Hair care is self-care
When my hair was relaxed, I took such good care of it. Coming to think about it, I can’t remember how I cared for my hair before I relaxed it in 2013. But anywho, I took extra care of it by not applying heat (I literally only flat ironed my hair or blow dried it when I went to the salon), making sure I moisturised and sealed it hair every other night, used rollers to dry my hair and the list goes on.
In summer 2018 when I shaved my head (yes shave... there was no ‘big chop’) I restarted my ‘natural’ hair journey. But the problem was, I saw my hair was a chore. I absolutely hated the whole rigamarole. Plus, I have a sensitive scalp, and sensitive scalp plus thick hair can be extremely painful to deal with.
But, towards the end of December 2020, I made a vow to myself that in 2021, I would take more active care of my hair, as a form of self-care. I know that most times we see self-care on social media as face masks, bubble baths and so forth. To be honest, these are great forms of self-care (I personally love me a face mask).
But sometimes, self-care is really doing something you hate or something you must force yourself to do for your benefit.
Before, I used to wash my hair once a month because I couldn’t justify the pain of the sensitive scalp drama. The irony though, is that my hair actually grew so much which I think is the result of EXTREMELY low manipulation – sis was just doing her thang! Since starting this hair care journey, I wash my hair more often (aka every 2 weeks as most black people do .. I think), give myself a scalp massage every now and again, and just stopped complaining about having to wash my hair.
As a black girl, washing my hair is almost ritualistic because of the sheer amount of things I need to have. And when we say ‘wash day’ we truly mean wash DAY! My entire wash day routine lasts three to five hours.
It starts with my pre-poo (with apple cider vinegar and tea tree oil to cleanse my scalp) and detangle (with water, but recently I added a *cheap* conditioner to the water and it detangled even quicker than before - shout out to Tarmy for the idea!)
Then, I wash it using a sulphate free shampoo and conditioner from Cream of Nature. Every month, I do a deep condition which I make myself with mayo and various oils. That ‘cooks’ for 30 mins to an hour, sometimes more if I forget it.
But anyway, that’s enough of my wash day routine – I wanted this blog post to resonate with my naturally straight hair guys and gals. For us black guys and especially gals, we don’t have a choice but to take care of our tresses and make a big deal out of our wash day. For my straight hair friends, I know that you guys wash your hair every day or every other day, and it’s just part of your shower routine and something you do quickly. However, there is so much you can do to your hair, that may boost your self-care weekly routine and make you feel amazing!
This weekend show your hair/scalp some love:
- A good scalp massage
- A hair mask
- A deep condition
- Some positive words of affirmation!
So this year, I'm taking better care of my hair because I need it! C*VID-19 is still out there, and since lockdown and p*ndemic fatigue is VERY real, just this time for myself (alongside getting my nails done) has made me feel really good!
“While self-pampering isn’t as critical to your health as a nutritious diet and exercise (although proper nutrition is key to healthy hair), it can trigger the relaxation response, the opposite of the body’s stress response – your “off-switch” to the body’s tendency toward fight-or-flight mode. It helps to achieve a state of physiological relaxation, where blood pressure, heart rate, digestive functioning, and hormonal levels return to a normal state.” – Hairstory.com
Happy wash day and happy valentine’s weekend!
-- Your favourite Unicorn