Pre-poo, Co-Washing, and Baggying...Seriously?

So, I finally did what I anxiously anticipated and cut out any remnant of relaxer from my hair.  Someone asked me about the "BC" and I had no idea what they were talking about.  Evidently, cutting all of your hair off in the world natural hair is called a "Big Chop" or "BC" for short.

  

 Anyway,  here is a picture of what it looked like a couple of days ago.  I feel a lot more comfortable with it now.  It's about 1.5 inches long all the way around, give or take an eighth or two.  The curl pattern can best be described as s-shaped and will probably transition into full curls once it grows longer.

I had been making a terrible mistake by washing it every day.  As a result, my hair had become incredibly dry and hard to the touch.  Although it looked relatively soft, having it feel hard and be dry was irking me, so I went to the internet to find out what I needed to do to address this issue of dryness.

This was the first time that I had taken it to the proverbial streets of the internet for my hair.  I found a plethora of videos, forums, websites, and blogs about what to do after at BC.  One of the most surprising things I learned was that my hair was in shock.  This was the first time I had ever heard that hair could be in shock because it had been drastically cut, so I just went with it.   I then learned that natural hair care has it's own language.  For instance, "clarifying" hair means using a hair cleansing agent that removes the build up of residue from products, hard water, pollution, etc.  Then, there's normal shampooing which should only take place about once a month, but not without pre-pooing, which means saturating the hair with oil prior to shampooing.  In stead of shampooing the hair, I have to co-wash the hair, which means using conditioner as you would use a shampoo.  I also learned that I needed to avoid shampoos and other products that contained sulfate because it dries out the hair, which is probably why I was walking around with dry and hard hair!

I also learned that I should partake in the "bag method" or "baggying" at night.  This means creating a moisturizing mixture and sleeping with a plastic cap over night that will help my hair retain its moisture and softness.  Thus, as I type, I have on a plastic cap anticipating a head full of soft and manageable curls in the morning!

Stay tuned for a picture of the results of my pre-pooing, co-washing, and baggying before the end of the week.  In full disclosure, I had not idea that I would have to purchase so much product in order to maintain my newly natural hair.  No wonder why natural hair care has become a billion dollar business almost over night!

Until the bag comes up, peace and balance!

Rae