Maintaining your Natural Hair during pregnancy

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Let’s face it; caring for your natural hair is probably one of the last things on your mind when you are pregnant. Especially in the first trimester when you are totally not yourself, suffering from fatigue, nausea and lack of motivation.

Some fortunate pregnant women may not know what this “struggle” is about as they had it all easy.

I know, because I have been there and experienced this “struggle”.

Here are my thoughts on the struggle with natural hair during pregnancy:

1) It is just hair. Yes it is! I am confident God knew about this struggle, and that’s probably why a lot of pregnant women tend to experience increased hair growth and thickness when pregnant- hair care or not.

This is not to say you shouldn't care for your hair during pregnancy, but if tiredness or nausea gets in the way, don’t sweat it. 

Do what you can when you can.

Simplifier your hair care routine or have none at all. Wash your hair when you are up to it. Deep condition when you have energy.  

Your hair will most likely grow anyway.

2) If you can't deal with the stress at all, do a second big chop! Okay I kid, don’t go cutting off that beautiful hair except you really want to!

However I must say, this totally works for some pregnant ladies. Hair will be one less thing for them to worry about. Very low maintenance stuff. How tempting.

3) Okay, so I know I said earlier it is just hair, but in order to look presentable, and also to avoid your hair looking like a massive knotted mop stick, get a protective style done, probably with extensions. For example: kinky twists, braids, weave, wig etc. The normal rules still apply – don’t make it too tight and leave those edges alone.

I won’t tell you how long to keep it on, but try (yes please I am begging) to spray your hair with water or your hair spritz at least once a day in order to keep it moisturised. If you forget, don’t worry about it. Start again when you remember.

When it is time to remove your extensions, you could get someone to help. Make sure you remove singular knots and detangle each braid as soon as you remove.

Don’t make the mistake of removing all the extension before detangling. That is an “error of life”!  You will loose more hair than you intend to.

4) Drink at least 8 glasses of water each day, and eat healthy when pregnant. Your hair will definitely benefit from it.

5) It is just hair. Yes I know I made that point before, but I wanted to stress it again.

When pregnant, you already have so much worries you are dealing with, including the health and safety of your baby, so worrying about your hair will only tense you out further.

The sad news, which you should be aware of, is that your hair may shed much more after pregnancy. In fact that’s another story all together. Joys of motherhood!

BUT seriously….

Relax. You can always get back on the rigorous hair care routine when pregnancy ends and you have settled into a routine with your cute little bundle of joy.

Your hair will be just fine. J

So has any natural sista out there experienced this struggle I talk about when pregnant? How do you care for your hair when pregnant?

I would love to know. Thanks!

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Aloted Omoba (pseudonym), is a natural chica who runs the Super Working Mum website, a resource hub for working mothers who desire to optimize their relationships, resources and time. 

You can connect with her here:

Website: www.superworkingmum.com

Twitter: @aloted and @superworkingmum.

Facebook: SuperWorkingMum