Going natural can be a more gradual transition where you slowly grow out your relaxer while cutting off the treated ends to eventually reveal your natural coils or you can go 0 to 100 real quick and decide to big chop on a random sunny day.

If you are like me, then you did the latter and you are currently growing out a TWA. I started off with a very low cut tapered fade and now that I have gone a few months without a cut, my TWA is growing out and up.

With that growth comes a bit of awkwardness. My TWA is no longer in a sleek tapered shape, it is now a weird length afro sort of thing that leaves me mildly frustrated and irritable when I attempt to style it. I can no longer simply run a bit of product through my curlies and jet out of the door. I have to take time out to carefully apply moisturizers and gels and then coil clumps of frizzy curls around my fingers to bring some semblance of order to my head.

My hair is long enough to irritate me yet, the irritation is worth it. Here are a few ways for us to get through the awkward fro stage and avoid cutting our hair back off.

You can choose to embrace the awkward fro stage and just let it do its thing.

This would have to be the easiest no-fuss approach. The awkward fro stage has to happen if you are going to grow out your length so if we can just embrace it and find something to like about it in the meantime, it won’t be so bad right? One thing I love about this length is that I finally get to see my coils begin taking shape again. Before, my hair was too short so I had more of a wave than an actual curl.

Rock a protective style

There are so many natural girl friendly protective styles out right now. We have crochet braids, box braids, kinky curly sew-ins and so much more. If you are really in a style rut, don’t be afraid to totally revamp your look without touching the scissors. That’s what I did. I found myself really hitting a wall with this length so I had a set of box braids installed to breathe some life back into my look. It had definitely sped up my morning routine and allowed me to keep the clippers away from my nape.

Contour your style routine and get your hair shaped

It may be time to change your styling routine. Maybe rubbing a bit of gel in your hair no longer works so you now have to give in to using a tool or two or maybe adding in another styling product to get that desired look. A good shaping could also be a remedy. If you don’t mind losing a bit of length, this could be the perfect refresher for you and keep you moving towards your growth goals.

Whatever option you choose, just try to remember what got you excited about your growth journey in the first place and challenge yourself to stay focused and on target!

We Want to Hear From You! How are you getting through the awkward fro stage?

-Christian Byshe