I've been relaxing my hair since I was 12, and eventually I want to go natural. Not only do I not like the heat that's placed on my hair with the flat iron, I don't like how I can't scratch my head when I get a touch-up. My only problem is that I'm a bit scared of what people will think and say if I go natural. I have A LOT of hair, and if I rock an Afro, it's insane. Kids will probably scream and cling to their mommies and I probably won't get hired in some places if I decide to go natural. It's a struggle.

I used to chemically straighten my hair, but I don't anymore.  I was not going to cut it while making the transition, but I was finishing my Master's degree and I had just had my son so stress and hormones caused a bald spot so I had no choice. 

I love my hair now.  Its so versatile.  I can straighten it with one of those flat irons that dries and straightens it all at once, I can use products to make the curls nice and tame, or I can wear a kick ass afro. 

I think I straightened my hair b/c when I started straightening my hair they didn't have the products they have now.  There is no way I would have relaxed my hair if I had the stuff they have now days.

I go through electrolysis.  BIG ouch.  Haha  But in the end it will probably be worth the pain and money.  Not as expensive as laser hair removal though, that's for sure.

those girls were beautiful just the way they were
I think that we should stop trying to change ourselves and just accept the way we all look because we all are beautiful.

I just use a chemical straightener. MY hair is more wavy moreso than kinky, so I just use a kiddy relaxer to soften the texture. I'd rather spend that $5 for the box than $40+ to get it pelted with hot combs to lie flat only to frizz up 5 seconds after I leave the salon. My sister went natural & it's cool for her but I cant do that. I'll burn myself! XD I started using relaxers when I was 12 because it was an trial to do my hair. Now I can wash & go or use a ceramic iron if I want to.

--->MiNA<3

I've been straightening my hair since I was 16. My hair is naturally a little bit frizzy, so straightening it makes it easy to manage and low maintenance. All I have to do is shower and towel dry! 

i chemically straighten my hair once a year but it's never painful... i agree that a woman's hair really defines her though. i can't imagine myself with short hair, i feel more feminine with longer hair.

I'm one of those people who has "good hair."  I was light-skinned with curly, non-kinky hair.  I never had my hair chemically straightened, but I will flat iron or blow dry it straight.  in middle school I was often called "yellow" because of my complexion.  after I returned to the north after attending college in south florida, the #1 comment I got from everyone was, "wow, you're so DARK" like an insult. 

I think it's true how many US black people don't know their herritage and it has a detrimental effect.  My dad recently found out he is German (he's white, adopted by a black family as a child) and for the first time in my life I felt like I "belonged" somewhere besides being a black American.  It was hard going to college with non-US blacks who had a strong culture and always looked at me funny when I told them I didn't know where my family is from.

back on topic, I think hair is a big struggle all women deal with, black, white, or purple.  is it wrong to go against nature by coloring, straightening, curling, and weaving?  I think it's okay as long as it's how you express yourself, but if it's soley because you have underlying identity and esteem issues, then those need to be delt with separately.  nice post.

@imsum1special2@xanga - 

I agree with you fully as I too was referred to as "yellow" or "bright light" growing up and I would get made fun of and singled out for being so much lighter than my classmates.

What's worse is that I have no idea were my family came from.  My mother is African American and she does not know where she's from in Africa.  My father is a whole different story as he was born out of wedlock and his father's family were all very pale African Americans (so I've been told by sources other than the family itself).  Because of this, I am missing practically all of heritage and for so long I've been lost.  Whenever I asked about a family member's heritage in comparison to my own, I was met with glares.  My family felt like it was none of my business and after I pestered them, I was told that I must have been ashamed to be Black!?

I "manage" my hair with mild processes and straighten it with flat irons because I prefer my hair long and straight or wavy.  I don't feel as if I am a product of the system for it, nor do I feel as if I am trying to be someone that I am not.  I like my hair straight because when I take care of it, it grows longer and faster because I don't have to rip out tangles and the natural oils from my scalp move all the way down the hair shaft instead of being stopped by bends and curls.  I have always experimented with my hair because my mom is a beautician and because I get these services for free, I take advantage of it.  I have been processing my hair (meaning I relax it, but only leave it on for as long as it takes to get the perm on the whole head carefully) since I was maybe 11 or 12 and I only ever get my hair processed once every 6 months or so.  I got my first weave when I was 15 because I made a huge mistake and cut all of my hair off because I thought I could pull off a pixie cut.  I've gotten maybe one weave a year since then for a few months until now because my hair has finally grown back to the length it was before it was cut.  My hair has been streaked blue, green, red, purple, and brown and my whole head was blonde for 6 months before I dyed it bright red.  Now I've got it dyed blue-black and I'm considering getting it cut into a Bettie Page style bob.

Your hair is what you make it and I believe that it is not a reflection of your love or hatred toward yourself, but another part of your physical expression.  Just as clothes make the man, hair can also convey what you want it to.  My hair says that I am eccentric, I wear cat-eye glasses, and vintage clothes and my hair matches and helps to show that.  I admire Audrey Hepburn as well as Eartha Kitt, Marylin Monroe and Dorothy Dandridge.  Since I don't know my own heritage, I try to move beyond it into thinking of myself as an individual human being with my own mind and ideas.  Don't let the boundary of race or the media define who you are or what you do!

My hair has bit of curl to it, but the past few times I've gotten my hair cut and I let the stylist style it they always straighten it.  I really don't like it.  I think curly hair is beautiful but straight hair can be too.  Mine is a bit in between, it took me forever to figure out what to do with it.   Now I just use an organic styling gel to help bring out the natural curl that I have, my hair feels softer and healthier now.  I think healthy hair is the most beautiful hair.

My mother permed my hair often when I was little, looking back at photos, it looked awful and poofy.

I'm sorry, but usually it bothers me when I hear American black people talk about how they're from Africa. But...it broke my heart to see all those children pick the white babydoll and say that the black one was ugly...I was just like, aww. And, just for the record, they do have culture--the American one. Just because it's not foreign doesn't mean that it doesn't exist. 

@Evolutionary_21@xanga - I'm honestly sorry I offended you. I didn't mean it offensively--I was just stating my opinion. And I understand that viewpoint, but I don't say I'm from England or France or wherever my family is originally from; when someone asks me that question, I always say I'm from Georgia or the United States. Once again, I'm sorry for offending you. 

@LithiumLuver@xanga - That's cool...I'm part Cherokee too. I'm just glad I wasn't just been an insensitive person, so thank you.