Did You Receive Your First Perm under 18 Years of Age?

[SouthernScienceNerd]

It was around the time that I started kindergarten. I'm from a small city in the deep South where every non-mixed Black girl got a relaxer when she started school in the 90s. I'm happy to say that now it looks like a lot of mothers in my area are waiting longer now to relax their daughters' hair.

 

[melisandre]

My mom relaxed my hair when I was 3 or so. She said wanted straight hair like the other girls at my preschool, which was predominately Asian.

Sent from my SGH-M919 using LHCF

 

[mywinborne]

I think I was around 7. My dad did my hair. He has seven sisters so he learned growing up. My mom didn't know how to do hair she started going to the hairdresser once a month as a child up until she married my dad. I wore my hair mostly in braids and beads so I don't know why he relaxed my hair. I only wore it out on picture day until 7th grade when I could wear it down all the time. My last perm was right before prom and I cut my hair into a bob over the summer (when I turned 18 and could cut my hair) It was around apl length by then. I really should have never gotten a perm because my hair is fine and straightens pretty easily.

 

[AmiJay]

Do curls count? LOL I was 13 and starting high school. Sophomore year I transitioned back to natural (hot mess) and was natural until fresh year in college when a girl in my dorm relaxed my hair.

 

[Ravenhairedbeauty]

I had no choice I was 5, my Mom made the decision. I regret that she did that definitely.

 

[cravoecanela]

I was in first grade when I got my hair relaxed for the first time. My mother kept it a secret from my grandmother, who was anti-relaxer. I had to tell my grandmother that a conditioner made my hair straight. I decided on my own to stop relaxing my hair after the 8th grade, and my mother wasn't supportive, but let me anyway.

 

[koolkittychick]

I got my first relaxer a month before my 18th birthday, just in time for my senior class trip and prom. I paid for it myself with money from my first job. My mom didn't know anything about relaxers, so fortunately she didn't ruin my hairline with perms, but she also didn't know anything about caring for type 4 hair (she and her family have type 3 hair), so my hair was pretty much short (neck length and above) for most of my life until I found LHCF. I don't regret the relaxer (I have cycled between relaxed and natural for 25 years now), but I do regret that LHCF was not around when I was in my 20s; I would have enjoyed WL hair at that age, relaxed or natural, and I didn't know I was capable of growing it that long until I was in my 40s.

 

[Risingsun]

I was 8. I think they'd just come out with boxed drugstore perms. Prior to that we used to get our hair pressed at the stove. My mom became perm obsessed. My hair was APL when I was 8. By the time I was 10 it was about Nape length. She kept perming and perming away to "fix" it. When it had broken off to about 5-6" or so and about half of that was new growth she sent me in for the latest and greatest new thing - I got a Jheri curl. That was actually pretty nice. I had lots of growth with the Jheri curl and they were fashionable then but they were expensive so she decided to start perming again. You can guess what happened when she put the perm in. ALL of the hair except for about 2" of new growth pretty much melted so I spent my entire freshman year of high school with a TWA (which in all my infinite wisdom, I decided to dye blonde). I didn't have any hair again until college. When I got to college, I was too POOR for perms, dyes, etc... and my natural hair grew out quite nicely. I would have lonnnnnggg stretches and get lots of growth when I did so. I didn't perm my daughters' hair. My mother had them overnight and SHE permed their hair. They were 4 and 6!! She never got them overnight again. I let those perms grow out and did not replace them although I think they opted for the perms again around halfway through high school. They're both natural now though. One wear hers natural and one flat irons.

Wow, interesting story! Peace

 

[Risingsun]

I was 10 years old and didn't know what the heck just happened to me LOL all I know is that I was happy... and like 8 months later I went from waist length to Neck length.

My daughters are 24 and 15 and they've never had perms. I hope they stay that way.

I hope the same for my girls. I am trying to teach them to love their curls. Peace

 

[SlimPickinz]

11 years old. My sister had been getting relaxers for a year and I wanted straight hair like her. I got touch ups every 6-12 months until I decided to transition.

 

[PinkSunshine77]

My mother relaxed my hair at age 12.

 

[Risingsun]

I was about 15/16.
I dont regret it really because I wouldn't be where I am if I hadn't had damaged relaxed hair.

I had never heard of perms before that and found out about them on a google search.

Yes, sometimes we find that the bad experiences can lead to good ones. Peace

 

[Risingsun]

My mom relaxed my hair when I was 3 or so. She said wanted straight hair like the other girls at my preschool, which was predominately Asian.

Sent from my SGH-M919 using LHCF

Interesting! Peace

 

[Risingsun]

I think I was around 7. My dad did my hair. He has seven sisters so he learned growing up. My mom didn't know how to do hair she started going to the hairdresser once a month as a child up until she married my dad. I wore my hair mostly in braids and beads so I don't know why he relaxed my hair. I only wore it out on picture day until 7th grade when I could wear it down all the time. My last perm was right before prom and I cut my hair into a bob over the summer (when I turned 18 and could cut my hair) It was around apl length by then. I really should have never gotten a perm because my hair is fine and straightens pretty easily.

Wow, your Dad huh. Peace

 

[Risingsun]

You answered the questions. Peace

 

[Risingsun]

I got my first relaxer a month before my 18th birthday, just in time for my senior class trip and prom. I paid for it myself with money from my first job. My mom didn't know anything about relaxers, so fortunately she didn't ruin my hairline with perms, but she also didn't know anything about caring for type 4 hair (she and her family have type 3 hair), so my hair was pretty much short (neck length and above) for most of my life until I found LHCF. I don't regret the relaxer (I have cycled between relaxed and natural for 25 years now), but I do regret that LHCF was not around when I was in my 20s; I would have enjoyed WL hair at that age, relaxed or natural, and I didn't know I was capable of growing it that long until I was in my 40s.

Yes, knowledge is power. Peace

 

[NowIAmNappy]

I was 4 or 5.

 

[NappyNelle]

I was 4 or 5.

Me too... that d@mn Just For Me. Then I graduated to box braids that were way too heavy and and damaging.

 

[shasha8685]

I was 12 and I begged my mom to take me to the salon to get it done. She was really in no rush to get my hair relaxed.

At any rate the stylist used a super strength relaxer on my hair and my hair promptly broke off. My mom had to nurse my hair back to health

 

[GettingKinky]

I was 9 or 10. It was my mom's decision. I didn't even know what a relaxer was. I don't regret it, I liked the results and I'm still relaxed today many, many, many years later.

 

[mshoneyfly]

No my Mom felt that my hair was too fine and she was prob right! I did my own perm the first time as a freshman in high school. I didnt even use neutralizing poo! smh
My Aunt outed me about 3 mos later. Nobody had a clue until then bc my hair started turn reddish brown from them chemicals. I just texturize it now.

I permed my daughter when she was 4. I know that was terrible but I didnt know any better. She is now 19 and on a natural HHJ so its all good.

I LOVE this HHJ!!

 

[PJaye]

I had my sister apply a relaxer to my hair a week before I left for college because I didn’t think there would be any stoves in the dorm for my hot comb. I hated it because it made my low density hair look thin and sickly. Around age 22, I tried again with the same results, so I left that nonsense alone.

When I was growing up, the thought of putting a relaxer in a minor’s hair was unimaginable. They, along with beauty salons, were reserved for those few adults who didn’t want to bother with the long process of hot combing their own hair. All the kids wore hot combed/air dried ponytails or braids.

 

[abcd09]

12. Everyone was standing around waiting for the reveal. It turned out to look like a mushroom cut. I looked like a goomba with huge glasses. Yes, everyone was like, "Oh " . The hairdresser wanted to style it but I said No.

 

[overtherainbow]

I was 6 years old and it wasn't my choice. I didn't even know what a relaxer was. I can't even blame my mother because my hair is extremely dense and wash day took hours. I just wished that I had time to accept my curly hair mentally.

 

[greenbees]

I was 12. My great aunt convinced my grandmother to allow me to get one, she told her it would make doing my hair soooo much easier.

 

[Prettymetty]

I was 6 or 7

 

[rileypak]

Mom relaxed me around 6 years old. For her, my natural hair was too thick and she simply didn't feel like taking the time to learn how to maintain it at that thickness [as I was told].
I don't necessarily regret it because I love my hair regardless but I've told her I wish she would have let me make the choice once I was older.

 

[BFeathers]

I'm pretty sure I was 4 or 5. I have a hazy memory of being in my parents bathroom and a white box. Googling it I was definitely about 4.

I have hazy memories of the original PCJ Relaxer box and a commerical about that box and wanting my hair to swing and be long like the little girl's because my mom's hair sure looked like the commerical mom's.

 

[Dayjoy]

Originally I would say 11, almost 12 for my 6th grade graduation. I asked and asked and my mother relented. We had to keep it a secret from my grandmother, which now confuses me because she is all about that straight hair.

But, now that I think about it, I remember my mother talking about doing something to my hair around the time I was 8 that she regretted. I remember them saying my hair had broken off from it and I also remember white cream. Let me go call my mama! erplexed

I don't regret it. It was what I wanted for a long time. What I do regret is waiting about 8 years too late to go natural. DD will be 12 Sunday and is still natural. I don't think she will ever relax. I hope not. :crossfingers: But if she decides after the age of 16-18 to relax I'll be ok with it, I think.

 

[nrock]

I was 5 years old with the most "tender" scalp. I didn't want anyone touching my hair, let alone trying to comb it. My older cousins use to babysit on Saturday and I was totally traumatized by getting my hair "done". To add to the problem, my hair was thick and MBL. Fast forward, 3 years relaxer free and I don't regret my permed days at all. If I had to comb all of that hair back then, I probably would have made the same decision. We know way more today about caring for permed hair. My mom did a great job caring for the permed hair (healthy and long). I didn't do such a great job once I took over though.