A Natural Woman

i made 2 resolutions in 2008 --- i was reaching the age of 50 and there were 2 things that i wanted to do... they both involved acts of regression....

first i wanted to regress to my natural name ... taking back my maiden name after 25 years... i'd been divorced since 1989 and always planned on going back to my maiden name if i hadn't remarried by the time my son was 18 ... i kept putting it off.. putting it off... finally in august 2009, i filed the paperwork to go back to my maiden name....

secondly, i wanted to regress to my natural hair... only i planned on doing that at 55... for some reason, that was the magic number for me.... that happened sooner than i thought...

my hair was first relaxed when i went off to college @ PVAMU in 1976...i came home after my first semester relaxed and cut really short... daddy was pissed ... not about the relaxer .. about the cut... just didn't believe that women should cut your crowning glory... told me that he did not send me to college to cut my hair...anyway, it was too late... i was doing my own relaxers with the help of my roommates...

the first time a professional did my relaxer was after i got married in 1984...i periodically did them after that... especially after i got a divorce and needed to cut back on my spending... in 1991, i started going to a stylist on a regular basis... watching one of the threads on the jamacian blow-out .. my stylist has been doing that forever... she was always very careful about heat, the type of relaxer that was used (i have a sensitive scalp), etc... many times she she wouldn't do what i wanted because i was very undisciplined when it came to taking care of my hair... at one point my hair was beneath my shoulder until i rashly decided one day that i wanted it cut to a short bob...loved it but it was so much more work for me....i talked her into adding golden highlights once and she cautioned me about sleeping in a satin bonnet, etc.. i didn't listen... went off on a job and combined vacation in europe.. used hotel shampoos/conditioners .. came back with so much breakage, she vowed never to put golden highlights in my hair ever again...

in october 2009, i started work on a 3-month trial... that was going to interfere with my standing every other wed appts... i decided that now was the time to begin transitioning...my stylist agreed to walk me through it but also told me up front that at some point, i should go ahead and BC. i went in whenever i could to see her ... she took care of my hair and watched for breakage... my plan was to transition at least until July when i went on vacation.

in april 10, 2010, i woke up on the morning of my regular appt and decided that time had to come to BC. i went in, told my stylist and she agreed...promising me that it was for best... and so we did... she talked me through it... assuring me that it was going to be great.... as she started cutting, i started thinking ... am i sure this is what i want to do?... she asked me if i was ok... i said hestitantly, 'yes'.... she said, 'good 'cause it's too late now...'... as i watched more and more hair fall to the ground around me, i closed my eyes... my stylist stopped and asked me again if i was ok... i said yeah yeah... let's get on with it...once she finished cutting, i opened my eyes and looked in the mirror... i ask her ... now what do i do... she showed me some products and styling techniques and said .. ok, let's get your brows done and you're set to go...

it looked cool... but i have to admit that i woke up the next morning thinking.. what the h*** did i do???

my hair and i are still in the honeymoon stage but we are getting to to know each other better and better each day...

i admit that "I AM A MAJOR PJ!!!"... still trying to develop a routine... i think i almost got it down... we'll see...

for now, i'm enjoying the ride and the new sights...

WELCOME!!

love the story and definitely...congrats on nifty fifty!! u sound like me...always got a plan! i look forward to plenty of pics and ur progress!

I enjoyed your story!!! I said I would go natural when I turned 50. I was about 20 years early.

Welcome to the block! Loved the story and am looking forward to pics! TGIF!!

thanks, all! i'm going to get better about the picture thing....have to say, the road has gotten easier for me since i found this site... i don't get quite so easily frustrated.... if it don't work, i wash it out and start over... lol

Awesome story! Looking forward to reading more and seeing some pictures! Yay!

Welcome!

@chrslvsbks - i had the anita baker cut when i was about 30... i liked it a lot but it proved to be more work for me... i'm really lazy about hair ... with relaxed hair i didn't sleep in a bonnet or on satin... i didn't wrap it... i just got up, brushed it out and went... that's one reason why my stylist is staying on me about my hair now....she knows how i am... i'm going to her next week so i hope to get a good review for taking care of my hair since she BC'd it.

Welcome to the block!! Thank you for sharing your story and your journey with us! Excited you joined CSJ!