5 Unreasonable Natural Hair “Problems”

by Adeola of The Mane Captain

As a black hair blogger, I try to remain active in the virtual black hair (relaxed and afro-textured) community. I read comments left by other readers and leave my opinion when necessary. From these comments, I find that we as a people still have a LONG way to go when it comes to Black hair.

Despite the hundreds of resources that are out there to educate us on black hair, I find there are still hundreds of black hair problems which are unaddressed and sometimes “glorified” on many hair blogs. It is because of these problems that I have been provoked to write this post in hopes of getting you to let go of some of these “crazy” issues which you or someone you know might be facing.

Even though there are many issues, I have only listed a few of the ones that I think deserve your attention So, here they are, in no particular order:

Dissatisfaction with one’s own hair texture and the comparison to others

Proposed Solutions:
- Trying all sorts of curling cream in the market so as to achieve girl B’s curl
- Putting your hair through all sorts of abuse all so that you can achieve a wash-n-go and other styles your hair doesn’t like to be put in

My thoughts: If you weren’t born with girl B’s genes, you WILL NOT achieve the same “out” style she achieves with certain products and techniques; but you may be able to achieve similar styles. Rather than wasting your time, effort and money trying a WnG, you can instead opt for “predictable” styles which will turn out well. I often achieve a “frizz out” instead of a twist out on most days, but I don’t deem this failure on my hair styling skills or a particular product since I already know my hair is very unique and will only do what it wants to do.

Obsession with laid edges

Proposed solutions
- relaxing the edges so that a cornrow or weave will look neater
- using a hard gel to lay it down

My thoughts: I find this is a very popular problem with Americans as I don’t come across this issue too often on non-American websites. My edges don’t coil up much and so I don’t have much to say. But one thing you need to realize is that your hair is no longer relaxed, it is now COILY and it wants to remain that way. Instead of forcing your hair to do what it doesn’t want to do, I suggest you rock your hair loud and proud!

 Anti-Frizz

Proposed solutions
- use of anti frizz products or eliminating certain products totally 

My thoughts: Again, I find this issue is mostly talked about by Americans. As I’ve mentioned above, your hair is no longer straight, it is now COILY and will be more prone to frizz. It’s easy to battle with frizz when your hair is straight, but a bit more challenging when it’s curly/coily. Coily hair will not always be smooth like straight hair and is more susceptible to environmental changes. So instead of fighting frizz which is out of your control, EMBRACE IT. And if you have OCD and cant do this, then keep your hair in braids, a great anti-frizz hairstyle. Your hair doesn’t have to be perfectly sculpted each time.

Read the rest at The Mane Captain

What are some Natural hair problems you often come across that you don’t see as a problem? I’ll be happy to read your thoughts in the comment box below.

The Mane Captain is a blog run by Adeola, a Toronto based natural hair advocate who empowers women with the knowledge needed to take control of their hair. She also holds regular meet ups in and around Toronto where Naturals can network and support each other while on the journey. 

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