Thursday, August 13, 2015

So, what's up doc?

Wow...life really has happened over the years and time and time again I've thought of closing this blog, but after reading through some of my old posts and having my heart smile so hard till it hurt and as well as bringing back some emotions I felt some 3-4 years ago, I realised that this really is something special. I can go on and rant about whats been happening since 2013, which I'm sure some would love to hear, but I will be modest, mysterious and lady-like and keep things quiet.

SO NATURAL HAIR, ay? I am still natural, but have not been enjoying the journey of late. I recently took out my braids of 2 months and even prior to taking it out, noticed that I have been suffering from traction alopecia, which seems to be getting worse. In fairness I hadn't really ever used anything for my hairline since going natural and as I started to rummage through dermatology articles, websites and past experiences, I thought I'd go back to my roots and start with 'virgin hair fertilizer'. My sister is a living testimony to the wonders of this herbal hair cream and so based on that and other positive reviews, I have chosen to make this my first port of call. I never have just a plan A and so if that doesn't work I may scale up to a steroid cream. If that doesn't work, there is minocycline, a cream typically used in male pattern baldness, however, I am very weary of it. Although it has been shown to work, the effect is short lived and the hairs start to fall off when you stop using it, so yeah; I'm a bit too scared to try that.
The good ol' hair fertilizer

On the bright side though, Boots recently re-introduced the 'Yes to' range back into their shampoo and conditioner lines. Memories of old came rushing back as I purchased bottles of the cucumber equivalent. I used it for the first time yesterday and my goodness, what a change. I have not compared the ingredient list but it is very very different from the range of 2-3 years ago. First of all the smell...this new range is simply bleh. The old yes to cucumbers formulation used to smell so amazing, so good that I sometimes chose to omit wearing perfume post co-washing....it was that good. In addition to the smell is the consistency. The conditioner is a lot less thick than it used to be and so you can imagine you don't get the same coating effect you used to have.
What the new bottle looks like


I have also started re-taking biotin tablets religiously, my bottle of which is kept beside my vitamin D tablets which I am forced to take daily, and acts as a grumpy impetus. For my fellow citizens of tropical countries, living in these temperate zones, I'd implore you to get your vitamin D levels checked if you've been abroad for a significant amount of time. Without turning this into a health ed lesson, vit D deficiency can cause bone pain and fatigue, secondary parathyroidism and osteomalacia- go figure, amongst other things. It has also been shown to increase death from cardiovascular disease, memory impairment in adults and can affect the immune system. Interestingly enough, people with dark skin are less able to make vitamin D from the sunlight exposure; so it might be that those pictures of babies with rickets may not always be poorly fed by their not so caring parents. Hmm I just thought of a brilliant idea (*adds to book of great ideas*).

Anyways, I just thought I'd check in and say hi. Oh and if anyone knows a reasonably priced natural hair stylist in the london area, pls drop a message. Take care and all the best.

Tah,
M.Jay