The Great "Going Natural" Guide

Almost two years ago when I first started going natural, I scoured the Internet in search of a guide to going natural.

What shampoo should I use? What if I don't want to "Big Chop"? What if I can't find the right conditioners? How do I detangle? Which products to use?
All of these were questions I was dying to know in the quest to eliminate my hair of relaxers, but the problem was, I couldn't find anything. Sometimes... I found too much and the problem became determining who and what was right.

Recently one of my best friends (who chopped her hair a year ago and has been going natural under weaves) informed me that she too needed a manual. That she wanted a detailed how-to book or manual on going natural. I chuckled a bit and thought to myself, "Yeah, I'd like one of those too." The problem with finding such a manual is that EVERYONES HAIR IS DIFFERENT. Yes, even amongst black women, are hair comes in many different types and shapes and combinations of types and shapes. (Thank you, evolution!) There are some common threads, such as the majority of black women crave moisture, but a black woman whose hair is a Type 3B, isn't going to use the same product as a woman with a Type 4C. (I won't even touch on the women who don't even go by types).

This idea got me thinking, no one ever asks for a guide to taking care of relaxed hair or weaved hair or braided hair? I remember being 14 years old and being told "you'll have to take care of you hair if you want a perm." I was warned to keep my scalp oiled, keep my hair conditioned, wrap it at night, and get touch-ups every six weeks. It seemed easier, quicker. Why was it that going from my grandmother's press-n-curls to relaxers didn't throw me into a fizzy to find a manual or guidebook?

But I've now gone off into a tangent, because examining why being natural is so foreign (and sometimes derided) to black women, is a true examination of the black woman's psyche into beauty. And there are plenty of books out there that examine that fact, I would recommend "Hair Story: Untangling the Roots of Black Hair in America" by Ayana D. Byrd.

The best possible way to learn how to handle natural hair is EXPERIMENTATION. It certainly leads to frustration and heart break, but I can't be anymore happier about learning what worked (and didn't work) in my hair. And although there isn't any manual or guide book out there (although Barnes & Noble has a few books that I've never checked out, that claim to be guidebooks), blogs, YouTube and natural hair sites can work easily as well. As I said earlier, it can be difficult finding reputable sites, but it doesn't hurt to start with the most popular/familiar ones like Curly Nikki or Naturally Curly that can like to other lesser known (but just as good) blogs or sites.

Despite everything I've just said, starting tomorrow I'll begin my first in a few "chapters" on going natural. Not only because I promised my best friend that I would give her a guide or that I always have a friend or two calling me for hair advice, but because I started writing this to detail my hair experience and it's about time that I share what I've learned so far.