Undefined Curl Pattern After BC

[Zay-neey]

Okay I am 5 weeks Post BC
For those 5 weeks i have been in Box Braids. I just took down my braids yesterday

My question is, is it normal to have an undefined curl pattern after BC

I have a curl pattern cuz when i look up close i can see it. but far away it looks like a puff ball??

Is this normal? will my pattern become more defined as it grows?

Some of the Curls are defined, but others arent?
Maybe its cuz i just took out the braids?

I dunno , i need some help
ETA: Thank You All, And Yes it is more Defined Now After it grew out more.

 

[that_1_grrrl]

Yes. That's why your hair has to be a certain length before you can determine hair type.

 

[hair_rehab]

I did the BC a month ago and I'm still learning how to define my curls. Some days it looks great, other days not so much. I have a mixture of 4a and 4b.

Right now I'm trying not to get too focused on curl definition and just focus on keeping it healthy.

 

[LoveLiLi]

I've heard other ladies talk about this experience after a bc. I can relay what was posted, but I transitioned for so long that I skipped over the undefined curl pattern phase.

The ladies said moisturize, then moisturize and then when you're done - moisturize. They said deep conditioning was critical and that once the hair had the hydration it needed, the curls were nice and defined without too much fuss.

I can say that I was ignoring protein treatments every six weeks because I thought that as a natural I didn't need it. Once I started them again my hair looked better overall.

You may need to check your products too. For me, vatika or regular coconut oil is fine and leaves my curls defined, while amla oil takes the bulk out of my hair, but it takes the curl out as well.

Also, how are you combing and styling your hair? If you're manipulating it too much while it's drying then you may be disturbing the curls and creating a fro instead.

I'm a mixture of 4a and 3c, but I would say I'm 4a overall. If I comb it while dry or god forbid brush it, then I'm just messing up the curl pattern. I detangle while wet, apply products and leave it alone and the curls look wonderful.

 

[Zay-neey]

Okay Thanks Much! And i did keeep messing with it after i Dc. so that could of helped with the fuzz, and now im just going to see if it gets longer how the curls looks.
Thanks everyone

 

[alanaj]

I transitioned for 11 months and recently BC'ed. I am having this same problem. I just for the life of me cannot get curl definition all over my head. I'm bumping because I want to know why too

 

[LoveLiLi]

I transitioned for 11 months and recently BC'ed. I am having this same problem. I just for the life of me cannot get curl definition all over my head. I'm bumping because I want to know why too

Maybe you just have different curl patterns? My right side curls more than my left side and the back is 3b/c . So annoying. The back has too much 'hang down' compared to the rest and I have to try to blend everything together.

The right side is so uniform and perfect, while the left and back are looser and not as defined - that's how it always was and I have to stretch the right side out to match the left and fluff it a bit to make it look nice (once the curls are set).

 

[Nonie]

Okay I am 5 weeks Post BC
For those 5 weeks i have been in Box Braids. I just took down my braids yesterday

My question is, is it normal to have an undefined curl pattern after BC

I have a curl pattern cuz when i look up close i can see it. but far away it looks like a puff ball??

Is this normal? will my pattern become more defined as it grows?

Some of the Curls are defined, but others arent?
Maybe its cuz i just took out the braids?

I dunno , i need some help

Your bold just described my hair. I don't know what type your hair is but 4B hair has definition only close up. From far it looks like wool.

In response to the red, 4B hair has been given the description "undefined or no curl pattern" not because that's true, but because in an effort to prevent tangling we manipulate it and style it in ways that make the pattern undefined. I have shared pics of my hair seen at different times, and indeed after braids my hair looks like it has no pattern. Once I wash it and let it be, it goes back to having the coily pattern.

Here's one post showing the different looks of my hair: http://www.longhaircareforum.com/showpost.php?p=5044633&postcount=61

Here's another picture showing how when I comb my hair, the coils are still obvious close up, but not when seen from afar:

And the pics below show you my hair out of the braids you see--no defined pattern:

However, a WNG no manipulating gives this:

And believe it or not, this was also supposed to be a WNG No obvious pattern at all!

 

[Zay-neey]

Maybe You Guys need a Pic!!
Im not sure if its gonna work
but it shows that in the pic when i stretch a piece of hair i get a apparent curl
but around it you see puff
if i was to stretch the puff with my hand too i would see curls

 

[Likeyouneverseenme]

Happened to me too.
Do a lot of DC-ing and moisturize your hair religiously and the curl pattern will appear eventually.

 

[Oasis]

Is this normal? will my pattern become more defined as it grows?

It just depends because my hair was the opposite.

When it was .5-1 in there were big obvious curls. Now that it's 7+ inches it ain't nothing but frizz and clouds. There are still curls but they are smaller and hidden.

 

[Prose Princess]

It just depends because my hair was the opposite.

When it was .5-1 in there were big obvious curls. Now that it's 7+ inches it ain't nothing but frizz and clouds. There are still curls but they are smaller and hidden.

That was hilarious, very nice image!

 

[glamazon386]

I didn't really have any curls at first either. They came as my hair grew out.

 

[Sugarhoney]

Maybe you need to clarify and DC. Aloe vera helps with defining curls too.

 

[Carrie A]

In response to the red, 4B hair has been given the description "undefined or no curl pattern" not because that's true, but because in an effort to prevent tangling we manipulate it and style it in ways that make the pattern undefined. I have shared pics of my hair seen at different times, and indeed after braids my hair looks like it has no pattern. Once I wash it and let it be, it goes back to having the ...

Right I never got how the coil pattern disappeared from the 4B description. My understanding was the the coil was just tighter not absent. I like the NP cottony texture description for minimal coiling and I always differentiated that from the 4B pattern.

 

[infojunkie]

Maybe you need to clarify and DC. Aloe vera helps with defining curls too.

I just slathered my scalp and hair with aloe vera gel and alas, I too am a natural fuzz ball - feels yummy but a fuzz ball none the less. It will be 1 month on the 28th since I big chopped after transitioning for a year.

 

[ThickHair]

I have multi-textured hair. I don't worry about defined curls because my hair just doesn't do it and I have no problem with it. I hate my hair with product in.

 

[Junebug D]

I've read of some people describing that as "scab hair". I don't know if I believe in that term though... but I don't know. May want to search for that term. Or maybe you just don't have the curl pattern you thought you did before the BC, and you are a 4b or C Napp? Hair can look different when it still has the relaxed ends weighing it down.

 

[Zay-neey]

Okay Thanks . it was just a moisture problem im still 4a-3c mix. When i moisturized my hair with diluted conditioner and water the curls started poppin out.

 

[chebaby]

Maybe You Guys need a Pic!!
Im not sure if its gonna work
but it shows that in the pic when i stretch a piece of hair i get a apparent curl
but around it you see puff
if i was to stretch the puff with my hand too i would see curls

that seems to me like that is your pattern. maybe when it gets longer you will be able to see it better. a girl i work with has hair that looks just like your pic and she keeps it short and in a puff but i wonder if she grow it out will the curls look more uniform and defined.

 

[KnottyGurl]

Thanks for starting this thread b/c that pic is my hair twin right now. I wondered the same thing, but didn't know how to ask. Now I know to: 1) Deep condition regularly, 2)Moisturize, Moisturize, MOISTURIZE....then moisturize some more, and 2) Give my hair time to grow into its pattern.

This was very helpful. I have hope again.

Maybe You Guys need a Pic!!
Im not sure if its gonna work
but it shows that in the pic when i stretch a piece of hair i get a apparent curl
but around it you see puff
if i was to stretch the puff with my hand too i would see curls