Switch up your curly hair game
The underlying essence of CGM is quite normal, stay away from using chemicals, do not blow dry or use straighteners, do not over wash your hair and most importantly, moisturize your curls as much as you can. Happy hair days are in the horizon!
As lovely as curly hair looks, they are plenty of work to deal with. Regular shampoos or conditioners do not work and applying heated rollers or dryers make things worse. For those with curly hair, frizziness and dryness are best friends!
For someone like me who has struggled with maintaining thick, curly hair for a long time, the stories of pain and loss are many. I spent my entire teenage with a short, bobbed haircut because none of the beauty salons would cater to my hair. Their simple answer was "Nothing would suit your kind of hair, it is just better to chop them off!"
How I grew out of hair insecurity and adjusted to the fact that my hair is beautiful in its own 'crooked' way is another story to tell but now I have a mane of curls which were beginning to give me headaches (literally from the weight!) until
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I discovered CGM (curly hair method). I must add that I have not fully come to understand it, neither have I been following it as rigorously as I ought to, but the small results have been amazing so far.
CGM became so popular that there are actual books written on it! Not only that, celebrities have been endorsing CGM because it is apparently more effective than traditional methods.
After doing some research on CGM, I found out the basic steps to it which are easy to follow and quite doable for those who barely have the time to brush hair. Before I had begun to care about my locks, every day was bad hair day and every day was bun hairdo day.
The first thing to do before you start following CGM is to get rid of all the dirt and product in your hair. You should use a mild, sulphate and paraben free shampoo to ensure there is no clogged silicon or similar chemical in your hair. This should essentially be the last time you should be using shampoo in your hair.
I found this step hard to follow because finding sulphate and paraben free shampoo in Dhaka requires the kind of time that I do not have in busy schedule. But if you can, it would be great. Even if you do not, limit your shampooing to once or twice a week like me and it would give you similar, if not the same result. This stage is also called the no 'poo' stage, the poo is from shampoo.
The second step is using a deep conditioner to rinse your hair after shower and making sure to use cool water so that the frizz and dryness can be kept in check. This made me wonder about winter when using cold water is not the best of ideas; hence, I use lukewarm water, which is soothing.
The next step is drying your curls or 'plopping' your hair with a soft cloth such as used t-shirt or perhaps a cotton gamcha. I have used both and the t-shirt gives a slightly better performance. Always air dry your hair and refrain from using heat and do not brush your dry hair too harshly, if you want to at all.
This step is important because it helps to restore and lock moisture in your curls. Use ample amounts of an oil or aloe-based hair cream and twist your curls in whichever way you want. Do not use the silicon based hair serums that our markets are full of, especially the ones which declare 'soft, silky, tangle-free' hair.
CGM or not, massage coconut oil (you could make your own mixture with different kinds of oil) into your hair 2-3 times a week before you rinse off, the oil will keep hair soft. Make sure to use your fingers or a wide-toothed comb to detangle, otherwise your hair will suffer breakage.
Like anything in this world, the method would not change your hair overnight but if you keep patience and stick to CMG (like me!), you will see the results in a couple of weeks.
The underlying essence of CGM is quite normal, stay away from using chemicals, do not blow dry or use straighteners, do not over wash your hair and most importantly, moisturize your curls as much as you can. Happy hair days are in the horizon!
