reason(s) for keeping hair relaxed/natural????????

[eripmaven45]

I was just wondering this because i was thinking about my reasons for going back to natural (im glad i did this while im still farely young,instead of relaxing the rest of my life!),and i would love to hear some of you guyz reasons for keeping your hair relaxed or natural. <font color="yellow"> </font> <font color="blue"> </font>

 

[DahomeyAhosi]

I tried going natural because it was the only thing I hadn't tried as an adult (I went through curly perms, relaxed hair, etc.) and I wanted to see if it would stop the endless cycle of breakage. However I know now that I simply didn't know how to take care of my hair in any state!

 

[inthepink]

I was relaxed for 18 years and the reason I stayed relaxed for so long was that I thought my hair was easiest to manage that way. Now, I'm transitioning and am looking forward to the various hairstyles I can wear without chemical straightening. Additionally, I'm interested in finding out what my real texture is like since I haven't seen it in so long.

 

[i12sitonmyhair]

I did a lot of stuff to my hair in the past, but I didn't know how to take care of it. I often wondered if my hair dressers were using relaxers that were too strong for my hair. Anyway, I noticed that my hair is thicker/fuller when natural and the back doesn't break off. That's why I went natural. Also, the one style I haven't tried yet is a super-long natural! So I'm eagerly looking forward to seeing how that looks on me.

 

[eripmaven45]

my reasons for going back natural are:
10.i went to jamaica(i WAS gonna live there,but thats a different story!)and i saw so many BEUTIFUL natural hair(partly cuz of the climate/humidity)and @ that point,was ASHAMED of my processed hair.
9.i wanted something new
8.i H**A**T**E**D going to the beuty shop all the time and waisting my morning/afternoon.
7.i really dont like all the fuss w/ permed hair eg. "hmm,should i reeeally go swimming w/ all my friends on the last day of summer a few days after my relaxer?....."
6.when i was younger,my hair was sooooo long and when i got a relaxer,it seemed to all break off and i was left w/ the usual base of the neck lenth hair..:snooze
5.i looked around one day at a familly pic,and i had the SAME hair as EVERYBODYELSE ,sad!shortanddamaged
4.i realized that i couldnt make it curly,wavy,or kinky anymore
3.relaxers BURN
2.perms cost an ARM AND A LEG after a few years
1.I LOVE MY NAPPTURAL HAIR

 

[Crysdon]

The reason that I got a texturizer is because I hated my frizzy hair.

I loved my natural hair, and I wanted to wear straight styles but I didn't want a relaxer. My hair became too hard to style because of the frizzies so I opted to get a texturizer and now I have the best of both worlds (uniformed, non-frizzy curls and straight hair with a rollerset or blowdryer).

 

[HoneyRockette]

I dunno. I'd like to go natural but I continue to relax because:

1. I'm lazy.
2. Relaxing is just more convenient right now.
3. Transitioning is difficult, (and I'm NEVER cutting my hair again!).
4. My hair is frizzy relaxed so I can imagine how big it would be natural.
5. I'm REALLY lazy!
6. I can't do my own hair and natural salons are expensive.
7. Did I mention how lazy I am when it comes to hair care?
8. I'm used to a relaxer and I don't handle change very well.
9. The shrinkage would be too discouraging.

10. Two words: Lay Zee!

At some point this year I planned to grow out my relaxer and texturize but I gave up that idea. See reason #3.

 

[karezone]

I have an addiction to trying everything. When I got older and had the money to do things that I could not do before so I started getting high lights and perms every month and all the other things that my Mom said would make my hair break off and guess what guys, she was right!
I knew how to make my hair grow but I did not know anything about conditioners. Right now my hair isn't long but it is in better condition. In a while it will start to get longer.

 

[Aerie17]

My hair was natural when I lived in California because the climate supported that. When I moved to Florida, managing my natural hair was impossible!! Try to imagine sticking your head in an oven that has steam jets attached to the sides and you will get my drift...

 

[DelightfulFlame]

I'm natural because:

(1) I discovered that my main reason for relaxing my hair was simply b/c I didn't know anything else to do to it. I had a perm since I was a little girl, and so I was afraid of my natural hair. When I thought about it this way after opening my eyes to the option of being natural, I felt so ridiculous.
(2) I'm on a spiritual journey to become closer and more knowledgeable about my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. It just doesn't make sense to believe that God is perfect, but he somehow messed up when he created my hair kinky/curly.
(3) I have very sensitive skin, my head included. My permed mother is bald on her edges in the front, and mine had began to thin. I was very sensitive to relaxers, and it just made sense to stop using them.

It looks like it was just meant for me to be chemical-free, huh?

 

[FineChyna]

i went natural cause
1)i love my natural waves
2)perm was damaging the back of my hair keeping it at shoulder length. although half of my hair woes were from lack of knowledge the rest were definately from relaxing my hair. its possible that there is a perm for me and/or a person who can help me achieve my hair goals but how many times must i break off/damage my hair to find that? my hair is growing good and healthy right now so i will leave well enough alone
3) alot celebs/and regular TV personalities i come across have natural hair and that was also inspiring, even if i don't have the access to their hair stylest

 

[zoya_j]

I got cheap- perms cost too much
I got impatient- the wait at the salon was too long
I got smart- I found this hair board and nappturality.com for support
I got healthier- I started cutting back on all harmful agents in and on my body

 

[LABETT]

I am relaxed and will keep my relaxed hair because it more
convienient at this time with my busy schedule.
I have better knowledge of taking care of my hair and use
of hair products and my hair is growing well now.

 

[ComfortablyNumb]

I was natural and I am more used to natural then I am relaxed. When my hair is relaxed I gotta go to the hairdresser, when its natural, it's wash and wear. However in the middle of a heatwave this summer my head was a frizzy mess and so I decided to texturize (so I could have the best of both worlds). I think I did it a little too lightly. I can't tell the difference between the texturized hair and my new growth (I left the relaxer on less than 5 min, 2-3 minutes or less in some places) and it's been close to two months so I should be able to tell by now! So I figure what the heck, I'll just go natural again.


It doesn't really matter to me, I like my hair curly and straight but I guess natural is a better decision for me because back in the day when my hair was fully relaxed it was far harder to try to go curly for a day than when I was natural trying to go straight for a day.

Oh yeah and I forgot to add, my hair is a fine texture so it loses some of its thickness when I relax which is crucial for me since I don't have alot anyway!!!!!! My natural hair is far more deceiving.

 

[Victorian]

Re: reason(s) for keeping hair relaxed/natural????

I'm keeping my hair relaxed for now. I was considering going natural before I found this board and learned all these new things about taking care of my hair. I figured since most of my hair was already relaxed, I would keep with it and see what effect my new hair habits will have on my growth. Once I reach my relaxed hair goals (or get too impatient, whichever comes first), I'll probably start transitioning. I've never done my natural hair myself so it will be a brand new journey.

 

[Peachtree]

Re: reason(s) for keeping hair relaxed/natural????

Simple... I luv my natural hair

.... or at least the new growth anyway

 

[Nina_deF]

Re: reason(s) for keeping hair relaxed/natural????

I'm transitioning.
The main reason is that I am so sick of spending every sunday blowdrying my hair and every monday morning flatironing it and then curling it to get curls (yeah, i know, makes no sense) and I am the

of LAZY!
To let it dry naturally is not possible most months in this country.
AND having it natural opens a whole new world of products I get to try (YAY!

).

 

[skegeesmb]

Re: reason(s) for keeping hair relaxed/natural????

I'm natural because:

It's cheaper than a relaxer once you get a hold of your product junkism.
Most of my family is natural. I figured hey they all have their hair looking good, so I can too.
My hair is easy to handle natural
I can get my hair just as straight as a relaxer, but I can also wear it naturally curly (which with a relaxer was impossible).
My hair is not as dry and I don't have to put a lot of products in it to make it feel as good as my natural hair.
I'm not doing it to be closer to God, or to find my blackness, I did it because I didn't want to mess with chemicals anymore.

 

[Allandra]

I keep my hair relaxed (but NOT bone straight) because it's easier for me to manager. Otherwise, it would be super thick vs. just thick.

 

[pookeylou]

I decided to go natural because...
1) I was tired of spending a day in the salon.
2) I was tired of doing my own retouch every 4 weeks.
3) I was tired of not being able to exercise without my hair "reverting" back to it's natural state.
4) I was tired of the clutter that existed on my bathroom sink...you know, the curling iron, flat iron, blow dryer (in case my edges and nape got wet in the shower)etc. It was starting to look like my sink was on life support.
5) I was tired of believing the lie that my hair was "bad hair" and would not look good natural.


Good thread.

 

[Tgirl]

I'm transitioning. I decided to do this because I was tired of getting relaxers and my hair thinned out way to much. My sister and nieces had already gone natural and their hair looked a lot better than mine. I have a daughter now and I couldn't see myself telling her she couldn't relax hers if I was still relaxing mine. Of course I still have an addiction to color.

 

[nita4]

I'm relaxed because it's easier for me to manage and I'm lazy.

 

[DDHair]

I liked my relaxed hair, I am 24 now, and I think I had a perm since I was at least in the 4th grade. From what I understand, my mom decided to perm my hair because I was too tenderheaded. I never really had any problems with relaxing, actually my hair was usually pretty healthy, because even at a young age I was a hair feind. I always wanted to wear my hair like Jasmine Guy , so about the end of 1998 I asked my mom to try and put crochet braids in my hair with just the curly hair (not that braided curly hair), to give me that kind of curly wavy look. Well not too long after that my mom began wearing her hair like that and I guess she liked it because of the low maintenence. Her hair was usually brittle, thin, and short and just because she wore crochet braids her hair did not magically change overnight, she was fed up and contemplating a curl, but I refused to let her get a curl (I was crazy) and said try the wave nouveau, well that didn't last long, because she continued wearing the braids. By the time she passed in October of 2001, her hair had grown so much and so healthy. I believed they pressed it for her funeral and it was the longest and thickest, and shiniest I had ever seen it without a curl. She inspired me to go natural, because she had stopped relaxing. That October I had microbraids, and I wanted to go natural then, but my hair was so damaged (I can't remember why, it might have been previous color, stress, I can't remember right now and then taking the braids out didn't help) my sister and beautician convinced me to get another relaxer. It took about 3 months for my hair to get completely straight from the relaxer, my hair was healthy and grew very fast, but the last time I got braids at the beginning of 2003, I knew that this time I would go natural. This would be the last time in my life to do so. So now here I am 8 months transitioning. It's hard a lot of days, one day I just wanted to cut my relaxed ends and go with a TWA, but I know how crazy I am about length and I am glad my sister talked me out of it, so now I will wait till next year to cut the ends. I am going to keep this natural, because I like the versatility, some days I can look like I have a cut, when the hair is coiled up, and some days I can have the length I really want. It grows really fast too, because from what I understand, natural hair has more proteins than relaxed hair. I like the texture, many black women don't realize that they have this natural texture, it's wonderful, a little wave, a little curl, it's great, I suggest everyone go back to their roots

at least once.

 

[soslychic]

I keep my hair texturized because

1) I get the best of both worlds, curls or straight with no heat if I don't want it
2) I love these curls/waves I get when I let my hair airdry
3) I like the look better than
4) It's easier to handle
5) My hair is still super thick, it hasn't thinned from the chemicals
6) My hair is growing because I finally learned how to take care of it and I didn't need to go natural to do it
7) I only texturize 4 times a year, so it's not a big hassle and not costly when my pj'ism dosn't kick up
8) I finally like my hair and I never have before

 

[A_Christian]

I still relax because I can't stand the thought of losing all of the length it would take to cut off my relaxed hair, however, I do plan on going natural eventually. I'm just going to have to work up enough nerve to do it.

 

[Nacai23]

I'm natural because:

1. My hair was coming out by the handfuls when I was relaxed.

2. My hair never got longer than shoulder length. I got my hair relaxed when I was 10. So, the last time my hair was waist length was when I was 7/8/9 and natural.

3. I had chronic scalp problems when relaxed. Scabs everywhere.

4. I don't have to worry about getting my hairdo wet.

5. My hair is MUCH healthier when natural. No split ends to worry about. I can go much longer without a trim. This was unheard of with a relaxer.

6. I wanted to be healthier. That included my hair. It just didn't make any sense to me to want to exercise, eat healthy, use all natural cosmetics and then turn around and put THE harshest chemical that the human body can stand, on my hair.

7. I'm stepping outside the norm for my family; I'm the only natural. Maybe I can inspire them.

 

[Daughter]

I remain natural because:

1. I have come to accept my hair (what it will and won't do) and LOVE every nap

2. I now know how to look after it. Not as difficult as I thought. Then again, no one taught me that it could be easy to maintain. Compared to relaxed hair it is... no more worrying about overlap during retouches, I find it easier to dry my hair (never got the hang of "wrapping" or making my hair dry into a nice style), my hair has even more body and volume.

3. Political reasons: my small way of rebelling against the still prevalent beauty standard that still denigrates natural nappy hair in favour of straight/wavy hair (anything BUT nappy, so-called "good hair").

4. I find it more convenient; no more fear of rain, water rides, etc. If I want to spend lots of "me time" on my hair though, I still can if I choose.

5. I feel like natural hair is the "real me".

7. I am concerned with the dangers of placing chemicals like sodium hydroxide and calcium hydroxide on my hair and dangerously close to my scalp. More recently I'm watching what other hair and beauty producst contain. If nicotine or birth control patches can work via the skin, what on earth could relaxers and the like do?

I'm sure I could come up with more but that'll do for now!

 

[Naturalistic]

This is my 3rd year natural (&amp; I plan to continue being natural for the rest of my life). I hate sitting in salons, hate having my scalp burned by chemicals, hate not being able to jump in a pool in the summer without worrying about how I'm gonna do my hair when I get out, hate curling irons, flatirons, blowdryers, etc. Plus, I just look better with the hair that springs naturally out of my head! I don't color my hair anymore, either; I'm done with chemicals, period.

 

[Brooke007]

[ QUOTE ]
HoneyRockette said:
I dunno. I'd like to go natural but I continue to relax because:

1. I'm lazy.
2. Relaxing is just more convenient right now.
3. Transitioning is difficult, (and I'm NEVER cutting my hair again!).
4. My hair is frizzy relaxed so I can imagine how big it would be natural.
5. I'm REALLY lazy!
6. I can't do my own hair and natural salons are expensive.
7. Did I mention how lazy I am when it comes to hair care?
8. I'm used to a relaxer and I don't handle change very well.
9. The shrinkage would be too discouraging.

10. Two words: Lay Zee!

At some point this year I planned to grow out my relaxer and texturize but I gave up that idea. See reason #3.

[/ QUOTE ]

I don't know HoneyRockett but I think the reason you stay relaxed might actually be because you're lazy.

I went natural by accident. I wanted to learn how to take better care of my hair and was researching a regime to get my hair healthy and strong enough for a re-touch.

My hair began to thrive and I just haven't gone back to relaxing although it is not out of the question for me.

 

[Brooke007]

[ QUOTE ]
eripmaven45 said:
I was just wondering this because i was thinking about my reasons for going back to natural (im glad i did this while im still farely young,instead of relaxing the rest of my life!),and i would love to hear some of you guyz reasons for keeping your hair relaxed or natural. <font color="yellow"> </font> <font color="blue"> </font>

[/ QUOTE ] Oh so you saying cause I'm old I can't be natural is that it.???

I'm teasing. Ok I'm old and childish.