Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair...

[Je Ne Sais Quoi]

I've always wondered (but always forget to ask) why some of you ladies that are 5 weeks, 10 weeks, 20 weeks post, say that you can't comb your hair. I mean, if the nappiest nappy natchal can comb their hair why wouldn't someone that has 5% natural hair not be able to comb through it/handle new growth, etc. I've never understood this and hopefully someone can chime in.

I was relaxed 2 years ago and had been for years, and I never had a moment when I felt my hair was too hard to handle due to new growth so just want to gain insight...

 

[Nola Darling]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

Yeah me too. But I'm thinking most relaxed ladies don't know how to take care of their natural texture and thats why it may be hard to deal with for them.

 

[Dee-Licious]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

ummm... IDK but I'll take a stab.

To detangle, you start at then ends, but when relaxed your ends are straight and by time you get up to the newgrowth you can't be too tough with it so it doesn't break at the line of demarcation.

Did what i just type make any sense?

 

[Napp]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

I never really got this either. combing only got difficult around 8-9 months for me but when i hear people taking about a few weeks it confuses me.erplexed

 

[EbonyHairedPrincess]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

I am 11 weeks post right now and I'm considering pushing on to 16 weeks if I'm able. I was one of those texlaxed people whe couldn't comb my hair. Looking back it was because my new growth was not well conditioned, I was to rough and I needed a comb with wider/bigger teeth. Whenever I would attempted to comb thru I got extreme breakage at the demacration line. Now that I cowash almost daily my hair has softened so much. Occasionally I comb my hair with a shower comb to detange after it's air dried some but the manipulation still caused breakage.

 

[Dee-Licious]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

oh yeah, I'm prob not the best person to answer b/c when my hair gets too difficult FOR ME I head to my hair stash and pull out one of my relaxers and slap it in.

Skinteedee is soooo not a stretcher.

 

[charmtreese]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

The further I am in my stretch (normally around week 9) my hair MAY tangle if I'm not careful. Conditioning and the right products are key. When relaxed heads are dealing with the two textures we really have to baby our hair (to keep it from snapping off at the demarcation line) which includes gentle detangling which can be kind of tricky the longer you stretch. In the end its all about finding the right products, technique and patience. Personally I dont find it hard to stretch for 3-4 months at a time, but it takes practice and a solid regimen!

 

[Isis]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

I've never had any problems combing through my hair, no matter how many weeks post I was. For some of the ladies, it's probably a matter of technique.

 

[Je Ne Sais Quoi]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

I think what is boggling is not the demarcation line and all that and how you have two different textures, but what is wierd to me is when women say things like "it's just too thick to comb after 10 weeks" or "I can't run a comb through it" etc, I just don't understand it

 

[MizzBrown]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

I'm coming up on 13 weeks and i can put a comb through it...and then hear snap, crackle pop, when i drag it through the demarc line.

HOWEVER, i did my first Cowash today and realized that my hair needed the moisture. It was great! I got the comb all the way through from root to tip. Before it got stuck.

I could count the broken strands on my shower comb AND rattail comb that i use for rollersetting and big difference!

Its just really curling up at the roots and i can't just drag my comb through my hair like i can do 1 week post.

 

[MizaniLocs]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

I think what some natchals don't understand is how much two contrasting textures is a beast!

It's not fun.

Some of us have 2 and 3 different natural textures, then to add (bone?) straight ends into the equation.

My natural hair has coils so naturally it wants to wrap around itself, which makes my relaxed ends want to join the party. Unlike everyone else, it's not my roots that give me issues it's my relaxed ends. Those two are like oil and water. I texlax because it makes the contrast a little bit more alike which makes it a *little* easier.

But yes, I can def. see why people would have trouble combing.

 

[onejamifan]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

Right now I am 7 weeks post and the hair right on the back of my head turns into a tangled mess, particularly where I wear my pony tail. This is because when I exercise, my hair sweats and the ng curls right up. I don't wash after every work out, so the sweat dries up and the ng gets hard to comb through...the rest of the head is fine, its just that spot on the back of my head where my texture is the curliest...

 

[Ivonnovi]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

I say the problem is the line of demarcation, wich is the weakest part of the relaxed hair shaft.

Now that I only "texlax" I find it easier to stretch up to 12 weeks at a time.

I have thin and finehair. I could not make it to 5 weeks post without seeing breakage at the line of demarkation. As a result I was scared to comb my hair and permed every 4 weeks.

 

[anon123]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

I'm coming up on 13 weeks and i can put a comb through it...and then hear snap, crackle pop, when i drag it through the demarc line.

HOWEVER, i did my first Cowash today and realized that my hair needed the moisture. It was great! I got the comb all the way through from root to tip. Before it got stuck.

I could count the broken strands on my shower comb AND rattail comb that i use for rollersetting and big difference!

Its just really curling up at the roots and i can't just drag my comb through my hair like i can do 1 week post.

I always thought it was about the 2 textures, too. But now I'm wondering how many relaxed women were trying to comb their new growth like this. You can't comb natural hair (at least, not hair like mine) just dragging a comb from root to tip. I can make it, max, 2" at a time.

 

[LynnieB]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

<begins humming along to the song....Memories.........>

When i was transitioning, my problem wasn't the new growth nor was it @ the line of demarcation and started with a significant amount of new grow - i'm talking 2 going on 3 or 4+ inches.

It was the danged relaxed hair. the new growth was a breeze to detangle but as soon as i got past that Mason/Dixon line, that stuff was just like someone had poured super glue on it. All the conditioner in the world didn't help and actually made it worse. it was unreal and frustrating until i made an adjustment.

Life got so much easier when i stopped trying to comb/brush through soaking, dripping wet hair and started working with hair that was on the drier side of lightly damp.

 

[OneInAMillion]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

<begins humming along to the song....Memories.........>

When i was transitioning, my problem wasn't the new growth nor was it @ the line of demarcation and started with a significant amount of new grow - i'm talking 2 going on 3 or 4+ inches.

It was the danged relaxed hair. the new growth was a breeze to detangle but as soon as i got past that Mason/Dixon line, that stuff was just like someone had poured super glue on it. All the conditioner in the world didn't help and actually made it worse. it was unreal and frustrating until i made an adjustment.

Life got so much easier when i stopped trying to comb/brush through soaking, dripping wet hair and started working with hair that was on the drier side of lightly damp.

ITA with this. I'm 6 months post, and texturized. It's not the new growth that's hard to comb, but the rest of my hair gets tangled if I'm not quick with rollersetting and the hair isn't dripping wet.

 

[ajoyfuljoy]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

for me, it was difficult until I figured out that my hair was dry. I can't detangle dry hair deprived of moisture.

Once I started cowashing during the week and giving my hair that extra moisture boost, I had minimal problems. I still had to take my time combing but I lost minimal hair.

 

[blasiancurlie]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

i only detangle/comb in the shower on sopping wet hair loaded with conditioner. i would never be able to comb my dry hair! (new growth)

when it's dry, i usually gently finger-comb my hair if necessary. but i usually just leave it alone until my next co-wash

 

[Je Ne Sais Quoi]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

I think what some natchals don't understand is how much two contrasting textures is a beast!

It's not fun.

Some of us have 2 and 3 different natural textures, then to add (bone?) straight ends into the equation.

My natural hair has coils so naturally it wants to wrap around itself, which makes my relaxed ends want to join the party. Unlike everyone else, it's not my roots that give me issues it's my relaxed ends. Those two are like oil and water. I texlax because it makes the contrast a little bit more alike which makes it a *little* easier.

But yes, I can def. see why people would have trouble combing.

See thats just it, i was relaxed for hundreds (ok maybe not hundreds ) of years and when I stopped perming my naps I was able to handle the various textures without it being the end of the world. It was challenging of course, but just when i hear things like "i'm 4 weeks post and i can't deal with this stuff" kind of posts it just makes me wonder.

 

[Je Ne Sais Quoi]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

<begins humming along to the song....Memories.........>

When i was transitioning, my problem wasn't the new growth nor was it @ the line of demarcation and started with a significant amount of new grow - i'm talking 2 going on 3 or 4+ inches.

It was the danged relaxed hair. the new growth was a breeze to detangle but as soon as i got past that Mason/Dixon line, that stuff was just like someone had poured super glue on it. All the conditioner in the world didn't help and actually made it worse. it was unreal and frustrating until i made an adjustment.

Life got so much easier when i stopped trying to comb/brush through soaking, dripping wet hair and started working with hair that was on the drier side of lightly damp.

 

[charmtreese]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

<begins humming along to the song....Memories.........>

When i was transitioning, my problem wasn't the new growth nor was it @ the line of demarcation and started with a significant amount of new grow - i'm talking 2 going on 3 or 4+ inches.

It was the danged relaxed hair. the new growth was a breeze to detangle but as soon as i got past that Mason/Dixon line, that stuff was just like someone had poured super glue on it. All the conditioner in the world didn't help and actually made it worse. it was unreal and frustrating until i made an adjustment.

Life got so much easier when i stopped trying to comb/brush through soaking, dripping wet hair and started working with hair that was on the drier side of lightly damp.

Exactly I never detangling my relaxed ends soaking wet. I always detangle once Im out of the shower towel blotted and with a spray leave-in. To rollerset I just spray my hair with water/conditioner mix to re-wet after detangling. Works like a charm!

 

[charmtreese]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

See thats just it, i was relaxed for hundreds (ok maybe not hundreds ) of years and when I stopped perming my naps I was able to handle the various textures without it being the end of the world. It was challenging of course, but just when i hear things like "i'm 4 weeks post and i can't deal with this stuff" kind of posts it just makes me wonder.

I protective style so this is not a problem for me. However, I can understand where my relaxed ladies are coming from when they have a 1-4 inch twa under bone straight ends and are trying to wear there hair loose or style/care for it as if its all relaxed. That can be hard to deal with, especially if they do not have a solid regimen to deal with the two textures. Some relaxed heads have been relaxed all of their lives and find it difficult at best to handle the two textures.

 

[myhair1014]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

My hair at 4 weeks post is very hard to deal with and comb. Not only it is dry (despite how much mosturizer I use), it is VERY thick.

 

[klb120475]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

I think what is boggling is not the demarcation line and all that and how you have two different textures, but what is wierd to me is when women say things like "it's just too thick to comb after 10 weeks" or "I can't run a comb through it" etc, I just don't understand it

Here's the thing....when you're natural you're use to combing "natural" hurr. But if you're relaxed or whateva then you're use to combing more manageble hurr.

 

[ebonylocs]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

It's all about the demarcation and the different textures.

When I was texlaxed, new growth didn't make much of a difference, because it was quite similar to my texlaxed texture. But now that my hair is bone straight, handling the new growth is just daunting because I know breakage is sooo easy.

I detangle in sections, damp, with leave-in /conditioner. I start at the ends and move upwards, combing through to the ends each time. WHen I get to the new growth, I am afraid to comb through anymore because I feel like the relaxed bits are going to just "bruck off" (I had to get Jamaican to express that).

Anyway, I will also say that I had a VERY hard time combing through my hair when it was natural as well. Short was fine, but it was just too much when it got long.

 

[Iansan]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

After about ten weeks my hair gets very difficult to comb because of the two textures.

 

[Simply_Kelz]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

I used to say this .. I didn't know how to take care of the newgrowth or handle it .. since cowashing, I can control it.

 

[prospurr4]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

I don't have any problems combing through my texlaxed hair, no matter the number of weeks I am post relaxer..and I only comb once per week. The key for me is to ensure that my hair is sufficiently mosturized/conditioned and that I use a wide-toothed comb.

 

[cecilie]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

After 6 months of strech my hair was very difficult to comb but when I used a spray I could maneage my NG , IT WAS DIFFICULT so I made braids and sew in so I didn't fight with my hair everyday .

 

[lonei]

Re: Relaxed ladies that are X weeks post and say they can't comb through their hair..

I dont comb until wash day for this very reason n by that time the roots r slathered with NTM leave in. Other than that my hair cannot manage any friction between the 2 textures.