Let me tell you the story of when I abused my hair like no tomorrow over the course of about 9 years... To make my story short, I've burned my hair with heavy chemical dyes every 1-2-3 months and to that, last spring-summer, I bleached my hair (full head) not once but twice in 2 months time.
I started dying my hair because of a sudden white hair invasion when I was 21 years old. Eventually, it lead up to some sort of -I NEED red hair- zombie mode last year. Results: Very pretty hair colors, especially the red that I admit I dearly miss. But this abuse came with the evil consequences of having very damaged hair, a burning & itchy scalp, hair falling like crazy and feeling like straw. To get rid of the very dead hair, I had to cut my lovely mane little by little. I tried to keep it as long as possible, but ended up cutting to the shoulders and had to think and research on how to save and revive what was left. I thought I was kind of doomed at this point.
Need proof of my abuse... here is thy hair apocalypse. It was so bad that I couldn't brush my hair without pieces falling off like snowflakes.
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So research lead me to the wonderful world of henna at hennasooq.ca, Lush's cacas and numerous hair oils I owed myself to try out.
Note that I won't talk about henna and it's benefits today, nor break down all the oils I used or Lush's Jasmine & Henna Fluff Eaze, which I think they all deserve their own spotlight. So stay tuned!
Without further ado, I present to you the oil army I built up in a little more then a year:
It's quite a lot. But our manes and scalps are all different so I had to try out what was best for me. Unfortunately, I can't tell you what to use to guarantee that your hair will shine and revive. The best way to find out what your hair really really wants, it's by feeding the beast until it tells you "Oh yeah! I'm loving this!".
I've read over some hair forums that using oil is of no use. I call BS and I'm the living proof. I will however tell you what worked best for me in my haul: jojoba oil & coconut oil, as well as macadamia oil and Lush's Jasmine & Henna hair treatment. Add to that that I applied BAQ henna with Indigo & Amla every month - a true revelation while a pain to apply taking hours of your time so you have to be ready to commit to it.
If you are looking to save your hair, you have to be patient and you must start today. In my case it took almost a year of weekly loving to heal my catastrophe. Your hair won't come back from the dead overnight even if some of the oils have instant effect like the Macadamia oil and the Jasmine & Henna which are actually hair masks you can do once or twice a week and that will give you the Oh-So-Soft feel to easily detangle straw like hair. You'll also need a good shampoo and conditioner. Personally, I use Desert Essence Organics Coconut shampoo and conditioner and I switch to Lush's Cynthia Silvia Stout from time to time.
Don't be afraid to mix your oils! Try a little jojoba, coconut and avocado oil. However, you might need to wash your hair twice because it becomes so greasy, but with a non-toxic shampoo stripping away all the goods, followed by conditioning your ends, your hair will be absolutely divine afterwards.
After you have washed your hair, try to avoid blow drying with hot hair or any other hot tool. If you must, protect your damp hair with a little bit of carrot oil (but too much will make your hair greasy when it dries up) or use any other product that protects against heat.
There is also the very important SCALP MASSAGE to help improve blood circulation to your hair follicles, promote hair growth and hair strength. Try to do this morning and before bed for at least 2-5 minutes with or without oil. However, you can do this anytime you want: turns out I do it at work when I take a break to relax. Don't know how to do it? Try looking here:
or watch the lovely Heather here, explaining how to do some scalp lovin'
Last but not least, the last apocalypse picture you have seen in the first timeline pictures above was taken last November. Here is my mane today:
I can say I love my hair again and we have a good relationship. I will stick to oil like glue and continue with henna applications. I swear by them, along with scalp massages, avoiding heat tools and drinking lots of water, greatly backing me up.
My next posts will break down all the oils I have tried, detailing their pros, benefits and cons. So if you are interested, follow my blog or follow me on twitter for every update https://twitter.com/_BelleDragon.
If you can't wait or if you seek more help and information, you can always go on The Long Hair Community Forum . The lovely people there will help you just as much as they have guided and helped me on my quest for reviving the dead.
