Naturals: WORST mistakes you ever made as a natural?

[leigh.hill]

Dyeing my hair was the absolute worst thing that I have done as a natural. I did not realize that the dye would cause my hair to become more porous than it was naturally and it was hell getting my porosity under control.

I think I knocked off six months of progress by trying to be cute ... thank goodness for Roux Porosity Control!

Yes! Yes! Yes! I thought since I was not relaxing my hair that it was open season to use permanent dye. I've "only" have permanent dye put on my hair twice as a natural but I think I set myself back MONTHS each time.
Last but not least - I LOVE THIS THREAD!!!!

 

[bellebebe]

Worst mistake I ever made was shampooing my 4a/4b hair right after I took out my weave. My was matted & tangled. Man, never again. I've learned that my hair doesn't like shampoo, so I now use alternative methods.

 

[Fine 4s]

Worst mistake I ever made was shampooing my 4a/4b hair right after I took out my weave. My was matted & tangled. Man, never again. I've learned that my hair doesn't like shampoo, so I now use alternative methods.

I don't think it was the shampoo though.
You should always remove shedding hair and tangles after a take down. bellebene

 

[Adiatasha]

I don't think it was the shampoo though. You should always remove shedding hair and tangles after a take down. bellebene

Spot on!!!!!

 

[Shay72]

Stop following my regimen

 

[Bunnyhaslonghair]

Permanent dye by far.

 

[SEMO]

Using the Tangle Teezer detangling brush.

For me, it caused mid-shaft splits all over my hair. B/c of this, even though it happened years ago, I'm still growing out and cutting off the damage (about 5 more inches to go).

 

[PinkSunshine77]

My biggest mistake was not preparing initially to BC. I had relaxed the front prior, so I had to grow the front out and gradually cut away the relaxed ends. Just looking you can't tell, but the back and sides are way longer than the hair in the immediate front part because of that stupid relaxer I put on my edges.

 

[icsonia22]

Buuuump

1. I used to pick my hair out dry to get a bigger fro. It was see through
2. I wore puffs and shrunken styles all the time that led to a ridiculous amount of ssk
3. Using products that didn't truly moisturize my hair like Cantu and Shea moisture products
4. Double processed box color. My hair fell out
5. Trying to heat train my hair with a bkt because I was so over ssks. The instructions said go over each section 5-7 times on 400 degrees. I did the bkt 2x in a 3 month period. Needless to say, the heat damage eventually broke off.
6. Not washing my hair in sections. That's asking for ssks
7. Blow drying with the silverbird on high and a paddle brush. Hairs were popping off left to right and my hair felt so rough and dry

Thank God that I finally have a set regimen that works. I wash in sections, detangle with the Felicia leatherwood brush, deep condition/protein, add glycerin free leave in and blow dry hair with revair before slathering on a generous amount of whipped Shea butter. I don't mess with bandwagons and I'm retaining length. It only took me 8 years to figure this out smh

 

[Platinum]

The tangle teezer many years ago. I loved it but I ended up with a lot of split ends.

 

[metro_qt]

Worst mistake I ever made was shampooing my 4a/4b hair right after I took out my weave. My was matted & tangled. Man, never again. I've learned that my hair doesn't like shampoo, so I now use alternative methods.

I don't think it was the shampoo though.
You should always remove shedding hair and tangles after a take down. bellebene

In my case, (which I will talk about in the next post, I really, 100 percent do believe it IS the shampoo)
Everyone's hair is different... and now, 20 years later, I know how to use shampoo correctly in my hair, and what stage of the wash game to do it.
Case in point.... most people say that conditioner in their hair 'brings out their curls'.
My hair's texture has never in my life been brought out by conditioner, it just gets fuzzy (and moisturized)... but Shampoo??? When I put shampoo in my hair, my hair becomes Wave City...
waves and curls for days.... and then I have to wash it out and put conditioner in it... back to fuzzy city- until it's time for gel and my other styling products.
Shampoo also makes my hair draw up, and if there are huge knots.... forget about it... just go get the scissors.

 

[metro_qt]

I don't now if I've written in this thread before... I feel like I have, but I'm too lazy to check.
My mistakes are now super illuminating, since I'm learning about my hair
and the products and processes it likes and dislikes.

Twice, I got a type of texturizer from the Jazma salon, here in Toronto,
and I see, years later that not only did my hair fall out from the process, long term,
but it made the way I was able to take care of my hair so much harder.

The transitioning process, which I never planned for, also broke off my hair-
If I had known and planned to transition, I would have bought moisturizing products
that could handle my texturized areas, while paying attention to my new, fresh hair
areas.

so much more, but the two above were the game changers for my hair and sending it
on a downward hair health spiral.

 

[Fine 4s]

I’m still unsure about what my hair really needs. All I know is that poo, no poo doesn’t matter but DC’ing does and keeping my hair protective style braids or twists. Other than that it’s all extra stuff that may or may not have worked but I’m ok with the now...

 

[Chicoro]

For me, trying to save .15 cents by trimming my own, natural hair in 2012. That was a disaster. It set me back five (5) years.

 

[Chicoro]

Buuuump
[...]
Thank God that I finally have a set regimen that works. I wash in sections, detangle with the Felicia leatherwood brush, deep condition/protein, add glycerin free leave in and blow dry hair with revair before slathering on a generous amount of whipped Shea butter. I don't mess with bandwagons and I'm retaining length. It only took me 8 years to figure this out smh

Shea butter said? And, you are
retaining length? Have I spotted a
Shea Made Hair Unicorn?​

 

[Fine 4s]

@Chicoro are you saying your self trimming back in 2012 set you back? How so? Did you over trim? I’m debating wether to self trim this year or go to a salon. My last salon over trimmed so I’m nervous. What do you think? I don’t wear my hair out so an even cut is unnecessary for me.

 

[Chicoro]

@Chicoro are you saying your self trimming back in 2012 set you back? How so? Did you over trim? I’m debating wether to self trim this year or go to a salon. My last salon over trimmed so I’m nervous. What do you think? I don’t wear my hair out so an even cut is unnecessary for me.

Yes, I cut off about 10 to 12 inches. First, one side was shorter than the other. Then, the hair was shaped like an inverted u-shape. I was trying to 'fix' what I had messed up. By the time I looked up, I had lost all that length. Like 6 to 12 inches gone in minutes.

Yes, I over trimmed. I was so focused on 'fixing' it, I kept trimming and before I realized it, my hair was gone. Unless it's for some tangled ends, for myself, I will go to the salon. I learned that I can't trim my own hair. It's just not a skill that I possess.

I suggest that you go to the salon and be polite, but 'Extra'. Explain about your fear and disappointment from the last time. Bring a measuring tape and show them the amount of hair, what you want trimmed, on the measure tape. Never let them blow-dry and trim at the same time. Blow it dry. Then, trim it.

Look at your hair JUST before she trims it. Ask the person to SHOW you and TOUCH on your hair, how much of your hair she is planning to trim off. Ask her to hand you a mirror or be able to see while she trims. Pay attention as she trims.

I'd rather be vigilant and exhausted during the trim, for about 5 minutes, than not watch what she's doing and then have to spend YEARS trying to gain that length back.

BEWARE: Sometimes, the stylist may ask you to NOT come back. That's okay, because you will still have your length intact.

 

[FoxxyLocs]

Washing my hair loose

Sleeping with my hair loose

Daily co-washing (yucky scalp gunk)

I always wash my hair loose now, and sleep with it loose as well. I just had to figure out how to keep it from tangling.

I co-wash now too, but not daily, only once a week.

Probably the thing that caused me the most setbacks was going to stylists that were scissor happy or just didn't know how to care for natural hair. You really have to be careful who you let touch your hair.

 

[Lita]

Letting anyone trim my hair “NEVER”again
Not listening to my hair
Not balancing protein/moisture levels
Not using my silk scarf at night

Happy Hair Growing!

 

[ThePromise]

...

 

[PlanetCybertron]

This was back when I was natural:

*Biggest screw up I have ever done, was allowing myself, for the very time to put box dye, into my hair. Not to mention I had no business using 40 vol. developer since I had no clue how. I was “transitioning”, but wasn’t sure if I was going to end up relaxing or just let my hair grow out. Needless to say I ended up with about an inch worth of hair all around my head.

*Second biggest screw up was thinking I could detangle my hair with a fine tooth comb. This was when I was seeing the likes of APL+ being natural, and for the longest I would steady just take an impossibly fine tooth comb through my hair. Wet or dry. But I have since learned from my former, tragic mistakes lol.

*A less major screw up that I still currently do from time to time is that I get hyper focused on my hair. Which causes me to fiddle and mess with it, leading to unnecessary breakage. Since certain parts of my hair are and have always been sensitive, those areas show damage a lot quicker than other parts that tend to hold up well. One time I went from box braids, to twists, to Dutch braids, co-washed a couple of times, to some fancy updo style all within the span of a few days. I just couldn’t keep my hands out of my own head. The amount of hair that had came out was unacceptable. And since then I have to train myself to leave my hair alone, and furthermore realize that it’s still just hair, and reminding myself that obsessing over my hair does nothing but damage my hair, and damage my expectations of my hair.

 

[ElevatedEnergy]

This was back when I was natural:

*Biggest screw up I have ever done, was allowing myself, for the very time to put box dye, into my hair. Not to mention I had no business using 40 vol. developer since I had no clue how. I was “transitioning”, but wasn’t sure if I was going to end up relaxing or just let my hair grow out. Needless to say I ended up with about an inch worth of hair all around my head.

*Second biggest screw up was thinking I could detangle my hair with a fine tooth comb. This was when I was seeing the likes of APL+ being natural, and for the longest I would steady just take an impossibly fine tooth comb through my hair. Wet or dry. But I have since learned from my former, tragic mistakes lol.

*A less major screw up that I still currently do from time to time is that I get hyper focused on my hair. Which causes me to fiddle and mess with it, leading to unnecessary breakage. Since certain parts of my hair are and have always been sensitive, those areas show damage a lot quicker than other parts that tend to hold up well. One time I went from box braids, to twists, to Dutch braids, co-washed a couple of times, to some fancy updo style all within the span of a few days. I just couldn’t keep my hands out of my own head. The amount of hair that had came out was unacceptable. And since then I have to train myself to leave my hair alone, and furthermore realize that it’s still just hair, and reminding myself that obsessing over my hair does nothing but damage my hair, and damage my expectations of my hair.

I feel you on the bolded. If a style cant give me at least 7 to 10 days of not messing in my hair...it's not the style for me. I always try to keep in mind that overmanipulation (for my hair) leads to breakage.

 

[Meritamen]

Using heat tools on my hair out of frustration. I have heat damage on a good bit of the length of my hair now. It’s still kinky but looser than the rest of my hair.
I’ve accepted that I damaged my hair, will get a little trim to get rid of the splits, and stay away from from blow dryers and such.
My hair is too weak and just can’t handle the manipulation on the of the fact I really don’t know what I’m doing.
So I’m back on LHCF to help me relearn my hair. I’ve already received some good tips.

 

[blazingbeauty]

• Getting my hair silk pressed once a month - heat damage but I was cute
• Washing super mini twists every day and keeping them in for a month (every other month)
• Trying to stretch my hair with a cheap blow dryer and no heat protectant
• Boiling my hair after installing senegalese twists
• Messing with/playing in my hair too much
• Being afraid to trim also set me back

 

[shanelallyn30]

you were boiling your real hair?

• Getting my hair silk pressed once a month - heat damage but I was cute
• Washing super mini twists every day and keeping them in for a month (every other month)
• Trying to stretch my hair with a cheap blow dryer and no heat protectant
• Boiling my hair after installing senegalese twists
• Messing with/playing in my hair too much
• Being afraid to trim also set me back

 

[blazingbeauty]

you were boiling your real hair?

Lol yes - I know. I was like to me too. I was trying to do a braid out on my twists and I dipped the entire length instead of just the ends into the hot water knowing FULL well, thermal damage respects no one. The style came out just right, but my hair did not. My curls were still there, but I had to cut a good bit over time bc my hair was too weak.

 

[tryingto]

In crochet braids, spraying my hair daily with water not followed with oil or moisture. dried it out to the point of bald areas , still recovering, also not going to a professional, even though I am very challenged when it comes to hair period

 

[Lissa0821]

Letting my niece who at the time was a new hair stylist convince me to flat iron my natural hair (just big chopped) then curl it with a Marcel curling iron to make sure the curls last. Every last strand of my hair was heat damaged bad. For the next year I tried my best to hold on to that damaged hair so I wouldn't be completely bald.

 

[oneastrocurlie]

Dying my hair myself. Results were underwhelming and it didn't do my hair any favors.

 

[bellatiamarie]

Thinking I can go more than three months without a trim. I lose goodt length each. and. every. single. time. I forgo trimming my hair.