What’s your reason for getting a Big Chop? I took it back to the good old days and my hair is better off.

Written by Terricha Phillips

  I got into the so-called natural hair movement as a student matriculating at Spelman College, where many classmates and peers transitioned from “creamy crack” to their natural hair texture as a newfound appreciation of their identity. I remember when my mother started applying Just For Me and PCJ no-lye relaxers on my naturally curly hair when I was in the second grade. Back then I wondered if my thick hair was unmanageable because I cried during detangling and laughed out loud from my mother’s hands tickling my scalp during shampooing!

I remember how long, thick and pretty my natural hair would fall down my small back. Then the relaxer, drastically changing my hair texture from thick to bone straight, made me feel like a slightly conceited Rapunzel. Fast forward through 13 years of consistent root touch-ups by various relaxers, my young adult self grew tired of the chemical burns, split ends and over-processed strands weakened from too much tension and heat. During Winter break in my junior year, with my straightened hair dyed burnt red, I told my mother I wanted to grow out my natural hair pattern and texture and walk away from chemicals for good. My three roommates were already pursuing their natural hair journeys, and learning more of my cultural identity encouraged me to take the step for better hair health. 

I immediately loved my natural hair pattern and maintained consistent trimming and had fun with protective styles. However, years of lackluster nutrition led to my natural hair becoming very unhealthy and broken. Even my spouse asked if I would cut it all off to start over. My hair was long when I moved to Mississippi for my journalism career but I didn’t take good care of it. As a 30-year-old stressed and overly caffeinated nonprofit communications specialist, I slept with my hair in a ponytail or styled in bobby pins that created split ends.

During a routine lunch break, I made the bold decision to ask my beautician for a ‘Big Chop’. Watching the dead hair fall to the floor, the weight literally lifting off my shoulders, I felt free. I felt happy about giving myself a new start to healthier hair using all-natural products, and began a fitness journey and eliminated a lot of processed and fast foods. That was in 2015, and today, my hair is halfway down my back again and my identity as a Christian wife and mother of three is secure. 

My reason for the ‘Big Chop’ was to improve the health of my hair. I know many others through the years who made a similar decision for reasons like transitioning from chemicals, starting locs or foster a greater appreciation of their natural tresses. Our hair is tied to our identity, and the natural hair care industry has evolved over time. Verified Market Research noted how modern consumers of natural hair care products are more aware of harmful ingredients and are less likely to use products containing sulphates, parabens, mineral oil or alcohol. The expansion of the natural hair care product market is driven by the rise in hair problems possibly caused by pollution, climate, diet, and extremes in temperature. An article on the website for Verified Market Data shows the market for natural hair care products in 2022 was valued at $8.30 billion U.S. dollars and is projected to reach $11.84 billion by 2030.

Since 2017, my family enjoys using all-natural products to maintain optimal hair quality and health, and supporting Black-owned businesses supplying these products keeps dollars in the local community. I know for sure that my daughters will not need hair relaxers because they are being raised to love their natural hair pattern and will learn how to properly care for their strands. Unlike my processed hair journey, they will have a head start in avoiding negative health outcomes from putting harmful chemicals on their scalps and their bodies. Once we implement healthier practices, the next generation will follow and replicate them to maintain strong legacies. 

This story is part two of the Complexity of Coils Series. Read more stories, take our affordability survey or let us know about your hair journey.