HELP! I feel like giving up already :(

xShemi · 08-26-2012, 05:42 PM

Hi there lovelies

my name is Shemi and I recently did the big chop, around 4 months ago.
Since then, my hair's been having issues. It literally takes only 2-3 hours before my hair is instantly dry again. This bothers me because whenever I touch my hair, I hear crackling and I'm beginning to see breakage.
It's so heart breaking.

I love my hair's natural texture, I was scanning through it today and it's absolutely beautiful, but the issue lies in the fact that..

I DONT KNOW WHAT PRODUCTS TO USE!

You can say that I'm a product junkie

Most of the products I use don't help at all, they have mineral oil, petroleum, etc and I know that's bad...But I honestly need help

I basically moisturize and seal on a daily basis, but that doesn't help at all, probably cause I'm doing it wrong. My hair feels damaged and I want to do whatever it takes to revive it back to health. Seeing breakage is heart wrenching

Can you please tell me what daily conditioners + moisturizers + sealants you use?

i used to seal with castor oil and water but my hair got unusually itchy.

I might go shopping for all of these products within a 30 dollar budget, cause im only 17 and unemployed at the moment..

I'm so close to crying

LindseyLoo003 · 08-26-2012, 06:00 PM

Its important to find out your hair properties. Check out livecurlylivefree.com or. Net I believe? ") weather or not its fine or thick or how strong your curl pattern needs to be figured out because if your a 3a / b like me you probably want some hold such as gels or mousses and leave in conditioner. If ur hair is fine consider protein treatments.

I use suave naturals conditioners as cowashes to follow the cg method there only a dollar. I follow up with a more moisturizing conditioner lime tresseme naturals moisture (5 bucks or so) and I splurge on a treatment that's ten bucks at target it's Shea moisture moisturizing hair mask the orange tub. And I use the curl enhancing smoothie. Following cg can be so inexpensive though and there are a pretty good amount of cg friendly products at the store. Maybe look up the cg friendly product list if u decide to go cg or ifu already have.

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Chi · 08-28-2012, 11:21 PM

First off I will say, stick in there! Learning to deal with your natural is a learning, sometimes shocking experience but once you go through the bad days, so-so days, eventually you learn what works and what doesn't work. In the end I look at it as sort of an investment. Invest the time and care in it, and you'll be happy you kept with it. You should also take time to peruse through
this website under the category "hair types" which gets into porosity, density, width, etc. These properties of your hair help you in choosing what products work and what doesn't work.

You may need to ask yourself a few questions such as:
1. How long does it take for my hair to dry?
2. When my hair gets wet, does it repel the water? (does it sit on the hair or trickle off, or it is readily absorbed?)
3. When you look at a strand of your hair in the light, does it appear incredibly visible, semi-visible, or does it vanish?
4. If your hair is enough to form a small afro (depending on the length of your hair) is your scalp clearly visible, semi-visible, or not visible at all?

You may also need to perform the hair strand in water test which helps with question 1 and 2 dealing with porosity. For instance, if your hair is low porosity, the dryness you're experiencing may be due to lack of proper moisturizing, especially before you seal your hair with an oil. If it isn't moisturized and you seal it with oil its hard for moisture to get in.
Once you've learned these properties of your hair, you can start researching products that work for your hair, and avoid ones that don't. In addition there are forums on this site dedicated to certain hair properties AND don't forget to check the "shop" feature of this website. It features products which you can filter by pricing and hair type and you may even find some good deals and sales. My other alternative would be Target; they have a whole section for natural hair products and its usually decently priced.

Chi · 08-28-2012, 11:29 PM

also instead of castor oil and water, try jojoba oil. The castor oil may be causing your scalp to itch and for most curlies deep conditioning is essential, so you need a conditioner that will moisturize your hair. Its best to avoid hair products that use mineral oils, considering its used as a filler in products and may not be reacting with your hair as well. As soon as you find out the properties of your hair I mentioned earlier, come back to tell your findings, and it'll be easier to recommend products for you to use.

dee-nature · 11-12-2012, 12:12 AM

First and foremost im sorry to hear your frustration i think at some point in every curlies hair we get fed up. But stick with it. When i was a newbie i took advantage of my hair being short. Luckily for me i bc in summer so hair was co washed daily and it stayed moist. I say stay away from the heavy. Use a liquid leave in like infusium 23 that way it dries fast. As my hair got longer i do my hair and if wet i get in the car drive with windows rolled down. As far as breakage i say give it a rest put a wig overr it or some other form of protective style. Hth

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