Naturals that went back to relaxing, any regrets?

[SignatureBeauty]

I regret not taking the time to learn how to handle natural hair better. I had given up and I hated the fact that that I quit so easy. It has enabled me this time to be more determined and focused. I am also learning why my past natural journeys went sour. I mishandled my hair. I am better equipped this time and have a better support system. That alone has gotten me this far.

I am with you DD, I quit easy to, and my only issue was length, but all these times of switching back and forth do nothing but lead me right back to where I started, It has been 5 years and I have been natural & relaxed, I could of had a Super Fro by now

 

[DDTexlaxed]

I am with you DD, I quit easy to, and my only issue was growth, but all these times of switching back and forth do nothing but lead me right back to where I started, It has been 5 years and I have been natural & relaxed, I could of had a Super Fro by now

You and me both, girl! This is # 8 or 9 BC for me. MY stylist will be ready for me at the end of the year. I think I have finally had enough though.

 

[SignatureBeauty]

DD are you going in Dec 08 to BC? I am gonna let mine just grow out, since it won't take long, You always learn something new after you relax your hair! LOL!!! We gotta stop this DD and stick with it, you hear what I say Girl????? We Gotta Stop!

 

[FemmeCreole]

Posted in here before (p.1) but I just had to come in again

I still have no regrets almost 5 months later. My hair has been thriving and I'm enjoying the ease and convenience I now have. No more spending 5hrs on my hair and starting to prepare a whole 3 hrs in advance just to get my hair in check.

Now I can be spontaneous again

 

[glamazon386]

My hair did this too..it seemed to be getting dense..

Our hair is similar. I get the feeling it's never going to hang.

 

[OneInAMillion]

bumping...

I'm having this debate again...currently natural but I really feel like the ssks are hindering my progress so I want to go back to texturizing.

 

[pookaloo83]

I regret it. I'm transitioning now.

 

[Ladybelle]

no regrets. I'm a super-stretcher and my hair is pleased. So, we (me & my hair) have found some common ground and our relationship has never been better.

 

[Junebug D]

No regrets yet.

 

[ebaby]

only relaxed three days ago and loving it but I miss the super big hair...too flat!

 

[glamazon386]

I think I'm going to texturize around Christmas time. I've been thinking about it quite a bit for the past few months and when I went to get my hair done the other day my stylist mentioned it to me so I think that was a sign. The longer my hair gets, the more it is shrinking. I still feel like I'm bald headed even though I have a good amount of hair now. He told me how he wants to do it, and it sounds about right and I'll still have my fro. The curl will just loosen a little bit and hang better. I'm just gonna go ahead and do it. I trust him as I've been going to him for almost 2 years now. I let him highlight my hair a year ago so it won't be the first time he's put a chemical in my hair. I am always pleased with his results.

I've been natural for 2 years now and I think I'm over it. I only went natural to start over fresh since my relaxed hair was thin and damaged. It had gotten better after being here on the board for a year but I only relaxed a few times a year anyway and was curious to see what my natural texture looked like. As far as the thin hair thing goes, it turns out that my hair is thin by nature. Nothing I can do about it. I never went natural to make a statement. It's just what I felt like doing at the time.

I can't really do much with my hair now anyway and I'm tired of having it covered up the majority of the time for that reason. My hair is usually in a weave, under a wig or pulled back in a bun. I did the same thing when I was relaxed. It's too long to be a short hairstyle but it's too short to be considered long. I don't wear natural hairstyles, i.e. twists, braids, coils, etc. because I don't like how they look on my fine hair. If I get it straightened, it's a lot of work to keep it straight. It only looks good for a few days and after that I don't feel like being bothered. Whats the point in putting all this care and TLC into my hair and having a good amount just to not even wear it out? I'm tired... I'm going back to the chemicals. At least I'll be able to rollerset and have my biweekly appointments and styles. I've really missed that.

Wow I forgot all about this. This was over a year ago. I decided not to texturize after all.

 

[Creatividual]

Wow Glamazon. That's always crazy when we read our past thoughts and realize how diff they are from our thoughts now.

 

[glamazon386]

Wow Glamazon. That's always crazy when we read our past thoughts and realize how diff they are from our thoughts now.

Exactly. I'm in a totally different place with my hair now. I mean I still think it grows as slow as the dickens but other than that I'm good. I'm glad I didn't go through with it. I'd probably be transitioning now if I did.

 

[kim]

I relaxed and I regret it. I complained about the tangles and knots when I was natural and now they are 2x as bad. I miss my thick hair and my curls. I can't wait to be natural again!!!

 

[MaintaintheSexy]

I love relaxers and when I had one, I was uneducated on how to take care of my hair and it never thrived. Because my hair never thrived, meaning it never grew past my shoulders. I went to one Dominican Salon after the next and I never found one woman who connected with me and my hair. I never found ONE. And as a result of going from beautician to beautician and then taking matters into my own hands, I ended up damaging my hair. After almost five years of a vicious cycle of weaves, braids, this style and that, improper relaxers and texturizers, scissor happy stylists, bad hair decisions, and so on, I've decided to grow my hair naturally, because for me, it grows faster in this state. When it grows to a length that is satisfying for me, I am going to relax it again and take care of it like I never did before and I know I will not regret it.

 

[Mom23]

I relaxed again and I regret it. I have started another transition, and will probaby big chop at 20 weeks.

 

[melodies815]

Great thread Felicia.

I wonder how it feels to be able to run your pinky horizontally to part the hair as a relaxed head and not get snags . I daydream about this often.

I know your comment is old, but I just tried to run my pinky maybe an inch into my hairline. NOT!!! HAHAHA!!! Forget snags. I was just plain STOPPED! It's a doggone roadblock up in my head.

Great line!!! I dream of relaxing when I get to the length I want...not sure that I will though... *sigh*

cj

 

[Crackers Phinn]

ok here is the honest to G-d truth.

I'm lightweight mad that I went natural in the first place.

I went natural because I thought it would be easier to retain length. When I think about how much hair I have cut off in the past 3+ years due to knots (don't even mention my BC) I'm like I just wasted my time and length.

I've only been re-relaxed for a few weeks and trust me when I say that I don't miss a damn thing about being natural. I thought I was going to feel some kind of guilt or regret when I sat in the stylist chair, but that sooooo didn't happen. The first time I washed my hair and was able to detangle in less than a minute, I felt like somebody had just let me out of jail.

I think the reason I felt this way was that I never put too much emphasis on natural hair being part of my identity. I wore a bun with natural hair and I wear a bun with relaxed hair. The bun is representative of my style and personality, the crinklyness or straightness of the bun is just a means to the end.

So my long winded answer is - no regrets.

I feel 95% the same way. Something I miss about being natural is not having to get touch ups. I'm not a DIY'er so it means going to the salon.

I've been pondering lately as to whether I could pull off being a 'straight' natural to avoid the knot issue, but I think I'ma ride out this relaxer thing out for a while.

And yeah, my primary style is still a bun.

 

[Eiano]

Sometimes I do sometimes I don't. I feel as though if I knew then what I knew now, I'd have healthier, longer hair.... but I'd also be spending more time doing it.

I like being able to comb my hair and wash my own hair in the shower and not have to worry about MAJOR detangling.... like an hour worth of detangling

 

[KiSseS03]

Bump, I'm around BSL natural and considering a texturizer...

 

[GeorginaSparks]

Yes i regret it so im transitioning back to natural. My reasoning for relaxing previously was because of SSKs. I didnt know it was common and there werent as many naturals on LHCF. I had to get all my advice from Napp*****.
Thing is i didnt even think to ask about knots on my hair. I kept finding them and pulling them out and i relaxed from frustration. I just recently found out they are called SSK. lol

 

[Crackers Phinn]

ok here is the honest to G-d truth.

I'm lightweight mad that I went natural in the first place.

I went natural because I thought it would be easier to retain length. When I think about how much hair I have cut off in the past 3+ years due to knots (don't even mention my BC) I'm like I just wasted my time and length.

I've only been re-relaxed for a few weeks and trust me when I say that I don't miss a damn thing about being natural. I thought I was going to feel some kind of guilt or regret when I sat in the stylist chair, but that sooooo didn't happen. The first time I washed my hair and was able to detangle in less than a minute, I felt like somebody had just let me out of jail.

I think the reason I felt this way was that I never put too much emphasis on natural hair being part of my identity. I wore a bun with natural hair and I wear a bun with relaxed hair. The bun is representative of my style and personality, the crinklyness or straightness of the bun is just a means to the end.

So my long winded answer is - no regrets.

I feel 95% the same way. Something I miss about being natural is not having to get touch ups. I'm not a DIY'er so it means going to the salon.

I've been pondering lately as to whether I could pull off being a 'straight' natural to avoid the knot issue, but I think I'ma ride out this relaxer thing out for a while.

And yeah, my primary style is still a bun.

LOL I'm natural again.

I don't regret relaxing. At that point in my hair journey it was necessary for my sanity to do so. I wanted length and I wanted the world to be able to see it and relaxing gave that to me. I got to WSL and promptly lost my cotdayum mind when it came to maintaining the hair care regimen that had got me to that point. Any and everything I could have done wrong I did and my hair broke off. Since I was at the end of a 20+ week stretch and needed a significant cut I decided to transition and here I am.

 

[KaramelDiva1978]

I bc'd May 2010 my first time natural and had fun with my natural hair for two years. I relaxed two weeks ago wanting length, my roller wraps and sets and to enjoy my hair with less time involved in prep and styling. My hair is grazing APL and super healthy and I have NO REGRETS. It was time and I dont forsee going natural again anytime soon. I have full appreciation for the creamy crack. Lol

I think its a great journey and with forums like this one you can have happy healthy hair in its relaxed or natural state.

 

[afroette]

Sometimes when I think of the cost of salon care or the unhealthiness of my hair. Style-wise, I prefer relaxed.

I don't miss the shedding that resembled hairs from down below.

 

[**SaSSy**]

I was natural the first time for almost 5 yrs, then texlaxed/relaxed for 2 yrs, now I've been natural for 20 mos. I have no plans to flipflop again. I appreciate my natural more now than ever before, and I get much more compliments on my hair now than before. When I was relaxed, the most I would hear was "Ooooo, your hair got so long" when I wore it out.

 

[Raspberry]

I relaxed in November 2011 and don't regret it. My biggest reason was needing the right balance between maintenance time and cuteness. My natural hair thrived but the effort needed to maintain styles I actually liked wasn't worth it for me in the long run. There's effort involved in keeping cute styles on my relaxed hair but it's still less than when I was natural.

The biggest downside to having relaxed hair is having to rely on a stylist. I still don't like the idea of self-relaxing but maybe I need to research it anyways just in case.

 

[KiSseS03]

I relaxed in November 2011 and don't regret it. My biggest reason was needing the right balance between maintenance time and cuteness. My natural hair thrived but the effort needed to maintain styles I actually liked wasn't worth it for me in the long run. There's effort involved in keeping cute styles on my relaxed hair but it's still less than when I was natural.

The biggest downside to having relaxed hair is having to rely on a stylist. I still don't like the idea of self-relaxing but maybe I need to research it anyways just in case.

Raspberry the bolded is exactly why I'm considering a texturizer. My hair is definitely the healthiest and longest it's ever been, but I'm not enjoying/showing it off whatsoever unless I spend hoooours. I just want my hair's beauty and cuteness to reflect it's health, and my personal style.

 

[KiSseS03]

LOL I'm natural again.

I don't regret relaxing. At that point in my hair journey it was necessary for my sanity to do so. I wanted length and I wanted the world to be able to see it and relaxing gave that to me. I got to WSL and promptly lost my cotdayum mind when it came to maintaining the hair care regimen that had got me to that point. Any and everything I could have done wrong I did and my hair broke off. Since I was at the end of a 20+ week stretch and needed a significant cut I decided to transition and here I am.

Crackers Phinn Wow I remember when you relaxed and I'm very surprised to see that you're natural again! May I ask, what changed from then (relaxing for your sanity/to show length, etc) to now? I want to relax for similar reasons...

 

[Bun Mistress]

I didn't relax, I ended up doing the keratin treatment. Relaxing and me never got along because my hair is very fine. Yes you have to repeat every so often but it has gotten really cheap to do at home. I do this and henna, I think is is making it permanent, because henna binds to keratin permanently? I don't know. It is heat damage because my hair feels really strong. And the curly come back but much slower (like months) but by then I Have repeated the process by then.

 

[GinnyP]

ok here is the honest to G-d truth.

I'm lightweight mad that I went natural in the first place.

I went natural because I thought it would be easier to retain length. When I think about how much hair I have cut off in the past 3+ years due to knots (don't even mention my BC) I'm like I just wasted my time and length.

I've only been re-relaxed for a few weeks and trust me when I say that I don't miss a damn thing about being natural. I thought I was going to feel some kind of guilt or regret when I sat in the stylist chair, but that sooooo didn't happen. The first time I washed my hair and was able to detangle in less than a minute, I felt like somebody had just let me out of jail.

I think the reason I felt this way was that I never put too much emphasis on natural hair being part of my identity. I wore a bun with natural hair and I wear a bun with relaxed hair. The bun is representative of my style and personality, the crinklyness or straightness of the bun is just a means to the end.

So my long winded answer is - no regrets.

I have just made up my mind iam going to relax you just said everything I was feeling thank you