I'm really embarrassed to admit this, but... I can't braid behind my head -- too uncoordinated. I have to be looking at my hair in order to braid it. Plus, if I put it into one braid, it would be so thick and heavy it would give me headaches, and beat me to death from behind -- my plain-old ponytails are more than 2 inches thick -- but a ponytail is how I usually wear it, because it's just easier, and I'm not vain enough to worry about how I look, when I'm not going anywhere but the mailbox.
I used to braid it into 2, at the sides, for the wavy effect it gives, after you take out the braids (my hair is naturally wavy anyway), but I got tired of that; now I use the flat-iron to get rid of the waviness and fuzziness, and that helps a lot too to reduce its thick texture -- it seems more like a normal head of hair than a double head of hair. But, I have to do it in layers, there's just so much of it, and it takes FOREVER, so I'm really starting to think more and more fondly of a very short cut, and wigs. Guess I'll need to wait for the hot flashes to finally go away, or a wig would be much too hot.
Andria
Apparently braiding behind your head is not a normal skill. So, you're not alone. But, I had no choice.
When my son was a baby, he was allergic to disposable diapers. (Disposables were still in their infancy and not many choices back then.) So, I had to rinse out cloth diapers with hair down to my knees. I learned very quickly to braid my own hair. Which I would then stuff down the back of my shirt. It became such a habit that I still frequently find that I've braided my hair without even realizing that I've done it.
The headaches is why I finally cut it. But, my hair wasn't as thick as yours. I only got headaches when my hair was wet. But, that was enough.
Have you tried having your hair cut in layers or whatever they do to thin it out?