6 years since last relaxer, help needed

[meecee]

Hey Ladies,

I've been reading this forum for a few months now and its been very helpful. As of now I have been natural since 2001 and my hair is pretty healthy. I cant remember the last time I used any heat, including blowdriers. I currently wear my hair in twists 99% of the time due to tangles and length. My hair is past my shoulders in the front and almost bsl in the very back. The longer it gets, the harder it is to deal with.

I've been seriously considering either texlaxing my hair, or relaxing it completely, but I have some serious concerns. I'm really afraid to ruin years of growth by returning to chemicals.

1. Do you ladies out there with texlaxed hair HAVE to wet it everyday for it to look right?

2. Which would you ladies recommend if I plan to continue using minimal heat and doing mostly buns, braid outs and twist outs?

I look foward to your replies and advice.

TIA,
meecee

 

[meecee]

bumping for responses

 

[glamazon386]

Hey Ladies,

I've been reading this forum for a few months now and its been very helpful. As of now I have been natural since 2001 and my hair is pretty healthy. I cant remember the last time I used any heat, including blowdriers. I currently wear my hair in twists 99% of the time due to tangles and length. My hair is past my shoulders in the front and almost bsl in the very back. The longer it gets, the harder it is to deal with.

I've been seriously considering either texlaxing my hair, or relaxing it completely, but I have some serious concerns. I'm really afraid to ruin years of growth by returning to chemicals.

1. Do you ladies out there with texlaxed hair HAVE to wet it everyday for it to look right?

2. Which would you ladies recommend if I plan to continue using minimal heat and doing mostly buns, braid outs and twist outs?

I look foward to your replies and advice.

TIA,
meecee

I'm not relaxed/telaxed anymore but no I didn't have to rewet my hair for it to look right unless I was going for the wet/curly look. I wore it straight more of the time when it was out. When I was in weaves it was usually a curly one and I would wet my hair that was left out and let it airdry maybe once a week.

What is your regimen as far as washing, conditioning and detangling? You may be able to make your hair more manageable and have less tangles by simply modifying your routine.

The thing is if you say you're suffering from tangles, texlaxing may not cure that problem. Some people just get a looser curl pattern but they still get tangles. You also run the risk of loosing your curl pattern altogether (IDK if that matters though since you said texlax or relax) Do you plan on wearing your hair straight most of the time or will you still be wearing natural hair styles? If you loosen the pattern too much you may not be able to do your twists and such anymore. You could still do the buns, braid outs and twist outs though.

 

[rosalindb]

Hi there

What were your initial reasons for you to go back to natural in the first place especially as you have been natural for six years and are the reasons still valid? How did your hair cope with the chemicals previously?

I agree with bmoreflyygirl, What is your current regimen, what products do you use?

 

[meecee]

Thank you ladies for responding

Right now my regimen is pretty simple. I wear twists 2-3 weeks at a time. I makes sure to mosturize a few times a week, and cowash weekly. On wash day I pre-poo with Olive Oil and Lekair, detangle hair, put in several large braids and then wash and condition with my hair in braids. This has helped a LOT. I started washing in braids a few months ago. My main moisturizer is ORS Olive Oil and I use Biolage as a leave in.

I really think I'm tired of "natural" styles...mainly twists because its been my main style for the past 3-4 years. I havent even flat ironed my hair since 2002. When I had a relaxer it was pretty heathy. I mostly wore buns and braids. The only time I had issues with breakage is when I abused that awful Prostyle gel and wearing my ponytail too tight. My hair recovered quickly each time. I went natural just to see what it was like, not because I had any issues/damage with relaxers.

I guess I'm just ready for a change. I'll start with getting my hair flat ironed, but I really think I'm ready to relax/texlax again. I'm just having a hard time deciding which one.