Why I waited so long to fall in love with my natural hair?!
Hi, my name is Vernessie from Victorville, Ca. My Journey to going natural started February 6, 2006. My decision to go natural stemmed from the fact that I was experiencing personal and perimenopause changes in my life, so I started researching in 05’ how to transition to my natural hair.
I remember growing up and hated going through the agonizing routine on Saturday morning of having my hair washed, combed and pressed out. I endured this routine up to the age of 12. Then the next phase was perms and braid extensions that I wore for years. In 2005, I noticed that my hair was starting to shed from the constant wearing of braids, and I noticed that the synthetic hair was beginning to irritate my scalp that resulted in burning and severe itching.
I did my Big Chop (completely bald) February of 2006 and have been natural ever since. After going bald, I wore wigs until my hair grew long enough to wear an afro; from 2007 to 2008 I styled my hair with cornrows, ponytail hair pieces, individual extensions and my favorite style two strand twist. In December 2008, I decided to “braid lock” my hair. I wore that style for six years. On May 2, 2015, I decided to cut my “braid locks” because my edges had disappeared and entire braids came out from the root. I was experiencing traction alopecia, so I did my 2nd Big Chop bald head, that is how my 2nd Hair Journey started.
“Life Is Only What You Make It”
Vernessie M. Joseph-Burbank