Touch-up every 6 weeks

[nuance7]

Does anyone do this consistantly without problems????

 

[adf23]

I don't, but I have a girlfriend with hair down her back, that gives herself a retouch every 6 weeks without fail. Her hair is a little past bra strap. Her texture is somewhere between 3C and 4A.

 

[prettywhitty]

The main issue I have with this is that hair grows up to 1/2 in a month. It's really hard to see that small amount of growth when touching up. You end uo overlapping, which causes breakage. I used to do this, and now that I wait 12 weeks I see a big difference in the thickness of my hair.

 

[Missi]

The main issue I have with this is that hair grows up to 1/2 in a month. It's really hard to see that small amount of growth when touching up. You end uo overlapping, which causes breakage. I used to do this, and now that I wait 12 weeks I see a big difference in the thickness of my hair.

Me Too, my mother would always schedule our appointments every 6-weeks and now that I'm in college, I stretch for 12 weeks and my roots are %100 fuller now. My mother sees my progress but she needs her 6 weeks so I don't know how she can grow her hair long: great ? btw OP.

 

[nuance7]

Thanks for replying. I've been a member of LHCF for a while (big time lurker) and have done the stretch thing but always wind up being underprocessed at touch up time. I'm not on a every 6 week run to get "all one texture". I have one more 6 week touch up to go and am wondering if I should stay at this interval. Any more responses???

 

[CHECKMATE!]

I just ended a 12wk stretch this apst sunday and my hair has thanked me for it with thickness and length, Im now about 2inches from full APL......btw I haven't updated my pics (siggy/fotki) yet...I will over the weekend

 

[Sosoothing]

I only do 8weeks. Have you tried a different relaxer to see if you can get straighter hair if thats what you want?

 

[chayil0427]

Actually this is one hair error I can't be accused of. You'd always have to chase me at gun point to the salon to get a relaxer. When I was young my mom did my hair about every 8 weeks, but every since I've been in charge of my own hair I've always waited 10 weeks or more.

My sister on the other hand was the exact opposite...she was always in her head with a perm and would comb it all the way through and let it sit for 45 minutes or longer! She was also big on heat and pulled her hair back really tightly to make poney tails (her eyes would be slanted ).

By 18 she had extremely thin hair that had traction baldness on the sides that didn't grow back until she had been natural for about 2 years.

I think being lazy with my hair up keep was a blessing because I didn't manipulate it a lot, relax it, or put heat on it and basically wore it up it stayed really thick and full --- even in the nape though I didn't maintain a lot of length because I let stylists hack off a lot of hair and I didn't properly protect and moisturize my ends.

Now that I AM about hair care it looks and feels even better.

Chayil

 

[Lady Esquire]

Me Too, my mother would always schedule our appointments every 6-weeks and now that I'm in college, I stretch for 12 weeks and my roots are %100 fuller now. My mother sees my progress but she needs her 6 weeks so I don't know how she can grow her hair long: great ? btw OP.

my mother-in-law relaxes every 5 weeks! her one saving grace is the fact that she has really thick and strong hair. but her hair has never been any longer than her neck 'cause she trims every single time. she criticized me when i first started my healthy hair journey. but when recently saw me grazing APL, she kept giving me many accolades. but even after i gave her some tips, she continues to relax every 5 weeks! go figure. to answer your question: i do not know anyone who does this and has long healthy hair.

 

[KiniKakes]

I relax every 8 weeks with no problems. I wouldnt relax any more frequently than this though...... i know 8 weeks is pushing it as is.

 

[Missi]

my mother-in-law relaxes every 5 weeks! her one saving grace is the fact that she has really thick and strong hair. but her hair has never been any longer than her neck 'cause she trims every single time. she criticized me when i first started my healthy hair journey. but when recently saw me grazing APL, she kept giving me many accolades. but even after i gave her some tips, she continues to relax every 5 weeks! go figure. to answer your question: i do not know anyone who does this and has long healthy hair.

Same with my mother: she still goes to the salon every 6 weeks knowing that stretching is gonna help a lot. Her hair has been at neck length for more than 4 1/2 yrs now. I guess when I get nere your length, she'll change to maybe 8 weeks

 

[Sha76]

IMHO 6 weeks is no where near long enough but my sis relaxes ever 6 weeks. I , on the other hand, cannot go no sooner than 12 weeks. But I am noticing that she admitted in the last 4 years she has not cut her hair and it is currently barely past her shoulders ( 4 years ago it was just at her shoulders) and I have relaxed APL hair cut it to my shoulders then cut if all off to be natural then relaxed it again and cut to chin length and currently my hair is at my shoulders.

Beleve me stretching is good for your hair.

 

[MochaSilk]

I relax every 8 weeks with no problems. I wouldnt relax any more frequently than this though...... i know 8 weeks is pushing it as is.

Same here. This is the 3rd time I've stretched to 8 weeks, and just that little bit makes a difference. I've almost punked out and did it at 6 because I got freaked out at the new growth madness, but I did it. I hope to make it to 10-12 weeks someday.

My mom is a 6-week woman. While she's followed my advice on moisturizing and combing from the ends up, she refuses to go longer than six weeks. Her hair is noticeably thicker, but not much longer.

 

[LawyerBarbie07]

I always do 6-8 weeks just because 1) my hair grows pretty fast 2) I have a hair texture that cannot stand the line of demarcation....if I wait more than 8 weeks I am looking at a pile of ripped out hair.


I don't think 6 is bad at all if you have enough hair to avoid overlap, but if you can go a little longer wait it out. It can make a big difference.

 

[seraphinelle]

I think it's more to do with how long your hair grows aswell.

Some people stretching to 6 weeks may seem/feel like a 12 week stretch.

But, I am stretching until I feel like relaxing my hair again. Could be another 3 months, or a year. Who knows.

 

[nuance7]

OK...thanks everyone...I'm thinking this last 6 "weeker" may be the last one. 8 weeks will probably be my minimum. Anybody else?

 

[BrooklynSouth]

Does anyone do this consistantly without problems????

8 weeks is the max. Weeks 6-8 can be maddening and painful. I have done it twice now..more than 8 is very tempting but......erplexed

 

[jamaicancurry]

I used to do this until I went to the (Dominicans) salon and they sent me home because I didn't have enough NG . Now I stretch to 12 weeks and I've retained more length this way.

I wish I could stretch longer...but my NG is too thick to manage

 

[B_Phlyy]

I have a friend who thinks 6 weeks is a stretch because she relaxes her hair once a month. Her hair is currently between bsl and midback length, but her hair is always been long and she has a pretty healthy diet, so I think she has genes and environment on her side.

 

[Candiss]

I'll be 13 weeks on Tuesday. I think if I had really thick hair, I would have relaxed a whole lot sooner. I'm sure the only people who can relax every six weeks and have long healthy hair are folks with thick healthy hair to begin with.

 

[HoneyDew]

I used to relax every 6 weeks, and it was never a problem for me because I was underprocessed for about a year! I was having trouble finding a relaxer that made my hair nicely texlaxed they way I like. The relaxers I used did not seem to make my NG budge at all!

For my last relaxer, I upgraded to Profectiv Super (instead of regular) and I was like

I am not at exactly 6 weeks now and I really don't feel the need to relax right now. I think the fact that I stopped using growth aids helps, as well.

Like LawyerBarbie, I would get major breakage right at the 6 week mark - no matter how much I moisturized.
So needless to stay, I am quite happy right now.

I do think 6 weeks is too soon and it hurt me that I had to do that. I want to keep it at least 8 weeks. For that reason, NOT using topical growth aids is a good decision for me.

 

[CAPlush]

I don't do it but I don't think it would be a problem if you tried using a milder relaxer and/or varied your processing time to take overlapping into account. There is no need to leave the relaxer in for the full processing time every time. It also wouldn't be a problem if you have 1" or more of new growth after 6 weeks. Disclaimer: I'm a happy stretcher who has gone 11 weeks and my hair is benefitting from not being severely overprocessed as it has been in the past.

 

[PapillionRouge]

B u m p!!!

 

[pmichael52172]

I do! I don't try to commit to 6 weeks, it's just that I've found any longer and my hair sheds a lot and I get breakage and tangled roots. I tried stretching and that is not for everyone.... at least not me. Not only was I unable to look polished and sexy while stretching but I had noticable breakage... so it was back to 6 weeks. My touch ups are mild and are rinsed out as soon as they're put in.

I've had no problems. Right now I have a short bob but I was gaining and retaining length before I cut my hair off.

 

[Son26]

I know someone who does this. She has thick, healthy MBL hair. Her hair has always been long. She cannot go any longer than 6 weeks without relaxing or her hair will break. Her hair is so thick she has to stay under the dryer for over two hours.

 

[nikkiy26]

I Personally relax every 6 weeks i have tried streatching it but my hair grows so fast that if i do not relax at 6 wks my hair will start to break... I tried going about 7-8 wks once and my hair dresser almost had a heart attack when he came to relax because my hair started to break and he told me that my type of hair between 3C and 4A cannot manage the too long inbetween relaxers... So I just think it all depends on your hair type.

 

[ChocalateDiva]

I Personally relax every 6 weeks i have tried streatching it but my hair grows so fast that if i do not relax at 6 wks my hair will start to break... I tried going about 7-8 wks once and my hair dresser almost had a heart attack when he came to relax because my hair started to break and he told me that my type of hair between 3C and 4A cannot manage the too long inbetween relaxers... So I just think it all depends on your hair type.

I agree with the bolded. I am a 4b with tight-thick-crunchy coils of ng....and it is very hard for me to stretch......

But I do try to make it to 8 weeks. Sometimes I make it and sometimes I dont.

 

[pink gator]

I Personally relax every 6 weeks i have tried streatching it but my hair grows so fast that if i do not relax at 6 wks my hair will start to break... I tried going about 7-8 wks once and my hair dresser almost had a heart attack when he came to relax because my hair started to break and he told me that my type of hair between 3C and 4A cannot manage the too long inbetween relaxers... So I just think it all depends on your hair type.

Wow...I thought it was just me! But I got this Phyto, so I'll see if I can stretch past 8 weeks.

 

[MsMontoute]

Hi Ladies,
I cosign what other folks have said. I USED to relax my hair every 6 weeks when I first started getting relaxers because I couldn’t stand the thought of new growth/didn’t like how it looked and didn’t know how to deal with it.

However, over time, I realized that my hair was getting very thin overall and especially around the edges. I started to going to the Dominicans to get my hair washed and roller wrapped (P.S. I got it “blown out” like two times and the heat was WAAAAAY over the top, that brush pulling my hair was too much to stomach…the thought of it makes me cringe…LOL all around BAD!! ) I liked what she did and I decided to change my relaxer (which was probably too strong for me) to a Dominican brand and let my new stylist start putting it in. Just this first change made a big difference!!!!

Then as we built a relationship, like one other girl said, my dominicana would BERATE ME and FIGHT with me in the salon and complain that I was relaxing my hair too much and then REFUSE to do it!! I was pissed off because I wanted my hair done but then I realized that that the less chemicals, less often, the better so I got over it and joined LHCF…So then I started CWC'ing, moisturizing and stretching, I went from 6 weeks to 7 to 8 and now I’m on a 9 week schedule, I am hoping to make it to 10 weeks for my next relaxer (crosses fingers). My hair is in WAAAAAYYYYYY better condition now, my goal is to eventually get to 12 weeks (ideal!!) but the way my new growth was revolting at 9 weeks, I am hoping that even 10-11 is doable!!!

But I say all this to say that, I don’t know anyone who has beautiful hair that relaxes every 6 weeks, I think your hair does need a rest from the heat, from chemicals etc. to grow and be healthy. I think 6 weeks is way too often and believe that you should try to aim for longer. Also, I know someone said that they would have shedding when they need a relaxer and I have experienced that as well before…BUT I have found that my shedding was more so about how I was taking care of my hair (or lack of care and moisture I was giving it and how strong/healthy it was) and less about actually needing a relaxer.

 

[natural2008]

my friend does every 4 weeks. She tries to make it last longer but her hair will begin to break after 4 weeks at the root.