What is 4c Nappy Hair?

4c Nappy Hair is,“to look beyond the texture of one’s hair; redirecting our focus on cultivating our mind, body and soul to achieve and maintain, healthier, stronger and longer hair.”

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I created 4c Nappy Hair not only for me but for individuals who can relate to me. My blog is intended for those who struggle with self-esteem, confidence and faith. It is for those who seek approval/validation from others and negatively compare themselves to others.

For a long time, I identified myself as the person listed above. I still battle with some of those insecurities and a feeling of inadequacy till this day.

I have been natural for over nine years. Prior to that, my hair was chemically relaxed at the tender young age of three. As I got older, I became dependent on hair extensions (braids), weaves and wigs; feeling the most confident and attractive.

India Arie once said, “I am not my hair”; however, in my case, I was my hair. I viewed my hair as a reflection of my identity and when it wasn’t professionally styled, it was concealed under a headscarf until it was. It didn’t dawn on me that the constant installment of the hairstyles I wore, was weakening and damaging my real hair. I was ignorant (point. blank. period) – I lacked knowledge when it came to hair care and maintenance.

Over time, I experienced severe breakage which led to hair thinning. Instead of identifying and correcting the issues regarding the condition of my hair, I continued to mistreat it. The hairstyles that I wore my hair in were supposed to serve as a protective hairstyle – protecting healthy, growing hair against environmental stressors, as well as, a hair-styling enhancement; intentionally chosen to change up a style, every now and again.

But things got worse: I suffered from traction alopecia due to improper hair care. My hair had been compromised by chemical relaxers, colour, braids, weaves, wigs, experimenting with curling irons & flat irons, etc. The quality of my hair stripped me of my identity and left me feeling self-conscious, worthless, unattractive. It went as deep as me not feeling comfortable in my own skin. My self-esteem reached an all-time low which affected me in various ways.

It wasn’t until 2007/2008, that made a conscious decision to go natural. Yes, I big chopped (this was before the whole natural hair movement). I mean, at this point, my hair ran out of lives; it was destroyed, lifeless – dead! Although my hair was now in its natural state, I resorted to wearing weaves and wigs again (don’t judge, ha-ha).  I rejected the very thought of wearing my hair in its natural state. Why? It was ugly, unmanageable, unkempt – nappy.

I proceeded to schedule regular visits with my stylist, which consisted of hair pulling, breakage, and comments like, “your hair is so dry,” or “your hair is too tough/hard to manage,” “Maybe we should apply a texturizer.” Opposed to, gentle handling of my hair in its natural state, assisting and educating me with proper hair care and maintenance.

Even though, I resorted to wearing weaves and wigs again, I wasn’t satisfied and I didn’t feel confident as I did in the past. A lot of that had to do with the permanent damage I had endured; restricting me from wearing my hair in various styles.

Unaware that there was a natural hair community, I stumbled upon YouTube and watched videos of individuals who used YouTube as a platform to share their natural/relaxed hair experience/journey; hair regimens, products, how-to, tips & advice and more. It was at that moment that I took responsibility for my own hair.

After extensive browsing and research, I came upon a natural hair community that I never knew existed; with information widely available at my fingertips. I gradually started to develop an understanding of basic hair care for textured hair. One thing that interested me through some of these mediums was the conversation in the comment section around texture/natural hair discrimination (good hair vs bad hair).

For those who are unfamiliar of what natural hair discrimination and hair-typing is:

Hair Discrimination, based on hair texture, is a form of injustice resulting in human beings being treated differently based on the stigma attached to hair texture in society. Hair texture varies from straight hair to the curlier, kinkier hair. Curly hair also has its own variation ranging from very loose curls to the very tightly packed afro-textured hair. Straight hair enjoys a higher prestige and is more widely accepted in both professional settings and everyday settings.   ¹

Hair-typing is an alphanumeric system that was created by hairstylist, Andre Walker. He created this system to help individuals to better understand their hair texture and take care of their hair using the right products and styling methods for optimal results.

Hair typing divides hair into four main categories, based on the texture of one’s hair; straight, wavy, curly, and kinky which scale from 1 to 4, respectively. Within each category, your hair can then be further broken down into subcategories from a to c. The subcategories go into more details in identifying the various curl patterns on one’s hair strands; from loose to kinky/tight curls (as shown in the illustration above and below; hair-typing chart).

Finally, as an individual with kinky textured hair (commonly known as type 4 hair), I noticed that there wasn’t a lot of YouTubers/Bloggers that represented my hair type and the deep-rooted debate on textured discrimination just confirmed my own beliefs that I came to terms with, with my own hair.  I despised my 4c nappy hair and desired a looser textured  hair type. A looser textured hair type appeared manageable, presentable, and overall, considered ”good hair.”

It wasn’t until later throughout the years that I started to notice an increase of YouTubers/Bloggers who represented and provided extensive knowledge with those with 4 type hair.  Their journey, self-care and the way they styled their hair, inspired and encouraged me to embrace my hair in its natural state. 

The purpose of this backstory is to say that there is so much more to hair than our hair type. Everybody’s hair journey is different. I made the decision two years ago to accept and embrace my hair in its natural state. For a long time, I allowed society’s standards of beauty to alter the way I perceive myself (which did more harm than good). I compromised the quality of my hair for a sense of confidence, approval/validation from others – my identity. Mentally, I wasn’t in a good space.

Life can be a beautiful thing depending on how you choose to live it. Although, this is a hair blog, it will act as lifestyle blog as well. I didn’t go into extensive details on how my hair experiences affected my lifestyle, but it did. 

I would like 4c Nappy Hair to be a community where knowledge is power, where we foresee (4c) – to look beyond the bad stigma that is associated with nappy hair and hair-typing in general.

Instead, let’s challenge ourselves by redirecting our focus and cultivating our mind, body and soul on the things that really matter in life – things that make us happy and in turn will have a positive impact on our hair journey and our walk in life.

One’s hair texture is not superior to another: what sets us apart is our dedication in achieving an optimal level of health with our hair and maintaining it. In order to achieve that, we must strive to make lifestyle changes regarding our physical or mental health, diet, attitude, and embark a life of positivity.

And that’s what I have done. It’s not going to be easy, but it can be done.  If we put as much time, love and care towards the things that matter to us we will blossom and flourish into something beautiful. Change starts from within and you don’t have to be on this journey alone.

“Inward transformation, leads to an outward manifestation.” – Unknown