I need advice quick on hair breakage.

[Olaysha]

I need advice on hair breakage, please.

My relaxed hair is breaking a lot. Anything I can do to stop it? I think it might be from the flat iron. I had my beautician flat iron once. Six weeks later she did it again and then about a week later I did it again at home. I NEVER use direct heat on my hair but wanted that silky look that you get from flat iron use. Since that last use of direct heat which was around Aug. 20, my hair has been consistently breaking when I wash, detangle, roller set, even if I look at it too hard. I'm finding my hair all over the sink and floor - this is something that was not occuring before at all. At this point I need to know if I can save the length or if a major hair cut is the only option to stop the breakage.

Signed,
Not wanting to start this whole process over again but I'll do what I have to do. erplexed

 

[davisbr88]

Try to up your protein and ceramide usage. If not, I've heard that tea rinses help with breakage as well. When I dealt with breakage during my transition, I was able to reduce it significantly with protein treatments. (Also, a small trim helped tremendously!)
HTH

 

[LaidBak]

Use a protein reconstructor followed by a good quality moisture condish at each wash. Don't use heat to condition. If you can, wet bun, wash and go, or wrap and dry overnight. Do this for a month. Doing that strengthened my hair and stopped my breakage. My strands actually got thicker. As soon as I started flat ironing again, I started to get breakage. But at least I know how to stop it.

ETA: ITA with previous poster. Add an oil containing ceramides to your regimen. I have been using Wheat Germ Oil. It adds flexibility to your hair.

 

[nymane]

Are you Deep Conditioning after you shampoo? What's your full regimen?...you probably just have to get your moisture/protein balance in check so I'd lay off the direct heat until you do.

 

[lilsparkle825]

I don't think it was the flat iron at all. Although I only use heat 3-4x a year, I do not believe direct heat is the devil when used in moderation as you described (save that one period where you used it twice in two weeks). I used Dominican blowouts to transition and was getting all that heat on my hair every 4 weeks or so. If I were you, I'd take a closer look at your regimen to determine the problem. If you are not getting enough moisture or enough protein, your strands can be fragile and this is what is causing the breakage. DO NOT cut your hair off at this point.