Does a relaxer aggravate dermatitis/psoriasis ?

[FemmedeJoi]

I have wondered a long time about this one. I have worn my hair both relaxed and natural for a number of years each. I still had the scalp condition in both cases. Does anyone have any idea whether a (properly applied) relaxer will aggravate this condition/prevent it from healing?

 

[melodee]

Girl,
I'm always singing this song! I have atopic dermatitis which I swear is aggrevated by the relaxers. You should see a derm about your condition. Mine said that I should refrain from them until I have my scalp under control. But he said that once it is healthy it is okay to return to relaxers. I, on the other hand, am sceptical. My hair always seems to grow strong when I take a break of 3 months or longer. You have to experiment and see what your scalp likes/dislikes. Mine is very picky.

 

[FemmedeJoi]

Thanks for replying melodee.

How do you know its the relaxer? I'm not sure if it is the relaxer, diet, stress, exercise, or weather (I live in the dry part of the country. When I lived in a more moist climate it wasn't a problem.) Do you have an idea of how I can pinpoint it?

 

[lala]

I don't think applying chemicals to any scalp condition is advisable. You should always get the conditions under control before applying anything to your scalp.

I've suffered from various scalp conditions over the years but I do not apply relaxer to areas where the skin is irritated. I have avoided areas or I wait until they've cleared up enough to apply chemicals. I had a bald spot once, so I'm very careful.

 

[adrienne0914]

i have psoriasis, and i don't think it aggravates the condition because i relax so infrequently. if i was doing it every 8 weeks or so, i think it would really be a problem.

i agree with melodee and her dermatologist. you really need to get it under control before relaxing again. with that i mean no open sores, no scalp tenderness or redness, etc...

what are you using on your scalp now?

 

[FemmedeJoi]

re: open sores, scalp tenderness or redness

I don't have any of this. I just get flakes, flakes, flakes only two days after I have shampooed and rinsed thoroughly!
Actually I think I inherited my scalp condition. My mother has exactly the same thing. (Alas, I didn't get her naturally wavy hair.

She has only gone to a salon maybe twice in her whole life (70+ foxy lady

) )
So, you think relaxing is safe, then? (Bear with me, I need reassurance before I sit in that chair again.

)

 

[brenda55]

when i use relaxers i get flakes, dry scalp, and sometimes redness and sores, but now my stylist uses a curl releaser made by jherri rhedding..it just releases some of the natural curl from my hair. my hair looks thicker and has grown about 2 inches since march.....I did a dumb thing and asked for my hair to be straighter, begged my stylist and she put some motions relaxer in, and honey my hair has breakage on the left side.. no more relaxers for me, just the curl releaser....the rest of my hair is soft and looks healthy....condition condition condition for me weekly using cpr 30 day condition washes......its the bomb!!!

 

[ChocolateCutee]

I have heard that relaxing can cause this to the scalp. I think that you see a dermatologist to determin if it is the relaxer.

 

[FemmedeJoi]

ChocolateCutee: I've been to the dermatologist. I didn't get much help. He gave me prescriptions for shampoo (Nizoral) and a topical treatment (added more flakes) which helped a little. Unfortunately, the basic recommendation for dermatitis don't jive well with delicate black hair, ie. shampoo daily.) But then again, I belong to an HMO where I guess scalp/hairstyle needs don't rate very highly on the list of priorities. Maybe I need to see a trichiologist
(sp?)

Brenda55: Thanks for the idea on the curl releaser! That is probably the type of product I need.

 

[MissM]

I believe this to be true-which is another reason why I'm going to try to grow my relaxer out. No matter what brand I use it just ravages my scalp in the back of my head. I could go a whole week without scratching and still have to same problem. It's just not worth it-and sometimes I wonder if in the long run I'm doing permanent damage to my scalp by continuing to relax.

 

[adrienne0914]

let's be clear here. i was under the impression that femme had scalp problems before getting the relaxer. her question was if a relaxer aggravates the problem.

brenda, if you got all those symptoms from the relaxer, i would say that it wasn't applied properly or you needed your scalp based thoroughly before applying the chemical. that is not how your scalp should be after it's done. i'm glad the curl releaser is working for you though.

missm, do you plan to cut the relaxed hair off or transition and cut gradually?

femme, if you don't have the symptoms that i described, i don't think you have psoriasis because those are some of the symptoms. is that what your dermatologist told you it is? that's probably why what he gave you isn't working.

you should go back to the dermatologist and get some Derma-Smoothe/FS . when i first got this stuff, the instructions said to wash daily. they have now devised a regime for black hair:

A. wash your hair

B. While hair is still wet, apply Derma-Smoothe to entire scalp and massage it in. Style hair as usual.

C. Reapply Derma-Smoothe once a day until the next washing.

D. Continue daily applications until crust and scales are gone. When desired results are achieved, use Derma-Smoothe just often enough to keep scalp soft and hydrated (usually once a week is sufficient).

i really think that since all you really have is a dry scalp and flakes, this would work better for you than the ointment.

 

[FemmedeJoi]

Adrienne:
Thanks for the recommendation. I guess I will go back to the dermatologist. I've tried everything else. One more experiment won't hurt.

MissM:

I'm thinking about the same thing. The idea of the chemicals going into the skin beyond the scalp bothers me intensely. Now that I've found good advice on the web about styling natural hair, I may leave the relaxer behind for good this time.

By the way, I've been using the advice on loosening the natural curl with milk and I find that my scalp flakes calm down considerably with this as well. We may on to something here!