Braids & Relaxers

[carletta]

Ladies I have a question! Please tell me how long should
you wait to put braids in your hair after a relaxer. Right now I have about 1.5 inches of newgrowth and this mess ain't playin with me

! I was going to wait to have a retouch but evertime I wash my hair, the roots are almost impossible to comb through!!!( now using redkin smooth down to combat this problem

)any advice would help thx!!

 

[HairFanatic01]

OK. I know exactly what you're going through b/c I go through this braids thing once a month when I take out my cornrows. Firstly, it depends on how long you've had the braids. If it is like close to two months or more then I suggest you wait one or two weeks. Secondly, it depends on how strong your hair is. During my cornrows (4-5 weeks at time), I use the aphogee 2 minute reconstructor once or twice every two weeks. I wear cornrows for 2months at a time and immediately after (2-3 days) I get a relaxer ONLY to the new growth!! So during the braids I build up the hair's strength to prepare it when it gets broken down. Now this is just for my 4a/b hair type. I'm not for sure about other hair types, but if you've used protein treatments during the process, then I don't see why you need to wait 2 weeks.

 

[Poohbear]

You should wait 2 months... Check out this website http://www.growafrohairlong.com

 

[Dreamn]

theres no set time, i just wouldnt do it right after i relaxed my hair. if you have substantial new growth, than you should be fine, but you'll just have to take good care of your braids.

 

[Ayeshia]

[ QUOTE ]
Poohbear said:
You should wait 2 months... Check out this website http://www.growafrohairlong.com

[/ QUOTE ]

that website is down for some reason

 

[zweety]

I've done this on and off for the past 10 years. If your hair is well moisturized and you keep it conditioned , there is no reason to wait 2 months. I have successfully done this within 2 days to 1 week of 'braid takedown'. I believe my hair is 4a/b ( after seeing all of the different textures on this forum). It was only through this forumn that I found out about the 'growafrohairlong ' method. If your hair is very dry and you are experiencing excess shedding; then I would wait at least 2 weeks after successive deep conditioning and 'detangling'. I believe that if individual braids are left in relaxed hair too long ( 3 months) , undue breakage and tangling will occur inevitably. I have been most successful with this method when I leave the braids in for 6 - 8 weeks only with heavy moisturizing - this decreased breakage. I then wait 4-6 weeks after a touch-up before braiding again. IT is also very important that your braids are not too small and not too tight. In my experience, ' micro braids' are much more damaging to relaxed hair than natural hair. I've learned to braid myself so that I can touch-up my braids and avoid excessive tightness. Sorry, I did not mean to get so long-winded!

 

[carletta]

Thanks for the input ladies! Looks like I'll be waiting to get the retouch

. I'll be putting my hair back in braids next week minus the retouch to continue my goal ( mid-back by december! )I'm currently 5-6in long now and still growing
strong

!!!!! I'll have pictures in about 2 months.

 

[simplycee]

I just got braids last thursday. I waited 6 weeks after my touch up to get them. I waited till I had at least an inch of new growth to put them in on the advice of the stylist who braided my hair. I plan on getting braids again after I take these out.

She told me to leave my current braids in for 8 - 10 weeks, take them down and let my hair rest for 2 weeks and then re braid. I am seriously considering doing this. She also advised me to wait 2 - 3 weeks after taking down the braids to relax my new growth.

She did such a good job that I trust her advice. I hope this helps.