True Life: I Have Severe Heat Damage

Hey All



So I was doing what I do, watching my YouTube videos and I decided to look at some videos of individuals with heat damage. Now, I did not just suddenly come to the revelation that I have heat damage. I always knew that was the condition of my hair.



You see, the real issue is that I can't stay away from the dominican salon. I looooooovvvveeee my wash and sets. When I decided to stop relaxing my hair I never had ANY intention on abandoning my regular wash and sets. Oh No!!! Perish the thought. However, as time went on, I realized that the constant heat was hindering my ability to retain length, a goal which I've always had in mind. So, I cut my heat usage back to once a month, then eventually to once every two months. I did notice a lot of progress in the area of length retention, but I ignored the heat damage.



I decided to write this post because I have finally accepted the fact that my hair is severely heat damaged. Like, if I ever decide to post videos you will definitely see what I'm talking about. So this leaves me at a crossroad in my hair journey.




I don't believe that your hair has to be natural in order to be healthy. I believe that if you take proper care of relaxed hair, you can maintain the hair's health. So, I'm considering two options now: Go back to my relaxed hair or eliminate heat and cut off the damaged hair.



Anyone who knows me knows that I am leaning towards returning to relaxed hair and they support that choice. Why? Because I loooovvveeee my hair straight! That's just a personal preference. I love natural hair and have been on this natural journey for about 2.5 years, but i always return to my straight hair. And honestly I can't see myself straightening my hair only once a year or every six months. That's too infrequent for me. The beautiful thing about a journey is that you can make choices...choices that you're comfortable with because ultimately it's your life and it's your hair.



However, I say all that to say.....I'm not sure what I really want to do yet. I really don't want to perm it because I'm afraid I'll regret my choice and I definitely am not ready to chop off my hair. So, I figure since I'm doing my hair challenge, that will give me time to assess my hair's overall health and eventually make a decision. In the meantime, please sound off and let me know what you think. Should I (a) stay natural and chop of the damaged hair or (b). Go back to the creamy crack lol.