Hair

A Transitioning Tale Update

In February, I posted the transitioning tale of a lovely diva named Deirdra (See full post here: Transitioning Tale: Deirdra's Story), who began her journey from relaxed to natural in the fall of 2009. When I first interviewed Deirdra, she was just one month into her transition. Now one year and seven months later, we're checking in to see how things have changed as she updates us on her journey.
Deirdra: During the past year, I have been primarily a co-washer. My hair dries enough to not drip within a half hour's time so I haven't been very limited in terms of going out with a wet head during the colder months. I went through a phase of twist outs but I felt that I was manipulating my hair too much by the time I factored in detangling and then the actual work to part and create the twists, plus the time involved was pretty lengthy for results that only lasted a day or two using the products I use since I don't like a lot of tack or stickiness in my hair. Sometimes I 'fro my hair but while it looks GREAT & has resulted in my being called 'Foxy' at work on days that I wear it that way :-), it is definitely hard to 'take down' without serious effort to gently detangle.

I taught myself how to roller set using youtube videos and magnetic rollers and achieved amazing huge Chaka Khan-esque results. I may straighten my hair monthly via blow drying and then use either a flat iron or curling iron (never both). My results typically look the same as when I was permed, with a little more volume if humid out. I still feel that the heat is very damaging to my hair and since I love my curls dearly and fear that I will permanently ruin my curl pattern each time I straighten, I am trying to cut back on even my monthly straightening session.

My family and friends have been increasingly supportive since I've transitioned. My husband loves the versatility of my hair and I get compliments and requests for my haircare regimen regularly when I'm out in public. My daughters now draw pictures of people with curly hair! Most importantly, I love my hair and am really enjoying the continuing process of learning how to care for it in its natural state. I'm hoping to scale down my product regimen to five or less staple products and grow more comfortable with heat-free styling in the months to come.

My current hair care product rotation consists of:

Co-wash/leave in:

• Herbal Essences Hello Hydration (which I use as a co-wash conditioner and honestly, as a leave in too, since I adore the scent)
• Tresemme Moisturizing conditioner (which has a lighter consistency and really allows my curls to "pop" after a fresh detangling session)
• Aussie Moist (used the same way as the two aforementioned conditioners)
• Suave Almond and Shea Butter conditioner (I typically pick one conditioner to use on any given day and decide which one to go with based on how dry or moisturized my hair feels prior to co-washing or which scent I want)

Scalp treatments (I use one of the following, depending on the scent I desire):

• Pure coconut oil
• Jamaican Castor Oil pomade
• EVOO

Moisturizer:

• Carol's Daughter Lite Hair Milk
• Pure coconut oil

Twist outs:

• Shea Moisture Curl Enhancing Smoothie

Roller Sets:

• Pure coconut oil
• Bronner Bros. Wrapping Lotion Foam

Thank you, Deirdre, for updating us on your natural hair journey! We see you've made great progress, and are so glad to have you serve as a great inspiration to us all.