I Had Shedding & Breakage Until I Made These 3 Changes

Last year, I was observing some changes with my hair. I noticed the amount of shed hair was more than normal when I would detangle. At that moment, I ignored the shedding and thought it was related to the cold weather we were experiencing during the winter months. As time passed, I noticed that I would see shorter hairs with no bulb at the end and I had no idea why I was experiencing breakage. I was faithful to the LOC method to seal in the moisture that my curls needed. I get my hair professionally trimmed four times a year. I took so much pride in my hair care, so I was shocked that I was experiencing this.

Whenever I experience some changes in my hair, I always monitor how I am currently taking care of my hair. I write down if I have changed any products, styling practices, or even hair tools. I keep a hair journal so I can go back to see if these patterns have been repeated and if so, what I need to do for them to stop. After some evaluation, I came to the conclusion of the following.

My hair needed protein

Sometimes you can experience too much of a good thing. I took so much pride and time to make sure that my hair was moisturized that I forgot my hair needed protein too. Even though my hair was moisturized, it still seemed limped and weak. Protein is needed to help keep your hair strong and healthy. With a healthy balance of both moisture and protein, you can maintain and grow healthy hair. I used a protein conditioner bi-weekly to help make my curls stronger.

Read more: The Must-See Guide to the Best Protein Treatment for Your Hair

Changed my hairstyles

At the time, I was wearing a lot of buns. The top knot was my go-to hairstyle, especially since I finally perfected it. Constantly wearing the hair buns was causing breakage in the back of my hair because it was constantly pulled. Sometimes I even slept with my top knots, which did not allow my hair to rest from the tension. I told myself that I would limit wearing buns by rocking my hair in loose styles (e.g. twist outs and braid outs”> more often, and if I had to wear a bun, I chose to wear a low bun.

Updated my hair regimen

I added two new items in my hair regimen: tea and aloe vera juice. I would perform a tea rinse on my hair in the alternate week from my protein treatment. After I rinsed my moisturizing deep treatment out, I would pour cooled black tea on my curls as a final rinse, dry my hair with an old-t shirt, spray cold aloe vera juice throughout my curls, and apply my leave-in conditioner, oil, and butter.

Conclusion

After I made these changes, I noticed a difference within two weeks, and within two months I noticed the overall health of my hair improved. This experience taught me that healthy hair is not about the latest products that promise rapid growth or healthy hair. It all comes down to the basics of healthy hair care practices. If you are not taking care of your curls, they will tell you. You just have to be open enough to listen.