Can relaxed be better for you than natural?

[CurleeDST]

My girl/gym buddy works out on a daily basis. She had worn her hair natural. She also colored it with streaks and highlights. She started experiencing serious issues. Thinning edges, dry hair and breakage! She would stroke her hair and gobs would come out in her hands. Her hair was DRRRRYYYYY! She was going nuts.

So her solution - to get a texturizer. She found her breakage stopped and she was able to run her hands through her hair without it coming out. She is working on a program to thicken up her edges which are very thin.

The culprit - pulling her natural hair back in pony tails and/or wearing headbands daily to keep her natural hair off her face. It was thinning her edges severely. To cover up the thinning she would gob on brown gel to fill in the gaps. I know that just made the condition worse.

So.........does anyone else feel there may be times when relaxed or a texturizer may just be healthier than wearing the hair 100% natural?

Oh yeah, her ends would hook on each other and break off and she would have knots in her strands. EEK!

 

[HoneyDew]

I don't think so. I am relaxed, but I can't see how being relaxed is better.

Is it possible that she just did not know how to care for her natural hair or had not found products that helped her maintain moisture and maintenance?

 

[LynnieB]

I don't think so. I am relaxed, but I can't see how being relaxed is better.

Is it possible that she just did not know how to care for her natural hair or had not found products that helped her maintain moisture and maintenance?

basically.

 

[RosesBlack]

I think it really depends on the person. For me relaxed/texlaxed has been better than natural.

My hair is easier to maintain in a gentle way when it's all closer to one texture rather than the five that grow out of my head.

 

[Artemis]

I think it really depends on the person. For me relaxed/texlaxed has been better than natural.

My hair is easier to maintain in a gentle way when it's all closer to one texture rather than the five that grow out of my head.

This thread's really got me thinking

I REALLY want to say that natural is better, but when I think a/b how tight my curls are, and how I suffered constant breaking due to the curls knotting onto each other (this is not an exaggeration) during those 4+ yrs I was natural...IME no amt of deep conditioning and protein can change the curl pattern...I wonder really what the answer is for me...And I want to agree with RosesBlack, but with the fear of sounding like I hate my natural hair (which I totally don't! My hair is Awesome)...I'm just gonna go "Hmm, :scratchch very interesting"...

 

[CurleeDST]

My friend has a 3b curl pattern but because the curls would knot and link onto each other it would break. She has also sworn off of coloring her hair. I told her the ladies I see with extremely long hair do not have color in it.

 

[RosesBlack]

This thread's really got me thinking

I REALLY want to say that natural is better, but when I think a/b how tight my curls are, and how I suffered constant breaking due to the curls knotting onto each other (this is not an exaggeration) during those 4+ yrs I was natural...IME no amt of deep conditioning and protein can change the curl pattern...I wonder really what the answer is for me...And I want to agree with RosesBlack, but with the fear of sounding like I hate my natural hair (which I totally don't! My hair is Awesome)...I'm just gonna go "Hmm, :scratchch very interesting"...

I know what you're saying.

I don't hate my natural hair either. But I do know when I'm doing something bad to it if that makes sense. I don't think that making a decision based on what feels good and does you a service is bad at all.

I think what's best is too highly subjective to say what is and isn't not the best absolutely. Everyone is different, with different hair and different needs. What's fantastic for me, might make you bald.

 

[Artemis]

I know what you're saying.

I don't hate my natural hair either. But I do know when I'm doing something bad to it if that makes sense. I don't think that making a decision based on what feels good and does you a service is bad at all.

I think what's best is too highly subjective to say what is and isn't not the best absolutely. Everyone is different, with different hair and different needs. What's fantastic for me, might make you bald.

I absolutely agree w/the bold

 

[naijamerican]

I agree with both Honeydew and Artemis.I've realized from my own experience that relaxed vs. natural has more to do with knowledge on how to treat your hair in each of those stages. Having said that, I sometimes wonder if my hair would be stronger with a texlax/texturizer, because my hair is 4B and it dries out pretty easily. I can't be running around with a spray bottle all day and I sometimes think that such work is required just to keep my hair moisturized for any length of time. Sometimes I think that if I were to just loosen the curl a bit, it would help the moisture slide down the whole length of the hair shaft and my hair would retain moisture better. I don't know if this would really happen, though.

 

[CurleeDST]

That was another thing, she said b/c she worked out daily and sweat so much in her scalp her hair would just DRY OUT. She is texturized now and blown out straight. She is going to try working out with her hair wrapped and see if that makes a difference. Plus she doesn't want to go outside with wet hair nor does she want to rollerset her natural hair daily like she used to do over 3 years ago.

I think it is an individual's choice. I used to be a radical nappy back in 1996 - 1998 and then realized every person who is relaxed doesn't hate themselves and everyone who is natural isn't in love with themselves. It depends on the person.

I say, ladies do what is healthy and makes sense for you and your lifestyle. Natural hair IS delicate and requires gentle handling and care. Natural hair with COLOR - oh we asking for trouble! LOL. I have been successful in keeping my hair on my head with color b/c I am very gentle with it and do not handle it much.

 

[Artemis]

My friend has a 3b curl pattern but because the curls would knot and link onto each other it would break. She has also sworn off of coloring her hair. I told her the ladies I see with extremely long hair do not have color in it.

Yeah the different curl patterns and types are strange animals. I see some women on this board with my "hair type" and I just laugh b/c if they stuck their hands in my head when I'm knee deep in a relaxer cycle they'd be shocked.

Actually I had one member check out my new growth for me, and I learned that on one side of my head my 4a curls lump together and exist in harmony, lol, but on the opposite site, it's just all "I'm rolling by myself, don't be all up in my personal space"...which makes it feel coarse, but all the strands are fine. Plus, these are pensprings coils, with like 85% shrinkage on a good day, product free. Hair type is way more that just that stupid number and letter, which I'm sure you are aware of, being natural and all

 

[CurleeDST]

Oh yeah, part of my decision to big chop last year was because my hair length was decent but my hair would just matte on itself to the point I could barely get my hands through it and/or I would hear a snap snap snap when I did "break" my hair apart!! I do mean BREAK! And for a 6 month period my hair seemed to be the same length - and was b/c I was breaking it off as fast as it grew. I big chopped and started over. Well being pregnant also contributed and I texturized and HATED IT so I wanted to cut that out of my head quick fast and in a hurry.

One of the best decisions - Phytorelaxer I dried my hair out.

 

[gymfreak336]

Yeah the different curl patterns and types are strange animals. I see some women on this board with my "hair type" and I just laugh b/c if they stuck their hands in my head when I'm knee deep in a relaxer cycle they'd be shocked.

Actually I had one member check out my new growth for me, and I learned that on one side of my head my 4a curls lump together and exist in harmony, lol, but on the opposite site, it's just all "I'm rolling by myself, don't be all up in my personal space"...which makes it feel coarse, but all the strands are fine. Plus, these are pensprings coils, with like 85% shrinkage on a good day, product free. Hair type is way more that just that stupid number and letter
, which I'm sure you are aware of, being natural and all

Truer words never spoken....I am a textbook 4b but people would suprised to see how my newgrowth really looks and acts.

 

[Soliel185]

I really think you have to take alot of different things into consideration...Lifestyle, for one -- if you're really active and like the straight hair look - natural hair is just impractical. The time and heat you'd use to get the look you wanted would destroy any of the benefits of being natural. Do you need a wash n go style, or do you have time to sit and style or care for your hair? For me - I workout 5-6X a week, I have to be at work by 7:30 am so I don't like to get up 2 hrs early to do my hair, and sleeping in rollers is a no go. So at the moment I'm in braids and loving it...I love the look of natural hair, but I like my hair straight - I don't want to worry about reversion, if I work out I can airdry wavy to straight no problem. Someone with my same schedule might find natural easier or less time consuming, but at the moment I know I'm better equipped to give my hair what it needs relaxed, rather than natural....IMHO it's really a matter of convenience. If I'm gonna do the fro - I'm gonna do it right. Too many people have negative ideas of natural AA hair as it is so when I commit I'm going to do it up!

 

[naijamerican]

I really think you have to take alot of different things into consideration...Lifestyle, for one -- if you're really active and like the straight hair look - natural hair is just impractical. The time and heat you'd use to get the look you wanted would destroy any of the benefits of being natural. Do you need a wash n go style, or do you have time to sit and style or care for your hair? For me - I workout 5-6X a week, I have to be at work by 7:30 am so I don't like to get up 2 hrs early to do my hair, and sleeping in rollers is a no go. So at the moment I'm in braids and loving it...I love the look of natural hair, but I like my hair straight - I don't want to worry about reversion, if I work out I can airdry wavy to straight no problem. Someone with my same schedule might find natural easier or less time consuming, but at the moment I know I'm better equipped to give my hair what it needs relaxed, rather than natural....IMHO it's really a matter of convenience. If I'm gonna do the fro - I'm gonna do it right. Too many people have negative ideas of natural AA hair as it is so when I commit I'm going to do it up!

I totally agree with your post, especially the first and last sentences. So much of whether or not relaxed or natural is good for you depends on where you are in life. Whatever you choose to do, pull an LL Cool J: do it and do it WELL!!!!!

There are so few natural heads at my school that I feel like I need to represent. So trust that my twists or breads or even my fros are always on point. I want people to see that it is a viable option (which is why part of me feels guilty for wanting to get a texturizer... and this is also why I've spent over a year going back and forth about this decision...).

 

[iCandey]

For me relaxed isnt better but straitening my natural hair is (pressing). It just nots up too much with out keeping it strait or in braids....