To BC or Not to BC...I'm scared (pic heavy)

[2inspireU]

I wouldn't do it. I have the same feeling, but I know I don't like my hair short. I'm going to have a stylist cut my hair into a bob to even my hair and satisfy my urge to cut my texlaxed ends. However, my hair will only go to shoulder length, which is the absolute shortest I can stand my hair.

 

[Anew]

Don't do anything until you're sure of the decision you're about to make...

 

[Taleah2009]

I am struggling with this same question. I have been transitioning for almost tenth months now. I love my new growth, and I am beginning to hate my relaxed ends. That is where I get all the tangles and the breakage. And they dont do anything but just lay flat. I am soo ready to take scissors to my own dang head! But I am with you, I never had short hair, so I am on the fence!

 

[Taleah2009]

I agree! I think the main reason I want to BC is so I can do wash and go's, but its freakin cold in Philly, sooo the Spring it is.

But chopping slowly sounds like a good plan

I think you should grow it a bit more since it's fall/winter and you can't do a wash and go (unless you're somewhere warm). But if you're not formally ready to commit do mini-big chops instead of trims. I did it and it was much easier for me to let go this way instead of something so drastic. It allowed me to gradually deal with shorter hair.

 

[BostonMaria]

I think that if you are hesitating then you're probably not ready yet. I don't really like short hair on myself so I waited until I had 5 inches of hair and then did the BC. You have to take shrinkage into consideration so my 5 inches was really like 3. I also had to wait until 4 weeks to get my hair into a ponytail. Its your call really. I'm sure that you won't regret it. Your new growth looks lovely, btw!

Sorry to take the SHINE off of the thread start, but maybe some of you gals can help me too. I started my hair care journey with Relaxed hair! I cut my hair to half an inch and it has already grown to the tip of my earlobe. I want to go natural now after participating in discussion about the View talking about good hair and Barbara Walters chiming in with her shoulder pad brains and saying that people like me relaxed cause we wanted to look my white.

I also want to go natural because I do remember my texture and enjoyed what I had before. I also don't want the relaxers to gradually wear out my scalp and I end up looking like I stress a lot..if you know what I mean. Can someone please tell me how they would style their hair after growing so many inches like the lady in the thread. I plan to keep what I have as a relaxer and stretch without using braids for now. My relaxer was 3 weeks ago. :-\. Because of LHCF I stretched 11 weeks.

Gisselle, you should definitely join one of the transitioners support threads that are going on right now. You'll find great tips plus talk to other people that can encourage you on your journey.

 

[Vonnieluvs08]

You will know when you are ready to cut. And from the sound of it you aren't ready. For a lot of us, transitioning was not just a physical thing but also a mental/emotional thing and you can't rush the latter part of that. I transitioned for 16mos but since I didn't do it the correct way (I used way too much heat) I ended up cutting an extra 1-2inches. I BC'd because I did have breakage (no matter what I did) and I was tired of the 2 textures. And I was ready to embrace my natural hair no matter the length (since I knew it would grow back).

If your hair is on cruise control I say go with the flow. What looks like a lot of hair now will shrink up to at least 50% of what you see when you let those relaxed ends go. Don't rush into something. Be truly committed to your goals and cut when you are ready. HTH! HHG!!

 

[Likeyouneverseenme]

DON'T CUT IT!!!! ( and yes, I am yelling)

Unless you know for sure you want to rock super shot hair.
I did a premature BC at 1 year post and I hated it.

 

[vainღ♥♡jane]

i think you should definitely wait.​

 

[BlaqBella]

I'm in the same boat your in(transitioning). Sooo.... what i know is ita your hair is GORGEOUS!!!

And hay Ms Lady we're in the same town! We should get together w/ our other Nikos' cousins. We know there are more.

I think either way you'll be fine whenever you do it. Your texture is lovely.

 

[monie20032007]

Whenever you are ready, it will look really nice!

 

[DayStar]

im so glad your back! great advice!

I think I am equipped to answer this question very well *toots horn*

The first time I went natural, I was just like you- scared to big chop. I really enjoyed transitioning to the point I transitioned for 16 months!!! I admired other people who took the plunge and just started over for real. It was such a pleasure to see their hair go to nearly shaven to their ears in a matter of months. After this long transition, I stayed natural for 6 years and even had waist length natural hair. Got a relaxer last October, hated it, and decided to transition again. I told myself I wasn't going to transition long, but I didn't plan on big chopping so soon and the way I did it! In March I was not even thinking about my hair and went into the bathroom and cut off my relaxed ends! It was jacked up to say the least, so thankfully, beauty shops were still open. I went to a natural stylist and she trimmed away the remaining straight ends and even shaped my hair. When she turned me around to see my hair in the mirror, I was I was so excited, I almost cried. Girl, I tell you it was so wonderful and now I get to see every step my hair takes while it grows out and it surprises me everyday!

Your newgrowth is beautiful and I am partial to big chopping, so I think you should big chop; however, you are apparently hesistant because if you weren't, you wouldn't need to ask. I would not like for you to chop, hate it, and try to cover your hair with wigs, weaves or hats.

I am rambling, but one thing you have to remember about transitioning for a while. When you finally get it cut, it will be shorter than what it appears now and on top of that, you will still have a few straight ends. If you are like me when I first transitioned, I wanted the straight ends GONE and this resulted in me chopping more hair off in the end anyway.

 

[makeupgirl]

I did it......I didn't have a choice though, my relaxed ends were damaged no matter how much I tried to save it. I'm not feeling the length b/c I hate very short hair on me (I'm now 2 inches when I was just collarbone length ) and I look like a boy. So I'm taking advantage of protective style challenges to keep the wigs on until it grows out. I'm giving it 6 mos. If you want to do the BC, but not ready to show the world yet. Do it but continue with protective styles with wigs or depending on your length with braids, weaves, etc. Good luck!

 

[10WordzOrLess]

YOU BETTER STOP PLAYIN!!!!
Choppa-STYLE CHOP CHOP CHOP IT UP!



Okay....You know I'm playin'....(side-eyeing the waves for days in the pic, jealousy flaring)

But yes, like alot fo the ladies have already said, you CAN'T GO BACK! Once you've cut, it's a wrap. As long as you don't have any damage, and you really aren't sure, then maybe you should wait until you're SICK, and TIRED and NO ONE can stop you from chopping your hair off. Otherwise, there'll always be that feeling of "what if I'd??"

Me? I knew that I'd just keep relaxing. If I don't have anything to relax, I HAVE to go natural right?erplexed

But yes, your regi must be AWESOME, because you are one of the healthiest transitoners I've seen yet. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, and wait till your gut says "GOOOOOO".

 

[lexiwiththecurls]

I BC'd when my my growth was about the same length of your new growth. I wasn't comfortable with the length so I got microbraids immediately after. I feel it was safer though for me to BD. The hair will eventually break the longer it gets because of the weight of the hair and that point in between the relaxed hair and natural hair is weak. If I had to do it over again, I wouldve BCed and learned how to deal with my texture THEN instead of covering it up or waiting for it to grow out.

 

[joytimes10]

I think I am equipped to answer this question very well *toots horn*

The first time I went natural, I was just like you- scared to big chop. I really enjoyed transitioning to the point I transitioned for 16 months!!! I admired other people who took the plunge and just started over for real. It was such a pleasure to see their hair go to nearly shaven to their ears in a matter of months. After this long transition, I stayed natural for 6 years and even had waist length natural hair. Got a relaxer last October, hated it, and decided to transition again. I told myself I wasn't going to transition long, but I didn't plan on big chopping so soon and the way I did it! In March I was not even thinking about my hair and went into the bathroom and cut off my relaxed ends! It was jacked up to say the least, so thankfully, beauty shops were still open. I went to a natural stylist and she trimmed away the remaining straight ends and even shaped my hair. When she turned me around to see my hair in the mirror, I was I was so excited, I almost cried. Girl, I tell you it was so wonderful and now I get to see every step my hair takes while it grows out and it surprises me everyday!

Your newgrowth is beautiful and I am partial to big chopping, so I think you should big chop; however, you are apparently hesistant because if you weren't, you wouldn't need to ask. I would not like for you to chop, hate it, and try to cover your hair with wigs, weaves or hats.

I am rambling, but one thing you have to remember about transitioning for a while. When you finally get it cut, it will be shorter than what it appears now and on top of that, you will still have a few straight ends. If you are like me when I first transitioned, I wanted the straight ends GONE and this resulted in me chopping more hair off in the end anyway.

Thanks for the reality check. This is sound advice. I think I'm in denial about shrinkage too. Looks like I have a ways to go. I don't want to BC just to cover it up with wigs or braids b/c I hate it! Thanks again.

 

[joytimes10]

Thanks everyone for jumping in and giving me some sound advice and moral support.

I'll wait at least another 6 months then re-assess!

All you ladies are so very helpful and awesome!!

 

[joytimes10]

I am struggling with this same question. I have been transitioning for almost tenth months now. I love my new growth, and I am beginning to hate my relaxed ends. That is where I get all the tangles and the breakage. And they dont do anything but just lay flat. I am soo ready to take scissors to my own dang head! But I am with you, I never had short hair, so I am on the fence!

I hear you. At 1st, I didn't understand the point of pre-pooing with oil but this really helped me on wash day. If I pre-poo liberally w/ EVOO and EVCO overnight, detangling with lots of condish is always easier. Dry combing is not a good idea for me, but sometimes I still do it.erplexed. If I don't co-wash mid week, detangling is also a bear b/c of all the shed hair. Now that my moisture balance is better and I added Henna to my regi, breakage is in check. Don't give up until you're satisfied that you've done all you can. Hang in there.

 

[joytimes10]

Pretty texture. What is your hair type? Just curious...

Thanks! I have no idea, sorry. My best guess, 4a or b

 

[joytimes10]

ooooooh!!!!!!! Your ng looks like mine when I was transitioning. I'm excited for you!!!!

I'd take it day by day but ultimately have an aim, thats basically what I did. I was aiming for 18 months and made 14 and a day lol.. If you're not experiencing any problems then keep going!!!

If you choose to bc dont worry, your hair will grow in no time - seriously! Have a look at styles shorter haired naturals are doing and see if you can see yourself with those styles..

Stay away from bc videos on youtube for the timebeing

Hi Hair twin! Off to stalk your fotki!

 

[Glamorous_chic]

Thank you, yes it's my hair
They're flat twists... here's a good tutorial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aYKugFF04jI

Sorry for hijacking your thread OP.

wow, that is probably one of the best hair tutorials i've seen. i was going to ask how you get your braidouts looking soo great. i tried a twistout this weekend and it was a mess!! thanks again for the link.