My Natural Hair Journey started without me having any conscious idea of what I was doing! I've always blow-dried my hair immediately after washing ever since I was about seven years-old. Then in the seventh grade, I straightened my hair for the first time. All of this was done without heat protectant (which I never even knew existed at the time!). The hair straightening lasted me up until the end of my freshman year in high school. During this time I noticed that after washing my hair, there were strands in random areas that were bone straight. I thought my hair was changing to a straighter pattern (why was I so ignorant?) Then a week before school started up again, my mother told me and my older sister that she wasn't going to be blow-drying our hair anymore. We were horrified! So we hit up on of our good friends and asked her for advice and she told us about this curling style you could achieve with just water and oil (the infamous Bantu-knot Out!). She told us to go on YouTube and search up Bantu-knots, and that's what I did. Which is how I fell in love with my first natural hair guru, SimplYounique. YouTube became like a drug to me, watching videos without end, which is how I found out about heat damage, manipulated styles, and healthy hair tips. Going natural isn't easy, but I love my journey so far. Without it, I don't think I'd be the person I am today.