On Friday I Took Ten Steps Backwards

[racheldelrey]

So, guys.

After almost 1 year of babying my hair (although I was still dying it but being very gentle in every other area), Friday I decided to bleach the black out, in hopes of getting closer to my natural color. For some reason I cannot let my hair remain healthy. It's like a curse, after so long I have to do something to ruin it :rolleyes:

Even though it was in good shape, the bleach made it very sad. When wet, certain areas of my are like yarn and just snap off if I run my wide tooth comb through it. Saturday I put castor and sunflower oil in it and let it set for around 3 hours. It helped a little but it's still a struggle getting a comb through it, it's staying so dry and tangled. I'm wearing it up in a loose bun and trying to just leave it alone other than putting a little coconut oil in it every day. Some areas are that crunchy, kinky texture, almost like it's been crimped or worn in a braid.

My question is, can I baby it back to health? Obviously it won't be 100% healthy but will it bounce back or do I need to cut it? I plan on getting it trimmed and refreshing my layers to help cut off some of the bad, but do I need to do a big chop? My hair is a little past my collar bone. It's very fine but I'm sorry, I don't know what type it would be considered.

Any suggestions on what oils would be best for it? It can only handle coconut oil in small doses. It prefers olive or even vegetable oil. But any tips would be appreciated!

[lapushka]

Oh gosh, bleach *can* be quite damaging, but it doesn't have to be.

Protein treatments come to mind. There is Redken Anti Snap and also the treatments by that famous protein brand (what's the name again, darn it).

I would not so much oil it, but use oil in moderation, just as a leave-in or so, or a pre-shampoo treatment if you like those.

[lapushka]

Aphogee, that's the brand I meant. Duh! :rolleyes:

[racheldelrey]

This time I used a 30 volume developer since my hair was so dark, whereas before I used a 20. Reaaaally kicking myself for that.

I saw Aphogee in Sallys and almost bought it! Gonna have to try that.

Why should oil be used in moderation? Too much of a good thing? haha. I'm still learning.

[lapushka]

This time I used a 30 volume developer since my hair was so dark, whereas before I used a 20. Reaaaally kicking myself for that.

I saw Aphogee in Sallys and almost bought it! Gonna have to try that.

Why should oil be used in moderation? Too much of a good thing? haha. I'm still learning.

Yes, it's not oil that is going to make the "bleachy feel" any better. I mean, it's not gonna hurt, but what you *really* need is protein to repair the broken bonds due to the bleaching. Aphogee has many treatments, try the easiest treatment, not the 2 step one (you'll have to blow dry it in between and your hair will get hard as a rock, with the potential for breakage if you don't know what you're doing).

[racheldelrey]

Yes, it's not oil that is going to make the "bleachy feel" any better. I mean, it's not gonna hurt, but what you *really* need is protein to repair the broken bonds due to the bleaching. Aphogee has many treatments, try the easiest treatment, not the 2 step one (you'll have to blow dry it in between and your hair will get hard as a rock, with the potential for breakage if you don't know what you're doing).
That makes sense! Thank you, lady =)

[waff]

Yes to protein treatments. Aphogee two step treatment is very raved about to restore damaged chemically processed hair

[lapushka]

You're very much welcome! :D I hoped I helped you out a bit. :)

Some people might have some info on Olaplex too; but I don't know much about that.

I know about bleaching and having to restore the hair (BTDT, sadly).

[melikai]

I've tried both Aphogee and Olaplex (just the at-home step 3 one), and Aphogee made much more of a difference.
I would also recommend that you consider using conditioners with silicones in them, since these will further protect your hair.

[lakhesis]

Been there, done that. The ends of my hair went through a lot of bleach and although lot of it snapped off, after taking care of them they look much better. Not as soft as new growth, but good enough. I also have very fine hair and I guess I needed that kind of a horror story to stop using bleach for good.

The sooner you use the protein treatment, the more breakage you will avoid. I did both Aphogee and Olaplex (including step 1 and 2) and I definitely prefer Olaplex. They also claim it is more of a long-term solution, Aphogee treatment should last only around 6 months. You don't get soft silky hair back after any of these, but it definitely reduced how much was my hair breaking off.

[pailin]

Regarding oils, like others have said, in moderation. Use too much and you'll have to shampoo more to get it out. But coconut oil prewash may protect a little against wash damage. If it were me, castor oil made my hair feel nasty, so I would probably not choose that one. Also it's awful thick and sticky to apply when you're trying to be extra gentle.
The protein and olaplex, definitely. I defer to lakhesis's experience there since I don't have experience with that. But try those before deciding you need the big chop. And maybe let your hair rest a bit. If you can possibly wait, give it a little time to evaluate before deciding how much you need to chop.
And I second the silicones. You want lots of slip so you can detangle without breakage.

One more thing - try not to beat yourself up over something you can't undo. It sounds like you wanted the color out anyway. So if you didn't bleach you'd have been eventually trying to cut it out anyway. You have to make some trade off; it sounds like you got a bigger shock than you expected, and that's understandable. And very unpleasant! But it may be more that you took an alternate route rather than going backwards.

[Kat-Rinnè Naido]

Sending good vibes and a big:grouphug:
My only advice is to be very gentle especially during wash and drying. Best to section your hair when washing to prevent tangles.
All the best:blossom:

[leayellena]

So, guys.

After almost 1 year of babying my hair (although I was still dying it but being very gentle in every other area), Friday I decided to bleach the black out, in hopes of getting closer to my natural color. For some reason I cannot let my hair remain healthy. It's like a curse, after so long I have to do something to ruin it :rolleyes:

Even though it was in good shape, the bleach made it very sad. When wet, certain areas of my are like yarn and just snap off if I run my wide tooth comb through it. Saturday I put castor and sunflower oil in it and let it set for around 3 hours. It helped a little but it's still a struggle getting a comb through it, it's staying so dry and tangled. I'm wearing it up in a loose bun and trying to just leave it alone other than putting a little coconut oil in it every day. Some areas are that crunchy, kinky texture, almost like it's been crimped or worn in a braid.

My question is, can I baby it back to health? Obviously it won't be 100% healthy but will it bounce back or do I need to cut it? I plan on getting it trimmed and refreshing my layers to help cut off some of the bad, but do I need to do a big chop? My hair is a little past my collar bone. It's very fine but I'm sorry, I don't know what type it would be considered.

Any suggestions on what oils would be best for it? It can only handle coconut oil in small doses. It prefers olive or even vegetable oil. But any tips would be appreciated!

This is all wrong! There are people who have a stupid hair colour like not even dark blonde but not really lighter or darker. They use hena or conditioner for colour treated hair (not conditioner for bleached hair, I am not an expert) and after half a year their hair begin to darken. Go more like reddish dark

[lapushka]

This is all wrong! There are people who have a stupid hair colour like not even dark blonde but not really lighter or darker. They use hena or conditioner for colour treated hair (not conditioner for bleached hair, I am not an expert) and after half a year their hair begin to darken. Go more like reddish dark

What do you mean exactly with "stupid hair color"?

[Glitch]

Regarding oils, like others have said, in moderation. Use too much and you'll have to shampoo more to get it out. But coconut oil prewash may protect a little against wash damage. If it were me, castor oil made my hair feel nasty, so I would probably not choose that one. Also it's awful thick and sticky to apply when you're trying to be extra gentle.
The protein and olaplex, definitely. I defer to lakhesis's experience there since I don't have experience with that. But try those before deciding you need the big chop. And maybe let your hair rest a bit. If you can possibly wait, give it a little time to evaluate before deciding how much you need to chop.
And I second the silicones. You want lots of slip so you can detangle without breakage.

One more thing - try not to beat yourself up over something you can't undo. It sounds like you wanted the color out anyway. So if you didn't bleach you'd have been eventually trying to cut it out anyway. You have to make some trade off; it sounds like you got a bigger shock than you expected, and that's understandable. And very unpleasant! But it may be more that you took an alternate route rather than going backwards.

Definitely agree with this, especially the oil part, as I had a bad experience a few weeks ago with over-doing it! Just be really gentle, cautious, continue to baby it, and a big yes to the protein treatments many have mentioned :)

[Cinnia]

I rescued my hair from overly bleached to...something better, I wouldn’t say it’s back to normal state of course but you wouldn’t tell it’s been severly damaged by the look of it.
I used Olaplex nr 3, which ”reconnects broken disulphide sulphur bonds in the hair”, scientifically proven. It’s expensive (at least where I live) but it’s worth it. What many don’t realise is that you have to follow up with protein and moisture after an olaplex treatment. It does not provide protein on its own. So I also used a deep treatment, and followed up with redken anti snap and oils as a leave in. I washed my hair twice a week, once with olaplex (I applied as instructed before bed and left over night) and once with coconut oil as an over night treatment.

I’m not native in english so I hope this all makes sence :-).