Struggling with your natural hair? Come in here.....

[JudithO]

Ladies, I am having problems with retaining length at the nape area of my hair. The rest is doing good in terms of growing/retaining but the back is like 3 inches shorter than the rest. I keep it moisturised and I protective style, 99% of the time. I have only worn my hair out twice this year so I don't get why it's taking so long to grow. The texture at the back is a lot more dryer and finer than the rest. I keep it moisturised so I am not sure what else to do.

Any suggestions?

What conditioner do you use for your DC? You must use something that contains protein if your hair is fine... MUST!Protective styling + Low mani + moisture are plusses too... My nape is as long as the rest of my head... and it's very fine... Protein is the key for me.

 

[mz.rae]

Ok so the problem I am having with my natural hair is breakage! I don't know what I am doing wrong and feel like my natural hair breaks more than my relaxed hair. I wash my hair 1x a week with either deva curl low poo, Kera Care hydrating detangling Shampoo, or Suave Daily Clarifying Shampoo if I'm going to wear it straight. Or I will wash with Conditioner if I'm going to do a wash and go. I deep condition once a week with Kera Care Humecto with Coconut oil on top, Silicon Bambu with Coconut oil on top I only use that conditioner on straight hair days, Kera Care dry itchy scalp conditioner. I deep condition anywhere from 35 minutes to an hour. I detangle in the shower, dry with a t shirt, apply my leave in, and the proceed to style. I use protein once a month or sometimes twice a month. I don't know what the deal is.

 

[faithVA]

mz.rae[/USER];18998677]Ok so the problem I am having with my natural hair is breakage! I don't know what I am doing wrong and feel like my natural hair breaks more than my relaxed hair. I wash my hair 1x a week with either deva curl low poo, Kera Care hydrating detangling Shampoo, or Suave Daily Clarifying Shampoo if I'm going to wear it straight. Or I will wash with Conditioner if I'm going to do a wash and go. I deep condition once a week with Kera Care Humecto with Coconut oil on top, Silicon Bambu with Coconut oil on top I only use that conditioner on straight hair days, Kera Care dry itchy scalp conditioner. I deep condition anywhere from 35 minutes to an hour. I detangle in the shower, dry with a t shirt, apply my leave in, and the proceed to style. I use protein once a month or sometimes twice a month. I don't know what the deal is.

I don't think it is unusual for natural hair to break more than relaxed hair because manipulating the curl at all can make it prone to damage. It is just a matter of how much more breakage you get.

I don't wear my hair straight so I won't be much help but I will ask a few questions. On the days that you style your hair to wear it straight what are you applying after the leave-in? How do you straighten your hair. And what is your regimen in between wash days?

 

[mz.rae]

I don't think it is unusual for natural hair to break more than relaxed hair because manipulating the curl at all can make it prone to damage. It is just a matter of how much more breakage you get.

I don't wear my hair straight so I won't be much help but I will ask a few questions. On the days that you style your hair to wear it straight what are you applying after the leave-in? How do you straighten your hair. And what is your regimen in between wash days?

Thank you for Clarifying that for me I was thinking I was a unicorn with the breakage. After the leave in I apply a heat Protectant serum and will air dry for a few hours or I will braid, band, or African thread it overnight to stretch the hair. The next day I usually spray a heat Protectant over the length. Usually the hair isn't stretched enough when I comb through it and I have to keep going through it with the flat iron so instead I will just blow dry the whole head to keep from doing that. I think I am going to stop that method and just blow dry to begin with. I straighten my hair in four sections after that I pincurl and try not to comb it for the rest of the week. I've been moisturizing my straight hair with elasta qp mango butter or elasta qp oil moisturizing and sealing with Coconut oil. Sometimes I will just apply oil and a serum. After this I will do two braids or pin curl. Days I don't straighten I just moisturize and seal using carefree curl gold or Lustrasilk curl max with grapeseed or coconut oil and braid it back up.

 

[faithVA]

Thank you for Clarifying that for me I was thinking I was a unicorn with the breakage. After the leave in I apply a heat Protectant serum and will air dry for a few hours or I will braid, band, or African thread it overnight to stretch the hair. The next day I usually spray a heat Protectant over the length. Usually the hair isn't stretched enough when I comb through it and I have to keep going through it with the flat iron so instead I will just blow dry the whole head to keep from doing that. I think I am going to stop that method and just blow dry to begin with. I straighten my hair in four sections after that I pincurl and try not to comb it for the rest of the week. I've been moisturizing my straight hair with elasta qp mango butter or elasta qp oil moisturizing and sealing with Coconut oil. Sometimes I will just apply oil and a serum. After this I will do two braids or pin curl. Days I don't straighten I just moisturize and seal using carefree curl gold or Lustrasilk curl max with grapeseed or coconut oil and braid it back up.

There may be some curly heads that don't have breakage but not sure how many. Obviously there are a few things that impact breakage. My guess is that most incur some breakage which is why there is so much focus on things to do to protect the ends and improve retention.

I think the tighter the curl pattern the likelihood of breakage increases during manipulation. There are more bends in the hair per inch so more points of breakage.

The more curly hair is manipulated, can increase breakage because now the bends are being pulled straight, released, pulled straight, released. Over time that weakens the area.

Some curly hair can be drier than relaxed hair.

I could go on an on

So what you have to do to curly hair to get it straight can be more stressful to the hair than doing the same thing to relaxed hair. You can definitely try to keep improving your regimen to reduce the breakage. It really depends on what you are willing to do.

Have you considered rollersetting your hair versus blowdrying/flat ironing? This way you stretch the hair and the same time you are straightening it and also using less direct heat?

If you do decide to straighten, you may want to do a protein treatment the say day.

Maybe some other ladies will come in with additional suggestions.

 

[mz.rae]

There may be some curly heads that don't have breakage but not sure how many. Obviously there are a few things that impact breakage. My guess is that most incur some breakage which is why there is so much focus on things to do to protect the ends and improve retention.

I think the tighter the curl pattern the likelihood of breakage increases during manipulation. There are more bends in the hair per inch so more points of breakage.

The more curly hair is manipulated, can increase breakage because now the bends are being pulled straight, released, pulled straight, released. Over time that weakens the area.

Some curly hair can be drier than relaxed hair.

I could go on an on

So what you have to do to curly hair to get it straight can be more stressful to the hair than doing the same thing to relaxed hair. You can definitely try to keep improving your regimen to reduce the breakage. It really depends on what you are willing to do.

Have you considered rollersetting your hair versus blowdrying/flat ironing? This way you stretch the hair and the same time you are straightening it and also using less direct heat?

If you do decide to straighten, you may want to do a protein treatment the say day.

Maybe some other ladies will come in with additional suggestions.

Thanks so much for your tips! I definitely am going to try rollersetting and maybe just flat iron my roots where the rollers are.

 

[fluffyforever]

My hair is natural, fine to medium strands, coarse, pen-spring sized coils, constantly dry, splits and ssks galore, uneven all over with breakage at crown. My hair has the potential for high density if I didn't have so much breakage. Wash days I expect a good handful of hair to break-off/shed. I'm still struggling and my last relaxer was Dec 2006. The only good thing going for my hair is that it grows really, really fast. I somehow manage to get past BSL 3x after major BCs without even trying.

After reading this thread, I think I need to regularly use protein. I used some this morning (Joico Kpak daily Conditioner) to cowash. My hair smoothed and feels a bit softer, even after air drying, and that never happens. I think I always confuse dry hair for just needing a good moisturizing DC. But no matter what moisturizing conditioners I use, my hair stays dry and hard.

Also, I need to manipulate my hair less, although me keeping my hair in twists for even a week causes so many knots! What do I do?

New routine going forward:
-Cowash 1-2x per week as needed, alternating Joico K-pak and MR conditioners
-Wash with a Joico shampoo every 2 weeks, follow up with conditioner and DC with heat with MR moisture balm or Kpak intense hydrator.
-Use a leave in by Joico (haven't bought one yet)
-Braid hair to dry
-Wear hair in a bun.

So essentially, I will only be touching my hair for a maximum of 2 days per week. Is this too much manipulation for fine strands? What are your suggestions?

 

[faithVA]

fluffyforever[/USER];19011763]My hair is natural, fine to medium strands, coarse, pen-spring sized coils, constantly dry, splits and ssks galore, uneven all over with breakage at crown. My hair has the potential for high density if I didn't have so much breakage. Wash days I expect a good handful of hair to break-off/shed. I'm still struggling and my last relaxer was Dec 2006. The only good thing going for my hair is that it grows really, really fast. I somehow manage to get past BSL 3x after major BCs without even trying.

After reading this thread, I think I need to regularly use protein. I used some this morning (Joico Kpak daily Conditioner) to cowash. My hair smoothed and feels a bit softer, even after air drying, and that never happens. I think I always confuse dry hair for just needing a good moisturizing DC. But no matter what moisturizing conditioners I use, my hair stays dry and hard.

Also, I need to manipulate my hair less, although me keeping my hair in twists for even a week causes so many knots! What do I do?

New routine going forward:
-Cowash 1-2x per week as needed, alternating Joico K-pak and MR conditioners
-Wash with a Joico shampoo every 2 weeks, follow up with conditioner and DC with heat with MR moisture balm or Kpak intense hydrator.
-Use a leave in by Joico (haven't bought one yet)
-Braid hair to dry
-Wear hair in a bun.

So essentially, I will only be touching my hair for a maximum of 2 days per week. Is this too much manipulation for fine strands? What are your suggestions?

I would suggest seeing where your protein leads you before making too many changes. Is the K-pak a reconstructor? Does it have Keratin? Use a conditioner with keratin protein at least once a month to start. And for now use a protein conditioner every other wash until your hair balances out.

You won't know what else you need to do until you get it balanced.

 

[fluffyforever]

I would suggest seeing where your protein leads you before making too many changes. Is the K-pak a reconstructor? Does it have Keratin? Use a conditioner with keratin protein at least once a month to start. And for now use a protein conditioner every other wash until your hair balances out.

You won't know what else you need to do until you get it balanced.

The Kpak conditioner I used isn't the strong reconstructor that they also sell. I have the Deep Penetrating Resonstructor too. The conditioner I used today has keratin in it, but is supposed to be light enough to use daily.

So from your advice, I'll use the heavy duty reconstructor once a month, and keep my idea of rotating the weak protein conditioner every other wash with a moisturizing one.

 

[gn1g]

does anyone ever use a chelating poo on natural hair?

 

[faithVA]

fluffyforever[/USER];19012563]The Kpak conditioner I used isn't the strong reconstructor that they also sell. I have the Deep Penetrating Resonstructor too. The conditioner I used today has keratin in it, but is supposed to be light enough to use daily.

So from your advice, I'll use the heavy duty reconstructor once a month, and keep my idea of rotating the weak protein conditioner every other wash with a moisturizing one.

Keep us up to date on how it works out.

 

[lucky8502]

I don't know if my regi can help anyone but I have bra strap length hair and I really did NOTHING. I would wear it in a puff everyday and in the morning I would wet it and put deep conditioner in as a leave in and at night I would sweep my end into a bun. That's really all I do and I retain length and have minimal breakage.

 

[faithVA]

I don't know if my regi can help anyone but I have bra strap length hair and I really did NOTHING. I would wear it in a puff everyday and in the morning I would wet it and put deep conditioner in as a leave in and at night I would sweep my end into a bun. That's really all I do and I retain length and have minimal breakage.

It may help someone. But usually by the time ladies end up in this thread, they need a little something extra.

You are very fortunate to have such a simple regimen

 

[DarkJoy]

does anyone ever use a chelating poo on natural hair?

yes gn1g. I chelate/clarify 1-2x a month using AO Swimmers Shampoo. I dilute it. Like 1-2 tbs to a 12oz cup.

 

[Maracujá]

does anyone ever use a chelating poo on natural hair?

I've never used one but I have a chelating shampoo by Joico on my wish list on Ebay. I hadn't clarified in like years until a few weeks ago

 

[Froreal3]

Why is part of my crown significantly shorter than the rest of my hair? I measured yesterday and the left side back of my crown...probably about a 3 inch area is shorter than the rest of my hair. It is like 9 inches in that spot and the rest of my hair is 11-12 inches. I'm not feeling this as I protective style 100% of the time and moisturize/seal every other day and sometimes daily. I also DC weekly. No bueno

I use sulfur oil to massage my scalp daily to every other day, but I think I will need to incorporate daily massage in that area specifically with some type of oil. Perhaps only finger detangling that area and maybe concentrating my moisturizer specifically in that spot...

The back, sides, bangs, and even the right side of my crown are growing great! As a matter of fact, my whole crown was significantly shorter, but it has done very well with psing. It's just this one area that needs help. I did a protein treatment today with Komaza Protein Strengthener. Any other suggestions?

 

[thebelleofelle]

Getting to my wits end with this transition hair. I'm having the hardest time with dryness. I've tried hawaiian silk, perfect for perms leave in, infusium 23 leave in, mane and tail strengthener, water and seal, water mixed with glycerin, water mixed with conditioner.

I've also done a porosity test and found that I have low porosity. Which is really weird because when porosity was first brought up here, I had high porosity. Can it just change like that????

UGHHH someone save me and my dry hair!!!!!!!!!

 

[z3000zee]

I am not sure if you found a solution yet I avoid ssk by putting my homemade Shea butter and oil mixture on my hair after washing as a leave-in conditioner. If I run out and I am too lazy to make it I notice the difference in my hair. I also have finer strands. Have you considered a Shea butter or other butter type leave-in that you can buy in store.

 

[Hairness]

thebelleofelle I use Giovanni Direct Leave In its thick and so far, is working well for me. I put an oil mix in my hair first, then the GDLI, then my homemade pomade to seal it all up.

 

[krissyhair]

Getting to my wits end with this transition hair. I'm having the hardest time with dryness. I've tried hawaiian silk, perfect for perms leave in, infusium 23 leave in, mane and tail strengthener, water and seal, water mixed with glycerin, water mixed with conditioner.

I've also done a porosity test and found that I have low porosity. Which is really weird because when porosity was first brought up here, I had high porosity. Can it just change like that????

UGHHH someone save me and my dry hair!!!!!!!!!

thebelleofelle, have you tried putting a a few tablespoons of oil into a nearly empty conditioner bottle and using that as a leave-in? I've put olive oil in with some extra-cheapy conditioners and it is so luxuriously moisturizing.

 

[thebelleofelle]

z3000zee Thank. I just bought a shea butter deep treatment. Fingers crossed this works.

 

[HanaKuroi]

z3000zee Thank. I just bought a shea butter deep treatment. Fingers crossed this works.

Did u clarify first? Remove all silicones and wax buildup. Start with naked hair so the dc can penetrate,

I can't see any mentions on my IPhone. PM me if it is a must see. Allons y

 

[hnntrr]

So. I am not sure what to do. Winter has hit and my hair is super super dry. It may have been because I did a protein treatment yesterday but still.

Not sure what to do. I might wash my hair tonight just because, however I am not sure whats going on with the dryness. Like I am washing my hair almost everyday/every other day.

Is there anything I can do? Should I up my sealing? I usually just spritz with a water/glycerin/oil mixture i did that during the summer/fall and it worked out great my hair would stay for 3 days...Now I don't know. Do I need to get something thicker?

 

[HanaKuroi]

So. I am not sure what to do. Winter has hit and my hair is super super dry. It may have been because I did a protein treatment yesterday but still.

Not sure what to do. I might wash my hair tonight just because, however I am not sure whats going on with the dryness. Like I am washing my hair almost everyday/every other day.

Is there anything I can do? Should I up my sealing? I usually just spritz with a water/glycerin/oil mixture i did that during the summer/fall and it worked out great my hair would stay for 3 days...Now I don't know. Do I need to get something thicker?

I am too sleepy to get scientific but stop using the glycerin. Now that it is drier (winter) it may be drawing moisture from your hair and not the air due to lower humidity. You need to use something else.

I'll edit or make a new post tomorrow.

Sent from my iPad using LHCF

 

[hnntrr]

Update:
So my hair is doing something weird.
I have literally been pre-pooing with a protein conditioner twice a week and have not gotten a protein overload...I leave it on for the recommended amount of time (1-2 mins while I detangle, I am using the Nubian Heritage Moringa and EVOO), shampoo and then follow with more protein or a moisture conditioner. Still doing DC 1-2 times a week.
The only thing that i have changed is my new moisturizer...which is Curly Curl Souflee & OV Eco styler....

Could the souflee be keeping my hair moisturized enough to be able to do protein so much? 2 months ago you could NOT tell my hair it needed protein. Now I don't know. My hair is just thriving so its not a struggle but just something weird I have noticed over the past 2 weeks. (I have also been keeping my hair under hats/scarfs and only wear my hair out if its in a flat twist pony tail....gonna try a puff tomorrow and see if that changes anything but? Why could this be? Especiall when winter is so dry in boston?

 

[HanaKuroi]

Update:
So my hair is doing something weird.
I have literally been pre-pooing with a protein conditioner twice a week and have not gotten a protein overload...I leave it on for the recommended amount of time (1-2 mins while I detangle, I am using the Nubian Heritage Moringa and EVOO), shampoo and then follow with more protein or a moisture conditioner. Still doing DC 1-2 times a week.
The only thing that i have changed is my new moisturizer...which is Curly Curl Souflee & OV Eco styler....

Could the souflee be keeping my hair moisturized enough to be able to do protein so much? 2 months ago you could NOT tell my hair it needed protein. Now I don't know. My hair is just thriving so its not a struggle but just something weird I have noticed over the past 2 weeks. (I have also been keeping my hair under hats/scarfs and only wear my hair out if its in a flat twist pony tail....gonna try a puff tomorrow and see if that changes anything but? Why could this be? Especiall when winter is so dry in boston?

What type of protein is in it?

I can't see any mentions on my IPhone. PM me if it is a must see. Allons y

 

[hnntrr]

What type of protein is in it?

I can't see any mentions on my IPhone. PM me if it is a must see. Allons y

The Nubian heritage? I don't know ill edit this post when I get home. It's an extend nd repair protein conditioner though. So I would assume it is gonna be heavier? I DUNO I'll let you know soon.


HanaKuroi

edit:
EVOO & Moringa, Repair & Extend conditioner


Ingredients: Deionized Water, Olea Europaea (olive oil), coconut oil, shea butter, sorbitol esters, mango seed butter, avocado oil, vegetable protein, Soybean oil, moringa oleifera seed oil, lawsonia inermis (henna) leaf powder, pro vitamin b-5, proprietary essential oil blend, conditioning salt, chonopodium quinoa extract, fennel extract, aloe barbadenis leaf extract, rosemary extract, bamboo extract, honeysuckle flower and japanese honeysuckle flower extract.

 

[DarkJoy]

THis isn't a struggle but an update and big THANK YOU! It is sometimes difficult to tell when wearing an afro 24/7 where you're at except the fact that you're retaining. Straightening gave me a different perspective of where my strands were. On a whim yesterday, I decided to straighten to trim after having not put my hair near heat (except a heat cap for DCs) in over a year. Wow--big difference.

First the great ladies in this thread helped me determine what I was working with:
-natural
-high porosity
-very fine strands

After some trial and error, ya'll helped me refine a decent basic regimen:

- incorporated a regular protein
-incorporated a chelating and clarifying shampoo
-got a water filter for my hard water
-stopped all cones
-ayurvedic cleansings and teas rinsing (thanks to the challengers in that thread too!)
-heavy sealing
-cowashing 2x a week with cheapie V05 to keep it moisturized.

The 3" at the roots seems like a different head of hair altogether: smoother strands, softer texture, more body. That amount seems right in keeping with the fact that I really began to stick to my reggie with you ladies' help about 6 months ago.

THe only downside is I will have to continue clipping to get rid of that 'old' hair so the new stuff will shine I'm ready !!

Special thanks to Cruzankink @HanaKuroi and @faithVA for all your help. And everyone else who dropped their .02!

 

[fluffyforever]

Yep I'm back at square one again. I don't know if it's the weather or what, but my hair is hard again, and the cuticles aren't smooth at all. I thought upping my protein would be good because I never used protein in the past year at all, and at first it was good. But I washed my hair lately and it felt hard again. Really hard and dry. No moisturized DC had helped. My leave ins aren't helping either. My cuticles were so rough that my staple AM couldn't provide enough slip to detangle. So then I tried an oil rinse because I keep hearing good news about that, but it made my ends feel crispy. I'm at a loss. Every time my hair gets this length it starts breaking with every touch and becomes dry like a desert.

My hate hates most oils, AVJ, hard protein, and most commercial creams. I've been using SM restorative conditioner and sealing ends with castor oil ( the only combo my hair likes a bit), but it doesn't work as well if my cuticles aren't smooth and the shaft is moisturized. Ugh.

 

[Cruzankink]

Hello Ladies,

I missed y'all...

CONFESSION: As of Oct 12, 2013 (3 days b/4 my 2yr post relax anniversary), I have not been struggling with my natural hair because.... I relaxed it. Yess!!! Please believe this was not an impulsive decision. I thought about it for a while, I believe since June of this year. I began hating my time consuming natural hair regimen. I didn't want to take short cuts b/c in the end my hair would suffer.

So every Friday night I'll do my coconut oil prepoo, sleep w/ it overnite, Saturday morning wash my hair then deep condition for at least 1 hr. Then the coup de gras the ****** twisting which took at least 2 hrs depending on my look. I began to realize that I miss the ease of my relax hair. I put in a weave hoping that the break would make me fall in love w/ my natural hair again but instead it did the opposite. I loved the length and curls of my weave so much so that I wanted the look permanently. I believe it was early September when I made the decision of relaxing on my 2 yr post anniversary.

I don't even remember the relaxer I used (it was in a red box and I think it had shea butter) but considering I had 4b virgin hair, my hair didn't come out straight at all which I love. I can wear my hair curly and straight. I am enjoying my new look so much. I believe that I would have better success w/ my chemically treated hair now than before since I learned so much about my hair and products in my transition and natural journey.

I want to thank the members of this thread for your encouragement, advice, and support. I am a firm believer that one has to do what's makes them happy and my textlaxed hair is doing that for me.

Thank you all!