hair into a bun and clip it into place.
I then put on my satin scarf to smooth and mold the hairline and let it airdry for about 45minutes- hour. Letting it dry any more than this and it wont work quite like how I want it to.

After 45 minutes I take my hair down and comb it through with the wide tooth shower comb. My comb is still gliding throught at this time. No tangles, no breakage or anything.

Now here is the LHCF controversial part***
I blow dry my hair with the shower tooth comb on the cool/ high setting. This dries my hair and make sure that my hairline stays smooth and molded. This takes about 10 minutes. Once the hair is about 95% dry, I use my denman and blowdry my hair for an additional 10 minutes on medium/high setting.
This only gets my hair semi-straight. The goal is not to really straighten my hair but to prepare it for the next step.
I then add a little more REden Heat glide and thermal style my hair with my Chi turbo. One each section ( I make about 5-6) I spray my MIZANI thermasmooth shine extend.
My hair comes out super shiney, bouncey and I hardly lose any hair!

I believe that with the combination with my healthy lifestyle, deep conditioning, thermal protectants and simple regimine, I have been able to transition very easily.
Before I started to transition I was between BSL and MBL. Since I have transitioned and am between SBL and APL and this is ofcourse because of the more frequent trims to rid myself of the relaxed ends.

I have no plans to BC and will probably transition at least to the December 2009.
About 50% of my length is natural and I would like at least Shoulder length natural before I cut.

Pretty simple for me and it works!

ETA: I was texlaxed or texturized before this transition which has probably helped this transition to be a little easier.

 

[LongCurlz]

Has anyone noticed how tangly it is at the demarcation line, It takes forever to detangle and It makes me so frustrated...I cant wait too chop it all off so I dont have this problem

 

[CheLala13]

I'm in braids now and shall remain there for another 3 weeks.

I'll be 15 months post!

 

[blacklove0607]

Has anyone noticed how tangly it is at the demarcation line, It takes forever to detangle and It makes me so frustrated...I cant wait too chop it all off so I dont have this problem

My hair doesn't have enough length to be tangled yet.

 

[Ltown]

I'm still transitioning last relaxer Oct 08, reading this thread and stalking regimens and profiles is helping me transition. I've done this 3 times but usually BC but since to lhcf I've learned it not necessary and there are so many more styles and techniques now. I'm 3c and tried twist out but they are frizzy so I've been bunning/phony my way through this transition. Thanks for the support and keep sharing

 

[Eisani]

Has anyone noticed how tangly it is at the demarcation line, It takes forever to detangle and It makes me so frustrated...I cant wait too chop it all off so I dont have this problem

I only mess with products that give me lots of slip and aid in the detangling process for this very reason. I only detangle every couple days, but I start w/conditioner on 4-6 sections of hair (right now I'm liking DevaCurl One and Set It Free), use my shower comb to start at the bottom and work up. This takes a while. Then I use my Denman to remove shed hairs. After that I use my tortoise comb to make sure my hair is completely free of tangles and shed hair. This seems like a lot of combing/brushing, but I HAVE to do it to maintain my sanity . Otherwise the tangles would have me texlaxing asap.

 

[Loves Harmony]

Im stil in the game lol lol.My hair is still up in braids. Hopefully they will last until the 1st of June or the last week of may. 8 weeks post right now

 

[countrychickd]

I'll be 16 weeks post on Thursday. Everything is going well. I've been cowashing a lot lately, and my hair is loving it. It's so easy to detangle, and my new growth is so soft. I've just been wearing it in a bun lately. I'll probably continue to wear a bun for a while, or up until I get some kinky twists.

 

[Quita]

Ladies,
I'm 26 weeks post and cornrowing my hair under my wig (I'm on a heat diet); I co-wash every 5 days, DC with AO GPG, leave-in Giovani, seal with EVCO or Castor Oil then cornrow. I moisturize once ever 3 days with my mixture of Glycerin + Aloe Vera+ distilled H20 and a dash of peppermint EO; I'm away from home so I don't have the names of all the condi but I'm having problems with tangles;

On another thread someone suggested Perosity Control Condi, but that didn't really help; I started dividing my hair in 4 sections to wash, does anyone have any other suggestions?

Thanks

 

[Eisani]

Ladies,
I'm 26 weeks post and cornrowing my hair under my wig (I'm on a heat diet); I co-wash every 5 days, DC with AO GPG, leave-in Giovani, seal with EVCO or Castor Oil then cornrow. I moisturize once ever 3 days with my mixture of Glycerin + Aloe Vera+ distilled H20 and a dash of peppermint EO; I'm away from home so I don't have the names of all the condi but I'm having problems with tangles;

On another thread someone suggested Perosity Control Condi, but that didn't really help; I started dividing my hair in 4 sections to wash, does anyone have any other suggestions?

Thanks

How often are you using a shampoo? Do you ever clarify or chelate? Are your cowashes w/moisturizing conditioners?

 

[l_choice2001]

how are you ladies drying if your hair doesnt like air drying????

 

[MummysGirl]

I'll be 16 weeks post on Saturday, my hair seems to be doing okay but once in a while I notice tiny breakage when detangling in the shower... then my hair's fine once dry.

I found out a conditioner I love for cowashes, it gives me more slip than HE HH, it's HH It's a Curl Thing. It might be called something else in the US (not sure), I used it while rinsing out my henna over the weekend and I LOVED how soft my hair felt right after I rinsed it out.

I am just pinning up my hair right now and I use an alice/head band to hold down my new growth. I'm loving my hair 90% of the time except when the unexpected breakage comes.

 

[Soliel185]

For all those people who're like " I don't know how you can go without combing your hair everyday." I don't know how you guys manage to comb it everyday.

I protective style and only comb once a week b/c if I had to do it more than that I would go craaaaaazy! It's not even that the tangles are that bad - it's just that there is SO MUCH DAYUM HAIR! I'm 15 months post and I'm just going to do whatever my hair tells me to do. Right now it's telling me to leave it the &*^% alone!

 

[MummysGirl]

For all those people who're like " I don't know how you can go without combing your hair everyday." I don't know how you guys manage to comb it everyday.

I protective style and only comb once a week b/c if I had to do it more than that I would go craaaaaazy! It's not even that the tangles are that bad - it's just that there is SO MUCH DAYUM HAIR! I'm 15 months post and I'm just going to do whatever my hair tells me to do. Right now it's telling me to leave it the &*^% alone!

Lol!

Sometimes I don't comb my hair between washes, I detangle with conditioner in and I also comb after applying my leave in. I finger comb the rest of the time.

15 months post is very impressive!

 

[Mook's hair]

My BC is coming April 17 2009 that will be 24 months of transition. And I am soooo over it.

 

[LuyshuZ]

Checking in again 53 weeks post today! 1 year transition anniversary was April 1st 2009.

 

[MummysGirl]

Oooh, I'll be looking out for your updates!

My BC is coming April 17 2009 that will be 24 months of transition. And I am soooo over it.

 

[Quita]

I'm 26 weeks post and cornrowing my hair under my wig (I'm on a heat diet); I co-wash every 5 days, DC with AO GPG, leave-in Giovani, seal with EVCO or Castor Oil then cornrow. I moisturize once ever 3 days with my mixture of Glycerin + Aloe Vera+ distilled H20 and a dash of peppermint EO; I'm away from home so I don't have the names of all the condi but I'm having problems with tangles;

On another thread someone suggested Perosity Control Condi, but that didn't really help; I started dividing my hair in 4 sections to wash, does anyone have any other suggestions?

Thanks

How often are you using a shampoo? Do you ever clarify or chelate? Are your cowashes w/moisturizing conditioners?
******************************************************************
I'm using shampoo everytime I wash only because I use MN w/ EVCO and Aloe daily and I didn't want buildup; I'm really new but I clarified 3 weeks ago and plan on clarifying on the 19th of April; this will be the first time I press in a month.

Not sure what chelate means?
After I DC'ed with AO GPB for 30min, tried to detangle under the shower but didn't have much luck, I used Herbal Essesce Hello Hydration and that helped a lot with detangling;
I realized just two weeks ago after much breakage that my hair loves protein and so using the AO GPB weekly is really stoping the breakage.

in addition to the Hello Hydration I also DC every other weeks with this moisturizing condi http://www.bluebeez.com/34-313/CAPILO_Aloe_Vera_Hair_Conditioner
thanks

 

[HoneyA]

Okay, I'm going to be in here for a while soaking up as much as I can.

 

[Austro-Afrikana]

Wow. I don't know how you all talk about bcing so easily, and so soon after beginning your transitions. I'm NEVER gonna bc lol.
Once I'm bsl or mbl I'm gonna SLOWLY trim off the relaxed ends every month until they're all gone!

 

[Brownchiq]

Wow. I don't know how you all talk about bcing so easily, and so soon after beginning your transitions. I'm NEVER gonna bc lol.
Once I'm bsl or mbl I'm gonna SLOWLY trim off the relaxed ends every month until they're all gone!

Im right along with you on this one!

 

[CarLiTa]

wow, i guess in 2 days, i will be 9 months post... that's crazy.

i SHOULD be at 4.5" in most places, but i notice various lengths... 5, 3.5, 4... i don't know.

i'm not feeling my hair right now. When straight, it's about APL. Got a haircut that took me from BSL to APL 2 weeks ago, but i'm happy with my ends now.

Sometimes I think i want to continue to take care of my relaxed ends and wear my hair straight more while transitioning... i'm tired of buns and crap like that. ugh

i dunno... i'm not feeling my hair right now.