Hair sticking together and breaking

[BexArt1994]

My hair is bleach and dye damaged from 5 months ago and it's still sticking together, feels really dry and I get a lot of breakage.

Using conditioners and deep conditioners seems to actually make it worse even though I always rinse it out properly so it can't be build up (I clarify often too). It seems like the only option I have left is using a heavy protein treatment but I'm scared to incase it makes the breakage worse.. what do you think?

[Hay_jules]

I don't think protein will make it break worse. I have similarly damaged hair and sometimes the protein is a little much and makes my hair stiff but if I avoid it the next couple washes it evens out. The only time I actually got protein overload was when i put eggs and banana in my hair (I recommend never doing that). You could try a SMT that a lot of people around here seem to like. I do my own version of just adding some honey and evoo to conditioner and leaving it in about a half hour.

But, what really worked/s for me when my hair seems to be feeling the damage is either olaplex #3 (the at home version you can either buy from the salon or their website for about $30) or joico kpak reconstructor. The joico i leave in for 10 min at least and it is protein but it does a good job of sealing the ends for several washes. The olaplex doesn't have any protein but can rebuild the bonds (minimal compared to the more expensive salon exclusive olaplex) but i really see a difference in my hair afterwards. And even subsequent washes feel increasingly better.

[meteor]

^ Yeah, I wouldn't recommend eggs and banana either - not really a protein treatment anyway, since the proteins aren't small enough/hydrolyzed, and the ensuing tangling & rinsing issues can be pretty huge.

Joico K-Pak Reconstruct, Aphogee 2-Step, Redken Extreme Strength Builder Plus, DIY gelatin masks (http://science-yhairblog.blogspot.ca/2014/04/gelatin-protein-treatment-recipe-update.html) can provide a pretty helpful temporary fix though.

That stickiness after bleach and dye job is a sign of damage, likely hair in need of some temporary patch-repair with proteins. Generally speaking, damaged hair tends to do well with hydrolyzed proteins, penetrating oils (e.g. coconut), 18-MEA, ceramides, silicones. Those can usually be found in masks often labeled for "damaged", "processed", "porous", "very dry" or "unruly" hair.

[lapushka]

Yes, my immediate thought was protein too. The only thing I would recommend doing on your own is the gelatin! Other things really aren't "designed" for the hair and can't penetrate anyway.

meteor gave you some great advice! :thumbsup:

[Llama]

The Joico K Pak Reconstruct is, I believe, what saved my hair back when it was bleached/damaged to oblivion. Good stuff.

[spidermom]

I love the Joico product also.

[lithostoic]

Bleach damaged hair is desperate for protein. Another thing that helps me is wet braiding. After takedown my hair looks and feels so incredibly soft.