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Just took down locs and ended up with a dry brittle mess. Now what?

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cammiecam

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Hello everyone! I was wondering if you guys can help me...

I just took down locs I've had for almost 9 years. I didn't want to cut them off completely and have a TWA, because that wasn't really a look I was going for, but now that I've finished the take down process, it's looking like that's what might happen after all.

Here's the deal.... my hair turned out to be uneven, DRY as hell and turns out to be three different textures. The back is pretty silky, I'd even give it a 3c in the back, 4b in the middle and 4a at the crown. The crown is so dry, tangled and rough that my head hurts so much between the loc take-down, the washing and conditioning, the detangling and the twisting I've done in the past 24 hours.

My hair is pretty long in the back, the hair touches my shoulders when it's wet. The middle of my hair however has experienced alot of breakage from the heavy locs I imagine and although I am not balding, the hair in the middle of my head is very short. Then the crown of my head is beyond unmanageable. It's stiff, hard to get a comb or brush through, dry, and very very tightly coiled. Detangling is a CHORE, and jsut when I think I've got it done, I'll pick up a section of hair at the crown and in two seconds I've got tangles I need to unravel, tangles that HURT and pull out my hair. I guess I thought once I took the locs down I'd end up with this long mane of naturally thick hair, but what I got was a tangled, uneven, dry mess.

I haven't spent too much time on this board, but decided to join to see if anyone had any tips for me, especially in regards to getting a routine going to give my hair some TLC and get some moisture back into it, especially the crown of my head. I don't want to relax or anything like that, but can't see myself struggling daily with the thickness and coarseness of the hair at the crown. I really need to find something that's gonna soften that up and make it easier to work with and something that's gonna add moisture to my hair overall.

In the meantime I'll be calling some salons in the NYC area and hoping to make an appointment for a cut so I can even this hair out, so I can at least have a starting point. If anyone knows of a place that does natural cuts in the NYC area, please let a sista know...

So what should I do? I'm hoping some of the experts here can help me with a routine and some products to try. I've got your usual home items (olive oil, coconut milk, etc). I've also got some raw shea butter, vatika oil, and the Knot Today leave in. How can I incorporate those into a hair routine?
 
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Sorry to hear about your hair situation. Can you post a picture? If we can see the problem, then that might trigger suggestions from others who may have experience the same thing. I never loc before but there are members here who did and unloc successfully.
 
I'm also sorry to hear that you're going through this. :sad: I don't think that you need to worry that your hair will always be this challenging to manage because the tangles are a direct result of being so dry. I battled dryness of another level (and my own doing :wallbash:) late last summer upon taking out my microbraids. These are the steps I employed to get my hair back and in better condition:

1. I conditioner-washed my hair every day with either Wen or Trader Joe's Nourish and Shine (I also used Nature's Gate from Whole Foods).
2. To maintain moisture throughout the day, I used Qhemet Biologics Amla and Olive Cream.
3. I deep conditioned my hair at least once a week.
4. (Beginning in November) I used Joico's K-Pak Reconstructor as a protein treatment every other week.

I hope this helps you out. :yep: And welcome to the forum! :D
 
naijamerican said:
I'm also sorry to hear that you're going through this. :sad: I don't think that you need to worry that your hair will always be this challenging to manage because the tangles are a direct result of being so dry. I battled dryness of another level (and my own doing :wallbash:) late last summer upon taking out my microbraids. These are the steps I employed to get my hair back and in better condition:

1. I conditioner-washed my hair every day with either Wen or Trader Joe's Nourish and Shine (I also used Nature's Gate from Whole Foods).
2. To maintain moisture throughout the day, I used Qhemet Biologics Amla and Olive Cream.
3. I deep conditioned my hair at least once a week.
4. (Beginning in November) I used Joico's K-Pak Reconstructor as a protein treatment every other week.

I hope this helps you out. :yep: And welcome to the forum! :D
Click to expand...

This is excellent advice. It sounds like your hair needs regular doses of moisture. I co-sign on the cowashes, try these every day for 2 weeks. Definitely deep condition at least once a week and go real easy on protein based conditioners until you bring some softness back to the hair.
 
Naji gave you some excellent advice and if she doesn't mind I am going to piggy back off her advice and give some alternatives to the things she suggested. Just so you have more options.

My first question? Are you going to relax or stay natural? If you stay natural will you be wearing your hair in it's natural state or pressed?

Take from Naji's post w/ my additions....
1. Detangling Conditioner that can be used everyday (Trader Joes Nourish Spa Conditioner and Giovanni Smooth As Silk Conditioner) Both Detangle like nobodies business.

2. To maintain moisture throughout the day...Kids Organics Protein and Vitamin FOrtiefied Health Hair &Scalp Remedy (This is a heavy cream product that keeps hair really soft and moisturized, it also has some serious detangling properties. This is a leave in moisturizer..I use it for handling my hair doing twist etc.. Also use a mixture of water and glycerin in a spray bottle to mist your hair throughout the day. It won't be wet or heavy...just gives it a little hydration.

3. I deep conditioned my hair at least once a week. I just used Organic Root Stimulators Replenishing Pak. OMGoodness My hair was soft soft.

4. I don't use any protein specific products, but that's because my hair doesn't call for them necessarily. I have protein in my moisturizing products and I think that is enough.

Before you start the above you might want to shampoo or use Baking Soda to wash and do an ACV rinse to clarify. This gently and affective cleans the hair and allows the above products to penetrate.

I've never had loc before but, I have napps that loved to tangle and be super dry before I found the right products. And I am still on ajourney to lock down a superb regimen. But, the above has been working really well for me...

GL..Much Favor.
 
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Awwww... Thanks ladies for the warm welcome and for your responses. :)

I do plan on wearing my hair natural, and in it's natural state. (I hope!) Right now though, it is pressed, my mom did it old school style in the kitchen, but that's only because I just needed to do something with it so I would be able to leave the house until I can find a salon and get my hair cut. I KNOW that pressing it probably wasn't the best idea, but after spending the entire day in a semi-panic, it was the only thing I could think of that would make it manageable so I could leave the house and not be ashamed if my uneven dry looking hair.

I haven't had to deal with my natural hair in it's natural state in years, so this is a transitioning process for me in a way. I got a relaxer when I was in the 5th or 6th grade, and remained with one until I graduated from college. I decided to grow out my relaxer with sets of braids and as soon as I had enough new growth, I went to a loctician and began the locking process. There was never really a time where I had my natural hair out for longer than a few days between braids.

This board's been a great help so far, but as I was searching threads, it was difficult to pinpoint which products would work for my hair in terms of moisture, so I just decided to create a thread and hope for some really good responses to point me in the right direction. Thanks again for your help ladies, you've given me great advice so far. Please keep it coming! :)
 
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Since you took down locks pehaps you have some shed hair in there. Detangle well with conditioner. Maybe use a protein treatment to strengthen your hair.I hope everything works out for you.
 
At this point you r--e--a--l--l--y need to be patient with your hair. Bun it for a few weeks while you experiment to find the products that work for you.

I'd also suggest Curlaway to soften the curls/kinks.
 
What will really soften you hair as a treatment is:
--1 Can of Coconut Milk mixed with honey, I apply it with an applicator bottle, make sure that you apply it in sections almost like applying a relaxer.

Keep the mixture in your hair over night with a platic cap. This gives my hair a soft and managable texture even when it drys.

--I also recommend when your hair is dry and loose, meaning not twisted or braided using a
8 oz. bottle mix 3 oz. vegatable glycerin, 3 oz. aloe vera juice, 2 oz. water, and 2 tablespoons honey with about 8 drops of lemon essential oil helps with dryness and it keeps the hair moisturized all day and maybe even the next day after continued use.

--Shea butter work swell as a daily moisturizer and it makes the hair really soft.

--An excellent oil to seal with is coconut oil and/or olive oil and both make the hair soft.

Hope these tips work for you as well, keep us posted:)
 
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NatrlChallenge said:
Since you took down locks pehaps you have some shed hair in there. Detangle well with conditioner. Maybe use a protein treatment to strengthen your hair.I hope everything works out for you.
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cosign with detangling with conditioner. I'd say to avoid protein right now because it looks like you need tons of moisture. Most naturals can get away with less protein, and protein will make your hair even dryer and harder which is not what you need right now. If you're going protein, use a moisturizing conditioner that has protein in it. My recommendation though is to use one w/o protein )(or that has a little like silk protein in it) BTW I'm natural too, my fokti is after flat ironing (days after so it's kinda puffy) but I'm a 4a.
 
You know, if you had locs for nine years, that means that nine years worth of shed hair was in your locs and the strands that were actually attached to your head weren't getting the same kind of TLC they would get if your hair was loose.

Please remember that as you go on this journey of trying to make peace with your loose natural hair. It may take a while for it to get into good shape.

I know when I came to this board as a relaxed head, it took months before my hair really started to change for the better. Even my relaxed hair was really rough and course feeling for the first six months of me being on this board. Now it is very smooth and happy but it has been almost two years.

Just be patient, your hair will get into shape. Just as it took time for your hair to loc and adapt to that style, it will have to adapt to this.
 
Wow. I did not know you could take Locs down....

Well, the ladies here have given you good advice.... So Good luck to you!!!!
 
Do you have any pet stores near you?? I'm serious, you need some cowboy magic detangler. It seriously detangles like nothing I've ever tried

41E8WsT0MPL._SS500_.jpg


Product Description
COWBOY MAGIC® DetanglerTM and Shine detangles all types of hair knots, tangles and dreadlocks instantly, no matter how difficult hair is to manage. The silk protein in COWBOY MAGIC® DetanglerTM and Shine results in a high reflecting shine after brushing.
Click to expand...

This in addition to all the great advice you've recieved so far should make things a lot easier for you. Good Luck
 
The carmel treatment and a denman brush really worked great for me. Etae products makes the carmel treatment, but I made a homemade version that worked great. The carmel treatment really helped with detangling, and it made my hair so easy to comb. The slip was amazing. The denman brush really helped to remove shed hairs, but if you buy it don't be surprised by the amount of hair in the brush.
 
I just wanted to post and say :welcome: and the ladies here have given some excellent advice.


I also wanted to say that I didn't even know that locs could be taken down :shocked:

The Co-washes are going to be a huge help. I turned my hair into broom straw once with some bad henna and that did the trick to get my moisture balance back over 2 weeks time.
 
Again, thank you all so much for your posts... After calling all over the place today I finally made an appointment to get my hair cut on Sunday morning. In the meantime I'm going to give my hair a rest until then, it's still very sore and tender from all the manipulation I've put it through over the past few days.

I did wash and detangle to get out the remains of shedded hair. When I brush there are still stray hairs in the brush, so I'm not sure if that's from dead hair or if my hair is breaking off because it's so brittle. In any case I am looking forward to getting it cut, once I do that, I'm sure that I'll feel more confident with the whole process.

You can take locs down... it took me about a week and change, starting at the nape and moving up. I just made sure to really saturate each loc with a mixture of warm water and Suave conditioner and used a travel version of one of those dental picks, you know, the ones that look like hooks? If you ask me, that part was easy! THIS is the hard part. :)

So to recap, I need to co-wash, what, every other day? Daily? DC weekly, and stay away from protein for the time being. Seems doable. I'll check out some of the products you guys have suggested, I'm hoping I'll be able to pick some of these things up in stores as opposed to waiting for an online delivery. That's the good part about being in NY, for the most part, most products are sold here somewhere.. I just have to find them.

Where can U purchase glycerin? A health food store maybe? I'm not sure...

Question though? If you ladies are cowashing daily does that mean you're leaving the house with wet hair in the morning? Or are you CWing at night?
 
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Jessy55 said:
Whatever you do, to minimize tangles, learn to wash/condition your hair in sections.
Click to expand...

I'm realizing that this is the best way for me to go. I didn't think I had enough hair to warrant needing to do this, but after the disatrous tangled mess after Wednesday night's shampoo, this is the way I'll be washing my hair from now on.
 
excellent advice here! welcome! and am i the only one who didnt know you can take down locks? i thought this was impossible and that you had to cut them out.
if it serves as any encouragement though, my hair upon finding this place was a mess and after a few weeks of intense conditioning turned around alot so hang in there and condition condition condition before making a decision about cutting. good luck!
 
Everyone gave great advice.
I agree with the daily co-washes for at least a week.
I just also wanted to add that you shouldn't try to many things at once b/c that could leave you with a mess also...simplicity and consistency are what work for most veterans around here.:yep:
If I were you I would try maybe one or two things at a time so that you can see what is actually working and build from there.
 
I would consider DCing every day for 1 month with Motions CPR treatment. That has worked for a member who double processed her hair with bleach and a relaxer. If she can bring her hair back, I'm sure it would work for you.
 
cammiecam said:
Question though? If you ladies are cowashing daily does that mean you're leaving the house with wet hair in the morning? Or are you CWing at night?
Click to expand...

Please don't leave the house with wet hair in this weather. I'd do it at night.

sunshinelady said:
I would consider DCing every day for 1 month with Motions CPR treatment. That has worked for a member who double processed her hair with bleach and a relaxer. If she can bring her hair back, I'm sure it would work for you.
Click to expand...

I like this idea of DCing every day with a moisturizing conditioner.

Welcome to the board.
 
Welcome to the board!

I wanted to also suggest a yogurt or sour cream treatment. The crown of my head is very coarse and when I have new growth there it can be difficult to clear and makes my head tender. Nothing changes this wiry hair except these treatments. My hair hates protein but it loves:

-yogurt, honey, and bananas (I use baby food so I don't have to worry about rinsing out lots of bits of banana)

- sour cream mixed with conditioner (I discovered that adding conditioner helps the lactic acid penetrate the hair shaft)

I usually do these treatments overnight sleeping with shower cap on my head and it really makes my hair behave. Last week I did a twist out for the first time (see my profile for pics) and I was worried about detangling but this treatment leaves me with so juicy and moisturized that detangling is a breeze.

Whatever type of dc you decide to do, I would suggest doing them a couple of times a week until you get your hair where you want it to be. HTH
 
My sister did the same thing a few months back and she had to baby her hair. Initially, it was dry and seemed damaged, but her hair really wasn't. She did a few deep treatments the first 2 weeks and kept treating her hair with extra care and it turned around. She has shoulder length hair now and it is soft and healthy. I would say hang on and keep doing deep treatments until you see some changes.
 
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