Advice or Tips from Self Relaxers?

[sunshine91496]

Greetings ladies,

I wrote in a couple weeks ago about some serious breakage problems I was having, and indicated that I thought I should hold off relaxing for a while. Thanks again for the advice. So far I've been using the Profectiv Break Free and Healthy ends and it has helped somewhat.

But I've since thought that maybe I should try a mild self relaxer for a while. My hair is still breaking and I am at six weeks since my last one. I am thinking that if I don't relax the new growth the remainig hair will just fall out.

I went to Sally's on Monday, but was too overwhelmed by all the choices. I am considering the following:

NoLye:
Vigorol Liquid Relaxer
Gentle Treatment Relaxer


Lye:
PCJ
Cream of Nature
Isoplus
Affirm

Has anyone had good results with these? I know self relaxing can be risky, but I am confident that I can do it and that it will not be as damaging as continuing to go to the Dominican Salon for awhile. My one concern, is that I only want to try the self-relaxing for a few months, so I want to pick something that when I go back to the salon there will not be a problem.

I figure that by self relaxing, the scalp massages, the ACV Rinses, Vitamins, and no heat styiling within 4-5 months I should see a big difference. Any advice is appreciated thanks

 

[Karonica]

I've used Creme of Nature no-lye on my Mom's hair with good results, but not the lye version. Sorry.

 

[72792]

I've tried the PCJ Lye and it used to work great. No burning or breaking. I changed to Motions only because I wanted to test out the line. Wish I would have stuck to PCJ Lye now, because lately the Motions has been burning my scalp and I've noticed some breakage where the burns were. In the past I've also used Cream of Nature No-lye, but it was very drying. I've heard a lot of good things about Affirm, but haven't tried it yet. And because Isoplus has the Proud Lady symbol on it, I've been thinking of trying it because I went to a seminar where we were told the Proud Lady symbol means the product was designed for black hair by black people. The only product that helped me with the breakage from my experimental mishaps was and still is the Aphogee Treatment. Hope this helps.

 

[CICI24]

I have the PCJ lye relaxer too but I haven't used it yet.

 

[gvsugirl]

Gentle Treatment was good to me. It left my hair soft and bouncy, and actually healthier than before I permed it.

 

[sunshine91496]

I know the stylist used PCJ once, and it seemed to work well. Do you think lye relaxers work better than no lye?

 

[aqualung]

I'm planning to graduate to self-relaxing. My first self-touchup will be with PCJ lye relaxer for children's delicate hair.

Affirm mild lye is so tough to find, and I'm not convinced that it's the most appropriate thing for my fine, 4b hair. Judging from what I've googled and found on this website, PCJ might be the safest and mildest.

What sold me was this testimonial from a poster on that Yahoo group called blackhaircareandbody. The situation sounds like mine.

"I've been using PCJ for a little over a year now
and my hair is very healthy, and has grown from
earlength to past shoulder length from the time I have been
using it. It is a children's relaxer. Just like you I
can not handle very strong relaxers. I had been using
Fiberguard Affirm before, and it kept my hair thin and
always breaking off. PCJ really is great. There are 3
different kinds I think. I get the kind that has
nutrientsheen in it.(This helps repair damage done after
relaxing) It's for color treated and delicate hair, though
I don't color my hair I thought that the one that
was most delicate would be the best for me. Next time
you stop in Sally's look for the one with the mother
and daughter on the front,(that's the one I use) not
the one with the little girl with shirley
temples."