How to make my naturally currly hair look good ?

When I was young, I had really long curly hair. It was so curly, you could barely run a brush through it. It was very pretty though. Then when I was about 10 or 11, I had it cut. I got it styled to look like big wavy curls. The hair dresser put something in my hair. Don't have a CLUE what it was. But from then on out, my hair was HORRIBLE. All it was was one big poof-ball. Over the years it has straitened out a bit and became curly & I know it will probably never be the way it once was. I want to wear it down & natural But it still gets really poofy and frizzy. I have tried styling product's, different cuts and even thinning it out. But it just stays frizzy and poofy no matter what. Does anyone have any advice on how I can tame my hair. I'm just so sick of straitening it cause it's so damaging and feels like I have to get my hair cut all the time because of dead ends. I just have no clue what to do..