My Hair Story - Shannon

Introduce yourself…..

My name is Shannon. I’m a 30 year old black male from Gary, Indiana.

Are you relaxed, natural, texturized or texlaxed?

Natural

What’s your story how did you get to where you are?

My name is Shannon. I’m a 30 year old black male living in the state of Indiana. Growing up I was always told I had “good hair”. It was always very curly if it ever got the chance to grow past the fade that I was ‘made’ to get. Not that I lobbied for long hair or anything, but being so young I just never considered other options.

Fast forward to my teenage years. I let my hair grow and would get it braided and blown out. I even straightened it from time to time with an old school straightening comb. At some point I cut it all off and later in life, I let it grow again but this time I thought that I should stop blow drying it and just let it dry curly.

Problem is, I knew how difficult it was to get it untangled if I left it curly for too many days. So I had a bit of a dilemma, what eventually happened was I left it alone for so long it turned into dreadlocks! I went with it and before I knew it I had shoulder length dreads. People actually thought that I got my hair twisted, but I didn’t I never needed to.

I worked at Abercrombie and ended up cutting my dreads in late ’09 early 2010, I didn’t get a fade so I retained a bit of length. The way I started my dreads meant that my roots weren’t twisted, so I had the barber cut just below the dread point.

Fast forward, after years of trial and error, I think that it have an almost perfect regimen for my hair. I recently discovered the healthiest way to straighten my hair without a flat iron*.

Of course this method doesn’t get my hair as straight as a flat iron*, but I do not care for my hair being as straight as a board anymore (Well.. maybe from time to time, especially for length checks). I joined this site for advice and to give a males perspective on growing and living with long hair.

What is your typical weekly regimen?

Typically, I wash my hair with Wen (love this stuff). Rinse thoroughly and put a little conditioner in as a leave in conditioner*. Most hair products I use I have to put in wet hair.

While my hair is wet (not soaking) I use a Revlon spin brush on the lowest setting and I use a bit of olive oil* or coconut oil* as a heat protectant*. The process of using the brush is simple, I feed a section to it and spin it around the brush and let it sit for 20-30 seconds depending on how wet my hair is. Straightening it slowly like this leaves it still very conditioned.

Are you happy with your progress so far?

I’m happy. I think that I’m impatient though. I’m eager for it to grow so sometimes I must admit I don’t think it’s growing fast enough. I believe that when I get back into a regular exercise routine and start eating better then that it will expedite my hair growth.

What’s your signature style?

I have so many variations ranging from curly to blown out to loose straight to jet straight. So I guess I don’t have a signature style!

How do you ensure that your ends are protected from the elements and your hands?

My ends are a huge concern for me. I’m not good at getting a regular trims like I need to so in the elements I’ll usually have it put up in a doubled up ponytail underneath a hat.

Do you have a goal length or are you more concerned about the health of your hair?

My goal length will be achieved the day I go to sit on the toilet and am worried that my hair will interfere with the process.

Is there anything that you hair hates?

My hair hates people that think I should cut my hair!

Do you have any favorite hair products?

Wen, Wen and mor Wen. I’ve heard people say it doesn’t work for them. I feel for those people.

Where can we find you online?

My Instagram is @RLstableKing41381. Search the hashtag #shannonmeans