LHCF 'SET BACK' PREVENTION 101

Figured it would be good to have a thread where there is nothing but tips for prevention of both major and minor set backs. Set backs are heart breaking. So Ladies, share your wealth of wisdom/knowledge and Experience on what would possibly prevent a set back for another in this thread. It doesn't matter if its Relaxed Hair, Natural Hair and It's not about hair type either, I want ALL to post. Please simply post anything that would possibly prevent a set back for someone else. If you should happen to feel the particular 'set back' you are speaking of would only apply to or be under certain conditions such as 'relaxed or natural' hair then feel free to specify that with your post as well. Every post matters and every post is worth thinking about/ and taking into consideration, no matter how small the set back may be. Set Backs are hard , So let's work to minimize them.

Prevention is a good thing Maybe with this thread some beautiful heads of hair can be saved and heart's spared total heart break over lost progress

signed

Captain save a head

when bored with your hair and/or frustrated, or if your going through something stressful in your life , be careful to not take out life and your emotions out on your hair, when feeling that ansy feeling to do something drastic, try to sit it out for as long as you can-most times it passes anyway and you will be glad you did

will add more here later

Good idea
My setbacks (I've only had minor ones) came from bandwagons and more experimenting than necessary. Specifically upping protein to every other week when it was completely unnecessary.
Stick to what works for you. Tweak your regimen as needed Radical changes can cause alot of hair issues. I believe this goes for the relaxed and natural.

Protect your already relaxed ends while getting a touch up! Use oil or conditioner. My December '08 setback was caused by NOT doing this.

This is gonna be a great thread..let me go ahead and subscribe now.... Dont really have a prevention tip right now,however I do have a mental tip if there is a setbackRecognize it's a set back ,but dont be defeated by it. Im already in the mindset of when I take these braids outs, I'm gonna experience a SERIOUS set back, and Yes I am feeling some type of way, however..It's all apart of trial and error ,growth and understanding what makes and breaks my hair. So if there are set backs, dont get discouraged, mark it down in the books and DONT DO IT AGAINNNN!!! okay... let me get my notepad ready...

Prevention is better than cure-
For people who are susceptible to anemia make sure you check your HB regularly and take regular essential supplements and nutrients. Always investigate excessive hair shedding, find the root cause. Get your ferritin levels checked also because your HB may be within an acceptable range due to compensatory mechanisms but your ferritin levels may be low and you could still be anemic.
Evsbaby

Hair Loss and Anemia
Hair loss often signals a variety of medical problems.

There are three types of anemia concerned with hair loss
Iron deficiency Anemia
The most common form of anemia is iron deficiency anemia. Iron deficiency is believed to be relatively common of telogen effluvium type of hair loss. It is suggested that women in particular are susceptible to iron deficiency due to the regular loss of iron rich blood during menstruation.

Chronic iron deficiency
Symptoms
•Rapid hair loss
•Weight loss
•Pale appearance
•Spoon shaped nails
•Depression
•Change of hair color to a lighter shade
•Excessive dryness of hair
Causes
•Vitamin C deficiency , which can also lead to an iron deficiency
•Heavy consumption of caffeine rich tea and coffee since caffeine reduces the net availability of iron supplied through food.
•Alcohol abuse also reduces the availability of iron in the body .Even slightly low levels of iron can cause diffuse hair loss.
Sources
•Rice, bread, broccoli and beans.
•Vitamin C is required for good absorption.
Anemia due to copper deficiency, known as copper deficiency anemia

Copper besides acting as catalyst in oxidation of hydrogen and the formation of melanin (the pigment that gives hair its color), is also needed to release iron stored in liver, for intestinal absorption of iron into the hemoglobin.

Sources
Mushrooms, grains, nuts, beans.

Pernicious Anemia
Anemia due to deficiency of Vitamin B12, known as Pernicious Anemia This is less common, generally affects people over 40 and results due to Vitamin B12 deficiency.

Symptoms:
•Rapid hair loss
•Weight loss
•Change of hair color
•Dryness of hair
•Sore tongue
•Nosebleeds
•Loss of appetite
•Weight loss and diffuse hair loss
Sources
•Dairy products
•Yeast extracts
Also if you feel that the texture of your hair has changed and if you feel excessive hair fall do consult a Trichologist.
http://www.beautyassist.com/hair_loss.html

Thanks Iris for a much needed thread. Good on ya Captn-Save-A-Head!

1. Read (yes read and search before asking the same question ad nauseum) and then reject 99% of what you find here and at other websites.

2. If they post pics of their hair and they ain't got none, yet are giving advice on growing long hair........ run!!!! Taking their advice is like asking someone who only speaks English to translate arachic French. Bad idea. Some of the advice is delibrately search and destroy on other's progress! Don't take long hair advice from people w/ hair shorter than yourself.

3. If they use 50-11 products and 37 steps to fix their hair run

4. Conditioners don't cure every problem...sometimes they create problems

5. Protein can make even more problems

6. If your desparation for long hair makes you buy from tack shops and chemical supply firms....back away from the computer, CC, and Pay Pal. Healthy humans need no such things.

7. Spending $100s for an item that you can get for $10s cuz other folks do is a recipe for disaster. It won't work in your home like it does in the salon.

8. If you want permanently straight hair, get a relaxer and learn to care for it

9. Don't go natural thinking it's the key to long hair. It ain't. How many natural loose longhairs do you see IRL?

10. Accept your texture and quit doing drastic things to make it look like another texture. 50-11 products and tons of manipulation will NOT give you the hair you seek. Dump a pound of anything on your noggin and it'll rebel.

Summation...tho common sense ain't common, spend more to buy a clue than the latest miracle product!

Don't lie to yourself about your hair's limits.
If you know that your hair hates glycerin, don't buy that glycerin-rich moisturizer and tell yourself that it'll be okay, just because you heard rave reviews about it. It's okay to put it down and walk away.

If you know that your hair hates heat, don't flat iron on 400 degrees because it gives Mary beautiful results.

It only takes one bad product/styling choice to give you a setback, and I learned that the hard way.

When removing a sew-in or extensions when your hair will be braided for an extended period of time, always always fully detangle and remove all shed hair before washing.

I haven't had any setbacks since I've decided to grow long. I've been pretty lucky, but I'm also proud of my way of approaching new things.


- Research, research, research. And then, research some more. Read from every source you can find. By the time I use a product or technique, I'm an expert on the details of what it does, how it works, how often or how little I should use or do something. I don't try something only to have to run to someone for advice on what it does, I should already know in advance what sorts of reactions or side effects are to be expected.

- Even if someone's texture is the opposite of mine, I'm reading what they have to say, because scalp and skin reactions have nothing to do with someone's texture. I'm a 3A, but I'm reading everything ANYONE has to say about whatever product or technique I'm interested in, I don't care if they're 1A or 4B. If someone broke out in weeping sores, I want to know about it. I never disregard because someone has straight fine hair or kinky coils. If it had a negative effect on human being, it's relevant. If it worked for a human being, that's also relevant.

- I realize that people have bad measuring techniques, bad camera techniques and overactive imaginations. If someone says something made their hair grow an inch in 2 weeks, I want to know what chemical or product they used and it has got to make sense to me. Likewise, I don't recommend ANYTHING unless I've tried it for at least 3-4 months and I have measured a couple of times and I have pictures to show for it.

- At the risk of contradicting myself, experimentation and willingness to try new things are crucial. If I weren't willing to check new things out, I would never have learned that my scalp doesn't like cones, that ACV makes my hair look shiny and smooth, that grapeseed oil keeps my frizz under control, or that brushing when wet doesn't work for me. I've had to keep an open mind about lots of things and at the same time, I've backed all of my curiosities and interests with tons of research.

sheba1 said:

When removing a sew-in or extensions when your hair will be braided for an extended period of time, always always fully detangle and remove all shed hair before washing.

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This is HUGE. If you're gonna get a weave, learn fully how to take care of your hair in all stages. If you don't, you can simply rip the hair out of your scalp and/or end up w/ unintentional dreads. This mistake has sunk many people....famously one on YouTube!

Subscribing! Thanks, Iris.

I have no tips; I'm just here to observe and learn.

Ain't no such ting as a "natural relaxer"...period! Henna, coconut-lime, Copa, and hope will NOT make your hair straight. Many of these things will simply dry you hair and and make it break off.

Henna, tho a wonderful thing, can be abused which will result in dry and breaking hair.

Acids (ie vinegar, citrus juices, coffee/tea) if used at all on African textures, should be used very rarely and extremely diluted. The same goes for alkaliods (ie baking soda)...these things are the extreme ends of the Ph scale and are corrosive. Recall HS science!

If you're self trimming, get yourself a pair of hair scissors. And then set them aside just for your hair. Hide them from the rest of your household if you have to. Cutting something as innocent as paper can alter your scissors at a microscopic level and you end up doing more damage than you started with on every trim.

If years ago you had relaxed hair and tried some permanent streaks for a "new look" and each streak broke off right at the root....now it's healthy and...then years later you have natural hair and you figure "Now my hair can hold color" um...don't try it. It happened to me (lol) and I paid the price with stunted hair growth for a year and yes of course....breakage! And this was done by a professional color technician both times.

If you have tried a rinse to color your gray hair and you're now texlaxed and just too young to have any gray showing...but the rinse and texlax seemed to dry your gray patch out and you had to be extra careful and deep condition that patch so it wouldn't break...don't try the same rinse again just because someone on another thread swears by it for their gray hair! (I didn't fall for this, but I almost did cause their review was soooo good).

If you are natural and you want silky straight hair without any chemical dependancy and you KNOW, you absolutely KNOW that a pressing comb causes you no end of breakage all up and through....stop using the pressing comb and switch to a ceramic, tourmaline flat iron and stop blow drying so much, rollerset. (I know now!) Or better yet, texlax so that you can wear your hair straight 90% of the time without so much heat. (Like I did, thank you for telling me about Texlaxing LHCF!)

Lastly, if your ends are dry, do not, I repeat, do not go on a "No cutting until 2050-11 challenge ...because that's just going to cause more dry ends and more frizzy ends and you'll think, it's okay I'm wearing it in a bun, no one can see but me. Until you take it down one day in the car at lunch while trying to see your FRAZZLED ends in the car mirror and you go home and try to flat iron it and you end up looking like Medusa on Crack! AND trimming off serious inches of hair that should have been trimmed 9 months ago. Yup, don't do this.

Also, if you're like me and needed to find the perfect routine for your hair. Don't listen to the people that don't have your hair texture and difficulties and suggest that you co-wash your natural or texlaxed hair or even wash and go....I can't wash n go with this hair from Africa! From the MOTHER LAND and look cute. Okay! Now I have tried, so I don't want to hear it...okay off topic. (lol) Don't listen if they say hey try washing only once a month..um, have you ever tried to detangle a BRILLO pad after 15-30 days in a bun....Okay then! Stop while you're ahead. Cause if you don't your husband will look at you while you're taking down your bun in the mirror and wonder aloud why you decided to go with DRED LOCKS and not tell him! Cause that's what I ended up with! Dredlocks at the roots and hours spent detangling. Yeah...

I had so much fun writing this, so I hope you enjoyed reading it. I was laughing out loud through most of it. But it's true! And it happened to me over the course of the last several years doing all things hair - myself (besides permanent color of course!)

Don't try something you've never done before for a special occasion. If you do any experimenting with washing/drying techniques, do it on the night before a day off when you don't have to be anywhere If something goes wrong on the night before a special event, desperation will have you stalking your local drugstore for a quick fix and you'll end up with a massive setback. On the other hand, if you don't have pressure to look nice, you give yourself time to calm down, re-assess the situation, and look for a way to fix the problem without causing more damage.

You ladies .....are just great

I'm so sleepy, but will be back to post on that first post later

keep them coming ladies!

But just 1 here before I go

Going from a Relaxer to natural hair for 'healthier hair' but regularly heat styling can quite possibly take away from your healthy hair and progress, it works for some and not other's keep that in mind when you see it working for another-does not mean it will for you

well 2

Things like ACV , Baking soda and clarifying/chelating Shampoo's can be very stripping of ALL your hair's moisture and cause your hair to literally mat up and tangle feircly if not used carefully and properly , make sure you are using proper proportions if you want to try it (Research) and try it on only a section of your hair first if its your first time-better to fix a small section of your hair-than to have to save your whole head of hair in a disaster of stripped/matted hair

*added some to that first post, will be adding more later*

Get outta all this Andre texture nonsense. You're judging this stuff from pics off the 'net taken w/ varing levels of skill! I think this has damaged more heads on Black hair sites than will ever admit it.

Just cuz "Sally's" hair looks like yours in a pic you see posted somewhere, doesn't mean it feels or reacts like yours. Trying her routine unedited on your head may have you sweeping it up off the floor. You don't even know if "Sally's" hair is actually growing from her scalp or or if that's actually "Sally" in the pic. Use some discretion.

If a product didn't work for you, esp is some major way, don't hesitate to share your experiences for fear others might not like it. If they don't, tuff. You might be saving another person from unneccessary grief and pain.

Herbs punish arrogance. Don't play around w/ herbs if you don't have a full understanding of what it does and why you're using it. Quantities matter here BIG TIME...internally and/or externally. Like henna, herbs can be a wonderful thing, but they are extremely powerful. Unlike a commercial product, when herbs go wrong scissors may be your ONLY solution!

If your hair likes it, but your scalp hates it, stop doing it. In the long run, unhappy scalp = setback.

Protein, protein , protein

Do not overdo protein, best to do less than more, start out slow to see how your hair reacts , and keep it to a minimal only using for 'necessity' follow instructions on the product and tread lightly. Protein overload is a monster set back to come back from-with great risk of losing all your hair possibly. Again Tread lightly. and Research research research

If it seems to good to be true-it probably is!

Taking a moment to think things through thoroughly and applying some common sense to the situation instead of moving on raves or rash thinking pays off!

If what your doing is working and someone is raving about something new

if it aint broke......

(This concerns anything that involves taking risks that could possibly lead to a known set back)

not something simple such as trying a new oil or leave in etc

if you cant rationalize a good reason for taking a risk for a set back, and you should never be able to rationalize it anyway, sit back, chill and relax, keep doing what's working for you and stay where the water is safe LOL

I have had many setbacks b/c I wanted to jump on the band wagons to grow my hair so fast.

I have learned on this hair growth journey " A set back is time for a comeback"


The keys to not/no longer having a set back is

1. If you stretch your relaxers/ touch ups- look at the shape of your hair as time goes on. If at 6, 8,12,16, and so on you see that your hair is not feeling you going past a point which for me is around week 16- it is time for me to relax. I went all the way to 26 weeks this past March and I can tell you that my hair broke off and we down hill from there.

So, know your stretch limits on relaxed/touched up hair.


2. Very important IMHO- is your hair type. Just b/c some one with type 4 b hair can use one product does not mean type 3 b/c can take or handle and vice versa on this. This has helped me a lot in knowing my hair type.


3. Consistency- if you are taking vita./supp. for hair growth and it is helping you and your hair- not making you feel sick or any negative adverse affects then keep taking them. Do not take them for 6 months then stop. This has happened too me and has hurted my hair when I was stretching for 6 months. Also, do not over do it on the Vita. Supplements. If the bottle says only 2 for one day then take only two please do not over do it.

4. If your are into protective styling then- know which styles work for your hair and keep them consistently. If you can do buns then do a weave the next day and take out the weave that same day( Yes, ladies I have seen this happen). I am like you just wasted your hard earned money. Know what styles work best for your hair.

When it comes to stretching a perm or transitioning, you need to find very good detangling products/leave ins. The "line of demarcation" is no joke, so if this is your approach, you're gonna have to find something that makes it easier to deal w/ two textures.

Then there's clarifying shampoos....they shouldn't be necessary for your average person UNLESS you're dumping tons of product on your head multi times a day. These things are very stripping and should be used only "as needed" if at all. If someone suggests that you use a clarifying product, try cutting down on what you normally put in you hair and see what happens before you use one.

If you use some sort of speciality product like Roux's Porosity Control, Ovation Cell Therapy, or Aphogee Two Step and most of their line, follow the directions to the letter! These products have very little margin for "improv". They're formulated for very specific purposes and to work w/in a set amount of time. Thinking "a little longer" will make it that much better....

If you're a natural and your hair frequently dreds/knots up on you, maybe your hair is trynna tell you something! You'll probably get a better head of hair if you just let it do what it wants to rather than forcing it to what you want it to do.

lana said:

Lastly, if your ends are dry, do not, I repeat, do not go on a "No cutting until 2050-11 challenge ...because that's just going to cause more dry ends and more frizzy ends and you'll think, it's okay I'm wearing it in a bun, no one can see but me. Until you take it down one day in the car at lunch while trying to see your FRAZZLED ends in the car mirror and you go home and try to flat iron it and you end up looking like Medusa on Crack! AND trimming off serious inches of hair that should have been trimmed 9 months ago. Yup, don't do this.

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In the same vein, if your ends are rough feeling, don't grab the scissors and start hacking away, because you can lose months of progress this way for no reason at all. At least make an effort to save them. Sometimes, it's surprising how much hair you can save.
But once again, don't lie to yourself. When it's time to let go, let go.


Oh yeah!
And beware the stylists.
Request to face the mirror at all times, be alert, monitor them closely when they trim, ask them to hold your hair up during the trim (don't let them disappear below your line of vision) and don't let them detangle your hair with a rattail comb. (It's their favorite thing to do...) Don't be afraid to speak up. It's your money and your hair!

if you're doin somethin in your regimen that your hair likes, stay consistent! don't try other regimens just because you see it workin for someone else-same texture or not!

Not all stylists are de Debil...look at their hair and that of some of their clients. If you see "issues"...pass. If they send off vibes and 'tude you dislike, pass. There ARE good ones out there and they deserve biz!

Naturals need to know 3 basic things before sitting in the chair....do they know anything about natural hair AT ALL from practical experience? Do they understand the concept of "dusting"? Do they know how to "dust" natural hair? If you don't trust them to straighten it before you get your "dusting", do it yourself. DO NOT sit down w/ your hair in it's shrunken state. NEVER wet cut/dust...only dust on dry straightened hair, bone straight! You'll lose INCHES very easily unless your hair is as straight as you can get it!

if you do have a set back and come to the board

and your hair is dry and very tangled, do not listen to anyone telling you to clarify or do a protein treatment, first things first, you need to work out the tangles and get rid of the dryness, both of those things while already in a set back will probably not make anything better, not with dry tangled hair

moisturizing conditioner and oils are the answer, do not do anything to strip the hair or make it stronger while its in that condition-you will go from set back to total disaster

Naturals , detangling REQUIRES both Time and Patience

be sure you have both and understand it's work but worth it in the big picture. Dont Rush through it , take your time, set aside time, find products that work well for you to detangle with and ALWAYS detangle before washing/rinsing/cowashing