My Natural Hair Journey to Waist Length (2012-2020)

This is my natural hair journey to waist length type 4 hair from 2012 to present year-by-year. I experienced extreme heat damage growing up and eventually learned about the natural hair community and how to care for my own hair in high school. Everyone's natural hair journey is different, but I hope you can learn something to take to your own hair journey.

Hey guys, it's Joi here. And today's video will be all about my hair journey back in 2011 and 2012, up until 2020. I'm going to share the ups, the downs, and all the crazy things that have happened throughout my hair journey. If you are interested in natural hair videos, then make sure you're subscribed to my channel down below. But more importantly than that, make sure you get your hands on my free hair growth guide, which's going to tell you the top seven mistakes that are preventing your hair growth. If you're trying to grow your hair, if you're trying just to have healthier hair, then make sure you get the free hair growth guide with the link. So let's get started with my hair journey.

2012

So I'm going to start in 2012. I was entering high school ending middle school, and I was getting my hair straightened every two weeks at the salon. I had never had a perm or relaxer, but I was getting my hair pressed all the time. I would usually get braids during the summer when it's hot. But as soon as it got cool enough for me to get my hair pressed, that's what I was doing. My sister is a hairstylist, so I was able to go very frequently because I didn't have to pay. I didn't know anything about the natural hair community or much about my own hair.

2013

2013 was the last year I got my hair straightened. I remember the moment I was getting my hair straightened, and it felt like my hair burning. I thought my hair was getting better, the more damage it got. Then my hair grew to shoulder length, probably armpit length. But it never grew any longer than that, no matter what I did. I've heard people call it heat trained. No sis... If your hair isn't going back to its regular curl pattern, that just means your hair is damaged. I wanted to find out what was going on with my hair. So I went to YouTube, and I started looking up videos. And that's when I was introduced to Shameless Maya, and she had this really fun twist out the video. I was like, Oh my god, like her hair looks so good. I was thinking my hair wasn't going to be looking like hers.

2014

And that brings me to 2014, which was kind of like my transitioning phase. Similarly, for people who had relaxers and they transition to natural. I am transitioning from heat-damaged hair to natural hair. My twist outs were reckless because I didn't want to cut off my strands. But I didn't care. I was embracing my natural hair. My hair grew a few inches. I started to see my real texture, and I got super excited.

Not that many people were natural, to the extent where it is today. We saw more black women with natural hair now, but my family didn't understand what I was doing back then. This is also the year I started making hair related videos. I started my YouTube channel back in 2011. And I made like a heritage video or something like that in 2014.

2015

In 2015, I finally cut off all my heat damage, and I trimmed like half an inch off every month until all the heat damaged ends were gone. Then my hair started growing. And so, at this time, my hair is bra strap length. I was also a competitive swimmer at the time. So this is one factor that many people would think stunts hair growth due to being in chlorine and being water all day. During my swim seasons, I'd get smaller braids that I could fit under my swim cap. I wouldn't get box breeze or anything because that was too heavy. I'll get small single micro braids. Sometimes when I didn't have braids in, I would put my hair in a couple of braids and put them under the swim cap.

One product that saved me during swim season was shea butter. Before I started using shea butter on my hair, my hair would smell like chlorine every day. I started putting it on my hair at night. And then when I would go to practice and get out the water and rinse out my hair. I also made sure I was deconditioning a lot when I was in the swim season. Even if I had braids, I would still put the conditioner on my hair every day. That was an interesting time to grow your hair while you're like, you know, an athlete and being immersed in like chemicals that are bad for your hair.

I do have a specific video on being natural while swimming. So if you are someone who needs tips, go check that video out. I also have a video on combating heat damage and length retention. If you're dealing with heat damage right now, I'll have that linked as well.

2016

Let's get into 2016, and the globe is real. My hair is finally looking big. It was my senior year of high school, and my curls were popping. I was finger detangling, and I went up to six weeks in between wash days. By that, I mean just using shampoo. I would do it every six weeks, and I trained my hair like that. I didn't just automatically just go six weeks in between washes. Many people, especially hairstylists, probably don't agree with this method because you want to keep your scalp clean. But, I just wanted a break from it being manipulated. That's where I saw the most growth in my hair. That strategy is what took me from bra strap length to waist length. I think that this is one of the few strategies that could get me there again. I was feeding my hair and leaving it alone. And that's what grew up my hair.

2017-2018

2017 was when I reached waist length. My hair was the longest its ever been. I saw the benefits of all the hard work I did to grow my hair. And for those of you that say you're not waist-length or anything, this is the period where I was waist length. A lot of people didn't believe me because they didn't understand shrinkage. If you have a tighter texture of hair, your hair looks shorter because it stretches. Right now, my hair is in a stretch dial, so I wear my hair in fros. Then we get into 2018. Once again, curls were popping, and I was still maintaining my length. But at the end of that year, I cut off a few inches to revitalize my ends.

2019

In 2019 from January to May, I studied abroad in Spain. So I was wearing my hair in a puff every day. I wasn't taking care of my hair like I should have been. To protect it from the winter, I probably should have had braids. When I got back from Spain, I cut off a good amount of my hair just to a fresh start. And this is a period where people are like, "Oh, did you cut your hair?" No, the shrinkage is crazy. It looks like I cut double the amount than I actually did. If I wear my fro, then people are like, "oh my god, you cut all your hair off." I cut about four inches off. Then I cut some off more off throughout the year to shape it. I have videos of how I cut my hair on my channel that I'll have linked up here.

2020

So now we get to 2020. This past couple of weeks, I've been doing braid outs or wear my hair and in stretched styles, just to get a feel for my length because I was wearing a fro so long. At the end of 2019, I started using my Joiful Bee perfect wash day kit. This is the kit that you can purchase at JoifulBee.com. It's five tools to help you establish the perfect wash day routine and help you retain moisture in your hair throughout the week, prevent breakage and make detangling easier.

That's my 2020 hair routine and beyond. I will talk to you guys next time. I hope you guys enjoy watching my hair journey. I haven't done one of these videos in a long time. I'll see you guys next time. Bye!