Long Hair, Does Care:
From the Outside
Most naturals dream of having a huge afro and twist out that race to the ground. I dream of having the world’s longest afro one day, but retaining this length is not easy. On average our hair grows about 1/2" per month, which is only about 6" per year.
When I was growing up, I was led to believe that black women just could not grow long hair, and based on what I saw as a child it was something I held to be true. I was under the impression that the only reason my hair was even kind of long was because I wasn’t fully black. In fact, it wasn’t until high school that I realized this wasn’t true.
Now as naturals, it is harder than ever to debunk this myth. Not only due to the fact that no matter how long our hair grows, it always shrinks back up to our foreheads and kills our dreams. But, also due to the fact that we must work even harder to take care of our hair and making sure it is getting all the proper nutrients and moisture that it needs to remain healthy.
This is care that we must make sure we are taking from both the inside of our bodies and the outside. Now, I will be discussing the things we must do from the outside to ensure hair health and promote growth.
· Let’s start with a maintenance tip that I struggled with: trim your hair about ever 10-12 weeks to remove split ends. It is important to remove split ends so that they will not cause further damage to your hair by traveling up the hair shaft and making the hair more vulnerable to breakage. While it may not cause your hair to grow "faster" it will help you retain length by helping it grow healthier and not break off as much. The 10-12 weeks is only a guideline, if you are maintaining your hair health and there are no split ends then you do not have to force cut your hair for the sake of timeframes.
· Another very important tool is to keep your hair moisturized. This is important because black hair is often very dry and dryness can cause hair to be brittle and break off. There are a number of essential oils that can assist with maintaining moisture in the hair and also a number of shampoos and conditioners made specifically for dry hair. While I do encourage supporting black owned businesses, being natural does not necessarily mean that we can only use products from the "Ethnic" section, nor does it being in the "ethnic" section make it black owned. What is most important is that you find a product that works for your hair and is safe for your hair.
· Another problem is making sure that we utilize protective styling. This is definitely one of my weaknesses, I just love my twist outs so much. But wearing your hair in a protective style will hide your ends and protect them from being further damaged. Also when it is I a protective style we tend to not play in it so often, which will assist us in maintaining length. When we fidget in our hair we tend to pull on it and weaken its natural curl. Our ends are our oldest and usually most damaged hair, so keeping them from rubbing against our clothing and other items can definitely assist in maintaining moisture. We should also protect our hair at night, by twisting our hair up and wrapping it in a satin scarf or bonnet. An alternative to this is using a satin pillowcase, for those like me who can barely find the energy o wrap their hair and sleep too wild 5to keep a scarf on.
· To follow up the protective styling tip, we must also remember to be careful when choosing our protective styles. We must do our best to avoid hairstyle that pull our hair such as tight ponytails or braids. This can cause our hair to break at the root from stress.
· Also, another hard rule to accept as naturals is that we must not comb or brush our hair too often. Some say to only comb or brush when wet and with the assistance of conditioner, other say to not brush/comb more than twice a week with the assistance of moisture and/or moisturizer. Either way, we must not brush/comb our hair excessively. This is because we can cause our hair such stress that it is pulled out from the root or we can just break.rip it in general in attempts to detangle it.
· A tip that may be challenging for new naturals or transitioning naturals is to stay away from heat. As new/transitioning naturals, we tend to still be in the stage where we are not quite comfortable with the happy nappy look or the "need a relaxer" look. This can cause us to pull our flat irons or curling irons and fry our hair to the point of no return. This is not only detrimental but counterproductive. It can cause our hair to become so damage that all the hair we did grow is just as damaged as the hair that was previously relaxed and have to be cut off. Also, our natural hair is obviously not the same look as our relaxed hair, so chasing the relaxed look would be counterproductive. There are many no heats styles that can achieve the curly look and help new/transitioning naturals ease into their new hair.
· Also, as discussed time and time again, you must find a conditioner or moisturizer that your hair likes. Just as important as a good shampoo/conditioner is a good leave in conditioner or moisturizer to keep your hair shiny, soft and healthy. This can be anything from a product to a mixture of essential oils to a mixture of both. As long as your hair likes it and is able to retain moisture from it, then it is great!
· Last but not least, we must not wash our hair too often. As stated previously, our hair tends to be dry naturally. Washing our hair too often can strip it of its necessary oils and cause it to be dry out quicker and break off. The amount of times you wash your hair is dependent upon your comfort level, most naturals only wash between once or twice a week with co washes in between. Co washes are just a wash using only conditioner, so it does not strip the oils and provides moisture and remove dirt.
I know! It is a lot of work, but it will be well worth it when you did that Bantu knot out that hangs down to your shoulders and stretches down to your bra strap! The woman pictured below currently has the world's longest afro, with the tricks listed above, I am coming for her!
My hair recently had a "growth spurt" .. Mostly due to my protective style of braids that i kept in for a while, but i still washed and conditioned my hair, as well as sprayed it with water periodically.
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