A New Hair Journey Begins...

Heat Damage Blues

Hello Beautiful Ones,

I CUT MY HAIR OFF!

I did the BIG CHOP! As you may know my  hair goal was to achieve armpit length hair by April 2013. Well, now I have to set new hair goals because I cut many inches of hair.

I was in denial about the condition of my hair. I am fully natural. My last full relaxer was the Summer of 2007. I have been completely relaxer free for about 2 1/2 years (I used to occasionally relax my edges when I wore straight (yaki) weave styles.  In October 2011, just coming out of a four year stretch of wearing sew-ins, I wanted to wear my own hair.  I enjoyed seeing my curl pattern for the first time in life. However, I did not anything about styling, caring for, or maintaining  my natural hair. Everyone I knew wore weaves, a press, or had a chemical relaxer. So from advice of family and friends that advised me to straighten my hair, because it would be easy to manage... "it would be so thick and pretty". I was convince since I had not heat applied to my hair in years it would easily revert back to its natural kinky state. WRONG!

I made my appointment with a new stylist that was recommended to me, which is never advisable. I clearly expressed to him that I only wanted a blow out and a light press with a low heat setting, because I believed my hair would not be strong enough to withstand high heat based on my texture and the fact I had been wearing sew-ins for years. After that initial press of high-heat and a lack of heat protectant, the damage was done. My hair was bone, silky straight as if I had a chemical relaxer.  I wanted to cry, because I knew my hair would not revert as easily as I was led to believe. I was right!

Over the last nine months of extreme care: protein treatments, moisturizing treatments, protective styling, etc. I realized my hair was not going to be as kinky as it was before. It was heat-damaged. The ends were loose curls and some were permanently straight.

I cut some hair four weeks and realized yesterday this hair had to go. This is the hair on the left side of my head, where the damage existed. I already cut the right side when I took this photo.

It started with a little snip here and there...

I almost reached my goal of full armpit length

My bangs grew out considerably

Today, I was ready to get rid of the damage, start this process over and move on.

The moral of my story is trust your instinct. You know what is best for your hair. Never let others convince you to undergo a process, because they are curious of the results. It is not their fault,  I have to take responsibility and should have done what was best for my hair . Always go to a professional you know and trust. He/she needs to have your best interest in mind. Consultations are always recommended.

My new hair goals will be outlined soon.

I am a little sad because I like creative styles and  know I cannot do those right now. No one said this natural journey would be easy.



My hairspiration for the cut was YouTuber,  LethalPleazures: youtube.com/lethalpleazure
The cut is very short on the sides and back, but longer and fuller at the crown and top of my head. I cut and styled my hair on my own.It is recommended you go to a professional to get a hair cut.




I'm ready to begin this new hair journey... Wish me luck!