How I lost my wonderful Afro

by Audrey
(London)

Hi,

Here's the story of my biggest hair disaster. It happened in 2004, when I went to study in Berlin for 6 months.

At that time, I was natural but didn't know anything about blow drying or flat-ironing. I had decided to go natural 2 years earlier and was simply wearing braids or buns because my hair is a really soft 4b/c.

But when I arrived in Berlin, I didn't have anyone to braid my hair. I couldn't find products or hot tools for black hair and got desperate as my hair was growing longer. I had a big afro and went reluctantly to one of the few hair salon with a black hair credential to get a relaxer.

I'm not racist but the person who relaxed my hair was white. He insisted that he could do my hair and had already done it several times before.

He used a Revlon relaxer and left it for too long (I've always used Just for Me, the kids' relaxer). When my scalp started to burn, he rinsed it and then put the product a second time. I can't believe I let him do this... I guess I was only 22 and didn't know how to treat my hair well enough. I had never put a relaxer twice on my hair and even though I felt something was wrong, I just let him go on.

No need to say that I was badly burnt. I went back home crying as my hair was falling in the shower and my German flatmate was trying to cheer me up.

Luckily, Shimada, a specialist of Afro hair arrived in the same salon a few days later. He saved my hair with a vitamin E treatment and styled my hair so well that I was good looking again.

I kep relaxing my hair until August 2008 then I decided to go natural again. My hair is really fine and sensitive and I've now come to the conclusion that it just can't bear relaxers. Plus it wasn't growing anymore in the burnt areas.

Now that I stopped relaxing, I can see the new growth in those areas. I will press my hair or wear braids but never relax again. I'm hoping to have a head full of very long natural hair in 4 years for my 30th birthday!

My advice: do not allow a stranger to relax your hair. You should only trust the people who've been doing your hair for a long time.

Audrey
Visit Afromag, my online magazine for black women: http://afromag.blogspot.com/