Your voice of Hair
Have you ever sat in the mirror and struggled with how to manage your hair? Felt like you’ve reached a plateau in growth? Simply just wondering how are the girls getting their hair to be long, shiny, thick and overall just healthy? No matter your age, profession and especially where we are going…hair will always be the topic of discussion. We are constantly trying to figure out what’s the best way to care for our hair. As Women of Color, our hair is so much to us…it’s an extension of our being and for many of us, a way of expressing self love. On this continuous journey, many of us grapple with decisions about what we should do next with our hair. Do we want locs, braids or any protective style in general, a relaxer, a pixie cut or a good ole Dominican blowout. Either way we go, the goal is to look and feel amazing and confident in ourselves and have a head full of healthy hair. There are so many trends to follow when it comes to any aspect of our beings and honestly…sometimes it’s hard to even choose which to follow. No matter where we are getting information from, the goal is simply to make sure you’re having fun with your hair and taking care of it.
What is Ayurveda?
So many people rely on a practice called Ayurveda, that has really turned their lifestyle and routines around, allowing them to achieve those healthy hair goals that they’ve been striving for. Ayurveda is an ancient practice dating back to 2nd century BC in India. It is a method of healing that focuses on an individual’s energy or dosha. This system is meant to heal the physical body, emotional state of being, and spirituality. Ayur means life and veda means knowledge or science, literally translating to the knowledge of life or science of life. Ayurvedic practices are meant to restore our bodies and systems starting with how we are nourishing ourselves in order for our tissues and systems to be at their best.
How does it improve your hair?
Let’s be honest, it’s so hard to sit and find that one thing that can just change our whole being around. I’m talking about a practice that can completely heal and nourish our bodies from the inside out. We’re so used to just going to the store and attempting to find a product that targets one challenge at a time, while Ayurveda is here to target it all. Naturals who regularly use Ayurveda in their hair care routines have noticed this change. They notice much stronger hair, less shedding, shine, moisture retention and a soothed scalp… and so much more. There are examples everywhere – from the women of Chad using Chebe to grow their hair to their ankles, Indian women with their strong shiny hair, women of West Africa who have grown long and manageable 4c hair, the examples are endless!
Even after six years with locs, I still have struggled with what products I should be using…and I just know I’m not the only one feeling this pressure. It’s difficult keeping up with the hair trends and even more challenging to stay consistent. While ayurvedic hair care does require lots of consistency, the results are worth it and it also allows you to take matters into your own hands! With the knowledge of what your hair is struggling with, you can buy certain herbs that are tailored to your hair’s needs and create your own hair masks, deep conditioners, glosses or even create oil blends. As great as this all sounds, there’s no reason to sit here and act like all of us are even available or interested in going the DIY route. Just as quickly as you can get online and order some cute shoes, you can also order pre-made ayurvedic products that will give your hair exactly what it’s been missing.
Making Ayurveda Work For Your Hair
In order to actually get the most out of Ayurveda and successfully incorporate it into your routine, you must get familiar with your “Dosha.” Dosha means “that which can cause problems” basically, what your hair is missing. Knowing this will guide you on how to go about treating your hair for the best results. Whether you’re struggling with dryness, length retention, manageability, difficulty detangling on wash day, or coming up with a wash day routine itself, ayurveda can help you. Herbs like Fenugreek, Amla, Henna, Brahmi, Bringhraj, Aloe, Hibiscus, just to name a few, can work wonders for your hair. These herbs will transform your hair and can be incorporated into your routine a bit at a time until you’ve reached a full routine that works.
Think about our Fenugreek hair oil and hair mist. This is an ayurvedic herb that prevents hair loss, strengthens hair, provides great slip, adds tons of moisture and provides hair with important nutrients like iron and protein and so much more. I was able to use the Fenugreek hair mist on my locs and that alone helped my scalp feel refreshed each morning. And that is just one herb, the benefits of adding Ayurveda to your routine are endless. Learn more about fenugreek in another The4cvoice blog: https://the4cvoice.com/fenugreek-for-natural-hair-growth/
The only way to see real improvement is with consistency. Find your routine and stick to it! Not just for a few days or weeks either. For real results, you have to stick to your routine for at least 6 weeks. Make a regular schedule of your wash days, incorporate Ayurvedic herbs in your pre-poo, deep conditioning steps, and LOC/LCO moisturizing method. Ayurveda is so vast- the herbs and combinations are endless. Begin using it in your hair little by little and I know you will see changes that will get you hooked. Whether you want to take things into your own hands, and begin adding herbs to your routine by yourself based on what your hair is telling you or want to purchase ready made products that have been created to strengthen your hair as a whole, you can’t go wrong.
Let’s wrap this up & start your Ayurveda journey!
Take some time to check out a few links below that explain real people and their experiences with their own journey. With a plan and consistency these people actually saw and felt so much improvement with their hair. Improvements such as an increase in hair thickness, moisture retention, decrease in shedding, moisture and shine, hair growth and so much more! Adding new changes into your routine is extremely overwhelming, but do you think you’d try ? Hopefully after getting a short backstory of this system of healing yourself from the inside out, you may want to purchase some herbs or an oil to integrate into your daily/weekly routine! Be on the lookout for new Ayurveda filled products coming to The4cVoice this fall! They will not disappoint you. No reason not to add all of these benefits into your life!
