1. Detangling your hair is a full-time job.

When your hair is permed/straightened, it’s easy to quickly brush or comb it, wrap it at night and take it down in the morning. Unless you sacrifice hours the night before to twist your hair, that’s not an option. So, you’ll have to section it all off and detangle—everyday, which is also a time-consuming ritual. Well, you don’t really have to do it everyday. Don’t let anyone tell you that you do. It gets exhausting. Plus, it’ll be tangled up again the second it dries, and of course, you could run your fingers through it every now and then, but then, it’ll be frizzy.

2. There is no miracle product, and out of the many products you buy, very few of them will be cheap.

Social media apps and sites like Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter will have you convinced that certain “miracle products” are sure to make your hair grow super fast or make it shiny or less frizzy or whatever else appeals to new naturals. More often than not, those products aren’t going to work for you and they aren’t going to be cheap. Be careful not to dig yourself into a hole by buying hundreds of dollars worth of products just to wind up only using two or three of them. It’s better to ask people you know personally about which products are good, and again, even those products may not be for you. Everyone’s hair is different, and it’s all a learning process.

3. Having the same hair type as your favorite hair guru does not mean you can do the same styles.

It’s easy to start hating your hair because you think it’s unruly. There are so many tutorials out there for so many different styles, but the truth is your hair can be the same length and hair type as your favorite hair guru’s, and you still won’t be able to do everything that they can do with their hair. That’s fine. Your hair may be a little rougher or smoother, which means it may hold or slip more or less than it should. After you detangle is the time to work out new styles. You’ll run into fewer issues.

4. Even in the natural hair community, if your hair isn’t similar to other people’s, your hair type won’t be considered beautiful.

Be prepared to face some criticism. There will be other people with natural hair that won’t like your hair just because it’s not like theirs. Having more or less kinks and curls than someone else doesn’t make your hair any less beautiful—whether your hair is 3A or 4C. Having big hair is okay, too. Block views. Attract stares. Natural hair is a journey. You are growing. You shouldn’t be ashamed of that.

5. Going natural isn’t enough to see growth. You have to love your hair first.

A lot of people do their big chop and think that that is the key to growth, and it’s not. You can take your vitamins every day and deep condition every week and keep trimming your split ends, but the fact is when you love your hair, your hair will love you. So, until you learn to love yourself and your hair for what it is, you will see little to no growth.