whats going on with my hair??

David223

Hello, I have a question on which products I should use on my hair or just what I need to do with it in general. I'm pretty sure I have low porosity hair, and I have 3a and a little bit of 3b hair. Lately, my curls have become less defined and my hair is starting to act like 2c. It has also become a lot more tangled and a lot of my strands are brittle and look dry and weak. I've been doing some research, trying to figure out  whats wrong with my hair and I've come across protein overload, and moisture overload. I think I have protein overload? Also, when I use protein in my hair, such as quinoa, wheat, etc... it becomes a dry and brittle and frizzy mess. So am I protein sensitive? Do I need more moisture? I have been using shea moistures moisture retention shampoo and restorative conditioner. I used deva curls decadence no poo and conditioner(idk why ) and it made my hair frizzy and kind of brittle, so im guessing the protein?

Do you have any ideas what I should do to my hair or what products I should use??

Thankyou 

Therese1

It sounds like you may indeed be protein sensitive if your hair is reacting like that to protein in products. The SheaMoisture product you mentioned is supposedly for damaged hair, so it most likely has a lot of protein (I think it is in the form of sea kelp extract--I am protein sensitive and have reacted to sea kelp before).

I would probably start with a clarifying shampoo just to make sure that build-up is not a problem. I would use a sulfate shampoo without silicones for this. 

To get your hair back to normal, I would suggest switching to protein-free products and doing deep conditioning treatments twice a week until your hair feels better. Products I use are Jessicurl Deep Conditioning Treatment, Intelligent Nutrients Harmonic poo and condish, Curl Junkie Beauticurls Leave-in, and Kenra Firm-Hold Gel (the regular one, not the curly one). My hair is very protein sensitive, and all these products have been safe for me.

To deep condition, wash your hair as usual and then squeeze out the excess water. Work the conditioner into your hair (I like to use the Jessicurl for this, but you could also use a protein-free daily conditioner) and then cover with a plastic cap. Then cover with a towel on top of that, to hold in your body heat. Let it sit for about 30 minutes and then rinse out and style your hair as usual.

Gretchen

Welcome, @David223!  Happy to have you here at CurlTalk!

And thank you, @Therese1, for your thorough answer! 

David223

Thankyou @Therese1!!!