How To Repair Heat Damaged Hair Fast…Er Than Usain Bolt!

BIG CHOP

If you dont have any attachments (feelings) with your hair you can go ahead and cut the heat damaged ends.

If you are not comfortable cutting your natural hair, then I think scheduling an appointment with a hairstylist is another option you could take.

Anytime your natural hair is damaged (from chemical or mechanical), it cannot be reversed.

So what about the products that promise to repair your split ends etc etc?

If you happen to see products with advertising claims to remedy split ends, the products formulated with PEC technology are only meant to temporarily bring the split ends together.

When your hair is damaged and the ends are not trimmed, there is an extremely high potential for that hair damage to travel up the hair shaft.

So long story short, you can either cut now or potentially cut more than you expect later, which defeats the purpose of transitioning.

next, you can…

PREVENT HAIR DAMAGE

How do you do that?  there are few ways to make sure you don’t fall into hair damage land, here are few:

Cleanse your hair

You do not want to fry product buildup, debris, oil, and dirt on your hair… I did that when I was not even in a hair care journey.. thank God I still have hair on my head, lol.

Clarifying your natural hair is important for the straightening process, so make sure to use your clarifying or moisturizing shampoo to start the process off right!

Use a moisturizing protein treatment before and after

For protein sensitive naturals their hair tends to become dry and hard after using a protein treatment, but this can also be a result of how strong the protein treatment is.

By using protein treatments before heat styling you are helping to strengthen your natural hair for the process, and using it afterward will rejuvenate your natural curls.

Reduce straightening frequency

There is no proven number of times that guarantees heat damage will occur, try to keep it to a three to four times a year (yeah, not always possible).

If you can’t skip heat…Lower the temperature

The lower the temperature, the less likely your hair is to experience damage.

How to go about it: the rule of thumb is the thicker the strands, the higher the temperature.

Most naturals try to stay under 350 degrees or 375 degrees.

It may be challenging to achieve the super straight look but at least you are not compromising the health of your natural hair.

Use a heat protectant is a MUST sis!

Although a lot of women are anti-silicones, know that silicones will not only reduce the potential of damage from the direct heat of the plates, but they will also help to reduce the amount of moisture in the air from penetrating your hair shaft and reverting your straight curls.

So go ahead and apply your heat protectant (Here is a list with 13 Best Heat Protectant For Natural Hair! ) while your hair is damp and before the blow-dry process in order to seal in moisture.

Stretch before straightening

Normally, before straightening your natural hair you will think to use a blow-dryer but you can also go for the less heat methods such as the banding method.

But if you do opt for a blow-dryer, try using the tension method.

Blow-dry on damp, not wet hair

If you go for the tension method or blow-dryer with comb attachment to stretch your natural hair prior to straightening, make sure your hair is damp and not wet.

Why? Blow-drying wet hair is equivalent to frying the hair (OMG!), which is very harsh on your hair (We wanna show as much love as possible!).

Find straightening alternatives

You can find many roller set and roller wrap tutorials if you want to learn how to straighten your natural hair without heat.

Again, you may not have the same finish as you would with a flat iron but this option is healthier to your hair!

Stop towel-drying your hair

If your hair is already a little damaged it’s important to try to reduce the amount of stress your natural hair undergoes.

After you’ve washed your natural hair you need to avoid any vigorous towel-drying as this can cause extra damage to your hair cuticle.

So, loosely wrap your natural hair in a towel(I also use a T-shirt) and leave it to naturally dry.

If you don’t have time to wait, try using a micro-fiber cloth to dry your hair instead because tend to be more gentle on your strands (T-shirts will do lol).