Tag: natural nurse

 

Natural hair and nursing……..do they clash do they agree? Hmmm

If you didn’t know I am a woman of color, specifically Haitian-American. I’ve been natural, as in no chemicals and relaxer free, for a little over 3 years now. I have very thick, dense, coarse, and kinky hair. Right now if I stretch my hair it reaches my bra strap. I absolutely love my hair. I enjoy being natural and I’m comfortable in my skin. However, being natural and being a nursing student has proven to be somewhat of a challenge.

 

First and foremost, my hair is massive. Literally. It’s like walking around with a soft, black cloud around my head. I also happen to live in a very humid environment so straightening or blowing my hair out is not an option because my hair would swell up as swoon as I walk outside. For nursing school I prefer to have my hair up and away. I don’t want to fiddle with my hair in class and especially when I’m in clinicals. The problem I have is that my hair is so massive putting it into a bun is easier said than done. My buns look odd because my hair is so thick similar to helmet head. And if I attempt to wear my hair in a puff, the puff is so massive it’s almost obscene. I get stares and sometimes I’m a little embarrassed because I’m not sure if it’s appropriate enough for the work place. Once I had a clinical instructor tell me to go “calm down my hair” while at the hospital. What she didn’t know what that was about as tamed as my hair got. I still went in the bathroom and attempted to try to pack in my puff but there is only so much I can do. Luckily the charge nurse for the floor we were on that day happened to be a fellow natural and she complimented my hair that day. After that I wasn’t as discouraged or embarrassed to wear my hair out.

In addition, washing my hair is an all day affair from start to finish. Because my hair is so kinky and coarse it constantly needs moisture and TLC. My hair is like needy friend that keeps calling to hang out. With nursing school, I don’t have entire days to spare jumping in and out of the shower and detangling or deep conditioning.

So how have I managed? 3 things

1. Protective Styling

I’ve been in nursing school for almost 7 months and out of 7 months I’ve probably worn my hair out for one solid month. I make it a point to keep my hair braided or twisted. It prevents me from over-manipulating my hair which can cause breakage, I can keep my hair in cute buns that are extremely low maintenance, and I can get out of the house quickly which is so important when I am waking up at 5am frequently.

2. Lots and lots of headbands

Like I said, my buns can look quite odd but slapping on a cute headband makes my buns looks semi-normal/cute. Again this is great because I have to get up so early most days and I also get to protect the edges of my hair. I probably rotate 5 different black headbands for school.

3. Moisture spritzes

My hair is constantly braided up so to maintain the moisture balance I mist my hair with sprays that contain oils. My favorite spray at the moment is Shea Moisture’s Coconut & Hibiscus Hold & Shine Moisture Mist. But I’ve made my own sprays using simple ingredients I have at home. I spray my hair in the morning and at night before bed. I still wash my hair and condition regularly but the mist really helps those weeks when I have 3 or 4 exams.

Overall natural hair and nursing are definitely doable. It can be frustrating but come up with a system that works for you and benefits your hair. Protective styling and low maintenance hair styles just happen to work for me and I’ve been able to retain a lot of length this year by just keeping my hair braided up. I plan on continuing this until the conclusion of my program. If you can any questions or want to know more about my hair care regimen please comment below or hit me up on social media. until next time, see ya!