The Natural Hair Struggles

Retrieved from: blackhair.about.com

So since the emergence of "No More Creamy Crack", more commonly known as the Natural Hair Movement, a lot of women across the globe have signed on to the whole shin dig. A lot of us current Naturalistas originally thought that this transition back to the original textures of our hair would be fun and easy. Besides how hard could it be to regrow  and manage your natural hair? Oh you really wanna know? Let me tell you just how real the struggle is living with natural hair.

1. Would you grow already?!: Every one starts off on this journey full of hope for the future, daydreaming of the long curly mane they'll be sporting. Surfing Youtube day and night trying to absorb as much info as you can. On the other hand, no one thinks of the fact that your hair takes literally FOREVER to actually grow. Honestly sometimes it feels like your hair follicles hate you. Then you watch all those American girls on Youtube saying they've been growing their hair for the same amount of time and you'd think they were the far removed cousins of Rapunzel. 
2.  Oh mister sun, sun, mister golden sun: The sun can be your worst enemy when you're living in a hot tropical climate. You leave the house with your twist out on a fleekage level of HOT DANG and then during the ten minutes you take to walk to the bus stop  your hair's looking something like a dried out old sponge. No amount of hair mayonnaise can save you now. It's gone....it's just...gone.
3. We cool and everything, but don't touch: It seems that on your best hair day, when you took the effort to painstakingly place every single curl in the correct spot, that people be putting their unwashed hands up in your hair. I can tell you now that every single natural haired girl has considered either decapitating or punching those people in the face every single time. Not today Satan! Keep your hands to yourself until I give you permission to touch the merchandise (which may actually be never). 
4.  Why are you so high maintenance??!! WHY?!: Whenever you see a girl on the street with her natural hair looking like a pile of awesomeness on top her head, let her know it. Why? Cuz you don't know the struggle that is the process of actually making you hair look presentable for the next day. The time that it takes to wash, de-tangle, spin, twist, plait, comb through, moisturize and still get enough sleep to not look a pile of hot mess in the morning is serious. Naturalistas honestly make magic happen every morning (that is when we don't have weave in our hair lol).

The problems that I mentioned are not only faced by 'third worlders' but pretty much every woman that's going natural on the globe. Some have it worse than others but we're still all in the struggle together. I chose to limit myself to four points but believe me... the list can go on. And on. And on....

Don't get me wrong, I have thoroughly enjoyed my natural hair journey. Both the days of "I'm one fine mama jama" and the days of "Gimme a scissors, I can't take this anymore". But eventually you just learn to take it all in stride and roll with the breakage. 

Third World Black Girl