ELEVEN REASONS YOU SHOULD LOVE AND CELEBRATE YOUR NATURAL HAIR

There is nothing as beautiful as loving our naturally curls. Natural hair is beautiful, magical, something of awe, and is something to be celebrated.

From time immemorial, natural afro hair has been a sacred aspect of Afro-Caribbean communities. However, Eurocentric beauty standards have tried to erase the rich heritage of our naturally coily hair. And this is why it became the norm to hide our naturally beautiful locks.

Many people manage their curls with heat treatments and chemical relaxers. Some genuinely love and rock this look. There are, however, some who use heat treatments and chemical relaxers because they don’t know how else to wear their hair. These treatments often leave us with a huge price to pay; dry, irritated scalps, frayed ends, and damaged curls.

What more, most products on the market were not designed with our hair type in mind. This is why I am a strong advocate for natural hair. You are beautiful, skin, nails, hair. All the works.

You are beautiful in all of your colourness, and I want to encourage you to stop managing your hair and to start celebrating it.

At the end of the day, we all have a choice as to how we want to look, and no choice is bad, especially if that choice fits and suits your lifestyle. But here are the reasons I strongly advocate for natural hair.

The reasons you should celebrate your natural hair

Your natural hair is healthy

Natural hair is mostly healthy because it doesn’t harbour any chemicals that weaken the hair or make it prone to breakage. While I don’t have anything against relaxers and other processing methods, they do contain harsh chemicals that are best avoided. So, celebrate your natural hair because it is healthy.

Your natural hair is actually the real, authentic you!

Your natural hair is the original you, the essence of the individual. The better you take care of yourself, the better you look, and your natural hair is a great manifestation of this.

Your natural hair makes you stand out

Natural afro hair is special and unique and immediately stands you out of the crowd. We don’t all wear our natural hair the same but every natural hair style seems to draw attention from everyone. Whether your hair is tightly coiled, or fluffy and springy, whether you are wearing it in a fro or cornrows, people cannot just seem to stop staring. So if you want to stand out in the crowd, loving and flaunting your natural hair is a good way to go.

Your natural hair is versatile

You can have on a fro today, a Mohawk tomorrow, and then some braids the next. The beautiful thing about natural hair is its versatility. You can decorate with clips, strings, jewellery. You can go low or go high. There is so much to do with your natural hair.

You join a beautiful community of naturals

As more and more women of colour move from hair relaxers to boldly and proudly wearing their natural hair, a beautiful community of naturals has grown. When you go natural, you join this community. There are thousands of natural hair care tips on YouTube and blogs so that you are never quite alone on your hair journey.

Natural hair care is affordable

Contrary to what people initially think, natural hair is actually not expensive to maintain. Yes, there are some pretty expensive hair care products out there, but there are also very many affordable ones. In fact, having natural hair is considered pretty affordable when compared to relaxed hair because of the maintenance required for relaxed hair. When you have relaxed hair, there is a need for you to buy relaxers every now and then. Meanwhile, you can literally throw your natural hair in a twist out one minute and wear it out in a dazzling style in the next couple of hours. With natural hair also, you can get away with no hitches on days you don’t really feel like making your hair. A spray bottle of water and conditioner may be all you use that day and you are good to go.

You become a role model for the next generation

Embracing ourselves in all ramifications has a huge impact on the next generation of younger females. When you wear your hair natural, you are teaching boldness, courage, and self-love. You are also teaching respect while looking fabulous.

With natural hair, you embrace new growth

With relaxed hair, you dread new growth because it signals another trip to the salon to get retouched. With natural hair however, you welcome new growth because it is a sign of healthy hair. New natural hair growth helps you to achieve and retain length, so it is worth celebrating.

You will really learn your hair

Most of us don’t really get to know our hair when the hair is relaxed because we are in the stylist’s chair as soon as new growth shows up. Natural hair however forces you (in a good way) to learn what your hair is all about. Not everyone will know how to handle your hair, so you are forced to learn hair care basics yourself. And by the way, who better to do your hair, but you?

Your natural teaches you to love yourself

Many women of colour grew up with limited media representation and product options and have been conditioned to think that a certain hair texture, length, or colour is the standard. Growing out your natural tresses teaches you to embrace yourself; all of you. You learn that healthy hair is beautiful hair, regardless of curl pattern or length. Perhaps one of the best testimonies I have heard about going natural is that it teaches us to treat our hair with patience and understanding because the gentler we are with it, the better it behaves.

The natural hair journey is a journey of self-discovery

If you haven’t been on the natural hair journey, you might not understand this last point. But I have hundreds of testimonials about people who truly, truly got to discover themselves as they went from relaxed to natural. I can also attest to this. Once you get to know your natural hair, there is just something beautiful and wondrous about how you feel about yourself that often defies explanation. So go ahead, why not give it a go?

So how can you celebrate your natural hair every day?

Join a support community for natural hair: This can be a small gathering of friends, a local community, an online forum. It is a fantastic way to enjoy amazing, uplifting energy that makes you feel great about your hair. It is also a great way to learn about new products, trade natural hair care tips, and get inspiration for new hair styles.

Support local businesses that care for or cater to natural hair: This means buying local products for natural hair that were tailored with curly hair in mind. So go support your local natural hair entrepreneurs.

Try a new style: You have an unlimited option in styling your natural hair because it is versatile, so why not go ahead and try a new style often. Beat the boredom and look great by trying a new style every week, or month (as you wish).

Finally, be kind to your hair. You may want to start your day by complimenting yourself, including your hair. Instead of being critical all the time, find out the things you actually love about you hair and hype yourself on that. It will raise your confidence through the roof. Remember, celebrating your natural hair is celebrating the whole of you; the original, authentic you.