scab hair

Where do I begin? If you know or have heard of scab hair, its nothing to be afraid of.. it doesn't look very pretty, as you can see from my photo, but hair is hair and it isn't permanent.

For those that don't know what scab hair is, basically (and unscientifically) its the hard, frizzy, fuzzy, straight, curless (curl-less?) new growth as a result of relaxing. From my own understanding, and I'm no scientist, relaxers completely change the structure of your natural hair. Think, mutation (chemical X?). It strips and damages your natural hair in order to obtain that oh-so-desirable straight look. Well, we all know the skin and scalp absorb things from the environment, which includes harmful chemicals, such as relaxers, hair dyes, and texturizers. Although we all know we aren't suppose to get relaxer cream on our scalp, if you've ever done one at home and are like me, you probably slathered it right on there, heavy-handed, thinking what harm could be done, then left it on until you were running for some cold water to put out the fire on your head. How many beauticians have told you the longer you leave it on, the better it will work? hmph... Also, if you've never done one yourself, but you've ever had sores or burns on your head after a process, well, you've had the chemicals on your scalp..

When I was relaxing, I didn't know what scab hair was. I just knew that the hair in the back of my head grew in frizzy and fuzzy. When I couldn't flat iron the frizz away or slick it with pomade anymore (usually between 3 and 5 months), I knew it was time to relax, chemically relax that is. Now, my instincts did tell me that there was a possibility the relaxers and heat were damaging my hair, so I did start to take certain precautions like lowering the heat setting on my flat iron, air drying my hair, and relaxing that section of my head last in order to fix the problem. yea, didn't work.

Back to scab hair.. there really isn't a "cure", so if you stumbled upon this blog hoping for one.. I'm sorry. There is a light at the end of the tunnel if you're experiencing this problem too: it will go away. Let me repeat that: it WILL go away. It can take anywhere between 6 months to TWO years for your non-scab hair to grow back in. Read about it here: . I've been transitioning for 6 months now, and on the right side of my head, I am finally starting to notice my curl pattern growing in.. the left, which I have always had more trouble with, is still straight and frizzy..

Honestly, the best thing you can do for this hair, is baby it: condition, condition, and moisturize! This hair is the result of our harsh treatments and neglect. Its growing in this way to protect itself, from us. So, spoil it, love it, and treat it well; eventually it will forgive you and grow back in healthy and curly just as it was intended.

So, if you have scab hair and you want to get rid of it, keep it moist, keep it trimmed, and keep it happy. Before you know it, the hard ends will be gone and you can start worrying about something else ;P