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4a/b Natural Support and FAQ Thread (da Nappy Head Thread)
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Just getting used to my own hair; and thank you fro this forum. Transitioned is like 5 years ago for me, although I did get a soft perm 2 years ago for a wedding. Since then it's been braids, braids, braids. And today I took them out; with no intention of putting them back in, to see beautiful neck length hair that is FULL
So I chi ironed it and WOW
I got har!!!
So thank you in advance and I look forward to my next project: twist out jusing miss jessies buttercreme.
So I chi ironed it and WOWI got har!!!So thank you in advance and I look forward to my next project: twist out jusing miss jessies buttercreme.
AvaSpeaks
New Member
Just getting used to my own hair; and thank you fro this forum. Transitioned is like 5 years ago for me, although I did get a soft perm 2 years ago for a wedding. Since then it's been braids, braids, braids. And today I took them out; with no intention of putting them back in, to see beautiful neck length hair that is FULL
So thank you in advance and I look forward to my next project: twist out jusing miss jessies buttercreme.
I'm curious, even though you are natural, why did you feel the need to get a soft perm for you wedding?
Were you pressured? Because I was going to be in a bridesmaid in my soror's wedding and her then fiance asked her if I was going to get my hair permed in time for the wedding
Needless to say, I was incredibly hurt and disgusted. Even though I still love being natural, I was wearing puffs at the time. And for him to think that I wouldn't style my hair in a way that was beautiful. It was hurtful.
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santwon
New Member
wow, ava, I'm sorry to hear that. Usually it's just the bridezillas who are worried. I'd be hurt too if the groom (not EVEN your soror/friend/cousin) asked the bride-to-be if your hair would be permed in time for the wedding. Like your hair GOAL is to upset him. Wow...
Anyways, Hi, I'm Santwon...I just wanted to say hello.
Anyways, Hi, I'm Santwon...I just wanted to say hello.
AvaSpeaks
New Member
Hello!
I think it's because, regardless of what some of us might think, the ladies here on LCHF are the exception, not the rule. And to be honest, depending on the community, we are not even look as the example.
I'm telling you, still to this day, most AA are still not comfortable with women with natural hair. And it really depends on your hair type too.
For example, guys like the 3a or 3b chick who's natural. But alot of them are not feeling a 4b or 4c type chick. I mean let's be real, a 3a Afro is alot different from a 4b Afro.
I'm telling ya'll. When I was on line for my sorority, some of the "sisters" almost did not want to take me because I had an afro puff. And my hair isn't even what they called, "nappy". I don't even have coarse hair. I don't have 3a or 3b hair, but I didn't have the hair they thought I had.
But because it was in a afro puff, they still couldn't see the true texture. They were just looking at the ends of the hair that puffed up.
Now that I'm older, and for some freakish reason, my hair has gotten straighter. Now I get the "you ain't natural" comments. From sorors, from "naturals", from dark-skinned women, it's driving me crazy.
I don't even know what type I am? First I was too natural. Now I'm not natural enough. On top of that, I got this super soft hair that STILL won't go past the neck
Sorry for the rant. I'm just so sick and upset over this.
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oh the pressure to conform. 
Well those days are long gone. The hair Almighty God gave me is just fine and if they don't like it, TOUGH
That said, yes, I'd like to know more about your texlax with barrier. IMHO sounds a lot like a soft perm; just enough chem to loosen the curl but not break the bond and the barrier is to avoid over processing?
Well those days are long gone. The hair Almighty God gave me is just fine and if they don't like it, TOUGHThat said, yes, I'd like to know more about your texlax with barrier. IMHO sounds a lot like a soft perm; just enough chem to loosen the curl but not break the bond and the barrier is to avoid over processing?
tt8
New Member
I am a 4b natural with tiny spiral coils and I need some help. I've got my co-wash game down and moisture in check but I still encouter freaking shedding and tangles. Here is my regimen. Please help me find my culprit. I really believe that it shouldn't dry in its shrunken state, ie, no air drying it needs to be in braids or rollerset to stretch. I started a thread "is being natural doing more harm than good" because even after all that, I really don't know.
(ps...the following is not too much moisture for my hair, it is dry otherwise)
co-wash 3-4x a week ( I tried less my hair hated it)... I do this while in home-made not tight cornrows
I dc 2x a week
I oil rinse
I moisturize 2x daily
I comb my hair once a week
a S#!+ load of shedding
I am kinda thinking I should chalk it up and get a texlax.
(ps...the following is not too much moisture for my hair, it is dry otherwise)
co-wash 3-4x a week ( I tried less my hair hated it)... I do this while in home-made not tight cornrows
I dc 2x a week
I oil rinse
I moisturize 2x daily
I comb my hair once a week
a S#!+ load of shedding
I am kinda thinking I should chalk it up and get a texlax.
JustKiya
Well-Known Member
Is this your first year focusing on your hair? I shed 3-4 times more in the winter than I do in the summer - it's my hairs natural life cycle. That might be what you are dealing with. Personally, I don't sweat shedding - it's like the trees losing their leaves - the old dying and making way for the new. If the shedding is so bad that your hair starts thinning, that's another thing. Just to give you an idea -
I'm taking my hair down (it's been in two strand twists for two weeks) this weekend - I'll save all the hair that comes out, and take a pic, to give you an idea of just how much hair I shed, and my siggy shows how much I still have attached to my head. I don't see any clarifying in there - with the frequency of your co-washing and DC'ing, I think you would need one at least twice a month, it order to keep buildup on your hair and scalp on the low.
Do you do any scalp massages/scritching on your scalp? Stimulating the scalp can often help reduce shedding.
As far as the tangles go - how well are you detangling your hair when you are combing it once a week? With conditioner in it, and fully detangled, you SHOULD be able to 'stretch' your hair out with your fingers, and comb a rattail comb straight through it. I've started using a denman (on precombed, conditioner soaked hair) and it's pulled SO much more shed hair out - I've been using it for about a month (or two, I lose track of time), and my rate of tangles has gone WAY down...
Another trick to help lessen tangles - put your cornrows in WHILE the 'combing' conditioner is still in your hair, then rinse your hair out very, very, very, very well. That will help insure that your hair is 'untangled' as possible.
Taking down the cornrows with conditioner in your hair is a good idea, too - increases slip, reduces stress.
I hope some of that helps...
A_NYRican
New Member
Currently I am going into my second month of transitioning from relaxer to natural. I believe I have type4 hair but I am not truly sure. To deal with the new growth I have been putting whole milk yogurt on my hair alone and then co-wash or when I dc. This seems to relax the curl a bit and makes my hair more manageable. When I dc, I rinse with AV and warm water. This has stopped some of the breakage and shedding that I experienced. I have always dc'd so I don't think that's it. I believe the yogurt is helping in this area.
carrie
Well-Known Member
those with a TWA, how do you keep it looking good on a daily basis? I recently did the BC and unless its cornrowed, my hair is a PITA. It looks good after a fresh wash and DC but when I go to bed after putting on my satin scarf for protection, its a matted mess in the morning. Its cold so cowash everyday is out of the question.
JustKiya
Well-Known Member
Hrrm. I would try spritizing it REAL GOOD with a 1/2 water 1/2 conditioner mix in the morning, and fluffing/arranging it that way.
No matter the temp, I was always a good one for leaving the house with wet hair, though.
MrsQueeny
Well-Known Member
4b Natural checking in:
Once a week I put castor oil on my hair
Wash in 4 braids
Condition
Detangle and braid my hair in about 12-16 braids
I apply castor oil or avocado butter to my ends and put sulfur 8 on my scalp
1-3 times a week I wash and condition while in the braids and apply castor oil or avocado butter to my ends.
I deep condition once a month.
Every 6 months I get my hair pressed, flatironed, and trimmed. Q
Once a week I put castor oil on my hair
Wash in 4 braids
Condition
Detangle and braid my hair in about 12-16 braids
I apply castor oil or avocado butter to my ends and put sulfur 8 on my scalp
1-3 times a week I wash and condition while in the braids and apply castor oil or avocado butter to my ends.
I deep condition once a month.
Every 6 months I get my hair pressed, flatironed, and trimmed. Q
Soliel185
New Member
oh the pressure to conform.
That said, yes, I'd like to know more about your texlax with barrier. IMHO sounds a lot like a soft perm; just enough chem to loosen the curl but not break the bond and the barrier is to avoid over processing?
Yes - I got the idea from a thread on here about the Curve Silkner Secret. Alot of ladies add protein to the relaxer - or oil. But alot of texlaxers have problems with run-off further straightening previously texlaxed hair and not being able to get consistant results. So I basically sprayed all my hair liberally with Jheri Redding 100% Natural Protein and allowed that to dry. They applied relaxer for set time, rinsed and applied reconstructor for 5 mins - rinsed and neutralized/condtioned. The protein forms a barrier by reinforcing the protein bonds in your hair strands, so it isn't allowed to fully straighten. This means that you can allow the relaxer to process fully ( instead of washing it off early which can lead to frizz or underprocessing for some) and still retain curl pattern. My hair still has most of the volume of my natural, but is much softer/silkier, and I can easily flatten it with water where as before water made it shrink. I will wash this weekend and get pics on my camera phone.
I am natural and have been for most of my life, only permed about 4-5 years. It's only recently that I really cared very much about my hair, though. I was the queen of the afro puff. My old regimen (if it can be called that) was to wash, condition, and detangle with a pick once a week and throw in a puff or twists.
Not too much has changed except I'm trying to detangle less because it's too dang stressful. Because of detangling woes I cut 1/2 my hair off twice. Like, right in the middle of a detangling session I just grabbed some scissors in the kitchen and started cutting my hair off. I'm trying to learn how to stress myself out less so I can keep my hair, and this means detangling less frequently.
I can get away pretty easily with only touching a comb once every two weeks. After washing and detangling, I put twists in. A week later I wash again, with the twists still in, and leave them to dry. The next day I undo the twists and wear a twistout for week. Both twists and twistouts can be styled if you have enough hair and enough styling skills. I'm lacking at least one of these, not sure which. Anyway, I'm going to try to extend it another week by doing the following. Before washing my hair, band the hair with those small soft ponytail holders all over. I think I will have at least 15 sections and at least 3 holders on each section. Hmm, better go buy some more of those bands. They're only 99 cents at the BSS for about 20 of them. Anyway. Band all the hair and wash it like that. Leave the bands on until the hair dries. Once I fluff it out, this should give me a chunky fro look that I may or may not put into a puff.
The reasoning behind all this, as someone on another forum was so kind to tell me, is that you try to avoid having hair that is both loose and wet at the same time so your hair doesn't get tangled. Wet hair is okay as long as it's twisted or braided. Loose hair is okay as long as it doesn't get wet. While hair is loose you also avoid water-based moisturizers and just use oils if you want something. The closest you get to actually detangling is when you take the protective style down, your fingers are coated with oil and you separate the hair out into a fro look and at this point your shed hair should come out easily. The person who told me this hasn't used a comb in her hair for over a year and her hair looks fine, just like every other natural head of hair. She doesn't have to detangle because she doesn't let her hair get tangled. I'm trying to follow this idea for at least 3-4 week chunks at a time.
Oh, I'm 4b with 8-9" all around.
As for trims, I don't straighten my hair so I'm not worried about getting a perfectly even trim. Natural shrinkage hides most unevenness. If I feel the need to trim my ends, I'll just dust off a little bit off the ends of each of my twists.
Not too much has changed except I'm trying to detangle less because it's too dang stressful. Because of detangling woes I cut 1/2 my hair off twice. Like, right in the middle of a detangling session I just grabbed some scissors in the kitchen and started cutting my hair off. I'm trying to learn how to stress myself out less so I can keep my hair, and this means detangling less frequently.
I can get away pretty easily with only touching a comb once every two weeks. After washing and detangling, I put twists in. A week later I wash again, with the twists still in, and leave them to dry. The next day I undo the twists and wear a twistout for week. Both twists and twistouts can be styled if you have enough hair and enough styling skills. I'm lacking at least one of these, not sure which. Anyway, I'm going to try to extend it another week by doing the following. Before washing my hair, band the hair with those small soft ponytail holders all over. I think I will have at least 15 sections and at least 3 holders on each section. Hmm, better go buy some more of those bands. They're only 99 cents at the BSS for about 20 of them. Anyway. Band all the hair and wash it like that. Leave the bands on until the hair dries. Once I fluff it out, this should give me a chunky fro look that I may or may not put into a puff.
The reasoning behind all this, as someone on another forum was so kind to tell me, is that you try to avoid having hair that is both loose and wet at the same time so your hair doesn't get tangled. Wet hair is okay as long as it's twisted or braided. Loose hair is okay as long as it doesn't get wet. While hair is loose you also avoid water-based moisturizers and just use oils if you want something. The closest you get to actually detangling is when you take the protective style down, your fingers are coated with oil and you separate the hair out into a fro look and at this point your shed hair should come out easily. The person who told me this hasn't used a comb in her hair for over a year and her hair looks fine, just like every other natural head of hair. She doesn't have to detangle because she doesn't let her hair get tangled. I'm trying to follow this idea for at least 3-4 week chunks at a time.
Oh, I'm 4b with 8-9" all around.
As for trims, I don't straighten my hair so I'm not worried about getting a perfectly even trim. Natural shrinkage hides most unevenness. If I feel the need to trim my ends, I'll just dust off a little bit off the ends of each of my twists.
IntelligenceisBeautiful
New Member
How about baggying at night to retain moisture? I recently bc'ed and i'm still learning, but I spritz with ater in the morning and follow up with Karen's Body beautiful Hair Milk or Miss Jessie's baby butter cream and my hair holds up pretty well.
I normally cut my hair on dry and wet hair. However, I am going to stop cutting wet and blow dry then cut. When I cut wet and on dry hair (without blowing out) I tend to snip away and in no time cut WAY too much hair.
Cleanheart25
New Member
Hi ladies I'm glad this thread is here. I am working at getting to know my hair in its natural state and getting it healthy. After many attempts at trying to go natural I have finally got the hang of it. It is growing so fast and its taking more product to do it-I have extreemly thick hair. To my suprise I have had so many complements on it. I have discovered that I have 3 textures the majority of it is 4a, with patches of 4b and strangely a couple of 3c strands.
It's crazy to me to come to a natural support thread and read reviews of a relaxer. There are 50-11 million threads on here re: relaxers, can we just have a couple of threads that are still solely devoted to promoting/supporting natural hair and those that CHOOSE to stay natural?
DreadlockedLady0171
New Member
^^I agree...
That's because people think that if you texlax your hair or put a silkner in your hair and it loosens your curl, you are still natural
felicia
New Member
I'm really getting frustrated with my hair. I do wash and gos all the time, but my just hair ends up getting really tangled and breaks off. I never dealt with breakage before. Anyway, would this be a good idea:
Wash 1 or 2xs per week
deep condition each time
keep hair braided in plaits between washes
use coconut oil or MHC Sophia's Grease in between
Grr, I feel completely lost and like I don't know what I'm doing since I've never worked with my natural hair before. I'm starting to regret my decision and really miss my long hair. Are there any good natural books out there you guys rec?
Wash 1 or 2xs per week
deep condition each time
keep hair braided in plaits between washes
use coconut oil or MHC Sophia's Grease in between
Grr, I feel completely lost and like I don't know what I'm doing since I've never worked with my natural hair before. I'm starting to regret my decision and really miss my long hair. Are there any good natural books out there you guys rec?
I think if you were going to try out that routine you posted, your results would be great. I can't speak for the DC, because I don't do it, or don't do it consistently. I can't keep my hair braided all the time, restless hair syndrome. But it's wearing the wash and gos all the time that are giving you tangles. I've recently decided that I will do wash and gos but I will save them for special occasions only. So you might want to cut back on those wash and gos. Try detangling your hair after washing and cornrowing or flat twisting or twisting it up for a week. Wait 1 week to wash it, if it doesn't bother you. Then see if you notice a difference in the tangles. And come back and report to us about it!
NappyWomyn, did you save that pic of your shed hair from the 2 weeks of twists like you promised? Man, if my non-hair friends could read this, they would think I'm some kind of hair perv. Hmm, maybe I am.
BlkOnyx488
Well-Known Member
Thanks for posting this
ok somethings I do, these pics were all taken within this week
the 1 st picture,
My hair was blown dry, then flat ironed.
The 2nd
after I straighted it I did a french braid
the 3rd pic
is just a wash and go with a head band
the last picture,
I cornrolled my hair when it was wet.
Not cute corns either real scary looking, I left my hair braided over night.
Then I took the braids out this morning,
I lightly combed it with a wide tooth comb and just added a headband.
It makes my fro look bigger.
ok somethings I do, these pics were all taken within this week
the 1 st picture,
My hair was blown dry, then flat ironed.
The 2nd
after I straighted it I did a french braid
the 3rd pic
is just a wash and go with a head band
the last picture,
I cornrolled my hair when it was wet.
Not cute corns either real scary looking, I left my hair braided over night.
Then I took the braids out this morning,
I lightly combed it with a wide tooth comb and just added a headband.
It makes my fro look bigger.
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JustKiya
Well-Known Member
NappyWomyn, did you save that pic of your shed hair from the 2 weeks of twists like you promised? Man, if my non-hair friends could read this, they would think I'm some kind of hair perv. Hmm, maybe I am.
Danngone it, I sure didn't!!! Totally forgot about it, I did - it was a smaller ball this week, too!Southernbella.
Well-Known Member
4AB checking in!
I'm loving my hair these days. I'm still experimenting, but I've been wearing my fro the past few days.
I cowash every other day now, and deep condition once per week. I detangle with my Denman, which is a miracle product.
I can't say I've had any real issues, but I know that will change as my hair gets longer.
For the person who asked how to kep a TWA looking fresh, I find that spritzing with water helps greatly. After that, I get some gel on my fingers and kind or pick out the ends, then twist the very ends to give them some curl. All of that takes 5 minutes or so at most.
I'm loving my hair these days. I'm still experimenting, but I've been wearing my fro the past few days.
I cowash every other day now, and deep condition once per week. I detangle with my Denman, which is a miracle product.
I can't say I've had any real issues, but I know that will change as my hair gets longer.
For the person who asked how to kep a TWA looking fresh, I find that spritzing with water helps greatly. After that, I get some gel on my fingers and kind or pick out the ends, then twist the very ends to give them some curl. All of that takes 5 minutes or so at most.
Cleanheart25
New Member
What do you ladies do for dryness? Have any suggestions? I normally do a wash and go. I use Panteen Hydra Curls, Paul Mitchell the conditioner, some Scurl,IC gel the blue one... If I don't have to to cowash then I spray water on my hair and then spray 3-4 pumps of SCurl and where a scarf. My hair feels good when I wet it but once it drys it feels dry. I also wonder if its just the texture of my coils?
LadyKaypnyc
New Member
I clip my own ends, usually on dry hair every 6 months. I twist my hair in medium to small twists and I cut about a 1/2 (sometimes 1) inch off depending on the condition of my hair.
LadyKaypnyc
New Member
I went to a natural hair salon last week with my mom, who has really thick hair that gets really dry. After washing her hair, I noticed that the Stylist put the moisturizer and leave in conditioner on sopping wet hair.
I thought it was kinda weird, so I asked her why she did it that way...She told me that the hair shaft is most able to absorb moisture while it is dripping wet and she was able to ensure that the product(s) is evenly distributed throughout the hair while it is sopping wet.
It worked wonders for my mom's hair...it was so soft! The next day, I tried it with great results...maybe it will work for you too
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