For the past year I have been transitioning from relaxed to natural hair. I've been getting relaxers since 3rd grade, and as much as I hated getting chemical burns I loved having straight hair. I always thought I was prettier with long, straight hair.
My first contact with natural hair was in 2006 or so when I went to see my sister for the first time in 2 years. She had completely stopped relaxing and she had a nice head of natural hair. I thought she was crazy, but I really liked it. She said it was much easier to manage because she didn't have to worry about getting it wet, plus it was cheaper to not relax (it's about $65). Afterwards I asked my mom if I could go natural and she flat out said no.
My mom is friends with a lady who owns a hair salon, so I was always around black women getting relaxers and weaves. I was stuck in the belief that having straight hair made you more attractive and presentable, especially to white people.
In Freshmen and Sophomore year of college I was still addicted to the creamy crack. I went from Manhattan to Long Island every couple of weeks to get my hair done and get a touch-up every 6 weeks. It was pretty expensive, especially after paying for the LIRR. But in college I met more girls who were natural or thinking about transitioning. I started doing research about natural hair and came across the blog
Black Girl With Long Hair, which became the first blog I began to follow. It featured different natural women and their hair, as well as discussions on transitioning, haircare, and stigmas about natural hair. I was shocked to find this whole community of black women who had natural hair. I began to follow more natural hair blogs in order to learn about hair care.
My boyfriend Brian, who is white and always disapproved of me getting relaxers, was a big supporter of me transitioning. I also had support from my sister and my friends at school. Now that I'm older my mom didn't really care what I did with my hair. I decided to start transitioning last June and never looked back.
During my transition I sported a number of hairstyles, mainly braids:
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| Still on the creamy crack, sophomore year 2010 |
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| Start of my transition, Summer '10 |
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| I spent the rest of the summer with box braids |
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| While abroad in Europe I had longer box braids for three and a half months! |
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| I was fed up with braids so when I cam back to the U.S. I got a weave for the winter |
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| I got another weave (longer with highlights) from February to March |
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| Spring Break: This is my real hair. My hair was blow-dried, straightened and cut. |
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| Finally natural! |
The last picture was taken today! Sunday I washed my hair and was left with a mess of hair that still had relaxed ends at the top. I twisted my hair and slept in it overnight to achieve a 'twist-out' look. I'll cut the rest of the relaxed ends off eventually but for now my hair is fine. I was really nervous about having my natural hair out. As you saw, I was so used to having long hair! But everyone has been complimenting my hair, which makes me smile. I'm so glad I made this journey, and I really do love my hair!
