hey! I'm new! :) & I have a dilemma.

Hey everyone!

My name is Ijeoma & i'm a college freshman.

After much research on CurlyNikki.com among many sites and a huge excitement about my new growth (which my mom unfortunately made me perm), I've decided that I want to go natural.


2 big problems:

- How do I tell my mother? I just don't like perms or the permed look on me at all anymore. I don't like the chemicals & i'm pretty sure perms are why my hair hasn't grown past my shoulders in 10 years. She thinks it the only way to manage my hair.

- How can I get affordable hair products & take care of my hair while transitioning? Courses at my school can be a lot to handle & I want to figure out the best way to take care of my hair while school-ing.

we hopefully you can make your own decision. But I am a college student myself and I like to keep my hair in twist especially around final time and braids our best protective styles to maintain length and growth. good luck and welcome to the site. Look around and explore. Have fun

You could just tell your mother that you have decided to try something new. I decided to grow out my relaxer when I was a freshman in college too and my mother basically laughed at me because she thought I would just give up on it in a few months. She also thought that I wouldn't be able to manage it.
I would suggest just showing her that your natural hair is manageable. When I first grew my perm out I did wear it straight most of the time because I didn't know what to do with it. But this year I decided to really try some natural hair styles. My mom was wary of them at first but now she constantly tells me how much she likes my hair natural! Hopefully your "new" hair will grow on your mom too

You can buy affordable products at walmart (this is where I buy most of mine) or at any beauty supply store. Products like Herbal essences, Giovanni Hair products, and IC fantasia gel can be found at these places and the majority of the products will be under $10.

I hope this helps!

I'm in college as well, and when I told my mom I was going natural, she thought I was crazy! She thought I would look like a hot mess. Gradually, she's coming around because she sees how healthy and long my hair had gotten since I've been transitioning.

Twice during my transition, I've worn kinky twists and for most of my transition, I've work cornrows with ponytails or sew-ins. That helps a lot. I use natural products like olive oil, coconut oil, and shea butter, which aren't very expensive. It's sometimes the simple and cheap products that work the best.

As long as you take care of your hair, you can prove to your mom that going natural is a good decision and it's your decision what to do with your hair at the end of the day.

I am not in college but I am in graduate school. I just BC and went I went home for my graduation she didn't recognnize me. She was like what happened to your hair (my hair was shoulder length cut in layers). She said she didn't like it but that was it. It didn't bother me at all. But I guess because I'm older than you (I'm 26 now but I was 24 when I did it), I really didn't give a damn what my mom or anyone else thought. But I can understand as a freshmen in college you're a little bit more conscious of your mom's opinions and advice.

Products.....I use a lot of natural products. The best thing I just started using a few months ago is The AFrica's Best Herbal oil. That is really cheap. I also use Shea Butter leave in condition and shea butter hair dress (i think that is what it is called) I'm not a big product junkie, so I don't deal with a bunch of stuff. I normally stick to the stuff I feel works on my hair. My hair loves water but its to cold to walk outside with a head full of wet hair.

But I wish you the best with your mom and especially in college. I enjoyed my college years and wish I could go back. Take advantage of every opportunity you can because I still have "couldas, shouldas, and wouldas"

Thank you all so much for the advice. I'm really excited about this.

It's funny b/c after seeing my new growth from the past 4 months then seeing my hair after it was permed,

I was not excited.

For the first time in my life, I liked my natural hair more than my permed hair.

I want to commend you for continuing your education. Do it while you can. I went to college immediately after high school and became too distracted by my then boyfriend. I tell my little sister as I'm telling you, to take advantage of the opportunity you have right now because as you get older it may be more difficult to return and complete bc of added responsibilities. Stay focus chica.

As for your hair you can get your basics like conditioners at Rite Aid, Walmart, CVS, and most BSS. I use simple conditioners like Suave Naturals or VO5 Moisture Milks. They're usually under $2-3. I make my own moisturizer and I seal with unrefined shea butter and jojoba oil, or EVOO or CD's Healthy Hair butter.

To help convince your mom why natural hair is healthier for you, visit some Fotki albums to show her how manageable and beautiful natural hair is. You can also refer her to websites like this to educate her on the abundant amount of info there is dedicated to preserving our natural manes. If they doesn't work go to the movies and see Chris Rock's "Good Hair". The experiment he does with Sodium Hydroxide is self explanatory.

Im a freshmen in college too.. And I've been natural all my life. My hair is about APL but I never wear it out,because I feel like I don't know how to manage it(until I found this site). I usually wear sew-ins, in order to deal with the fast pace college life. However, I'm starting to get tired off it. What would you all suggest I do to better manage my hair, that isn't too time consuming? Should I stop wearing the weaves or what?

@Paulina: I rocked weaves for the first 13 months of my transition because of convenience. Between each install I clarified my hair, deep conditioned and did protein treatments. I refreshed my weaves when tightening was necessary and let my hair breath in between the 6 wk installs for about a week. Make sure your taking care of your hair underneath the braids. Cowash, moisturize and seal your hair. Also when washing make sure your tracks/wefts are completely dry so you want develop mildew [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] in your braids

@hampton: thanks a lot.Oh and did the weave cause any damage to your hair, or is it somewhat of a protective style? In other words did your hair grow normally?

My hair grew alot. I would just advise to be careful when cutting the tracks/wefts loose. I think my cousin cut my hair a few times. Another thing that made me feel secured was when braiding hair was incorporated into the braid base. This adds some protection to your hair when they are sewing and tightening the tracks. I learned to leave my sides out bc they are the most fragile, delicate strands of hair and I've already suffered hair loss in that area.

thecollegegirl wrote:Hey everyone!

My name is Ijeoma & i'm a college freshman.

After much research on CurlyNikki.com among many sites and a huge excitement about my new growth (which my mom unfortunately made me perm), I've decided that I want to go natural.


2 big problems:

- How do I tell my mother? I just don't like perms or the permed look on me at all anymore. I don't like the chemicals & i'm pretty sure perms are why my hair hasn't grown past my shoulders in 10 years. She thinks it the only way to manage my hair.

- How can I get affordable hair products & take care of my hair while transitioning? Courses at my school can be a lot to handle & I want to figure out the best way to take care of my hair while school-ing.

whooooaaahh omg
a.) my name is ijeoma too!
b.)i'm a college freshman too!
c.)i just decided to go natural too!

weird...lol really what are the odds