My name is Miranda Jaleisa and this is my transition story!
Were you a long term or short term transitioner, and why?
I transitioned for a total of a year and 2 months before I went ahead and big chopped. I have had long hair for as long as I could remember so the idea of me having short hair was not even possible. I have always been someone who was so concerned about length and just recently came to realize that length means nothing if your hair is unhealthy, so I just went for it!
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When did you BC? What was your initial reaction to your natural hair?
I was absolutely in love! The night before I big chopped I was moisturizing my hair and the difference between my natural hair and my texlaxed hair was huge! So I cut off a piece and I was instantly in love! That night, I searched for a ton of big chop videos on youtube and I just kept getting more excited with each video that I watched. The next day I just cut it! My hair felt so soft and healthy. De-tangling was a breeze so it didn’t even matter to me how much hair I cut off at that point!
How did family and friends react to the new you? What was your response to them?
My family and friends could not believe that I did it. Everyone in my circle is pretty much obsessed with length like I was, so they couldn’t really comprehend why I would do such a thing. I was also always known for having long hair so this was definitely a change for everyone!
What was your transition routine?
My transitioning routine was simple. Every night I would lightly spritz my hair with water and conditioner then seal with either coconut oil or shea butter. I would wash my hair every 2 weeks with the Tresemme naturals line then deep condition with Shea Moisture Jamaican Black Castor Oil Masque (absolute favorite). Then every six weeks, as instructed, I would use the Aphogee Two-Step Protein Treatment.
What was your staple hair style during the transition?
I absolutely love wigs, box braids and buns! So I was in protective style mode throughout my whole transitioning process. My favorite hairstyle definitely had to be the wigs. It kept my from manipulating my hair at all times and was so easy for me to take off the wig and moisturize my hair underneath.
How did you moisturize your hair to prevent breakage at the new growth line?
I always moisturized my hair in sections; it kept me from getting rough with my hair and made detangling either. I also stopped using a comb; I can’t even remember how long it has been since I used one. So finger detangling with a ton of conditioner has been the key to preventing breakage at that line of demarcation.
Why did you choose to go natural?
I love natural hair, and I love curls. I’m a curl fanatic. I follow all these hair blogs and Instagram pages and these girls have amazing, healthy curls, no matter the texture. I chose to go natural because I saw my texlaxed curl pattern and knew there was absolutely no way that my hair was supposed to look like this. Some sections had curls while other sections just had a wave to it. I had one section at the crown of my head, (my mother and I use to call it my “problem area”) which completely lost curl pattern and was just a flat zigzag pattern clearly from over processing. No matter how much I deep conditioned, my hair always felt dry. My hair was always frizzy, not that natural frizz type, but the damaged hair type. What was most frustrating was that no matter how much I trimmed my hair and how gentle I was with my hair, the breakage never ended. That’s what really pushed my over the edge to decide to go natural.
Where can folks find you on the internet?
Instagram/Twitter/Snapchat/youtube: mirandajaleisa
