Hair

Heat Damage 101

Heat damage is something that has plagued many of us natural haired ladies at some point or another. Seeing your perfect curls, coils or kinks be transformed into limp, straight strands can be frustrating for some, and yet have no impact at all on others. It really depends on each individual, and how one chooses to care for one's hair.

Hair

A Year in Review

My hair has been through quite a few changes over the past year, and I wanted to share them with you before I kick off another year of videos. Those of you who have been following my YouTube channel and blog for the past year are probably already aware of them, but now you can see a full summary in 10 minutes. Enjoy!

Hair

Hair Rant: My Hair Woes Update #4

As we all know, I've been using this year to focus on getting my hair back on a healthy track. My hair is healthy for the most part, but I really can't wait until I rid myself of all the heat-damaged ends. I have noticed a HUGE improvement in my hair since I've been abstaining from heat. Reducing the frequency with which I flat iron my hair (I was flat ironing it once a week and now only do it once every 4-6 weeks) has greatly improved the condition of my ends. I no longer feel the need to trim my ends once every 4-8 weeks. Instead, I trim them once every three months on average.

On Thursday, July 2, I decided to document the status of my hair and give myself a much needed trim/cut. These were my stats:

• 7 weeks and a day since last flat iron
• 14 weeks since last trim
• 13 weeks and 2 days since cutting off ~ 2 inches

Here's what my natural curls looked like prior to blow drying and flat ironing my hair:

Back


Left Side


Right Side


As you can see, I have more loose curls on the left side of my head than I do my right. You can probably notice the damage a little better in this pic of my blow-dried hair:



Do you see how the lower left side doesn't wave up? I didn't blow dry my hair bone straight, as I am trying to not fry my hair. In fact, this is the second time this year I've blow dried my hair prior to straightening it. I've been air drying it to reduce the amount of heat I use on my hair. Here's a pic of it straightened:

Hair freshly straightened and trimmed


After I trimmed my ends, I decided to cut off a good two inches of my hair. I believe I removed a little more than that in some places, as I prefer to have my hair longer in the middle and shorter on the sides to compensate for the fact that my hair grows slower in the middle and at the crown. Here's some of the hair I cut:

Bye bye heat damaged ends!

This is what I was left with:



See the difference?




Every time I cut off some of the heat-damaged ends, I move one step closer to getting a full head of bouncy curls back!

Hair

Hair Rant: My Hair Woes Update #3

On March 31, I cut off approximately two inches of heat-damaged ends. This is just another stepping stone in my quest for 100% healthy, natural curls. I've been doing my protein and deep conditioning treatments, and staying on top of my regular trims. I've also been abstaining from heat. All of these things have contributed to the improved condition of my hair. I just thought I'd accelerate that progress by ridding myself of some of the damage. As long as I maintain my healthy hair care regimen, the length will return in no time, and my hair will be 100% damage free!

Below is a short video in which I share the results of my cut. Following that are pictures of the finished product. Enjoy!



Before:

After:


So, this is what my hair looks like curly. As you can see, the left side is suffering from heat damage more than the right side.

I wanted to stretch out my shrunken curls so you can see how it will match up with the left side when straightened.

Hair

Hair Rant: My Hair Woes Update #2

It's been seven weeks since my last update, and I've been committed to improving the health of my hair. So far, I've only straightened it twice this year, which is a huge improvement considering that I could have easily straightened it eight times if I continued to flat iron it once a week. It feels good to abstain from heat. I didn't think I could do it, but it's easier than I thought. I made the following video yesterday to document the progress of my hair and the steps I've taken to get it back on a healthy track. Hopefully I'll continue to see an improvement, and my hair will be as good as new around this time next year.



Photo on top was taken January 7, 2009. Photo on bottom is from February 25, 2009.


Top photo is from January 7th. Bottom is from February 25th.


Top photo is from January 7, 2009, and bottom photo is from February 25, 2009.


Overall, I think my hair looks more conditioned. The trim/cut I gave myself last month combined with the layers I recently cut in the front of my hair, definitely removed some of the damaged ends. I think the biggest change is that I notice a lot of tight curls growing in. You can see them best (especially around the perimeter of my head) in the following pic:


Conclusion: I'm going to continue to do my deep conditioning treatments and stretch out my use of heat styling tools. I normally only deep condition my hair prior to flat ironing, but I'm going to continue to deep condition my hair even when I wear it curly. I'm due for a trim next week, so that will just bring me one step closer to ridding myself of the damaged ends.

My Heat Damaged Hair: Woe is me!

The thing I love most about my natural hair is the versatility I have in terms of styling options. I can be curly one day, and straight the next. I've been flat ironing my hair as often as once a week for the past couple of years, and am now noticing that I'm suffering from heat damage. Although the frequency with which I was using heat styling tools may have attributed to the damage, I strongly believe that decreasing the amount of heat protectant I was using prior to heat styling, all for the sake of getting that "salon swang," had a major impact on the health of my hair.

Today I have some permanently straight hair on my head. Unfortunately, the only way to rid myself of this damage is to cut it off. Below are two videos in which I fully explain the extent of my heat damage, and the steps I'm taking to get my hair back on a healthy track. I originally posted these on my YouTube channel (DPrincess28), but have decided to document the progress of my heat damage here, on my blogspot.

I'll be posting updates on the status of my hair so you can witness my journey as I nurse my hair back to health. I've chosen to share these videos with you ladies so that you can learn from my mistakes. It's okay to flat iron or press your hair, but just know that too much heat and poor heat prep methods can result in damage. Stay blessed, and remember to watch out for that heat!


Video #1: Hair Rant: My Hair Woes


Video #2: Hair Rant: My Hair Woes Update #1


In summary, there are three things I'm going to do to help my hair rebound from heat damage:

#1. Reduce the frequency with which I use heat styling tools.
#2. Do regular protein treatments to put strength back into the hair.
#3. Trim my ends regularly until the permanently straight ends are gone.