If you know anything about hair relaxers..OPEN?

My hair is natrually curly..i mean really curly. I love it curly, but i also like it straight; And ill straighten it with a flat iron, it works, but i gotta keep straighting it everyday, and sometimes if i dont wash it..yeah ewh.





1.So if i get a relaxer will it damage my hair?


2. Will is keep it straght, for how long?


3. Will it completly change my hair forever?





Anything else, just add it.If you know anything about hair relaxers..OPEN?
1. It doesn't have to. If you or the person applying the relaxer does it right then it shouldn't be a problem. Never over process (let the relaxer stay in longer than necessary). Never relax hair that has been relaxed, by that I mean after you've had your first relaxer only the new hair growth has to be straightened. If your hair has been bleached wait atleast 2 weeks before you relax, I prefer 3 or 4, but at least 2. Don't relax your hair too much. Use products that are for your hair type (color treated, chemically treated, etc.). Use products for relaxed hair. If you relax your hair, never let it get dry, it doesn't have to be greasy, just never dry. It's a dramatic change to everything about the hair, from the texture to the diameter of each strand. You have to take proper care of it.


2. Relaxers are a permanent change. Once hair is relaxed, it can't be undone, the only way to go back to natural is to cut the hair that has been relaxed, and start over. Like I said it's all about the rate that your hair grows usually has to be done every 8 to 9 weeks.


3. Yes, yes, yes, your hair will be changed for ever. But I must warn, not everyones hair takes relaxers, It may texturize your hair making it easier to manage, but it might not be bone straight. But in general it will usually straighten it.





You can relax your hair and still have healthy hair.


Your hair may be more subjectible to breakage once the hair has been relaxed, but if you keep it moisturized properly, and don't abuse it, it will be fine.





for anything that I left out go to this website


forum.blackhairmedia.com


you can find out about all things relaxed hair, if I think of something else, I'll come back and let you know.





Alright, here are some tips:


Relax your hair every 8 to 9 weeks depending on your hair's needs. Do not relax your hair every time new growth appears, since relaxing too often causes damage to the hair. For one week following your relaxer, use a reconstructor instead of your regular conditioner when you wash your hair. Aphogee makes an excellent reconstructor and shampoo. After a week return to your regular shampoo and conditioner.


Wash and condition your hair every 4 to 5 days and at the most once a week. Try to use shampoo and conditioner designed for dry hair. Ultra Black Hair and Tresseme for damaged hair are excellent conditioners. Using a moisturizing deep conditioner once per week is ideal. Rarely if ever use a towel or a blow dryer to dry your hair. Instead, to prevent damage, air dry the hair, separating it with your fingers as it dries. Or you can allow it to dry undisturbed then comb with a large tooth comb (this will keep the volume down).


Cowashing is an excellent alternative to the wash/condition. Cowashing is washing your hair with (preferably) a moisturizing conditioner, eliminating the shampoo step which can be very drying when done relatively frequently. Many with relaxed hair cowash daily.


It is best to avoid using heat to dry your hair, however, if you prefer heat, then avoid hand held dryers. Use a hood dryer instead. With repeated usage, all hair dryers will damage and dry-out your hair, but the hood type will not damage it as quickly. The hair should be completely dry before you use a curling or flat iron on it.


When using a curling iron to style your hair, do not allow the barrel cover to clamp down on your hair. Hold the barrel cover slightly open and allow the hair to move over the curling iron barrel without the tugging and pulling caused by pressure from the barrel cover. Whenever the barrel cover clamps down on your hair it creates a weak point at which breakage is inevitable.


A regular metal barreled Curling iron works well and is easy to find. You can also invest in heat appliances utilising ceramic, tourmaline, ionic technology having temperature controls. Relaxed hair can be easily styled at 300 degrees or less. Try to use heat protective products (serums or creams, not oils) prior to any and all heat styling. Ultra Black Hair lotion creme and Chi Silk Infusion are good product for this. However, it must be stressed, that heat should be avoided as often as possible.


Never use hair oil on relaxed hair as a moisturizer as oil does NOT moisturize the hair but rather functions as a sealant. If your hair is well conditioned you won't need any oil at all. If you do prefer some oil, choose a lightweight oil (such as jojoba, coconut, almond, or olive oil) rub a small amount in the palms and spread lightly through the hair, focusing on the ends of the hair. If you choose to use oil, it is best to wash it off within a few days.


Use as little heat as possible with your hair as heat can only do more damage to relaxed hair. It's ok to style your hair with a curling iron (occasionally!), however a rollerset is the best method with either a large or small curler depending on the size you want. If you use curlers at night be sure to tie them down to keep them from moving as you sleep. If the curlers are allowed to move as you sleep, it will weaken the roots and the hair will fall out from the roots.


Alternate between cold and heated styling. If you use a curling iron one day, set your hair with rollers the next day. This will help to minimize heat damage.


Water based moisturizers are best for all hair types. Ultra Black Hair Lotion Creme is an excellent moisturizer as well as S-curl. You can also try Dudley's PCA Moisture Retainer or ORS Carrot Oil creme to see if it works for your hair. Avoid moisturizers with petrolatum and mineral oil unless you wash/condition and/or cowash regularly.


Drink plenty of water daily and check your hair's moisture level every day. To test your hair's moisture level, follow these simple steps:


First, Gently hold some of your hair in your hand. If your hair is cool to the touch and feels silky, it is clean, well conditioned and you are drinking adequate amounts of water. If your hair is warm to the touch, oily or dry like paper it is in need of cleaning, conditioning and you should increase your water intake.


Second, shake your head gently. If your hair bounces and moves easily it is clean, well conditioned and you are drinking enough water. If your hair does not move at all, the moisture level is very low. It is time to wash and condition your hair and increase your water intake.


Third, comb your hair gently. If there is no hair on the comb or on your clothing the moisture level is good. If there is hair on the comb or on your clothing, your hair's moisture level is very low. Wash and condition your hair as soon as you get the chance and increase your water intake. You might also want to avoid using heated styling instruments for a few days.


It is important to condition your hair often, however, when it is close to the time for you to get a touch up of your relaxer, the roots or your hair will be very dense and it will be difficult to properly rinse the conditioner out at the roots. Because hair will break off if conditioner is not properly rinsed away, you can do the following when your roots are very dense. Place 50% conditioner and 50% very hot water in a container and stir it until it becomes the consistency of shampoo. Once the mixture cools use it as you normally would. It will easily rinse from your roots. Do not use the diluted conditioner more than once or twice as it will not properly condition your hair. Get your touch up as soon as you get the chance and once your roots are straightened, return to using the conditioner full strength.


Applying a moisturizing conditioner to dry hair for 30 minutes to an hour and following with a warm/cool water rinse can help maintain the hair's moisture balance and make it more pliable. Remember, apply conditioner to the scalp infrequently as it can cause your hair to shed more easily. Conditioning products should only be applied to the length of the hair the majority of the time.











[edit] TipsDon't use a weave unless you are quite expert at them, as this can make your hair worse.


Friction on a pillowcase can break off relaxed hair. Use only silk or satin pillowcases.


To keep your hair moist and in good shape while you sleep do this: Buy a plastic garment bag from you local dry cleaner. Cut a large oval from the bag. It should be about the length of your arm. At bedtime, place the center of the oval at the back of your hair. gently tie the two ends together over your forehead. Be sure to leave the top of your scalp uncovered so it can receive oxygen. Enjoy your sleep. When you awake your hair will be in excellent condition for your day.


To keep your hair very thick and full, use a very wide-tooth, seamless comb and comb hair very gently. This will prevent pulling out hair from the roots and will help to prevent stripping and breakage.


To moisturize hair from the inside before getting a relaxer, drink about 3 to 4 glasses of water a day for the 3 days prior to your relaxer. Your hair will be in good condition when you get the relaxer.


To moisturize hair from the outside before getting a relaxer, use a protein treatment about 5 to 7 days prior (Aphogee Treatment For Damaged Hair is an excellent protein treatment).


Educate yourself. The book Ultra Black Hair Growth (as well as other books) is an excellent resource. If you have the time and resources, taking a course about hair at a local beauty college might be right for you.


Believe that it is possible for you to have healthy, rich, thick, bouncy, moisturized, awesome looking, long relaxed hair. Find what works for you and never stop searching until you do.


If you have difficulty rinsing conditioner from your hair even when the roots are not dense or if your hair sheds more often when you use conditioner, apply the conditioner only to the length and not near the scalp.


Its easy to remove knots and tangles from dry hair without causing breakage. Instead of uIf you know anything about hair relaxers..OPEN?
Relaxers are made to change the chemical bonds in curly hair to make it less curly or straight depending on how long the chemical is left in the hair. It basically contains either Sodium Hydroxide or Calcium Hydroxide. The Calcium Hydroxide is usually the ';No Lye'; chemical application. No lye is usually most prefered by most, because it seems to cause less irritation, and is less likely to give the burning affect that is most associate with lye based chemical relaxers. If you are going to try the lie based PLEASE DO NOT DO IT ON YOUR OWN!!!! PLEASE SEEK A PROFESSIONAL, because the lye based relaxers need a trained hand. I would suggest just sticking with the no lye relaxer forms if you do decide to get a relaxer.





Honestly damage can be done with any process when it comes to curly hair. You can cause damage to your hair with daily heat implements to straighten your hair. A relaxer can cause damage if directions are not followed, and if follow up care is not given to the relaxed hair.





You can texturized your hair with a chemical relaxer by not leaving it in long enough or combing or smoothing it in to obtain a super straight look. With a texturizer your hair is left with a obvious less curly texture. The hair is still curly, but the curl is looser, and allows for easier styling whether you wear it that way or flat iron it.





Honestly, I would keep my hair curly if I were you, but I know what you mean by wanting to wear straight looks. My hair is extremely curly, because I am multi-racial. I have honestly 5 or more different hair textures on my head, and the thickness is a killer. The only reason why I do lightly texturize my hair is so that I can get a comb through it! It is so thick that it is hard to style. I have in the past allowed for my hair to be relaxed to a very straight texture, but it is a lot of work to keep it healthy and thriving in a totally chemically straighten style. I recommend seeing a professional hair stylist that has experience in applying chemical relaxers. Also discuss texturizing your curls with him or her. Not a lot of hair stylist know how to properly texturize curly hair... so you will have to use discernment and discretion when choosing the person that will do the texturizing for you.





NOTE: Curly hair should never be straighten to a bone straight or stick straight texture. This can cause lots of problems including breakage. Properly relaxed hair should have texture and elasticity to it. Further straightening can be achieved with a warm flat iron if needed or desired. A re-touch of new growth will need to be done every 6 to 8 weeks 1 1/2 to 2 months depending on how fast your hair grows. For texturized hair a chemical re-touch can be done a lot later sometimes every 12 to 16 weeks. That is every 3 to 4 months.





The chemical relaxer will only change the hair that has been process. The hair that grows out of your scalp will not be affected by the chemical only if you re-touch the new growth. If you ever want to go back to your natural hair texture you can just let it grow out to your desired length (this is sometimes hard to do, but best if you decided that 2 inches is a good length) and just cut the relaxed ends completely off. If your hair is really long, and you are unsure about relaxing then make sure this is something you really want to do, because if you want your hair natural again it will have to all be cut off down to the new growth.