DCing doesn't work for me?

[healthyhairdontcare]

Hey all! I've been a lurker for years here and finally decided to take the plunge and make an account/subscribe.

Anyways....


I have been on my HHJ for a long time now. I've went from relaxed to natural, and now I'm almost 3yrs natural. (Will be in late Feb) One thing that I've noticed is that deep conditioning does not really yield great results for me. I've tried pre-made deep conditioners as well as homemade ones as well. (greek yogurt, avocado, banana, etc) Nothing seems to be working well enough to make DCing a staple in my wash day. Does anyone else have this as an issue? Did you ever fix it? Is hot oiling instead of DCing enough?

 

[EnExitStageLeft]

healthyhairdontcare

Do you use heat (as in steamers, hot caps, bonnet dryers) with your dc'ers?

Also, to the Boards. You'll love it here

 

[healthyhairdontcare]

healthyhairdontcare

Do you use heat (as in steamers, hot caps, bonnet dryers) with your dc'ers?

Also, to the Boards. You'll love it here

I used to, but admittedly it's been awhile since I tried that.

Also thanks for the warm welcome

 

[EnExitStageLeft]

You may want to try that. Also, try adding some oil or honey to your DC's concoctions. It sounds like they may not be moisturizing enough.

 

[divachyk]

healthyhairdontcare, I'm relaxed but my hair is picky! Heat is a must or the DCner does not penetrate.

 

[faithVA]

I agree about the heat. But also try a thick conditioner and a thinner conditioner. I am unable to use really thick conditioners because they just sit on top of my hair. For example I have used Aubrey Organics HoneySuckle Rose and the Kenra conditioners, which is very thick and many ladies love. It just sits on my hair. I had to use one of their thinner conditioners like the White Camellia or Shea Moisture Restorative Conditioner.

What DCs are you currently using?

 

[Rozlewis]

healthyhairdontcare, welcome to the forum!

I agree with the others. To see and feel benefits from Dc'ing I had to find the right DC for the needs of my hair. I had to experiment until I found what worked. You may need to clarify your hair first if you have not already done this. I also agree with adding honey, oil, and essential oil to your DC. Don't give up. You will find something that works but it may take some time.

 

[D.Lisha]

Also may I add, there could be a porosity issue present. Have you ever done the "porosity strand test"? There may be a chance that your hair cuticles are so tightly compacted, that it's making it harder for the moisture from the DC to be absorbed.

Roux Porosity Control Corrective Conditioner is good for this!

 

[healthyhairdontcare]

EnExitStageLeft I will try this!

faithVA I currently have Lustrasilk's Sheabutter Cholesterol. Maybe the issue is that it's too thick. I will have to try an experiment with that.

Rozlewis I know it's probably that I haven't found the right concoction yet, but on a college student's budget buying products can be so tiresome. I feel like I'm bleeding money!

D.Lisha I think I will try the porosity test tonight. The only problem is is that I have some very different strand thickness/textures on my head. It's the struglle out here.

 

[IDareT'sHair]

Clarify. You may have build-up for the things you are currently using/trying which may be causing the products to not penetrate/absorb well

Great Advice given here. Especially DC'ing with Heat and Figuring out your Porosity.

But I'd clarify and see if that helps.

 

[virtuenow]

No deep conditioner ever worked for me until about my 5th year of being natural. I can now safely say you haven't found the right DC yet. It wasn't until I encountered Aubrey Organics GPB, did a conditioner actually go deep into my hair and leave it feeling like butter. AO GPB is the only [stand alone] DC that ever worked on my hair.

 

[sparkle25]

virtuenow when you say the DC leaves your hair feeling like butter do you mean once its completely dry? Because I always let my hair get completely dry after a DC to see how it works alone, so I dont put any other product in. No DC leaves my hair feeling awesome once its competely dry. Divachyk told me the other day that she has not found a DC that does that for her hair either. So I'm just curious about your hair after a DC. Is this buttery goodness on hair after rinsing out the DC and letting it dry? Or do you also put more product in it.

 

[ronie]

You ve got great advice. I just wanted to add that my hair never responds to any DC that did not have some type of hydrolysed ingredients (protein). So I always look for one or two of the following hydrolysed ingredients: keratin (favorite), silk, wheat protein, oat protein, quinoa, collagen, jojoba protein. I do have DC s that are protein free; I only use them to follow a hard core protein treatment. As someone else said: you just haven't found what your really want. Good luck, and I hope you find a staple soon.
I see you are into making your own conditioners. You can always purchase hydrolysed ingredients and add them to your mixture. But please be careful, as they are highly concentrated.

 

[virtuenow]

@virtuenow when you say the DC leaves your hair feeling like butter do you mean once its completely dry? Because I always let my hair get completely dry after a DC to see how it works alone, so I dont put any other product in. No DC leaves my hair feeling awesome once its competely dry. Divachyk told me the other day that she has not found a DC that does that for her hair either. So I'm just curious about your hair after a DC. Is this buttery goodness on hair after rinsing out the DC and letting it dry? Or do you also put more product in it.

Well let me tell you like this: I'm in the minority of ladies where my hair would feel at its worst while wet and with conditioner on it. Conditioners made my hair feel hard, parched and just yucky. When I put this conditioner on my hair, I noticed instantly -- while it was on my hair -- it felt like butter....buttah I tell ya! So I knew it was working for me. I spent years working with different conditioners-- even top of the line-- that felt hard while on my hair and hard after I rinsed it out. When I rinsed the AO Gpb out, my hair still felt moist and felt moist for a week w/o product.

 

[healthyhairdontcare]

Thanks again to everyone continuously giving me advice! I did a strand test and my hair has looooooow porosity, so maybe trying to work with that knowledge will help! I definitely will start DCing with heat now! I just don't know whether or not to use protein now because of this. I've got a lot of thinking to do.

 

[virtuenow]

Thanks again to everyone continuously giving me advice! I did a strand test and my hair has looooooow porosity, so maybe trying to work with that knowledge will help! I definitely will start DCing with heat now! I just don't know whether or not to use protein now because of this. I've got a lot of thinking to do.

The strand test is not a good indicator of your porosity. It has proven to give inaccurate and inconsistent results. A more appropriate "test" would be assessing your hairs touch and feel. And specifically how it reacts to products. Does it absorb products well? Does your hair get wet quickly under water? Does it take forever to get wet? Does it dry quickly or no? Try and answer these questions and get back to us.

 

[youwillrise]

i have high porosity hair myself and protein is my lover...i use it often, but it is my understanding that usually low porosity hair doesnt take as well to too much protein...you still need it every once in a while to keep the balance, but be careful with it and start out slowly.

good luck!

i hope those dc's start giving your hair some life!

 

[youwillrise]

The strand test is not a good indicator of your porosity. It has proven to give inaccurate and inconsistent results. A more appropriate "test" would be assessing your hairs touch and feel. And specifically how it reacts to products. Does it absorb products well? Does your hair get wet quickly under water? Does it take forever to get wet? Does it dry quickly or no? Try and answer these questions and get back to us.

agreed here.

when i was "testing" my porosity, i observed what happened to my hair after washes/conditions and such. how long it took for my hair to get wet...how long it took to dry, etc. my hair got wet super quickly and was pretty much completely dry not long after i got out of the shower. i couldnt keep moisture in my hair for beans. no matter WHAT i used. tried every dang moisturizer and leave-in there was...sealed with everything ever....and nothing worked.

that's when i knew i had high porosity hair.

 

[snookes]

The strand test is not a good indicator of your porosity. It has proven to give inaccurate and inconsistent results. A more appropriate "test" would be assessing your hairs touch and feel. And specifically how it reacts to products. Does it absorb products well? Does your hair get wet quickly under water? Does it take forever to get wet? Does it dry quickly or no? Try and answer these questions and get back to us.

That is so true, I scrapped the hair stand in the water test. Assessed my hair after I washed and conditioned it and found my hair is more porous at the front and right side, medium porosity on the left and low porosity at the back lol. What a bummer haha!