Five Things I Wish I Knew Before Going Natural
If I could go back in time, I would pay attention to these five things I wish I knew before going natural.
My natural hair journey has been littered with lots of ups and downs (actually more downs). Looking back, I know that this was part of my learning process, and my biggest hair lessons have come from my hair journey.
I share these lessons so that if you are considering starting your hair journey, you can avoid the mistakes I made.
These five lessons will make your hair journey that much easier and stress-free:-
*Pssst, are you on the hunt for a reliable, profesional and knowledgeable natural hair salon. Check out NaHaZo’s Natural Hair Salon Review – Hairtural.
1. Natural Hair is a mind (Re)Set.
Natural hair is all about mindset!
This is everything.
Mind (Re)set to be specific. You need to rethink how you show up. Not only for yourself, but those around you.
When I started my hair journey, some of my friends were supportive. Others were sceptical and were unsure how this would translate to the corporate environment. A few were convinced that I had fallen on hard times and was having personal issues.
Looking back, it is both hilarious and sad that these were the reactions I was faced with.
But we have all been there.
Taming our kinks and coils with the creamy crack or wearing straight wigs to fit in with the narrative. It takes a completely different mind shift to show up for an interview with Bantu knots or with your hair in an afro, and not feel some kind of way about how you will be perceived.
I came to the realisation that I had to be the first point of change! And as with every change, it was okay that I was not be 100% ready.
I did not let this deter me, BUT I rather allowed my confidence to grow along the way.
Day by day, the way I saw my kinks and coils shifted.
I stopped trying to fit into society’s lens of good hair and this has made my hair journey so much fun.
I acknowledge, on a deep level, that my afro-textured hair deserves to occupy space without apology.
So when you grab the scissors, also cut off the old way of thinking. Embrace the natural, more authentic way.
NaHaZo shares insight on the hair journey with our Natural Hair Monthly Feature – Nqobile.
2. Health over Length. Any day!
One of the mistakes I made in my hair journey was chasing length – and because of this I learnt some hard lessons.
In my desire to realise my length goals, I neglected key good hair practices. I did not snip my split ends, leading to thin looking and raggedy ends.
I also tried every new product on the market, instead of taking the time to learn what worked on and for my hair. Plus, I entered protective styling challenge after challenge, not taking time to care for my hair.
Keen to see what hair challenges are about? Read up on my 3-month Hair using Moringa Powder.
Did I attain my length goals?
Nope!!
I was forced to restart my hair journey over and over again. This happened, until I learnt that the health of my hair was more important than length.
Wanna know Growth Tips for Length.
Only when I learnt this lesson, was my hair able to flourish.
I stopped being fixated on length, and rather concentrated on getting it thicker and well-moisturised.
The ironic thing is that with this knowledge came the length that I had been chasing.
3. Protective Styling can be a Crutch
Don’t let protective styling (PS) become a crutch!
Yes, there is such a thing.
I fell into the common trap of using it as a crutch because:-
- I was not sure how to style my hair.
- A (small) part of me was scared that my hair would not measure up to the countless videos and pictures I had saved off Pinterest (more on that later).
- When styling my hair, I was trying to recreate the rushed convenience of relaxed hair. When it didn’t work, I got discouraged and resorted to protective styling.
- My mind set was still stuck in the narrative that natural hair was a lot of work and so protective styling allowed me to be natural without the ‘fuss’.
But what this did was rob me of the opportunity to learn more about my hair.
It took a long time to get to know my hair better. To know that it liked to be stretched with plaits, with wet and never damp hair. That WashnGo’s were a definite no – no. And that having my hair in at least 10 tiny plaits the night before bed was a good way to get it stretched for the next day.
I have since learnt that PS has its time and place, but I need to ‘air’ out my hair often in order to get to know it better.
Check out our Hair Care for Braids: Ultimate Guide for the 411 on how to use braids as a protective style.
4. Natural Hair is a Lesson in Authenticity
This remains one of my biggest eye-openers.
Which brings me to one of the struggles I had early on in my hair journey. I realised that I was trying to recreate the looks of hair influencers on social media.
This caused a lot of discouragement when my final look did not measure up. The truth was that I was trying to make my hair do what it was not meant to be.
My natural hair journey was not authentic. I was teasing and styling my hair to make it look ‘respectable natural’, instead of embracing its unique features.
Can you relate? Catch up with our hair feature Vee, who had a similar realisation with Letting Go of Natural Hair Expectations – Venecia.
It was only when I accepted my hair texture that my hair began to flourish. I accepted that my hair would look one way when I walked out the door, and another after being exposed to humidity. And I learnt to be comfortable with this. To let go of my obsession with teasing baby hairs and rather embrace shrinkage.
Only when I did this, did I truly began to truly enjoy my natural hair journey.
In a nutshell, going natural is absolutely one of the best decisions you will ever make.
Not just for your overall health, but for your mental and spiritual evolution. It is that deep! It is also not that deep!
What has your own journey to natural been? What lessons are you still learning? Share your thoughts and insights in the comments below.
