This is an interesting topic. I always like to point out to those asking my advice that I have NO cosmetology or chemistry background. What I share are my experiences, research, and further resources.
Part of the reason I went natural was because I didn't have time to sit in a salon. I do still go to a stylists for trims and pressing on occasion. What I've found however, is that many stylists don't have much expertise in cutting and styling tightly curled hair. But I respect that they have studied hair so I do ask them for advise. I stopped co-washing on the advice of a stylist. And I welcome professional stylists to share there expertise on this forum.
But the flip side is that I tried to go natural a few times over the years before it was popular. I didn't know how to care for my curly hair though. YouTube, blogs, and an expanding market of natural hair care products are what enabled me to be successful this time and helped me maintain my girls' hair. And the benifit of there being so many bloggers and vloggers is that you're bound to find someone with similar hair and goals who has already done a lot of the experimenting and may have the money or sponsorship to try new products. Unfortunately people with looser curls get more sponsorship and attention and us type 4s sometimes get false hope. But there are tight curlies out there with knowledge and experience to share!