One of the hardest things to do is to change your routine. After you find something you like, it becomes so easy to just keep doing the same thing over and over. However, habits lead to bad habits. Something that starts off innocent enough begins to lead to major problems. This is exactly what happened to my relaxed hair.

I loved weaves. My hair looked fabulous and it was relatively easy to maintain. For five years I followed the same routine. Every 8 weeks I would get a touch up and a new weave. Every week I would wash, blow dry, and flat iron my weave. In the last of the five years of wearing consecutive weaves, my edges started thinning and my leave out started thinning. In addition to thinning hair, I received several under processed relaxers.

Just to recap, by 2013 my hair was thinning and three different hair textures. My hair would tangle easily, it felt very hard and styling my leave out became a struggle. I decided it was time to start taking better care of my hair and restore it to its natural glory.

This is my semi dry hair that needs a trim.

Stretching

The first thing I did to help my hair grow back was increase the time I waited in order to get a relaxer. Instead of going every 8 weeks, I began getting my hair relaxed every 10 to 12 weeks. Having to style my hair with so much new growth was frustrating but I used good products and it made it much more manageable. Once I started stretching my relaxers, my roots were thick and I experienced less hair loss.

Trim (or cut) your hair

You don’t want to hear this, but some damaged hair cannot be saved. As my healthy strong hair grew in, I had to chop off the dry, crispy, lifeless ends. Whenever I get a touch up, I automatically get a trim every time. Split ends have the ability to completely destroy your hair. Cut them off before they have a chance to mess up your hair.

Good products

Just like cheap food isn’t good for your body, I find cheap products aren’t good for your hair. I used to just grab for anything on the shelf when it came to hair products, but now I am much wiser.

I stopped using shampoos that stripped my hair. Now, I use Herbal Essence’s Naked Moisture Shampoo, which does not contain any paraben, colorant, or silicone. For a clarifying wash I use Peppermint castle soap. To deep condition my hair I use Macadamia Professionals Nourishing Masque. After I wash that out I apply Macadamia Professionals Nourishing Moisture Oil Treatment to my damp hair and let it air dry. To grow back my edges I used Dr. Miracle’s Feel It Formula Temple and Nape Gro Balm.

No heat

The only way to get healthy hair is to limit the amount of heat you use on your hair. It’s easiest to choose between one of two heat tools. For example, if I use the blow dryer to dry my hair then I won’t flat iron it. If I want to flat iron my hair, I will let it air dry. Instead of frying my hair every week I only use heat tools once or twice a month. At first this was very difficult for me however, after a while I got used to using flexi rods and pin curls to achieve the styles I wanted.