My Hair Story- 1/28/2022

I'm 14 years old and I've had curls all my life. When I was little I had tight and coily curls but as I grew up, my curls started to loosen. Around third grade, my hair just started to frizz up because I did not know how to care for it. For around three or four years, I thought my hair was just frizzy, straight, and unhealthy. I straightened my hair everyday because I hated it so much and in sixth grade I got a keratin treatment. I loved my hair for the next couple of months because it was so easy to manage but it was so dead and unhealthy. My keratin treatment started to fade out around the time the 2020 lockdown hit. I kept putting heat on it because I refused to have frizzy hair. As summer started to come, my hair was always wet from swimming and spending time outside. I slowly stopped putting heat on it and started to use leave in conditioner and gels. My hair slowly started to gain a wave/curl pattern back. Around the end of summer and the start of seventh grade, my hair had started to wave up again and wasn't frizzy at all. Over the course of seventh grade, my curls started to get tighter, shinier, and bouncier. By the time summer and 8th grade rolled around, my curls were around 2c and 3a curls. After all the leave-ins, gels, creams, brushes, I finally got my curls back. I was so happy with how far I had come with my hair health. I still constantly get stopped by teachers, stylists, and strangers to compliment me or ask about my hair routine. I now give advice to other girls who are in my position and want to embrace their natural curls. I feel as if curls are such a beautiful and unique feature that need to be more recognized.