The word myth can be defined as a popular belief or story that has become tied to a person or thing. It was created to teach people about something important or meaningful. When we hear the words myth or mythology we automatically connect it with the ancient Greeks. We think about deities, goddess and goddesses. These stories are usually fictitious and the actual existence is not verified and or validified. But they can teach us a lot about the mindsets of people at a certain time in history. Things like what they wore, who they worshipped, how they did their hair, what they ate and their overall lifestyle.
There are countless myths about almost everything including how to care for natural hair. Back in the days, there were limited resources available to help our ancestors treat natural hair. Whatever was at their disposal would be the evident selection. This is where many of the remedies we hear about or utilise today can be traced back to.
These limited resources travelled throughout history and have become part of our tradition today. With the increase of technological advancement and research mechanisms, many have done the research and came up with all types of new ways for treating natural hair. Some feasible and others are very counterproductive and misleading.
Orrrr you thought that would grow your hair? Nah Sis
The use of social media platforms has skyrocketed over the past ten-plus years. There has been an influx of all kinds of information and misinformation. If you scroll through outlets such as YouTube, Instagram and Tiktok you will see tons of influencers putting out content that are usually misleading. In terms of natural hair, you may have seen headlines such as, 'What grows natural hair,' 'Tips and Tricks to growing natural hair faster' and 'Growing your hair 1 inch and a half in a week.' These headlines are what many researchers, cosmetic scientists, professional hairstylists, trichologists and the like would deem 'selling dreams' or misinforming. There are also many factors that come into play as to why influencers may publish these types of information. Some include clickbait, growing their platform at a faster rate and of course getting that coin.
On the flip side, there are influencers who actually do research and consult professionals with knowledge on the relevant information that's needed. These Influencers are usually very passionate about what they put out even though their content most of the time receives less traction than those who are all about the watch time, views and dollars earned.
This topic will focus on some striking factors that have caused some confusion in the natural hair community. These myths include but is not limited to; the use of products, the hair typing system and over manipulation.
1. Natural Hair Products
Anyone who is fully invested in learning to care for their hair usually asks the question, 'What products can I use for my hair to grow?' With the rise of the natural hair movement, there have been hundreds if not thousands of natural hair brands that claim to have the best secret remedy to grow hair faster, longer and even healthier. Maybe it's the psychology of natural hair that causes many of us to first ask about hair products. Yes, it is true our hair needs moisture. The most important moisturiser that is needed in our hair is water. That's right. Water. We get so caught up and confused when we visit our beauty supply store. We walk in for wipes, air freshener and a roll-on and by the time we reach the cashier our baskets are packed and our bills are $200 plus. When we check our bill the majority of our money went into buying hair products because our favourite YouTuber/influencer used it last week (in their sponsored video) and recommended that we purchase them. Mind you, the products that they use are often from a new collection that the brand has launched. This is a business strategic plan used to get consumers to buy what most of the time is a want and not necessarily a need.
This month will make it two months since I've last visited my local supply store (Pennywise) to purchase natural hair products. It feels so liberating knowing that I can walk in there and just pick up what I need. I might have been a mild product junky in the beginning when I started doing my own research on natural hair. I will honestly say it did lure me in and I was drawn to purchasing any product that looked good on the shelf, smelt yummy and had the most enticing words. I no longer allow everything that I view on the internet to hypnotise me into buying products that I may use once. Natural hair is a wonderful journey. It is personalised and individualised. We all want what's best for our hair. Well, at least we all should. Nothing is wrong with trying different products to see what works best for our hair but if the conditioner from the Shea Moisture Coconut Collection worked on my hair it does not mean it will work on yours and vice versa.
I am not advocating abandoning all-natural hair products. However, just as the company uses a strategy to get the consumer to purchase their product, so too must the consumer rationalise if it is really necessary at all. We can try to buy all the milks, butters, custards, creams, gels, shampoos, conditioners, co-washes, deep conditioners and leave-in conditioners but they are not the onset of growing natural hair. Despite the science behind growing natural hair, our hair grows if we have a positive outlook and have the patience to allow it to do its thing naturally. So, focus less on the product. Our hair grows from the inside out so maybe we should consider what we eat on a daily basis rather than what we topically apply.
The Hair Typing System
The natural hair typing system will not enhance the growth of your hair. It is very frustrating when the first thing that people ask is 'What is your hair type.' This question is asked oftentimes by transitioned naturals who are now learning how to care for their virgin hair. The only thing that the hair typing system does is perpetuate the inferior/superior ideology and causes conflicting views. If you have never seen a hair typing chart just take a second to google it. You will see that it portrays the most desired hair texture at the top and the least desirable at the bottom. Even if it was not the intended notion it still causes segregation. If your hair texture is closer to the bottom row you will feel inferior and that may have a negative overall impact on one's mood and behaviour towards themselves and or their hair. Many may beg to differ but the truth is in the pudding.
https://naturalcurlsncoils.blogspot.com/2020/08/reasons-why-i-hate-hair-typing-system.html
Realistically speaking, how can a hair typing system help you grow your hair? This system has tried to categorise all hair 'types' not acknowledging that many of us have several curl patterns and cannot fit into one type/part of the system. Perhaps, if the focus was more on moisture training and length retention strategies rather than a clumped system then many of us would see the results we long for.
A great example of the negative effects of the hair typing system is that many naturals with looser curl patterns are proclaiming to be 4C. 4C is the last hair type listed on the hair typing system. This hair type is very kinky and the most fragile. There have been many persons claiming to be 4C natural when they are not. Think about the effect this will have on a person with actual 4C hair. When they search YouTube to learn how to style their hair and sees someone with a looser curl pattern labelled their video as 4C how do you think this will make them feel? There is already little representation. Little representation may perpetuate neglect, uncertainty, doubt, second-guessing and a rise in self-hate.
Over-Manipulation (Styling Too often)
Over-manipulation is a hair care practice where handling, styling and maintenance of the hair are kept to a maximum. It is very confusing that anyone would believe that the more you style your hair the faster and healthier it will grow. Sometimes it may be an unconscious act because we want to look our best at all times not thinking about the negative effects of over-styling our hair. Other times it is the slurs that our friends, family members and even strangers imply that make us do the most.
As I reflect on the point of over manipulating the hair I envision what it is like for many YouTubers who have sponsored videos to do. They will do a flexi rod set on Sunday and have to do a wash and go Wednesday because the contract says the content needs to be uploaded on the respected social media platform by that said day. Just thinking about it is traumatising. If your hair could speak (it actually does but we do not listen most of the time) imagine what it would say to you...
Over manipulation may cause breakage, split ends, heat damage from flat ironing too often and even colour damage from changing the hair colour and or bleaching frequently. Braiding every month may result in thinning hairline and an irritating scalp if not moisturised and oiled twice to three times a week. Manipulation is necessary to care for, style and maintain our hair. Over-manipulating the hair strands can cause advert effects which could be preventative.
I used to wash my hair once per week before putting in a protective style that has been on for almost two months (I am taking it out next week). There are several things that I have noticed which I will discuss in another post. In my weekly wash day routines, I would always opt to change my hairstyle and whenever I washed my hair and prepped it for styling, my scalp would always feel sore and bruised. I knew I was overdoing it but I still neglected the weeping from my hair. I may still do weekly washes because that was not the issue for me. The issue was over styling each week. This will definitely be reduced when my protective style comes out going forward.
Myths Debunked
This topic may come as an eye-opener to some. Natural hair products, the hair typing system and over manipulation will not grow your hair. Therefore, buying all the products on the shelf, asking questions about your hair type and styling very often can invert the growth of your natural hair. These are three of the most popular factors that many refer to when speaking about natural hair growth but they are actually myths. Stick to your simple hair routine and use techniques that work best for you. Do not believe that you need to dump a bunch of everything on your hair to make it grow. This is an unhealthy practice for your mind, body, spirit and perspective of yourself and others. Your natural hair journey is a personalised and individualised experience. Treat it as such!
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