I can never tell....

[sheedahp]

Whether my hair needs moisture, protein, or reconstructing, but I still see some breakage, not alot but some. I do a protein d/c weekly, Aphogee tx every 6 weeks and everytime I wash, whether its a poo or cowash I do a moisturizing condish.
I dont think I know my hair, does anyone else feel this way?
Some of you ladies know your hair better than your spouse or children, how long did it take you?

 

[vainღ♥♡jane]

i feel this way too. i always feel a little unsure about needing moisture or protein.​

 

[kooskoos]

I think I figured it out by accident one day. But when my hair needs protein, it gets super soft and feels really fragile. When it needs moisture, it's really cripy and brittle. I realized my hair needs more moisture and less protein to feel perfect. It took me about 6 months to really learn my hair.

 

[kooskoos]

Whether my hair needs moisture, protein, or reconstructing, but I still see some breakage, not alot but some. I do a protein d/c weekly, Aphogee tx every 6 weeks and everytime I wash, whether its a poo or cowash I do a moisturizing condish.
I dont think I know my hair, does anyone else feel this way?
Some of you ladies know your hair better than your spouse or children, how long did it take you?

Funny!!!!

 

[sheedahp]

ty !!!

 

[MrsHdrLe]

I'm watching this one too.

 

[nymane]

I focus more on moisture (cowashing, moisture dc & pre poos) so if I notice breakage I know I need more protein. I start with a light protein and if that doesn't help I'll do a medium/hardcore protein (since I'm relaxed I do Aphogee 2-step every 6 weeks or so... preferably a week before relaxing).

 

[sheedahp]

Still bumping for more please:scratchch

 

[noemi]

It took me a good 2-3 months before I could do it easily.

First, I learned my hair loves moisture, so I always err on the side of moisture when I see breakage. I countered this with protein when I noticed more hair in the shower or inmy comb after detangling. Usually a Apoghee hardcore would remedy it and I was good to go for at least another 2-3 months.

Even when I altered using a protein DC (like CPR, Duotex, or 2 minute Apoghee), I still needed a hardcore protein every 2-3 months.

Doing it like this, I learned the difference in how my hair felt when it needed more protein or moisture.

HTH

 

[Mai Tai]

When I initially we my hair before shampooing I feel my hair..If it's wet and mushy then I know I need protein, if it's wet but still feels hard and stringy, then I know I need moisture. If it feels just right then I know I can get away with either one without breakage.

 

[Ronnieaj]

I wish I could help, but I don't know what to tell you . I know that when I'm detangling my hair and it pulls and snaps, that it needs protein. Ironically, this happens every single Wednesday when I cowash...phasing that out to see how hair responds. How is your hair feeling when it's wet? Does it feel super soft, too soft? Or does it feel too hard? Or maybe, it feels...normal? You're never going to eliminate all breakage, no matter what you do. It sounds like you're taking preventative steps to reduce it, so if it's not excessive and has been eliminated, I might just leave it be. I know, not helpful at all!

 

[jerseygurl]

I too feel my hair when wet. If it feels strong then I do moisture DCs. When it start to feel soft and snaps loud (like it was stretched before breaking) then I do a protein treatment with Duotex. When I comb it dry and I see breakage then I do a moisture DC. My hair loves more moisture than protein but it prefers a strong protein over a mild one.

 

[sheedahp]

Thank you all for your replies. I tried the hair strand test but I did it on dry hair so I guess I did it wrong I will do it on wet hair next time. Thanks.

 

[panamoni]

I feel the same way. I'm trying to test regularly to figure out if what I think it needs works each time I wash.

 

[carameldelight87]

This is an AWESOME thread!! I have these same kind of questions cuz I'm a brand new natural but I have more hair than a TWA. I combed out 2 years of locs and now I have about shoulder length (when straightened) hair.

I couldn't tell what my hair needed. (Did I say I'm a virgin natural?! Lol. I've NEVER so much as seen my hair without a perm or locs for the past 22 years!) And I suck at Chemistry so I knew I needed some layman's terms to help me figure what my hair was trying to tell me.

It seems the consensus is that mushy or overly soft hair needs protein (i.e. strength) and hard hair needs moisture.

I think I may be overdosing my hair on protein. Right I after I shampoo the protein out, it goes hard instantly but then I use Cantu rinse out moisturizing shampoo and it feels like heaven in my hands!! :Copy of 2cool: I try not to rinse all the conditioner out but I couldn't help but notice that while it was drying, it was rather stiff...maybe I should moisturize only the next few DCs.

Again, thank u all for what u've posted thus far and what's to come!

 

[kami11213]

I know when my hair needs protein when it's wet b/c it'll feel mushy and when I detangle it'll be really stretchy. I can tell when I need moisture b/c while dry, my hair is super crunchy, breaks very easily and is way too dry...

 

[sheedahp]

This is an AWESOME thread!! I have these same kind of questions cuz I'm a brand new natural but I have more hair than a TWA. I combed out 2 years of locs and now I have about shoulder length (when straightened) hair.

I couldn't tell what my hair needed. (Did I say I'm a virgin natural?! Lol. I've NEVER so much as seen my hair without a perm or locs for the past 22 years!) And I suck at Chemistry so I knew I needed some layman's terms to help me figure what my hair was trying to tell me.

It seems the consensus is that mushy or overly soft hair needs protein (i.e. strength) and hard hair needs moisture.

I think I may be overdosing my hair on protein. Right I after I shampoo the protein out, it goes hard instantly but then I use Cantu rinse out moisturizing shampoo and it feels like heaven in my hands!! :Copy of 2cool: I try not to rinse all the conditioner out but I couldn't help but notice that while it was drying, it was rather stiff...maybe I should moisturize only the next few DCs.

Again, thank u all for what u've posted thus far and what's to come!

My hair does the same thing when I do any protein conditioner, even if I do a moisturizing condish afterwards. I think next time Im just gonna focus on moisture and see what the results are. I like my hair strong but at the same time I want my hair soft and bouncy when Im done. I do a protien DC once a week on my shampoo day and I sometimes cowash but not always, but I try to even out the protein with moistrue to give a balance but maybe I dont as much protein as I think I do. Im gonna focus mainly on moisture with some light proteins to see what happens.