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Those guilty stretches past wash day you might have enjoyed on the creamy crack are gonna have to be a thing of the past now that you're natural.
Natural hair does not take kindly to droughts. Be prepared to see your hair stiffen up to the point of unmanageability and literally break off in pieces if you don't hydrate it deeply or regularly enough. |
Don't compromise on your products
Take preemptive action against tangles
Sectioning will save you the most grief: wash your hair, condition it and allow it to dry in secure sections, to avoid tangling. And use a slippery conditioner and a super slippery moisturising leave in to remove knots and prevent retangling.
Good slip is a must on naturally curly hair: it makes tangles less likely to form and easier to take out when they do appear. This not only saves you styling time, it prevents breakage, allowing your hair to grow to longer lengths. Keeping your hair in protective styles (as long as you keep it well moisturised) will also reduce detangling time, but you don't always have to put away your tresses. |
Twistouts, rod sets, or simply sectioning and actively smoothing your curls into supercurls, rather than letting them lay where they fall, are all examples of these more structured styles. If your hair is seriously tangle prone you may well have to leave your fro for special occasions only; the separation of strands in this style makes it much easier for tangles to form.
Only comb when your hair is full of conditioner
Forget about that fine-toothed comb
For most naturals, it'll just get lost in the fullness and its too-close-together teeth can roughen up your hair's cuticle, making your tresses tangle more.
To avoid broken combs and broken hair, it's best to relinquish the fine-toothed comb now that your natural curls are back. Go for a seamless wide-toothed comb or a brush with flexible bristles, the tips of which do not scrape your hair. |
Schedule your haircare
Understand curl definition
Don't let a quest for curl definition dominate or otherwise overshadow your natural experience.
There is so much more going on in the natural hair realm than this tiny corner of styling options. Whatever you do, definitely avoid the trapdoor that says defined hair is better than undefined hair. It's not. |
stay patient, stay focused & stay in love with your hair
By following these tried-and-tested tips, you can balance your haircare duties with living the rest of your life. Understand that it might take some time to truly understand your newly natural hair – after all, you've grown accustomed to dealing with a completely different hair type.
Realise that your hair is not going to be quite like anybody else's and revel in that! Each strand comes with a combination of vulnerabilities and possibilities that is not repeated on any other head of hair in the world. Embrace this cool element of yourself and you'll have conquered one small but significant front in fully embracing and enjoying the true you!
Image Credits
Monique Hilkus | gosheshe | Paul Stocker | Matt Reinbold | Remy the Quill
Thanks Cynthia
Thank you!
Any new content for naturals? Products?
Hi Geisa,
Look out for some really cool new content in the next few weeks on this site. We also have new infographics and mini-guides based on blog articles (including this one) on Pinterest and Facebook.
I have perm before. But now my hair course and Nappies. Now I perm it only grow front and the sides .but it don't Grow in middle. And so so so so so so so dry and I do wash it and use moisture and I let it breath.I don't know what to do. From Anne Kimble
Hi Ann,
Thanks for reaching out!
If you're washing, conditioning and moisturising regularly, then the problem is most likely the products you're using. For severe dryness, you need to get more moisture to penetrate your hair, by using stronger products and by working in your conditioner in a different way:
https://www.dominicanhairalliance.com/dha-diy-haircare-blog/get-your-hair-like-seaweed-why-its-so-good
The ones I'd most highly recommend for this:
CLARIFY: atrActiva Anti-Stress Shampoo
DEEP CONDITION: atrActiva Multivitamin Treatment over atrActiva Keratin Rich OR Halka Baba de Caracol Mask over Halka Baba de Caracol Conditioner
MOISTURISE: La Aplanadora Leave In
Use them to moisture train your hair like this:
https://www.dominicanhairalliance.com/dha-diy-haircare-blog/moisture-training-what-it-is-how-it-helps-your-hair
On your hair not growing in the middle, there could be different reasons. One could be that your hair is so dry, in that section, that it's breaking off at a faster rate than the rest of your hair.
Other possible reasons could be scalp damage from the perm or a medical condition.
We always advise getting a medical opinion for scalp issues and we also have this article on steps you can take yourself that could boost your hair growth as well.
https://www.dominicanhairalliance.com/hair-blog/how-to-thicken-and-grow-your-hair-naturally
Hope this helps!
I Really hope it works .and another can I ask you Guys one more question why do my hair Itch so so so so much. My Mom use to tell that's was dander .I don't know. From Anne Maria Kimble
Hi Anne,
On the itchiness, it could be several different things. Sometimes it is dandruff, as your mom said, some other common reasons are:
Irritation or build up from not rinsing shampoo or conditioner out all the way
Dry scalp
An allergic reaction to a product
Dermatitis/eczema/psoriasis
If it's just from a dry scalp or not rinsing enough, then sometimes a simple solution like this will work:
1) increase the frequency of your shampoos, focusing on scrubbing the scalp gently but firmly with the pads of your fingers (not nails)
2) rinse your shampoo and conditioner out thoroughly and with warm water
3) avoid using anything on the scalp - even natural oils - for a while.
But if the itchiness persists, definitely get in touch with a trichologist. That way, they can get to the root of the problem.
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