“What’s your advice on getting my hair to stop breaking…I wash with sulfate free shampoo once a month and co wash once a week. I use coconut oil, lacio lacio leave-in and roller set and flat iron once a week – I pass over the hair one time to make it straight…I do a protein aphogee or redken extreme protein treatment – I just trimmed all of my ends….and I still loose 10-15 hairs everyday 
in your experience is there anything I should do to stop breakage in its tracks…?” – elaina (not pictured)
elaina, elaina, where do i start? first i’m going to ask that you please step away from what you are doing right now and let’s examine what’s going on. you have a whole lot happening in your routine and it’s very evident to me why your hair is breaking. you are committing one of the cardinal natural hair sins – fighting with your hair and not listening to it – yes it talks 
. don’t think so? well, let’s examine what’s going on in your routine so we can pinpoint this breakage. [click to continue…]
| patricia (not pictured) asks:
I recently had a blow out, not my first one but first in over a year. Everything was fine, and then I got braids to go back to school and I didn’t wash my my hair (I had only done the blow out 1 week prior) I just had the stylist spray a water/leave on conditioner mix on my hair. My hair started to wave, but definitely did not go back to my actual curl pattern. I just took out the braids (after having them 4 weeks) and the roots (the 1/2 inch coming out of my scalp) are back to my natural curl pattern and the tips (about 2 inches) are looking like they just came out of a twist out, but the middle of my hair shaft (2-4 inches) is still straight! A lot of my natural hair friends are recommending to wait it out for about 2-4 weeks and see what happens, but I am beginning to experience breakage, which I know could be tied to the fact that I just took out braids.
I really don’t want to cut it down to the roots, but right now it is very difficult to manage with the 3 textures and try to manage the breakage issue. Do you agree with my friends? Will the press wear off in another few weeks? If so how can I manage until then? If not is time to cut it off or can I do braids as I try to grow out some more hair before I big chop?
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i’m so sorry you are experiencing damage. i know first hand how frustrating and sad this can be as i’ve had many hair disasters over my life time including heat damage.
even though i cannot see your hair, i’m willing to bet that you do have heat damage and contrary to popular belief, there is no way to wait it out, pour on apple cider vinegar or do anything to reverse the damage – the permanent breaking of the hair bonds. once the damage is done it is done.
after washing your hair a few times you may have noticed a slight tightening back up of your curls, but if your hair does not revert immediately after washing out a blow or press out, then you have more than likely damaged your hair as there is no natural “waiting period” for hair to magically become undamaged. [click to continue…]
many a natural have fallen victim to heat damage. usually it happens in a small section of your head where you unfortunately discover a section of non-reverting hair, usually right after a good press or blow out. but that’s what happens to us when we get, shall i say, lucky?
otise’s (pronounced o-teese) story is a bit different and one i’d say is probably the most common with naturals who like to press and wear their hair straight on a daily bases. having been natural since 03, she’s been pressing her hair for years. unfortunately all of that pressing left her with hair that wouldn’t revert and tons of contrasting textured new growth.
what is heat damage?:
[click to continue…]
