Relaxer Dos And Don'ts

It's fair to say caring for relaxed hair is not as simple as my fellas think. It's not about sit, slap the relaxer on, wash and see you in 4 weeks time for another rendezvous. These are the few things I've learnt about relaxed hair.

1. Protect your ends with conditioner, oil or grease. The rational behind this is that in the process of washing out the relaxer, the water definitely runs over the already processed hair. As this increases, you eventually have the already processed hair becoming weaker and also causing overprocessing. The protector can be applied a day before the relaxer or right before the relaxer. I use sheabutter.
   
2. Use a chelating shampoo if you use no-lye relaxer. Basically, No-lye relaxers tend to leave mineral deposits behind on the hair shaft. These mineral deposits can dull the hair and make it less able to absorb much needed moisture. Calcium deposits can make the hair brittle, dry, and prone to breakage. The chelating shampoo cleanses the hair of these deposits.Chelating shampoos also help in riding the hair of deposits from the use of hard water.
3. Do not relax the hair the day after you take out braids or weaves. In the process of undoing the extensions, you can scratch your scalp which can cause some soreness. My fellas who complain about burns are the usual culprits of this act.
4. Do not use direct heat without heat protection serum. When you go to your hair dresser, insist on this or take yours along. I always took mine with me(I now do the flat ironing myself)
5. Do you a neutralizing shampoo to restore the pH balance of the hair.The pH level is higher in a lye relaxer than a no-lye relaxer (approximately 12-14 for lye, 9-11 for no-lye, whereas your hair should generally have a pH of around 4-5).
6. Use a protein deep conditioner a week before relaxing since relaxers break down the protein bonds of the hair, you need to fortify the hair against the protein that will be lost. I use a medium strength protein conditioner (Organic Root Stimulator Hair Mayonnaise)
7. Don't leave the relaxer on for more than the stipulated time. Bone straight hair can be achieved by combing the relaxer through the hair; not sitting down for 1-6 hours. (**You hearddddddddd me**)
8. Be sure to use a leave-in conditioner- buy one if your hair dresser does not have one.
9. Trim when necessary and not because your stylists say so. For some reason, hair dressers tend to be scissor happy. Trimming each month may not help you in length retention.
10. Moisture and seal at least once a day. You can use a moisturizer and then seal with any mineral oil free oils.
11. Avoid pink oils: These contain mineral oil and petroleum. For me, these weigh my hair down and leaves it sticky.
12. Read product labels (I've learnt my lesson): This will guide you to know what each product contains and if these ingredients are damaging to your hair
13. Use a wide tooth comb to detangle the hair so you can prevent breakage
    Use a satin cap/bonnet/pillow case: I know our ladies are fond of hair nets but these do not provide protection against the cotton pillow cases(this is what we grew up to use). The hair rubs on the pillow case as we sleep and this causes friction leading to breakage.
14. Rub some conditioner in your hair before swimming to protect the hair from the salt and chlorine in the water
15. Don't rub your hair with the towel; blot instead. Rubbing can lead to knots

Divas, enjoy your hair journey!Drop by the Products page for a list of items to aid in your hair care.

Emprezz







References:
http://www.blackhairscience.com/better.html
http://blackhair.about.com/od/permsrelaxers/p/lyevsnolyerelaxers.htm