I would like to hear protein treatment successes...

[shikara]

THere are so many PEople who ofte deal with problems that they wonder if it was from protein or not. Even all the tests to determine what you need can be a little less than accurate (depending on the strands tested :rolleyes:). I've read that fine hair usually needs more protein treatments followed by deep moisturizing treatments because coarser hair can hold onto the protein more than fine hair. Most sites I see usually refer to curly hair or hair for bleck women (is 'black' the 'wrong' word to be using?). Surely there must be those who give themselves protein treatments who experience positive results!?

http://i1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb328/lmarie29/th_a5642814.jpg (http://s1200.photobucket.com/albums/bb328/lmarie29/?action=view&current=a5642814.jpg)

[akilina]

id like to hear some too! i think that my hair just might not like protein...i sort of did a treatment yesterday with a protein conditioner and a few oils and other deep conditioners and i really didnt get the result i was looking for :/ although my hair does feel thicker today

[anikadear]

I call myself Black, so I'm not offended.

As for the protein treatment....I recently used a keratin treatment on my hair because it was super dry and damaged from years of relaxing and my hair is singing! I've heard different views on which hair needs protein so I just decided to try for myself and it has made a WORLD of difference for my hair. It actually looks healthy, so I think my hair actually needs protein treatments at least once a month. HTH.

[LadyJennifer]

My hair loves protein. It's softer, curlier, and shinier with protein treatments.

[jojo]

I have fine hair, which is fragile if I am not careful. I do lots of moisture treatments and use mainly moiturising conditioners. However, after a while say a month or so, my hair can get what I describe as "mushy" it feels very soft, but not in a good way kind of like moss. When it gets like this, I know its because ive over moisturised; yes it is possible.

But all is not lost as a protein treatment gets rid of this feeling. I personally like the ApHogee 2 step but it is a potent protein treatment, I never do one more than every 2 months but my hair feels much stronger after doing on of these. I also like mane N tail, which again helps my hair feel stronger. I find too in winter my hair seems to need more protein, so I use mane N tail every 2 weeks. All protein treatments as far as I am aware need to be followed with a moisture treatment as they can sometimes be a bit drying, very drying if you do too many. However having said that the mane N tail extra moisturising is fine to use without.

Finer hair I have read does not have a cortex like medium/causer hair which is what makes it the most fragile of hair. Hair which also has colour or bleach is also weaker, the protein helps fill the holes in and although doesn't repair it as such makes it more manageable.

There are lots of different protein treatments on the market and id suggest starting with weaker ones and analyse your hair properly before. Nightshade (I think) has a link in her siggi or look in the articles about diagnosing your hair.

hope this helps.

[einna]

My hair likes protein too. I need it regulary to keep my hair from beeing over-moisturized. My hair is fine and dryish, even though it is mostly virgin, so it needs some attention. I like the Joico k-pak deep-penetrating reconstructor, but recently found out that it contains some mineral oils, and I CO, so I am looking for a new protein treatment...

[jojo]

^^ your hairs on the curlier side of wavy, which is probably why it tends to get dry. Have you tried CO washing?

[arcane]

My hair is a mix between medium and coarse (depending on the section), and it LOVES protein. I use a spray in everytime I shower. When I skip it my hair is very wirey and more prone to breakage. I've used different types of protein over the years, but the two that always work for me is Cat by Redkin and Ion's Protein treatment (it's a weekly treatment). My hair has been dyed and bleached to the moon and back, and the ends are very damaged. However I used protein treatments on my hair before I ever dyed it (back in highschool) and it loved it then too.

[Mina17]

I have mostly fine hair and I alternate between conditioners that have protein and no protein. I tried going protein-free and got that mushy hair that Jojo described. I use Hask Henna-n-Placenta masks about once a month and follow that with a protein-free SMT. As a wavy, I do fight dryness too but the fine hairs are fragile and do better with some protein.

[Anje]

Well, my hair's not fond of protein (I've overloaded on it before without knowing what was going wrong), but I've tried to learn a bit about it as a result. My hair is particularly not fond of silk protein, for whatever reason, and it leads to rough-textured ends that feel hard and tend to curl and hook to other hairs, creating tangles even during the detangling process. So chalk up one hennaed fine-y (non-chemical, non-heat treated) who doesn't do well with protein.

The reason so much information on protein treatments seems to center around black people, and to a lesser extent anyone with curly hair, is that they're relatively likely to be having perms (usually in the form of relaxers). That sort of chemical treatment, whether to add curl or to make it go away, tends to leave hair very depleted of protein. Bleaching is also notorious, and to a lesser extent all coloring using ammonia and/or peroxide can eventually result in hair that gets fragile or mushy.

[Bianca]

I use curl junkie - repair me. Protein and moisture in one. Expensive though. Most amazing hair product I have ever used :)

[Heartwillfollow]

I think my hair loves protien.. once a month.. have always mixed my cassia with yogurt then plastic wrap for an hour.. and it's bouncey, shiney, soft, feels looks fuller thicker and stays tangle free. Get the same affect when I do just yogurt but love to save time and do the cassia at the same time..

my hair is a mystery I'll never understand ... it hates acv, and end the citric acid rinse I was doing back fired within a few applications of dry, stringy, tangling... It doesn't make sense because it love hibiscus poweder and I thought that was a form of acidic application.. my hair turns out soft silky straight, flat without the weight and thickness that the yogurt results. Just not sure I understand my hair at all...

[Mayflower]

My hair freaking loves protein. I get the best hairdays the week after I've henndigoed, and over the years it has made my hair probably double in thickness. I'm an M/C now and everytime I wash my hair (which is two or three times a week) I use a leave-in proteinconditioner: Anti-Snap by Redken. I only shampoo and never use a moisturizing conditioner but then again I'm not a fan of super-moisturized 'silky' hair. Shampooing and blowdrying, which I both do, tend to take away some of the protein in the hairs. I think that's why I can get away with so much protein. I also use Redken CAT once in a while, it never fails to give me really soft en bouncy and strong hair.

[Safira]

Another protein-lover.
When my hair gets mushy and lifeless, I use Henna or SuperReconstructer. My hair loves protein.
After I found out, what suits to my hair, splits has gone, there´s no white knots and hair tangles less.

[dmarie16]

My hair likes protein too. I need it regulary to keep my hair from beeing over-moisturized. My hair is fine and dryish, even though it is mostly virgin, so it needs some attention. I like the Joico k-pak deep-penetrating reconstructor, but recently found out that it contains some mineral oils, and I CO, so I am looking for a new protein treatment...
I LOVE K-pak!!! I don't care if it does have mineral oil!!! It has brought my hair back from Hair Hell on more than one disatrous occasions! :cheese: But not to be used carelessly!!! Too much protein can damage hair too. And always, always ALWAYS follow with a moisture treatment. I use Biolage conditioning balm after k-pak once a month.

[alyanna]

I'm reviving this thread because I've been having some awesome, wonderful, amazing success with a product that I'd like to share with everyone, especially those of us with fine/thin hair.

I've been using Biotene H-24 shampoo and conditioner: http://www.millcreekusa.com/biotene-h-24/shampoo-i

Here are the ingredients for the shampoo:

Deionized Water, hydolyzed collagen, aloe vera gel, panthenol, sodium Myreth Sulfate, cocamide DEA, cocamidopropyl Betaine, Sodium Chloride, Biotin, Retinyl Palmitate, Coltsfoot Extract, Yarrow extract, rosemary extract, sage extract, nettle extract, birch leaf extract, birch sap, horsetail extract, calcium pantothenate, inositol, ascorbic acid, citric acid, cysteine, HCI, Corn Oil, Ethodydiglycol, Glycereth-2 Cocoate, Benzoic Acid, Botanical Fragrance

I started with just the shampoo, and I believe that's where the magic is, but now I've also added the conditioner and I'm thinking of trying the scalp treatment as well.

I love that this product is sls/paraben/cruelty free and organic. I love the sound of the ingredient list. It's also won a couple of awards. It's working so well for me that I have not needed to clarify my hair in almost a month and normally, I was clarifying once a week. Note that I also oil my ends while my hair is wet and I still haven't needed to clarify.

It leaves my hair squeeky clean, but not dry. Very soft but not gummy or mushy or lank. Best of all, this product gives some nice volume and body. In fact, in the summer when it was humid, it made my hair too big!

Another advantage of this product is that I can just do a traditional shampoo/conditioner routine and not have to bother with the hassle of other kinds of routines that (for me) take a long time and give mixed results at best.

Also, my mom's hairstylist recommended that she use nothing but this product. My mom relaxes her hair so she really needs it.

[BrightEyes]

My hair is fine, and it likes a good mix of protein and moisture. I alternate protein and moisture treatments once a week and since I've been doing this I have had less breakage and my hair looks and feels better. I'm sure this is because I highlight and color.

[HairFaerie]

My hair was dry, damaged from bleach when it was shorter. I got trims every 4-6 weeks but in the meantime, I couldn't stand how it looked and felt. I started using Aubrey Organics protein shampoo and conditioner and it REALLY made a difference!

http://www.aubrey-organics.com/ProductInfo/001.aspx

After using it several times, my hair was soft and silky. Since then, almost all of the damage has been trimmed out so I don't use the products as often. Using it too much made my hair very "heavy", dull and lifeless. I think that's what people refer to as "protein overload". When that happens, I just use a clarifying shampoo and then other shampoos from then on. I only use the protein stuff about once a month now. That seems to be all my hair needs at the present time.

I have also had much success with making a deep treatment with honey, pure aloe gel, coconut milk (refrigerated first so it gets solid and easier to apply) and a deep conditioner. I don't do that to often because admittedly, I am too lazy! :)

[PixxieStix]

My hair likes a protein treatment every now and then. Shortly after I had bleached my hair to then henna over it for a lighter red color, of course it was a bit weakened, and after doing some diagnosing as to moisture or protein loss , decided to go get my ends dusted by my stylist and get a protein treatment while I was there. She works at a Fantastic Sams, so whatever they use for their "hair shots" is what I had put into my hair. Oh, it felt so great afterwards! I haven't done one since about September though, so maybe it's time to do it again? :D

[Carissamarie08]

Back when I was a senior in highschool a protein treatment was hairs life saver. I decided to go from brunette to Blonde using sun-in. I used sun-in so much that my hair was basically white. Then one day I decided to go back brunette and when I put a color on top of all that sun-in damage, the entire outer layer of my hair broke off to about 4inches long! The rest of my hair was literally fried and sizzled to death. I didn't want to chop my hair off, and I was in cosmetology school at the time so my instructor tried to blend my short pieces in with my hair as best as she could then I did a series of protein treatments and moister treatments over a long period of time to restore my hair as best as she could. Eventually it did feel normal again! I was quite impressed and thankful!

[alyanna]

http://www.aubrey-organics.com/ProductInfo/001.aspx



Oooh that product sounds really yummy!

[sfgirl]

I'm really interested in protein treatments. Do you guys think the mane and tail one would work for bleach damaged hair?
Can you get protein treatments that are cone/ sulfate free?

[UltraBella]

I love the Joico K-Pak line that has already been mentioned. Protein and my hair are best friends now :) I so wish I would have tried it earlier !