Growing up, my mom never really knew what to do with my hair, mainly because her hair was so different from mine. This led to a life of perms and relaxers, keeping my hair straight for years because it was the easiest thing to do with it.
However, once I noticed the constant breakage and the fact that it never grew, I decided I was going to stop using heat on my hair and make an attempt to go natural. While I was going natural and doing away with my twice a year relaxers, I was still using heat on my hair. Instead of helping my hair grow, it was still continually damaging it. That’s when I added in using no heat, and trying out crochet braids.
I walked down the street, slinging my new fake length around for almost half a year, going through trial and error until I found the right style for me. And I loved it, but I was still frustrated with the lack of texture in my hair and the constant straightness.
It wasn’t until the second semester of my sophomore year, did I start trying to revive my curls. I used to think that my hair was naturally straight with a mix of curly and a dash of frizz. But my new roommate, Courtney Keaton, told me differently. The next few months were filled with product after product and wash after wash and deep conditioner after deep conditioner until finally, my natural curls started to make an appearance.
Thanks to Courtney, I’ve got curls every week and curls that I love and am able to style in ways that I love. It’s still a learning process, but I’m starting to find my natural hair underneath all the damage it had suffered when I was growing up. And because of this, I’ve become more confident and more proud of my natural black beauty.