Going Natural: The Transition Part 1

Let me be honest, having natural hair CAN and WILL be a struggle. Not everyday is going to be a successful hair day. Especially if you are deciding to transition from relaxed to natural hair. Your Attractive Heading

If you are thinking about transitioning then you need to ask yourself, do you have the time? Because, trust it will take time to truly learn your hair. Not understanding one thing will mess with your routine.

What Is Transitioning?

Transitioning from relaxed to natural is going to be a process. Mainly, because you are allowing your former chemical treatment to grow out. While going through this process, you should be trimming your ends.

Transitioning will be a long process. That’s why some people opt to just cut off all of their hair at one time. This is known as “The Big Chop”. (Come back next week to read our post on “The Big Chop”). But we are not going to get into that yet.

Read the next section to learn tips on how to make your transition work for you!

Tips for Relaxed To Natural

Getting a routine together that works for you will be trial and error. So, when you find things that work add it to your routine. Below is a list of tips that can help.

1. Avoid Excessive Heat Styling… I know your first instinct when transitions is to blow dry and flat iron your hair. This is a great choice, but you want to make sure that you are not constantly using heat sources. Using too much heat will cause your hair to start breaking off.
2. Perm rods or Flexi- rods style… Styling your hair with perm rods or flexi- rods, will help you to achieve a cohesive curl look. You can get these at your local hair stores or http://Walmart.com. Personally, if you have mid- length to long hair, I would use flexi- rods. If you have short to mid- length hair, I would use perm rods.
4. Using the Right Products… You need to keep your hair moisturized. Using the right products will help you keep up the health of your hair. You want to experiment with products. You need to find the ones that work with your hair. When transitioning, sure the products work for your natural hair texture. They should also work for the relaxed hair.
6. Shedding…Remember that shedding is a natural part of hair growth. We each lose anywhere between 50 – 100 strands of hair a day. Yes, I said a day. But, if you feel like you are moving an excessive amount of hair, please consult with a Dermatologist. You can also consult with a Cosmetologist that specializes in hair loss.
7. Protective Styles… You need to incorporate protective styles into your routine. Try things like Locs (this is more of a permanent route), braids, or twist. Remember in order for a style to be protective it has to be tension free.

In conclusion, there will be a ton of trail and error. There will also be days that you will want to just give up. But, if you are serious those hard days won’t last forever. Once you get to a point where you understand what you want from your hair, then it will become easier.

Make sure you guys come back for another post. As always share with everyone you know. Leave comments if you have a question.