Transitioning without BC'ing Support Thread

[Shinka]

@Shinka

Congrats on the baby. Check out my style on my blog in my most recent post. Maybe it might be an option for you? I plan to keep my hair like this at least until I'm 6 weeks postpartum. It doesn't involve too much manipulation. You can wet your hair after workouts in this style and just rebraid section by section on wash day. I only plan on rebraiding the front every week and the rest every 3-4 weeks.

@newbeginnings2010 Thanks for the suggestions and Congrats on your little one. I went ahead and relaxed my hair this am. I have too little hair with my cut to have done the style you suggested anyway.

I'll transition when I am done with my workout goals. I can't deal with my hair, exercise, hair post exercise and a baby. I start graduate school full time in August, plus returning to work this summer. It's too much and I need my hair to be easy and manageable. I

have learned that I can stretch this long and keep my new growth/perm ends moisturized and strong. So I am leaving with valuable info on my hair & good techniques.

Good luck everyone on your transitions.

Sent from my iPhone using LHCF

 

[NJoy]

56 wks post and doing well. At this moment, I'm a happy camper.

Shinka, congratulations on the birth of your beautiful baby!

 

[newbeginnings2010]

Shinka
Wow! You do have a lot going on. That's understandable. Good luck with everything!

 

[Rae81]

I don't know what I did to my hair today but I have angered it lol. It is a tangled mess. It was either the ors creamy aloe shampoo or the 2 minute reconstructer.

Sent from my HTC EVO 3D

 

[Anonymous1]

I think I BC'ed yesterday. I got my hair flat ironed by a stylist and she trimmed by ends. I think she trimmed all relaxed ends off. My hair is flat ironed .and only touching my shoulders. I know for sure when I was it but I was APL before. I'm not too upset though because I knew they would be cut eventually.

 

[havilland]

today i am celebrating!

i am soooooooooo not cutting my hair!

i am sooooooooo glad i have been texlaxing and not bone straight because the two textures are similar. i can tell my relaxed hair is not as strong as my natural hair, however, i have committed to deep conditioning every week and it has worked!

i can tell now that as long as i trim regularly and continue to protective style and deep condition like my life depends on it, i will not have to cut all my length off unless i want to.

320 day since my last relaxer.....

(hair gods, please don't curse me) LOL

 

[JJamiah]

almost 11 months post; wearing my wig until I am officially 11 months. Removing them wearing a half wig for a week; then back up into my wigs. I can't stand the heat and don't want to expose my kitchen joking.

I can't wait to get back into my curlformers for a few months

 

[WriterGirl]

Ladies,

I cut off my relaxed ends Friday. Yay! So happy to fully natural. Here's my BC (really a BT -- big trim) thread:
http://www.longhaircareforum.com/showthread.php?t=620409

Wishing you guys the best of luck! See ya'll on the natural side.

 

[chrisanddonniesmommy]

Ladies,

I cut off my relaxed ends Friday. Yay! So happy to fully natural. Here's my BC (really a BT -- big trim) thread:
http://www.longhaircareforum.com/showthread.php?t=620409

Wishing you guys the best of luck! See ya'll on the natural side.

Congrats! See you soon.

 

[OhTall1]

According to my ticker, as of today I've been relaxer free for one year. I'm going to throw a little smiley face party in this post to celebrate.

:2cool: :reddancer:

I'm doing mostly curlformer sets -- alternating between long/wide and long/narrow sets -- to get through the transition. I still don't have a date for when I'll get rid of the last of the relaxed ends, but since I'm not having any detangling challenges, I'm still doing okay managing the two different textures.

HHG!

 

[janeemat]

After having a discussion this weekend about relaxed and natural hair with some friends, I have a few questions. One of my friends has been natural most of her adult life and the other just bc and is sporting a twa. My questions are is it possible to do a long term transition from relaxer to natural WITHOUT wearing wigs, weaves or braids say 18-24 months. You just mainly bun, braidouts or flat iron. Who on here is flat ironing their way to natural hair. My two friends do not agree that you can transition long term without hiding the hair. Enlighten me natural ladies. I guess I need to visit this thread more often.

 

[newbeginnings2010]

janeemat

My cousin is the only person I know who transitioned by straightening her hair. She was BSL relaxed and grew to just below SL natural before BCing. Although I don't know if you want to try her reggie. She washed, DCed and straightened once per month, did nothing else in between except straighten the edges most mornings, and admits to some of her ends being permanently heat straightened in the front. I couldn't tell though. Anywho, good luck!

 

[janeemat]

@janeemat

My cousin is the only person I know who transitioned by straightening her hair. She was BSL relaxed and grew to just below SL natural before BCing. Although I don't know if you want to try her reggie. She washed, DCed and straightened once per month, did nothing else in between except straighten the edges most mornings, and admits to some of her ends being permanently heat straightened in the front. I couldn't tell though. Anywho, good luck!

Mmmm...this is interesting. I would think that there would be heat damage. I wonder if any of the ladies here is doing that.

 

[Z-kitty]

Checking in 1.5 years post. I'm proud to say that I am dealing with my hair for the first time since 8 months post. Hubby is tired of the braids so I gave them up for a while. My staple style is the twist and curl. My hair is currently twisted and just rolled at the ends for my first ever twist out. Not sure how its going to turn out but I hope it looks good. Heading over to the crown and glory thread shortly to drop out.

 

[Tiffanita]

I've been transitioning for about 4 months, so I'm a newbie compared to most of you here. I think I'm a 4a, but I've had a relaxer most of my life, so who knows what my true texture is. I love how my new growth feels when it's wet, but once it dries... Do you ladies have any product suggestions to keep my roots really moist? My hair hates glycerin products.

 

[janeemat]

@janeemat

My cousin is the only person I know who transitioned by straightening her hair. She was BSL relaxed and grew to just below SL natural before BCing. Although I don't know if you want to try her reggie. She washed, DCed and straightened once per month, did nothing else in between except straighten the edges most mornings, and admits to some of her ends being permanently heat straightened in the front. I couldn't tell though. Anywho, good luck!

I check out your blog today. I'm going to keep my eye on you while your transition.....especially with a new baby. He is so cute.

 

[janeemat]

today i am celebrating!

i am soooooooooo not cutting my hair!

i am sooooooooo glad i have been texlaxing and not bone straight because the two textures are similar. i can tell my relaxed hair is not as strong as my natural hair, however, i have committed to deep conditioning every week and it has worked!

i can tell now that as long as i trim regularly and continue to protective style and deep condition like my life depends on it, i will not have to cut all my length off unless i want to.

320 day since my last relaxer.....

(hair gods, please don't curse me) LOL

This made me LOL.....So are you bunning only....meaning no weaves or braids? Your hair looks nice.

 

[MsDee14]

1 day shy of 27 weeks post! My edges will not lay down AT ALL. But I am embracing the natural curls.
Tomorrow I will do my wash routine and put in some twists(with my own hair). I bought some straws so I can curl the bottom of them. Can't wait!

 

[Z-kitty]

Did my first flat twist out was a major HOT MESS so I had to rock a bun to work. The next day I tried it again with just regular twist with my perms ends rolled. It was the BOMB but it only lasted a day. Im washing and retwisting every two days until I find a product that offers some hold. ANY SUGGESTIONS.

 

[toyas08]

Tomorrow I will be 11 months post. I put my hair in mini braids. All I need is some styles

 

[YaniraNaturally]

Hi Ladies! I've been doing a horrible job checking in, but I've been busy with my baby thesis and exams. Now I'm pleased to say that I have graduated from undergrad

I flatironed and rollerset my hair for the graduation but it poofed in about twenty minutes Anyway, my hair is still semi-straightened and I plan to keep it this way until the 2nd when I BC. I can't wait for my first wash and go!

Random texture shots! I'm thinking that I'm 4a but I'd love to hear what others think. Obviously hair type doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things but just for kicks

The first one is damp and the other one is dry.

 

[Sweetgirl08]

Hi ladies just peeking in!

MY STORY:

I was a straight natural for 8/9 yrs and I thought I was doing pretty well until my last semester or grad school. I ended up with lots of heat damage and wasn't hair was staring to shed like crazy. So I decided to relax thinking it would solve some time issues dealing with a 2 yr old babygirl, work, etc... I quickly found out I was wrong since I had to self relax my hair went from BSL to just below my shoulder and lots of split ends and other damage... So my last relaxer was 2/15/12 ONLY 3 and a half months into my transition and I'm trying to hold out on the BC (maybe after 6 or 9 months). HOPEFULLY, I can find some descent styles since I have no time or money for braids just yet.

I don't plan on being a straight natural this go round and I hope I can manage better than before since I will be starting a professional school very soon. Can't wait until I have thick, healthy hair again!

 

[Shelew]

According to my ticker, as of today I've been relaxer free for one year. I'm going to throw a little smiley face party in this post to celebrate.

:2cool: :reddancer:

I'm doing mostly curlformer sets -- alternating between long/wide and long/narrow sets -- to get through the transition. I still don't have a date for when I'll get rid of the last of the relaxed ends, but since I'm not having any detangling challenges, I'm still doing okay managing the two different textures.

HHG!

Yeah! Good for you! How is the new growth with doing curlformer sets and how long are they lasting? Which products are you using? I was thinking on trying. Sorry for all the questions

 

[nemi95]

Help! I last relaxed 9 months ago, but I've still got about 5inches of straight hair. My natural texture is so thick and course in the center of my head that I can't deal with it anymore. Do you think a texturizer would be a good option for me? I work out 5 times a week so I bun it everyday and hate it. Too much work to mess it up after a good cardio session. I want to do something about this ASAP. I have no problem with hair growth, but my hair is very dry and lots of split ends. I can't retain length. I had about 3" cut off last trimming, and about 5" cut off before that while I was relaxed.

 

[BlkMane]

I think it's possible to transition without doing a BC by either flatironing (but not everyday) OR by doing braid/twist-outs. If your relaxed hair is already long when you start transitioning, I think it is even easier cause you can just bun it. Make sure your hair is really moisturized and just bun. I would just bun using creamy leave-in and SCurl activator if my hair was longer right now.

I've been transitioning back to natural since last October. I had shoulder length hair until December then I went in for a "TRIM" and ended up with a haircut. Due to now having shorter hair in the back (wedge-like bob), it's added additional stress to my transitioning process. I can't really put my hair back in a ponytail. It's just too short. So, I have to wear my hair out or with just the front pinned back.

As you transitioning ladies all know, the longer the new growth the harder it becomes to deal with the two textures. I HAD been flatironing my hair and wearing it straight, but recently keeping my hair straight and NOT poofy, has become pretty darn hard. So, therefore, at this point, I think I need to do braid-outs until I decide to cut off the relaxed ends.

I tend to rollerset first, dry under dryer, then do braids with a little Shea Moisture Coconut & Hibiscus curling milk. This gives me more length. If I just do a braidout with wet hair, I get too much shrinkage for my liking right now cause my hair in the back is too short to fall "correctly."

I also try to make sure I moisture, do protein on occasion, take my vitamins an do hot oil treatments when I have the time.

 

[JJamiah]

Transition is going well. I just want more growth. erplexed

 

[daviine]

28 weeks since my last relaxer. I'm not having any issues with detangling yet as most of the conditioners that I've tried detangle well. I'm still trying to find a conditioner that adequately moisturizes my hair and I'm still looking for a moisturizer.

I wish I could cut my hair already but I know I won't be able to style it and that I will hate it.

I've considered becoming a straight haired natural but still unsure so I'm not going to make any major decisions yet. I'll just keep at it until I decide to relax or BC.

 

[godzooki]

47 weeks so far...I'm in absolute shock that I have not caved and relaxed yet! I just decided to start using heat (hairdryer) twice a month to straighten and did it with tonight's wash session. I think if I can keep up with that then, who knows how long I'll transition for! I just need to figure out some good non frizz/curl reverting moisturizers for when I do heat straighten my hair. Any suggestions?

 

[AJellyCake]

. My questions are is it possible to do a long term transition from relaxer to natural WITHOUT wearing wigs, weaves or braids say 18-24 months.

janeemat
Well I'm only 14 months post or so, but I haven't used wigs, weaves, or braids at all. I've just done braidouts and buns. I flatironed my hair twice this period (last June and December). So it's definitely possible and easy. In fact, I'm really glad that I haven't completely put my hair away for a long time; it's been great to see it grow and the curls slowly get longer and longer. Like BlkMane said, I think it's easier if your hair is longer. I started maybe an inch or two above APL and now I'm MBL (with LOTS of trims). It makes braidouts easier (I can do just two pigtails and then ponytail that or leave it half up and half down), and of course I can bun it.

 

[Dayjoy]

After having a discussion this weekend about relaxed and natural hair with some friends, I have a few questions. One of my friends has been natural most of her adult life and the other just bc and is sporting a twa. My questions are is it possible to do a long term transition from relaxer to natural WITHOUT wearing wigs, weaves or braids say 18-24 months. You just mainly bun, braidouts or flat iron. Who on here is flat ironing their way to natural hair. My two friends do not agree that you can transition long term without hiding the hair. Enlighten me natural ladies. I guess I need to visit this thread more often.

I'll be 25 weeks post on this Wednesday and I'm not doing any wigs, weaves, or braids. I go to my stylist and get my hair flat ironed once a month. I wash and set (then do Bantu knot outs or ponytails/buns) or do wash n gos (my hair was texlaxed) in between. Sometimes...I don't wash it at all in between. My transition has been going really well so far. I started out at APL and have been trimming and maintaining that length. I'm looking forward to next week when I can say it has been a half year. janeemat