As a lover of natural hair and a "keeper" of dreadlocks, I watch with disdain how Nigerian women apply the creamy crack called relaxers on their hair! I am not asking anyone to subscribe to my views but what is the essence of applying something to your hair that thins your crown and wipes your edges off? In most cases, relaxed hair usually looks dusty/brownish and the most annoying thing is that the growth of the hair is stagnated! No wonder stars like Asa, Tosyn Bucknor, Nneka, Lauryn Hill, Solange Knowles, Nse-Ikpe Etim, Whoopie Goldberg, Dakore,etc.,all have beautiful natural hair. Some may say the Nigerian hair texture is hard but I'm here to tell you that with proper maintenance and application of essential oils, your natural hair will flourish. What do you think?

I support you 100% girl.
My baby stopped applying it a Long time ago and i must confess that her hair is much better for it. She now has longer natural hair, strong and beautiful .
I will recommend every girl to stop applying that thing called relaxer or other stuffs for at least a year.
Leave Your hair to grow naturally.
Just do simple washing of your hair and apply oil.

I want to stop applying relaxers to my hair going back to natural,pls what products can I use,cos I have a sturborn hair,thanks.

A couple of reasons why it is so.

1. A good majority of Nigerian hair dressers do not know how to apply relaxers. Relaxers are meant to be applied on virgin/natural hair to straighten it but these people apply relaxer everywhere, on both the virgin and processed hair. Applying relaxer on an already processed hair thins it out.

2. Most Nigerian girls do not know the basics of hair care and maintenance. They don't know when to shampoo or condition their hair. They fix weaves after weaves without giving their hair a break and this slowly affects their edges.

3. Many of them including the hairdressers don't even know how to comb gently or properly, you see them combing people's hair like it's a wrestling match. They tug at the hair so hard that they end up tearing it.

4. Many of the hair products sold in the salons are all sorts of wrong. I can't explain how awful they are.

All these things contribute to the reason why the average Nigerian girl's hair growth is stunted, the problem doesn't lie with relaxing per se but what relaxer is used, how often the hair is relaxed, the method of application of the relaxer and how the hair is generally taken care of. Most Nigerian women do not have the basic knowledge on how to cater for their hair.

At the end of the day, I have seen relaxed haired women who have healthier and longer hair than their natural counterparts. I love it when women like that rain on the parade of naturalistas who have a condescending attitude towards girls with relaxed hair and the whole chemical mantra. There are naturalistas out there with extremely damaged hair. Having long and healthy hair goes beyond whether your hair is natural or relaxed. If you don't have a good hair care regimen either way, your hair will fail.

AdannayaBella: A couple of reasons why it is so.

1. A good majority of Nigerian hair dressers do not know how to apply relaxers. Relaxers are meant to be applied on virgin/natural hair to straighten it but these people apply relaxer everywhere, on both the virgin and processed hair. Applying relaxer on an already processed hair thins it out.

2. Most Nigerian girls do not know the basics of hair care and maintenance. They don't know when to shampoo or condition their hair. They fix weaves after weaves without giving their hair a break and this slowly affects their edges.

3. Many of them including the hairdressers don't even know how to comb gently or properly, you see them combing people's hair like it's a wrestling match. They tug at the hair so hard that they end up tearing it.

4. Many of the hair products sold in these salons are all sorts of wrong. I can't explain how awful they are.

All these things contribute to the reason why the average Nigerian girl's hair growth is stunted, the problem doesn't lie with relaxing per se but what relaxer is used, how often the hair is relaxed, the method of application of the relaxer and how the hair is generally taken care of. Most Nigerian women do not have the basic knowledge on how to cater for their hair.

At the end of the day, I have seen relaxed haired women who have healthier and longer hair than their natural counterparts. I love it when women like that rain on the parade of naturalistas who have a condescending attitude towards girls with relaxed hair and the whole chemical mantra. There are naturalistas out there with extremely damaged hair. Having long and healthy hair goes beyond whether your hair is natural or relaxed. If you don't have a good hair care regimen either way, your hair will fail.

on point

prosper86: I want to stop applying relaxers to my hair going back to natural,pls what products can I use,cos I have a sturborn hair,thanks.

I understand you completely. My natural hair was something else- firewood! It was so tough and hard until I discovered Dreadlocks! Dreadlocks saved my "hair life". The beautiful thing about dreadlocks is that

1. It saves time, d stress of combing and money
2. Hair never stops growing
3.You look unique and different from d crowd
4. You feel connected to your African roots
5. If you don't over-twist, your edges are safe nd strong and so much more!

Nevertheless, to keep locs strong and beautiful n professional looking, the use of essential oils like coconut, shea butter, tea tree oil, olive, almond, rosemary, etc., is also important. I've been loc'd now for 14months and d good thing is I can still do braids n fixing! I'm currently rocking a fringe as a protective hairstyle because of d dry weather.