Let me ask you a very important question.
What really do you want from your hair?
For me, my hair goal would be having a full, healthy crown with beautiful edges and little to no breakage (inadvertently leading to length retention)
Though human wants are insatiable and diverse, one thing that is sure, is that almost everyone prays for a thriving crown.
For some people however, priorities might be slightly tweaked or misplaced. I have met ladies who care only about hair length retention and go about it in the absolute wrong way! These people usually have a huge phobia for hair trims.
My darling, keeping split ends in the name of length retention is a blunder that would hurt even more with time. You have to do things the right way. In my previous posts, I have over flogged the necessary actions required to aid length retention. In summary, they include Optimal trims when due, a consistent hair care routine and Tender Loving Care for your crown.
We all want to flaunt a long crown especially with the shrinkage struggle of 4c hair but it should never be at the expense of your hair health.
My main motto when I decided to go natural two years ago was : To choose health over length.
As painful as it was letting go of my relaxed ends, I knew it was going to pay off in the long run. Though I am still fresh on my journey, I can boldly tell you that I have zero regrets.
5 tips that have assisted with achieving my hair goals include;
- Identifying and mapping out every goal; It is near impossible to plan/ work towards anything when you have no idea of the end game. I really feel it helps to map out and even write down every single hair goal you can identify before beginning your hair journey. This would consciously /unconsciously help you gravitate towards those goals.
- Noting bad hair practices; Let’s be real with ourselves, somehow we all have bad hair practices that seem to grow on us. Without checking and curtailing these bad practices, our crown might just bear the brunt and wallow in the sea of failure to thrive. Mine was particularly for my edges; I was a sucker for using tight wigs, making tight weaves and sleeping without my hair bonnet as well. Once I identified these bad hair practices I began to notice positive hair changes and my goals seemed more attainable.
- Consistent TLC; Tender Loving care to your scalp and crown in general can never, and would never be overrated. In my last hair post, I wrote about speaking positively to your crown. I imbibe the habit and my crown sure does respond positively. Please take a cue from the confessions as you put in extra efforts to remain consistent with your hair care regimen.
- Adopting the protective styling culture ; I used to be a major hair manipulator, and I honestly wasn’t helping myself. It wasn’t until I delved deeper into caring for my hair that I realized how Uber important protective hair styles are. As long as the hair style is truly protective it would do your crown so much good and give it the time it needs to blossom.
- Celebrating the little wins and avoiding comparism ; Sometimes impatience could cause us to miss some little wins in our hair journey. Most times this same impatience consequently leads to hair comparison. Sis! Know that you are unique in your being and no two ladies, hair texture, behavior or growth rate are exactly the same. You need to take a chill pill and enjoy the hair journey. Please avoid being caught in the melancholic web of comparison, it would do you no good.
So people, these are the tips that have brought me a little closer to achieving my natural hair goals since I commenced this beautiful journey. I do hope some, if not all of these tips would be useful in your journey as well. Stay blessed always guys❤️
