I was a Braid Queen

I used to have a relaxer and It only took a year for my hair to become completely damaged to the point where I would cover my hair with weave braids.

I kept my hair braided for about three years at a time and my hair grew longer. I loved wearing weave braids because they helped me to forget my hair and leave it alone so it could grow, uninterrupted.

WEAVE BRAIDS Can Protect Your Hair

I learned that braids can be a protective hairstyle. I saw my hair grow to a new, longer length. Protective hairstyles shield the hair strand from friction that can cause damage to the hair.

The longer you wear the weave braids, the longer your hair will get. When your hair is on lock-down, there is not much room for it to become damaged. My natural hair was growing about 6-inches every year.

Braids can function as a method of protecting the hair shaft and allowing it to become longer and stronger.

All Braids Are Not PROTECTING YOUR HAIR

I started to make smaller braids which caused my hair to become weak and slowly break.

Braids can become damaging to your hair when you focus too much on creating fancy hairstyles and pulling on them.

As I focused more on creating fashionable hairstyles, I became less concerned with caring for my natural hair.

I was making the weave braids smaller and tighter. which caused my hair to become over-stressed by tension and my hair eventually became damaged and broken.

Fashionable HAIRSTYLES VS. FAST Hair Growth

I was trying to make my braided hairstyles look more fancy and creative. I was styling my hair into bobs, wraps, and I even added front bangs.

Such hairstyles lead me to make my weave braid sections smaller. I loved the way my braids looked and moved, but I was not too happy to see the damage from the smaller braids.

I was placing so much tension on my hair that within a year, my hair became shorter than before I placed the weave onto my hair.

 

When WEAVE BRAIDS Cause DAMAGE

Wearing weave that is too tight on the scalp can lead to a disease called Traction Alopecia. Traction Alopecia can cause the hair follicle to retract and stop growing hair leading to hair loss.

I noticed that my edges were thinning and the hair at the nap of my neck became loaded with tiny bumps. This was the beginning of the end of me wearing weave braids. Without weave braids, I did not know what to do with my hair.

Getting Familiar With
MY NATURAL HAIR

I did not want to relax already damaged hair so I continued to wear braids until I stumbled upon natural hair tutorials on youtube.

There are numerous video tutorials on youtube featuring women that share their natural hair journey.

Get to know these Natural Hair Divas:

Kimmaytube, Taren916, AfricanExport

I was amazed by all of the natural hairstyles such as Afros, Afro-Puffs, 'Fro-Hawks, Mini-Twists, Chunky-Twist-Outs, Mini-Twist-Outs, Chunky-Twists-Outs, Wash-and-Gos and so on that I removed my weave braids and decided to go natural.

With all of the support and information from the women on Youtube, I knew I could give my natural hair a try. With all of the great advice and tips available for free online, I had a lot of faith in finally achieving long, healthy hair without wearing the weave braids.

Learn more about why I decision to go natural.

 

HOW TO WEAR WEAVE BRAIDS
AND SEE LONGER HAIR

• keep your natural hair moisturized.
  
  
• Leave the braids in at least a month

• before you re-tighten them

• Clean the scalp weekly

• Never pull on the braids since the
  weave is already pulling on your hair

• Keep weave braids 1/2 inch or thicker
  in size

 

THE THICKNESS OF YOUR BRAIDS MATTER

If you want your hair to grow; then do not make your braids smaller than half an inch in size. The thicker the braid, the less damaging the weight of the weave.

Braids (when done correctly) can be an error-proof way to retain hair growth. Having your hair braided can prevent you from placing constant activity on the hair strand causing it to become weak and prone to breakage.

Eventually, braids became another means for not accepting my hair. I want to learn how to attain healthier, longer hair in a more natural way. I can't imagine covering my hair for two-three years.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

WATCH ME EXPLAIN MY HAIR GROWTH WITH WEAVE BRAIDS

 

I have a YouTube Channel Click S U B S C R I B E for video tutorials.

Related Articles ... See my longer hair days from wearing weave braids. Bye-Bye braids. I am loving my natural hair! Should you go natural?

 

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