Permed Hair
How long did you transition?
I was transitioning for about 6 months. I wasn’t too sure if I was going to go natural. Never in a million years would I have thought about going natural. I loved my Halle Berry and Kelis haircuts. But my hair kept shedding.
So I decided to give my hair a break from the perm; I put braids in my hair. November 2009, I woke up one morning and decided to take out my braids. I looked at my hair and was like “I think it’s time”. I went into the mirror and chopped my hair. I had about an inch of hair left.
Transitioning Styles
What styles did you transition with?
My transitional styles were braids and weaves.
What are your favorite products so far?
Unfortunately, I am still struggling with finding the right products for my hair. I’ve spent so much money on products, but nothing seems to work. My hair is so thick and dry, the ladies in the office where I use to work, felt so bad for me, they gave me all these products to try; they didn’t work. I’m still searching.
What do you love most about your hair?
I love the thickness and curl my hair has!!! It’s so sad, but since I was 11, I had a perm. I forgot what my “real” hair looks like.
Was the manner in which you BC’d?
Not an expert in cutting hair, but I used a pair of scissors from a beauty supply store.
Natural Styles
List any opposition/problems you faced along the way.
WOW!!! I was so not prepared for the reaction I got. So after I did the BC that day, I felt so LIBERATED and true to who I really am, a beautiful Black women, I decided to take a walk outside with my new hairdo (Plus I was hungry, so I had to make a run to the store).
Soon as I stepped out the door, my heart started beating fast. Instead of taking my normal route to the store, I took a different way; I was too scared. Before I got to the first block, this guy said to me “you’re a beautiful sister”. Boy did that boost my confidence. I was so confident, on my way back; I decided to take my normal route home.
On my way back home, with a few houses before mine, these little boys on my block starting running behind me and making fun of me. I was so not prepared for that; in addition to the other problems I would soon face. I noticed the same guys that tried talking to me at school, train, outside when I’m walking etc, stopped talking to me. There have been other not so good experiences that I have had since I first cut my hair.
But another one that stood out for me was in class. We had to partner up and do various massage techniques to the head. By the time my partner was done with me, her hands and the massage table was so greasy, she had to step out to wash her hands because of the amount of grease I had in my hair (My hair was so dry, I was adding loads of grease to it).
Other problems: MAJOR dryness, shrinkage, inability to comb my hair.
Growth and progress
Advice for newly natural ladies.
We all know about having good overall heath; nutrition, water, exercise, sunshine, proper air, temperance, and hair maintenance. However, one we may sometimes I overall look is regular check-ups with your doctor. A few months having gone natural, I noticed, two areas in the back of my head were so dry, itchy and the hair kept coming out.
Long story short, I saw my dermatologist; they sampled a piece of my scalp. When the results came back, the doctor said I had eczema. My doctor gave me a topical treatment for my hair. My hair has grown back since then, but it’s still dry.
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Nadine,
I normally comment at the beginning of the post, but I wanted to say a lot and didn’t want to take away from your feature.
Thank you, thank you, thank you. Your story had me very emotional. This thing called hair is powerful.
I can tell by these pictures that you are a bad chick with gorgeous healthy hair and glowing beautiful skin. I am so sorry for all of the negativity you have experienced but I am so happy that you have come through it with such a positive attitude.
I did want to make some suggestions based on your narrative:
Greasy hair does not always equal moisturized hair. A lot of products, especially those containing mineral oil and petroleum, will give the hair some shine and coat the hair (giving the appearance of moisturizing) but in reality, it’s not moisturizing the hair. When I touch my hair, I can feel some product, but it’s not completely drenched. (Click here and here to see my tips for moisture).
I’m glad your doctor recognized your eczema for what it was! You are absolutely right that so many of us, myself included, will forgo seeing the doctor when we really need to be seen on a regular basis. For your eczema, you may want to (if you haven’t done this already) try some extra virgin coconut oil. It works wonders for the condition. I don’t find it to be the most moisturizing thing for my hair, but I love it on my scalp and also to seal or oil rinse.
Again, thank you for your story because I know there is a woman right now reading this who will continue her natural hair journey because of you!
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Yo, that picture with the fur is just SO FIERCE. You are beautiful, Nadine! Thank you for sharing your story with us.
Omg…I can 100% totally relate on the boys who tried talkin to you ignorin you..that happened to me–the same same guys who tried to hit on me or smiled at me and said “hey”, look me in the eye and IGNORE me–so am like, am still the same person…but its ok, its not a priviledge that they used to do that, they probably just wanted to sleep with me anyways lol..I LOVE YOUR HAIR N YOUR SOOO BEAUTIFUL..
wow, awesome story!! im proud of you for pressin on with the journey even after so much ignorance u went thru. some folks arent strong enuff to take it and go right back to a perm. u’ve solidified the fact that you are comfortable with YOU and could careless what others think
i love it.
as for the products to hydrate n moisturize try: darcy’s botanicals dc mask and madagascar vanilla styler, qhemet bio -ANYTHING is awesome (preferably the amla heavy cream for thick hair), love koils by nature butters and shealoe condish! pre-poo w/oils (evoo n coconut) and sleep in a satin bonnet or satin pillowcase THAT makes a difference too, trust me!!
miss nadine, you are one grogeous sister! even more so because you realize your overall health is way more important than some of these mindless folks out here! i quit a job when my boss reacted poorly to the bc i did on my texlaxed hair. his loss, not mine, for sure. i have yet to find a product in stores that works for my natural hair once it dries, so i made what i needed – aloe gel, evoo, and glycerin w/some essential oils for fragrance. once i found myself mixing it up every couple of weeks i knew i had it right. don’t be afraid to experiment with your own mix. who knows what you hair wants and needs better than you, right? good luck, sis, and i loved reading your story!
Okay, I can’t event pay attention to your hair because I’m too busy looking at your gorgeous face!
But I digress, if you’re up for spending another 20 bucks, I just discovered Aveda Brilliant Universal Styling Creme and its the first product I’ve found that doesnt require me to moisuturize my hair every single day.
No worries with all the great information you can find here and in other places on the web and by paying attention to your hair you will get your hair woes straight. I also went natural mainly because of what perms were doing to my scalp and hair. I said “no more” and had lots of encouragement from my natural family members but going to work with unsolicited comments everyday was HARD! Brava to you for going for it! And the Jackie O glasses pic is HOT, dahling!
Thanks Keclipse for the compliment; that is my favorite fur sweater:-)
Hey Jean!! So I’m not the only one with men ignoring me because of my hair:-). Well I say to myself, if a guy can be attracted to me with no hair, short hair, or whatever other style I feel like wearing that day, he has then begun to appreciate me for who I am and not so much in my physical appearance. If there’s one thing I’m learning; is that looks will change, but your character will remain. However, that does not mean we can’t look gorgeous; we should still carry ourselves with respect and look presentable, no matter the length or texture of our hair.
Thank you for the compliments Jean!!! Take care:-)
Jai, Monniej, and Kisha:
Thank you for the admiration.
With all these websites I’m finding, the search for the right products, at times can be extremely overwhelming. But you ladies are giving me hope. I am definitely going to look up the products you ladies mentioned. Thank you so much for taking the time out to help me:-). I am truly grateful.
Hey Simone!!! Yes, family support is truly a blessing. My mom wasn’t exactly too supportive and my dad would just say “just shave it off”…lol. Now my mom likes it and my dad says I remind him of Angela Davis. But every now and again, he jokes with me and tells me to shave it:-).
And congratulations to you as well for sticking it out at your job.
And thanks for the compliment; I think those glasses made the outfit:-)
Kcurly,
Thank you for allowing me to be featured. It is such an honor and privilege to share my story and learn so much from my sisters:-). I am loving it!!! What you said is very true; greasy hair does not mean it’s moisturized. I definitely have to go back to the “drawing board” and do more research. The suggestions you made were very helpful. I’ll be sure to check them out.
Once again, thank you for your time and help. Many blessings!
Nadine,
Girl u look Fierce! I was going to comment on the dryness of your hair. I had the exact same thing happen when I first went natural, I tried EVERYTHING. But the one thing that helped me alot was QHEMET BIOLOGICS ALMA AND HEAVY CREAM! Please if you can give it a try.
Enjoy Being Natural,
Tamara
Take care also!!! Have an awesome week!! N have fun growin your hair as I am mine
)))
Love the hair, very inspiring!