{ September 3rd, 2011 }

Relaxing My Daughter’s Hair – Can I Add Leave-In Conditioner?

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I need advice.  This is our first time using a relaxer on my daughter’s hair. Her hair is really dry. I want to put a leave-in conditioner in it. Do you think this will a have a negative effect on the relaxer?

If you’re not well-educated on relaxers, hair products and daily maintenance, or don’t have a history of successfully retaining healthy hair growth, don’t do a relaxer yourself. You can set yourself up for greater success with healthy hair if you educate, educate, educate yourself (and your daughter) first. Research, find great stylists (get several opinions, not just one) who know both product and hair chemistry, and ask for their knowledge and insights. In advance, don’t get discouraged – many stylists aren’t necessarily trained on how to maintain healthy hair, and are more so focused on creating great-looking styles than healthy hair, but they are out there!

Taking shortcuts on learning about what keeps hair healthy, and then self-relaxing, will statistically result in drier hair and breakage. Learning beforehand will allow you  to adjust your styling and daily hair maintenance practices in order to mitigate the damage that will come from relaxing.

Living in a humid environment can help make relaxer aftercare management a bit easier. Putting a leave-in conditioner will prevent the relaxer from working as effectively, which might be a good thing. It could have the same effect as a texturizer (or ‘tex-laxing’) rather than a full straightener. Ultimately, adding a conditioner or oil to a relaxer may cause it to underprocess, or may extend the processing time.

Continually research the relaxers you use, as they may update the products with changed ingredients. Ultimately, you’ll want to get expert opinion from a stylist who knows the particular product you want to use well.

 

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