Why did you go natural?

[2grlsandme]

Hey ladies.
Im pretty new here and am at a standstill. I hope someone can please help me. I have just began my journey to healthy hair care and I cant decide whether or not I want to go natural? I am about 16weeks post relaxer and Im (seriously) dying for a relaxer... This is the longest I have ever stretched. Although I realize that all of our hair (whether natural or relaxed) requires constant care, I wonder?????

1. Is natural hair stronger when properly cared for??

2. Has anyone had increased growth after transitioning??

3. Last but not least.. why did you go natural?

Hope these questions arent too ridiculous. I know most of you ladies are veterans but help a newbie out. PLEEZE

Current length: (me)shoulder length (Older daughter) APL (Younger daughter)BSL
Regime: tweaking it
Goals: (me) healthy apl by oct 08' (older daughter) BSL by Oct 08' (younger daughter) WL by Oct 08'

 

[Poohbear]

The PRIMARY reason I went natural was because I hated getting relaxer touch-ups and feeling that potential burning feeling and getting occassional scabs on my scalp and I hated the smell of relaxers. It wasn't that my hair suffered from relaxers, I just just didn't getting touch-ups.

 

[fivetimestwo]

I went natural because when I was relaxed I always had a certain spot in my head that would break off and be much shorter than the rest of my hair. I also really wanted to know if my hair would grow longer if I went natural (so far I haven't come to a conclusion on this).

There was also this show called Extreme Makeover and one of hosts name was Nicole. Her hair was gorgeous. I wanted her hair. Then I figured if I went natural I could have her hair. Well I still don't have her hair, but I love mine anyway.

 

[GoingNatural]

Hey ladies.
Im pretty new here and am at a standstill. I hope someone can please help me. I have just began my journey to healthy hair care and I cant decide whether or not I want to go natural? I am about 16weeks post relaxer and Im (seriously) dying for a relaxer... This is the longest I have ever stretched. Although I realize that all of our hair (whether natural or relaxed) requires constant care, I wonder?????

1. Is natural hair stronger when properly cared for??
i cant really say. i havent put my natural hair to the same tests that i put my relaxed hair to, color for example. my relaxed hair was eqully as strong i think, but i started to abuse it.

2. Has anyone had increased growth after transitioning??
my hair grows much faster, and i maintain the length. but i think this is also do to not using heat and keeping my hair off of my shoulders.

3. Last but not least.. why did you go natural?
i went natural because i fell in love with someones hair IRL and then i saw some gorgeous heads of hair on this forum. My friend was 3 months into her transition and i figured i would transition as well. We are both completely natural now. my hair is longer than hers though because she continues to straighten her hair often.

Hope these questions arent too ridiculous. I know most of you ladies are veterans but help a newbie out. PLEEZE

i dont think natural hair is better than relaxed and vice versa. it's really how you decide to take care of it and your product choices. i've seen relaxed and natural hair thrive. but really it's trial, error, and TLC.

 

[Sweet_Ambrosia]

1. Is natural hair stronger when properly cared for??

Seems so.
Right after I completed my transition in July, I tried a whole bunch of different styles within the first week of being natural, one day it wash a wash n go, the next a puff, the next a ponytail, the next a bun, yeah I was excited (hehe). I don't think my relaxed hair would have held up the way my natural hair did, I manipulated the heck out my natural hair that week, and it smiled right back at me.

2. Has anyone had increased growth after transitioning??

My hair has been growing a bit faster since I completed my transition. My regimen hasn't changed all that much it's pretty much the same, I think my hair is going through an extended growth spurt or something dunno, I ain't complaining though.

3. Last but not least.. why did you go natural?

I wanted to embrace the real me once again basically.

 

[2grlsandme]

I went natural because when I was relaxed I always had a certain spot in my head that would break off and be much shorter than the rest of my hair. '

CurlyCurvy: I have this problem as well. about 2 yrs ago i got a BAD relaxer and one spot in the back of my head has been slow growing ever since. Its tempting to relax but I am kind of loving my wavy texture as it SLOWLY grows in. I have had a relaxer for so long I can hardly remember what my natural hair was like.

Thanks ladies for responding so fast.

 

[SouthernTease]

I'm 8 months into my transition...
so not 100% natural... more like 25% natural.
Anyway... why?
1. I like having the option of wearing my hair
in it's natural state and then straightening
whenever I feel like that.
2. My hair is thicker, stronger & healthier.
3. I don't think relaxers are necessary if you're
skilled with a flat iron & know how to rollerset...
4. It's just a better choice for overall health...
the less chemicals I ingest through my scalp... the better.
5. Growth? I think my hair grew the same ½" per month
before I started transitioning but I do notice it more because
of the line of difference... my natural hair is very wavy/curly
my relaxed ends are over processed and straight.

 

[PinkSkates]

I went natural because:
1. My hair upkeep was too time consuming.
2. I got tired of being dependent on my hair stylist.
3. I hated spending hours at the hair salon listening to mindless gossip.
4. My hair was never really healthy; I got tired of fighting an uphill battle with my relaxed hair!

 

[youwillrise]

simply because i wanted to learn about and work with my natural hair. i got sick of putting chemicals in it.

 

[glamazon386]

1. Is natural hair stronger when properly cared for?? Yes, because the bonds in the hair have not been broken down.

2. Has anyone had increased growth after transitioning?? Most people are going to come in here and say no. That the hair grows the same rate relaxed or natural but you're retaining more so it appears to be growing faster. My hair is definitely growing faster now than it did when I was relaxed. I believe the chemicals were stunting growth for me.

3. Last but not least.. why did you go natural? Because I was tired of my thin relaxed hair. I hadn't worn it straight in over a year and had gotten down from relaxing 3-4 times a year to 2 so I figured hey why not?

 

[imstush]

1. Is natural hair stronger when properly cared for?? Everyone is different, but for me my natural hair is much stronger than when I was relaxed.

2. Has anyone had increased growth after transitioning?? I have. My relaxed hair stayed at shoulder length. My natural hair is midback.

3. Last but not least.. why did you go natural? My last relaxer in May 05 - Just For Me - gave me a nice bald spot on the left side of my head. I also like the fact that I can do WNG's or a straight look.


Good luck in whatever you choose to do.

 

[lnhair]

I always had apl hair slightly longer as a natural and once i got my hair relaxed right before i started high school i had to kiss that good bye. i just don't think that i had good understanding of how to take care of my hair being relaxed. I did some things right, like keeping my hair up and trying to moisturize daily. I actually went to a hair stylist and she would tell my hair grows so fast and it seem as if she was complaining about my how much new growth i had. I only waited 6 to 8 weeks between relaxers. So i transitioned during my junior year of high school. My hair seems a lot stronger. I always wore braided style while natural and relaxed and i can say my scalp is not as tender as when relaxed. My hair is not as thin. I never really achieved straight hair no matter if the relaxed stayed on close to a half an hour. I don't have to worry about burns and anything else (like trims when i don't want one) now that i am natural. I guess i got off topic. But there was just a lot of reasons.

 

[ShaniKeys]

1. Is natural hair stronger when properly cared for?? I haven't personally noticed much difference so far
2. Has anyone had increased growth after transitioning?? I'm retaining more length, one of the problems I had when I relaxed is not being able to retain length b/c I wasn't properly taking care of my ends, they were constantly dehydrated and breaking.

3. Last but not least.. why did you go natural? It was my third attempt at going natural, I always wanted to go natural but didn't know/didn't have enough information on how to care for it. Also, the chemicals in relaxers are just too harsh in my opinion.

 

[LynnieB]

1. Is natural hair stronger when properly cared for?? absolutely yes!

2. Has anyone had increased growth after transitioning?? my growth is the same.

3. Last but not least.. why did you go natural?

i have to cosign w/poohbear. her's was my primary reason too. i just got sick and tired of riding the touch-up carousel. i keep asking myself what in the hezell am i doing and why am i doint it? (of course that led to a bit of self reflection, etc.-ect.)

my second reason was the styling options! Certain natural styles just aren't gonna fly with processed hair. i love the styling options of natural hair and when i feel like i want straight, i can flatiron it and wear it straight without dealing with the commitments of relaxed hair.

the twa wasn't for me (big ole 5 head) so i grew it out for 15 months then got rid of it.

hth

 

[Studio_gal]

I have fine soft hair - when it was it relaxed it just looked like string. I always had to have it pinned up because it was so see-through.
I also used to rely on one particular hairdresser/ friend to do my hair and when she couldn't I wouldn't trust anyone else.
My natural hair is flexible and easy to deal with. I've been natural for over 7 years and don't see any reason to relax ever again.

 

[bluediamond0829]

im luving the stories of why people with natural...keep them coming!!

 

[Crown]

The PRIMARY reason I went natural was because I hated getting relaxer touch-ups and feeling that potential burning feeling and getting occassional scabs on my scalp and I hated the smell of relaxers. It wasn't that my hair suffered from relaxers, I just just didn't getting touch-ups.

I agree with Poohbear.
Now, my scalp is always sensitive, but normal (with relaxers, I had constantly itching scalp even if my hair was beautiful and armpit lenght without extra care). I love my natural hair, no need to deal with two textures, I like the styling options.
If you are not strong about your decision, take the time to mature it and to have enough information on how to take care of natural hair. So you will not fail like me. My third attempt was final!

 

[zzirvingj]

Hey ladies.
Im pretty new here and am at a standstill. I hope someone can please help me. I have just began my journey to healthy hair care and I cant decide whether or not I want to go natural? I am about 16weeks post relaxer and Im (seriously) dying for a relaxer... This is the longest I have ever stretched. Although I realize that all of our hair (whether natural or relaxed) requires constant care, I wonder?????

1. Is natural hair stronger when properly cared for?? I believe so. If you neglect your hair-whether it's relaxed or natural-you are more likely to have weaker and/or damaged hair.

2. Has anyone had increased growth after transitioning?? This is a good question. Unfortunately, I cannot answer it because I'm not sure what my growth rate was "before" going natural. But I will say that my hair is the longest now that it's been since childhood (the "pre-relaxer" years). Not to say that it's longer "just" because it's natural, but I feel it's longer because I TAKE CARE of my natural hair.

3. Last but not least.. why did you go natural? I went natural for several reasons. First of all, I wanted to know what it would be like...I had gotten braids one time and had kept them in my hair off and on for several months. After washing my hair and feeling all of the new growth, I became very curious about what my natural hair was like. The curiousity never went away. I began to think to myself that it was kind of weird that I didn't even know what my "own natural hair" looked and felt like....or how to take care of it.

At the time I was dating a guy that was really into natural hair and he was somewhat of an influence on me, too. I had already reached a point in my life where I was verrrry frustrated with stylists and feeling too "dependent" upon them to do my hair. I was ready for something new/different. I was also hoping that making the change to being natural would help me in achieving more length. So, it was a combination of wanting to know what my natural hair was like, wanting to be less dependent upon stylists, and
wanting to try something different.

I will also add that relaxers never seemed to "take" very well to my hair. The same week I got a relaxer, when I washed my hair, it felt like the relaxer would "wash out", lol. My hair wouldn't be very straight at all-it was extremely bushy and big and "afro-ish". So in trying to maintain the straight look ALL of the time with the relaxer, it started to feel pointless because I would still have to flat iron (basically "press out") my hair every week to maintain that straight look. In going natural, I was hoping to be able to wet my hair more often because I like to work out. I didn't want to worry about perspiration or rain "ruining" my hair all of the time.



Hope these questions arent too ridiculous. I know most of you ladies are veterans but help a newbie out. PLEEZE

Current length: (me)shoulder length (Older daughter) APL (Younger daughter)BSL
Regime: tweaking it
Goals: (me) healthy apl by oct 08' (older daughter) BSL by Oct 08' (younger daughter) WL by Oct 08'

Sorry my response was so long, and hope this helps

 

[bLackButtaFly]

Hey ladies.


1. Is natural hair stronger when properly cared for?? I don't know about stronger, but it can definitely take a little bit more beating b/c there is one less chemical to worry about. I could never color my hair when it was relxed b/c it would break off, and now I'm a color fiend.

2. Has anyone had increased growth after transitioning?? I think my hair grows "faster" now or seems to, b/c I'm not using heat, so there's less breakage and maintaining my length.

3. Last but not least.. why did you go natural? I went natural b.c I didn't have the money to get a good relaxer. So after about 6 months of no relaxer I stopped remembering why I had one in the first place since my hair got straighter, and was healthier at the new growth.

HTH! And lots of hair blessings!

 

[rosie]

Hmmm...

1. Is natural hair stronger when properly cared for??
For me, it seems to be stronger. I struggled for years with relaxers. I was a member here for a long time with relaxed hair. It just did not seem to work out. But with natural hair, I have more hair than I ever had in my life.

2. Has anyone had increased growth after transitioning??
Not increased growth rate, but increased retention of the hair that I do grow.

3. Last but not least.. why did you go natural?
I have tried natural three times in my life, the thrid time was the charm for me. I went natural the first time because I needed to learn how to do natural hair for my daughter's sake. When I look back on pictures of her head when she was young (under the age of 5), I could cry at how awful her hair looked. When I finally figured out natural hair on my head, her hair started to blossom. It's not the longest hair out there, but her hair looks good, and is always styled.

 

[chickory_bee]

1. Is natural hair stronger when properly cared for??

It's more versatile, not so really stronger or weaker.

2. Has anyone had increased growth after transitioning??

My hair is always healthier when natural, only because it demands care to look decent, so this factor reflects in the growth too...

3. Last but not least.. why did you go natural?

I'm going to law school and so I decided to eliminate all expenses that were not necessary...Relaxers just happened to fall into the elimination pile.

 

[MrsQueeny]

I had never planned on going natural. I got here in NM back in October and was relaxed. I hadn't found a beautician so I was just stretching. The pic in my avatar is the last pic of my hair when it was relaxed. It was taken in Nov or Dec of 2001. Then I noticed my hair wasn't thriving in this dry climate here. I had lived in GA for 5 years and never had a problem. I didn't care about length, I just wanted my hair to be healthy. So I just decided to go natural. I had planned on relaxing eventually once my hair adapted but now I love it.

1. I don't know if it is stronger but I know I love being able to have the best of both worlds. My hair even when it was relaxed was strong but now it does seem to rebound quicker.

2. No my hair always grew quickly so there wasn't any faster growth.

Although sometimes I get frustrated, I love being natural!!! Q

 

[AvaSpeaks]

I went natural because in a fit of rage , over a guy who broke my heart, I cut of my hair.

Then during a deep depression, I cut it all off

Now why I stayed natural is just because of my hair texture. My natural hair is straighter than my relaxed hair ever was so what was the point of going back !

 

[piscesdream]

I went natural on Oct. 01, 2006 because I was tired of the relaxer drama...I also had an allergic scalp reaction to MTG...yes I experienced tremendous hair growth with MTG...the side affects were not worth it. I am not sure what my hair type is...My pictures are posted in the hair gallery. I let my daughter cut it down to the scalp after not putting a relaxer in it for 9 months. My hair has always been just below the shoulder length. I am 45 and I got my first relaxer when I was 19. This is the second time I have been natural in Feb. 1994 I had to cut off my hair from the informercial RIO....susposedly all natural ingredients. Yeah right ...they pulled it off the market and I lost a lot ...LOT of hair and what was left LOCKED on my head when I shampooed it...for those of you to young to remember RIO asked some older family members....a LOT of our sisters lost hair and some experienced PERMANENT scalp damage. We had to send pictures for our damage proof in the CLASS ACTION lawsuit. I only received minimal scalp damage so my monetary reward was 350.00 ....the sisters that received extreme scalp damage some were paid into the thousands. My lesson is just because some famous sister is promoting something...wait awhile before you try it...all of us do NOT have our sisters' best interests in mind...some are just getting PAID. My hair thrived natural with my mother pressing it with the old fashioned press comb on a gas stove...but she got tired of that and I can't safely use a press comb for the LIFE of me...so I went back to relaxing...But GOD is good ...he allowed the INVENTION of the CERAMIC flatiron for the less skilled...I invested in the SEDU...WHEW 118.00 ladies...but my hair looked RELAXED when I finished...not so simple...my daughter put the MARCEL curls in for me because I just couldn't or she said wouldn't allow myself to use too much heat and my ends looked ROUGH even using AVEDA's hang straight she used a little MIZANI curling wax in a jar..I bought that stuff in 2005..its great but use only a little. My daughter graduated from cosmetology school and does not fix hair because she wanted to make the clients hair healthy and they wanted weave glue and other damaging things done to their hair. I know this is long but I had to give you my hair background..We meaning my daughter...she cut all of her hair off in March...because she said she was jealous of all the COMPLIMENTS!!!!my TWA was getting.. she has a 10 year old that has been relaxed since age 5...against my better judgement ..of course...that has been growing her hair out with trims and braids...a 6 year old that had a relaxer...again without my permission.. that she cut all of her hair off in 2005 and her hair is almost shoulder length pressed. The whole family will be natural when the 10 year olds relaxer is completely out. Our plans are to CONTINUE embracing our natural textures. We are so FREE!!!! I have NOT for one moment regretted the BIG CHOP...in fact I wanted to do it again ...but my daughter wouldn't do it...but she is keeping her TWA because she says she LOVES the attention. The mixture I think I have received on my natural hair leans toward the "I wished I was brave enough to do it"...I tell people to FORGET what others think...its your hair ...LIFE is short...if that is what you truly want...JUST DO IT!!!!!!!! And if you think men won't love you like that...you are wrong...I think they want whats real...and a CONFIDENT you to embrace!!!!! Even WHITE men are approaching me!!!!!!!! NOT interested but a compliment is ALWAYS welcomed...for my 1 year natural anniversary I flatironed to see the length....EVEN I was shocked...and people thought I had relaxed...I told them no!!!! you should have SEEN the disappointment in their faces...OH WELL...I love all the options I have with my natural hair....and yes it is definitely HEALTHY....CHEMICAL free...

 

[Cichelle]

1. Is natural hair stronger when properly cared for?? Probably. Mine is. It makes sense that hair that is not processed would be stronger. But there are many factors and variations in hair. I can only speak for myself.

2. Has anyone had increased growth after transitioning?? I don't think my rate of growth has changed, but my hair is longer now than it ever was when I was using relaxers.

3. Last but not least.. why did you go natural? I was sick of the whole touch up thing. I just did not want to be a slave to that chemical anymore. Some people don't feel that way about it. It isn't a problem for them. But I just didn't want to do it anymore. Also, I kept thinking about how long I wanted to keep relaxing my hair. I certainly didn't want to be an old lady still dealing with touch ups. It's just not for me.

 

[MissJ]

1. Is natural hair stronger when properly cared for??
Absolutely.

2. Has anyone had increased growth after transitioning??
It's going to take a while for me to reach my normal length. I've always had long hair.

3. Last but not least.. why did you go natural?
It was just something to do. I wanted a challenge.

 

[Gryphyn]

1. Is natural hair stronger when properly cared for??

My natural hair is stronger than my relaxed hair was, but it thrives because I treat it as though it were still relaxed. If I try to do whatever I want to it because it's natural, it won't retain length.

2. Has anyone had increased growth after transitioning??

My hair is the longest it has ever been. I take much better care of my hair now than I did when my hair was relaxed, and it's easier to retain length.

3. Last but not least.. why did you go natural?

I had several reasons for going natural. My hair was breaking very badly. Also, I thought it was so unfair that my hair had been the same length for years and years, and had never grown past my shoulders. I also went natural because my mom had recently started having allergic reactions to relaxers and I was afraid that would happen to me when I got older.

 

[pattycake0701]

1. Is natural hair stronger when properly cared for??
My hair is stronger natural than it was when relaxed, but my hair wasn't properly cared for when it was relaxed.

2. Has anyone had increased growth after transitioning??
No, same growth rate

3. Last but not least.. why did you go natural?
I went natural because, I wanted my hair straight but even super-dooper relaxers done in a salon and left on close to a half hour still would not get my hair straight, it still looked like it was blown dry. So I started relaxing it myself, and wore it under a weave. Then I thought "what is the point of me getting my hair relaxed every 4 weeks when I'm gonna just throw a weave on top of it'. That is how I went natural. But then I tried to relax my hair a month before my wedding in 2003 and it still didn't get straight so I gave up for good.

 

[Evolving78]

1. My hair is stronger
2. same growth rate
3. I got tired of being a slave to the relaxer. The money, the time, the styling options. I felt I had to do too much to keep it on my head or spend too much with products and stylists. I don't have those type pf problems anymore. I'm a mommy now and I could be doing better things with my money and time then spending it on my hair. There are issues with being natural, but I'm cool with those. Being relaxed, I felt like walking on eggshells
with my hair. I didn't want to get it wet, I hated when I sweated it out, I hated sitting up under the dryer for hours, etc...

 

[glam-]

1. My hair definitely seems stronger to me now that I'm not relaxing and all of the relaxed hair has been cut off.
2. No change in growth rate.
3. I was only getting a relaxer twice a year, so it wasn't that hard to stop. What pushed me over the edge was when I highlighted my hair. I went blonde and the bleaching just killed my relaxed tresses- the were so soft and mushy, it was almost like my hair was melting after all of those chemical bonds had been broken down by relaxer and permanent color lift. I went for about a year without a relaxer without thinking much about it. Then I decided to just cut off the remaining relaxed ends- I couldn't stop touching my hair after that, it just felt so strong and healthy and curly. That was in Oct 06. I colored my hair in December and, even though my hair is still resistant to color, it turned out so much better. I haven't looked back.