Hurting for good, healthy hair

I feel guilty.  I shouldn’t have done it.  Whyyyy did I do it??

What did I do?

Me with straight, fine hair

I got a perm – an unhealthy and powerful, damaging, straightening, smoothing, shining, make-me-feel-better chemical relaxer.

Yup, that’s me with my relaxed head plopped in front of my computer doing healthy hair research, again.  I’m currently interested in finding out what would be best for me: to stay permed or “go natural”? Decisions, decisions.  And I made one last week.  I was holding on so strong, but I caved.  It’s just, I want to be happy with the hair God has given me, but I also feel that even though it burns, is unhealthy and can cause breakage – straight, manageable, shiny hair is just better.  Hm.

Tyra Banks talked about this very notion on one of her shows.  She asked the question: what does it mean to have “good” hair?  Here’s one part of her “good hair” show:

Anyway, I’m also trying to figure out which products I can use to keep my hair in tip top healthy shape!  I guess you could say, I’m on a healthy hair journey … yeah, that’s getting a little played out; google “healthy hair journey” and see what you get.  But, it must mean something if all these black women feel the need to be on healthy hair journeys, right?

youtube=http://www.youtube.com/user/healthyhairjourney?blend=3&ob=4

And I am learning from these Web chronicles.  Tomorrow I will be 23, so I guess now is a great time to really really start figuring out how to prevent my hair from chronically breaking.  Yeah, that’s a problem with me.  Also, I hope to learn how to get my hair to grow to a length that doesn’t always stop above the shoulders! 

So, this is the beginning of something big.  I am going to write about my hair escapades and do some research. And I will want to hear from you:  are you in the same boat?  Have you figured out a routine that works for your hair?  What are your most shocking and even funny hair stories?  (By the way, I think this topic will last for much longer than a week!)

Also, I hope to answer more questions: why do black women have a hard time with this hair thing?  Why is hair just a universal self-defining feature for all women?  How can women maintain beautiful, healthy hair from the outside and from the inside? 

Well, I am assuming healthy hair starts from within.  I’m assuming that by believing you can achieve something, you will.  So then, let’s get started!  This time next year I hope to have amazing, beautiful, long, healthy hair.  (Wow, that was really scary to say and believe, but let’s go with it!)