QUESTION.....Is flat ironing my hair everything 3 months too much heat?

[kedda0720pooh]

I'm asking this question because I've had a few people tell me this is not good. A little summary of my story is, I've been natural for 1 year and its a little past my shoulders. I have just recently started getting my hair flat ironed when I trim/dust the ends. I go to a professional because I dont know how to properly trim my ends. Which is about every 3 months. The 1st time I got it done was back in Aug. and then this month is the 2nd time getting my hair trimmed and flat ironed. The reason why I tell her to flat iron it before trimming is becuase Im afraid she won't trim it properly if its in its natural/curly state. So I ask you ladies here on LHCF. Do you think this is too much heat on my natural hair?

 

[Heavenly]

Well, I transitioned one time and had a head of natural napps.

I couldnt handle my napps, and flatironed it every month to have it all manageable etc.

However, the flatironing permanently straightened some parts of my hair.

I figured, what's the point?

But it all depends on how you use the flatiron.

...and what you want to achieve.

A thousand passes over the same section will give you damage. Not good.

One or two passes, you can still retain your natural texture.

 

[Poohbear]

In my opinion, I do not think flat-ironing every 3 months is too much heat. I think it's just fine as long as you use the proper technique and take good care of your hair. Hope that helps!

 

[blacksapphire]

I don't know the response for this so I'll just bump for more responses

 

[jamaraa]

Hardly...you got that answer from someone "anti heat". They had their motives in saying this and trying to scare you off. How else will you get your hair cut/trimmed properly? If you want to not lose too much hair, you must straighten it before it's trimmed. The shrinkage issues are too tricky for a stylist to trim evenly (shrinkage doesn't happen evenly) and minimally.

 

[NikStarrr]

Every 3 months isn't too much in my opinion. You're going to get a lot of different answers. There are some on here who NEVER use heat and avoid it like the devil--and then there are others who use it in moderation with no issues. You're just going to have to figure out what works best for you. During the fall/winter months, I flat iron once a month and haven't had ANY problems with retaining length.

 

[destine2grow]

IMO I don't think it is too much heat. As someone mention it has a lot to do with the technique.

 

[FlowerHair]

No I don't think so.
It depends on how hot your iron is and how many times to pull it through the hair.

 

[Allandra]

Every 3 months isn't too much in my opinion. You're going to get a lot of different answers. There are some on here who NEVER use heat and avoid it like the devil--and then there are others who use it in moderation with no issues. You're just going to have to figure out what works best for you. During the fall/winter months, I flat iron once a month and haven't had ANY problems with retaining length.

I agree with NikStar.

I'm one of those that use heat in moderation with no issues.

 

[BostonMaria]

It all depends on how the stylist takes care of your hair. Make sure she deep conditions your hair and uses heat protection. My only other suggestion is maybe learning how to flatiron your hair yourself, that way you know how much heat is being applied to your hair.

In the summer I use no heat. In the winter I rollerset my hair at least 3 times a month and my hair is fine.

 

[Miss AJ]

It all depends on how much heat your hair can handle. Some women can flat iron once a week and still retain length, I on the other hand cannot. If it has been working for you so far and you have seen no problems then keep doing it! Nobody knows your hair better than you do.

 

[Fine 4s]

Definitely depends on how your stylist cares for your hair with DCs, heat temperature and heat protectant. The biggest variable being the heat temperature because one extreme temperature can permanently damage your hair.

How straight can your hair get? How quickly will it revert? How much do you care about having straight (as in bone straight) hair? Would you be willing so sacrifice texture for gaining straight hair? For example, my siggy was a blowdry and I feel comfortable with that amount of heat on my hair.
Will I ever want a straighter look? Yep. But I'll have to be careful with the process I chose to get it that way.

So, it's possible that flat ironing every 3 months won't do any harm but you had better have a darn good stylist who CARES about the long-term affect of heat on your hair rather than style...(unless style is more important to you

HTH