HELP I high Lighted and now have ANGRY hair

[slo2gro]

BEFORE
http://i1100.photobucket.com/albums/g416/shamesmom/TERRI/Picture585.jpg

AFTER
http://i1100.photobucket.com/albums/g416/shamesmom/TERRI/Snapshot_20120407_15.jpg

Its super tangly after a wash. I dont wash often, still CWC, I condition A lot, I use WEN products, very lil seems to help. It seems the bleach has really messed up my hair. I was hurting for a change. I think I really messed up my hair. :( Will my poor hair ever recovery? How can I make the combing process less rough?

I hope you are all well, been a while since I have been on.

Thanks so much for your tips and advice in advance.

Terri

[Macaroni]

Have you given yourself any protein treatments? Bleach will take the protein from your hair.

[Laylah]

There's not much you can do to fix the damage, as the structure of your hair is already changed, but you can smooth out your hair to make it easier to comb... Here are some things that have helped me detangle easier:
-oiling hair before washing
-coating the ends of the hair (not near the scalp) in conditioner before washing
-not flipping hair over when washing it or when drying it
-applying just a bit of oil (or if you don't like leaving in oil, use a commercial detangler) to damp hair before combing

[Carissamarie08]

Moisture, moisture, moisture!

[MeowScat]

Deep conditioning and oiling might do the trick. Whenever I had my blonde streaks done, those sections of hair always felt drier, coarser and crunchier than my virgin hair. Lots of breakage too, come to think of it.

Biolage Conditioning Balm really helped and so did their deep conditioning masque. It's a bit pricey, but I found it was worth it. I'd let my hair marinate in it for as long as possible.

Maybe Coconut, Olive, or Mineral Oil as a leave in might help?

Just be gentle when combing and securing your updo. I always heard strands snapping during that. (cringe)

[MeowScat]

I must add...you rock the blonde beautifully! I'm too pale to pull it off, even though I tried many times. It doesn't look dry at all, it's really shiny.

I also LOVE your side-swept bangs. You look beautiful!

:)

[Charlotte]

Give it time slo2gro... it will recover and this is coming from someone with way less hair than you and much finer too. I have almost trashed my hair in the past with bleach and perms but over time with lots of treatments, moisture and protein it does recover. Don't panic... start the deep moisture treatments now and continue with them. By the way, your blonde looks absolutely gorgeous!!! :flowers: :blossom:

[Theobroma]

I second the recommendation of oil as a leave-in. I recently discovered that EVOO makes my hair MUCH less tangly -- it works even better for me in that respect than coconut oil. Everyone's hair is different so you may want to experiment with different oils, but I'm sure you'll find one that works for you.

[spidermom]

Deep conditioning and a coney serum about once per week.

[moxamoll]

Check out ktani's thread and article on mineral oil. It may be that after a moisturizing treatment, the mineral oil will help hold in moisture and give you enough "slip" to detangle and put up your hair with minimal damage.

[Sisgoldenhair65]

I really LOVE the blonde a lot and your hair looks very healthy even though it may not feel like it to you! Rock it!! :).

[joflakes]

Nothing new to add but wanted to say that your hair looks lovely!

[leilasahhar]

It looks awesome! It will take some time for the moisture to come back..but you are lucky your hair came out so pretty after bleach.

[afu]

I highlight and i used to have this problem too (why i initially found my way to LHC), initially i tried long deep treatments with protein, lots of moisture and stretching washes for at least 4-5days. That didn't work at all, literally did nothing for my hair. The turning point was ditching the shampoo and converting to CO - it makes my hair feel not only normal again but better than ever before despite heat and bleach damage. I use normal conditioner as a leave in as well as coconut oil and aloe vera to tame frizz, i also do a lemon juice rinse at the end of my shower. I also now avoid protein because my hair just hates it and makes it very brittle, and i don't do long treatments, my hair reacts much better to SMTs being left on no more than 15mins.

It might be worth totally re-assessing your hair care routine. You hair shaft has been altered a lot by the bleach so it's going to need different treatment than before.

Also for next time, try applying coconut oil a bit before bleaching - since ktani told me about it i have been using the technique and seen NO damage to newly bleached hair at all...
http://ktanihairsense.blogspot.co.uk/2009/11/part-1-of-3-part-series-on-innovative.html

[Alvrodul]

You have gotten some good advice already - my :twocents: is another suggestion for protein treatments - but do not neglect adding moisture - happy hair needs both!
If you don't currently use coney conditioners, you might consider looking into those, since they are likely to give an appearance of healthy hair to the bleached areas. If you don't like cones, oils are a good alternative, both for deep treatments and for post-wash oiling.
In short - pamper your hair!

[joyxo]

Go to sally's and get yourself the generic version of Joico's KPak re constructor! It isn't a conditioner, so you'll need to deep condition after, but it repairs the protein bonds in the hair.

[spookyghost]

I agree with all the posters-your hair looks amazing!:) Please let us know what you tried and how it worked-good and bad! Im kinda in the same boat as you right now and I would love to know what works for you. I know everyones hair is different but it could work for me too. About three weeks ago I colored over my bleach highlights and Im pretty sad about it. The color itself is wrong. Im naturally ash color and got strawberry blonde:( Its not the color itself that bothers me, its pretty, its the fact that I wanted to grow my hair out so I wanted my natural color so I would stop using chemicals-and so the dermafication wouldnt look so bad. Now Im thinking should I black tea rinse to darken it up a little because Im sure I cant re-color it right? That would probably kill it. So my hair is straw feeling when wet. Im trying to find a hair routine that will work-the right oils, CWC or CO etc. I'm so sorry, I didnt meant to ramble on your post! So please update when you know something:D

[Shermie Girl]

Your hair looks great. :D

As a fellow bottle blonde, I feel your frustration at having your desired colour and having to deal with the resulting damage. If your hair likes protein, definitely treat it to regular, deep protein treatments. Follow up your protein with plenty of moisture to balance it to prevent the "crunchies". Regular deep moisture treatments are very helpful. Leave in conditioner is huge for me. The additional moisture and silicone give my hair the slip it needs for wet comb out and to make dry brushing and combing easy and to cut down on breakage.

I find that wet bunning is hugely beneficial to my blonde tresses. It infuses moisture and it is nice and cool on hot Summer days, too. :D Gentle care, air drying, all serve to make my hair look and feel pretty good.

If you haven't purchased some, I suggest a good purple shampoo for washing, it will keep your highlights bright and prevent or drastically cut down on yellow and brassiness, resulting in less time having to tone your highlights to keep them bright and nice. I use the Generic Shimmer Lights from Sally Beauty Supply every ten days or so, that stuff is amazing and very affordable! I also like the John Freida Tone Correcting for blondes, it is a lighter purple and nice for in between the uses of the Generic Shimmer Lights.

Doing roots only touch ups will go a long way to helping you to have your lovely highlights and grow long hair. It is doable, if you are careful with how you have your lightening done.

Lets see, oh, yes. Patience and time. They are your friend. After my first two dye applications (I use a high lift blonde and high volume developer... Not exactly gentle! :lol:) my hair was pretty dry and mad at me. In time, with all of the lovely stuff I slop onto it, it is feeling better and better, it is getting softer, silkier, feels stronger and much happier.

Blonde hair isn't for sissies. :lol: It is a lot of work, a commitment to intense care, pampering and touch ups. But, in my opinion, it is worth it. I am a blonde in my heart of heart and I am willing to do the work to have and keep my light tresses. :D

[PixxieStix]

You've gotten all the best advice so far, I just wanted to chime in and say how awesome your hair turned out! :D

[spookyghost]

Your hair looks great. :D

As a fellow bottle blonde, I feel your frustration at having your desired colour and having to deal with the resulting damage. If your hair likes protein, definitely treat it to regular, deep protein treatments. Follow up your protein with plenty of moisture to balance it to prevent the "crunchies". Regular deep moisture treatments are very helpful. Leave in conditioner is huge for me. The additional moisture and silicone give my hair the slip it needs for wet comb out and to make dry brushing and combing easy and to cut down on breakage.

I find that wet bunning is hugely beneficial to my blonde tresses. It infuses moisture and it is nice and cool on hot Summer days, too. :D Gentle care, air drying, all serve to make my hair look and feel pretty good.

If you haven't purchased some, I suggest a good purple shampoo for washing, it will keep your highlights bright and prevent or drastically cut down on yellow and brassiness, resulting in less time having to tone your highlights to keep them bright and nice. I use the Generic Shimmer Lights from Sally Beauty Supply every ten days or so, that stuff is amazing and very affordable! I also like the John Freida Tone Correcting for blondes, it is a lighter purple and nice for in between the uses of the Generic Shimmer Lights.

Doing roots only touch ups will go a long way to helping you to have your lovely highlights and grow long hair. It is doable, if you are careful with how you have your lightening done.

Lets see, oh, yes. Patience and time. They are your friend. After my first two dye applications (I use a high lift blonde and high volume developer... Not exactly gentle! :lol:) my hair was pretty dry and mad at me. In time, with all of the lovely stuff I slop onto it, it is feeling better and better, it is getting softer, silkier, feels stronger and much happier.

Blonde hair isn't for sissies. :lol: It is a lot of work, a commitment to intense care, pampering and touch ups. But, in my opinion, it is worth it. I am a blonde in my heart of heart and I am willing to do the work to have and keep my light tresses. :D

Wow-you know blonde! I love your hair color too. I just used the shimmering lights purple shampoo and Im going to use it every 10 days like you. Do you then use the john freida tone correcting as your only shampoo when you are not using shimmering lights? My hair was less brassy and coppery looking after I used the sl and that made me happy. Is the John freida shampoo healty to use as a regular shampoo?

[Mommyof4]

My sister has bleach damage, the only thing that works for her is to use a thich Silicone-based conditioner, like Tresemme and Matrix.. She also uses Biosilk constantly. By my recommendation, she now clarifies every other week, and her hair is still growing an inch a month, with little breakage. We are trimming the damage out now, but to comb it, she only combs when wet and always leaves enough conditioner in to "feel" it work while she combs and parts her hair for it to dry. (her hair is very very curly)

[Anje]

Protein, follow immediately with a moisture treatment. Then maybe more moisture.

[jacqueline101]

I'd suggest the extra oil or moisturize more I did lemon juice lightening I'm paying for it. My hair is like straw and breaking. I'm thinking about trying VO5 hot oil treatment.

[akilina]

Well I love how it looks on you! But anyway...all the times that I have bleached my hair and damaged it I found the thing that made my hair feel best was cones (i know many are against cones) It helped alot with manageability for the time being though. My favorite thing in the world for my hair is a SMT ohhh yesss. :)

[faellen]

Agree with what others have said - deep conditioning and oil treatments. :) Saved my hair many a time.

I have to say you look great with the blonde!

[cremenoir]

i have bleach damage and protein never really seemed to help very much. a year and a half later i have cut off almost all the bleached hair, but the little bleach that remains still causes bad tangles. i know it's the bleach and not just my ends, because in the spots where the bleach is gone, there are hardly ever any tangles. the only thing that has really seemed to help for me is CO washing, baby oil (applied to wet hair) and avoiding heat styling.

[Shermie Girl]

Wow-you know blonde! I love your hair color too. I just used the shimmering lights purple shampoo and Im going to use it every 10 days like you. Do you then use the john freida tone correcting as your only shampoo when you are not using shimmering lights? My hair was less brassy and coppery looking after I used the sl and that made me happy. Is the John freida shampoo healty to use as a regular shampoo?

Aw, thank you. :)

Yes, the John Frieda is fine to use as a regular every time shampoo. I use the John Frieda Tone Correcting (it's in a purple tube) to shampoo every wash, between doses with the generic Shimmer Lights. I also use the matching John Frieda conditioner. I don't know how much it does to correct tone, it doesn't have much pigment in it but it does make my hair feel nice, and I like to use matchy products, so... Yeah. I use it. Sometimes I mix it with my other conditioner, sometimes use just it.

If you are having trouble with some brassy tones, you can use the generic Shimmer Lights every wash, for a bit until your tone cools down a bit more. Just be sure to use lots and lots of moisturizing conditioner and leave in. The SL knockoff isn't the most moisturizing stuff I have ever met. :lol: I have used it every wash for over a week then switched back to alternating with the John Frieda when my hair decided that Brass is Where it's At. It really helped. :)

[misspurdy06]

Mayonnaise!

My mom thought I was crazy when I told her to use mayo after she bleached her hair to straw.

But she broke down and did it out of desperation and was pleasantly surprised! and I was like "I told you so!"

Food for Thought/Hair.

[spookyghost]

Aw, thank you. :)

Yes, the John Frieda is fine to use as a regular every time shampoo. I use the John Frieda Tone Correcting (it's in a purple tube) to shampoo every wash, between doses with the generic Shimmer Lights. I also use the matching John Frieda conditioner. I don't know how much it does to correct tone, it doesn't have much pigment in it but it does make my hair feel nice, and I like to use matchy products, so... Yeah. I use it. Sometimes I mix it with my other conditioner, sometimes use just it.

If you are having trouble with some brassy tones, you can use the generic Shimmer Lights every wash, for a bit until your tone cools down a bit more. Just be sure to use lots and lots of moisturizing conditioner and leave in. The SL knockoff isn't the most moisturizing stuff I have ever met. :lol: I have used it every wash for over a week then switched back to alternating with the John Frieda when my hair decided that Brass is Where it's At. It really helped. :)

Thank you so much! The bad color I got three weeks ago has turned brassy and I dont like it. I dont like the color period. I think about how much I hate it at least 10 times a day. Plus the fact that the only reason I got my hair colored to begin with was to go back to my natural color-ash blonde. I knew I wouldnt be able to grow out the bleach because of how bad the dermafication would look so I figured just one more hair color to help the grow out and Id be set! My hairdresser said to go one shade darker or one shade lighter-I should have asked why. Why not just go ash blonde! I picked lighter and got strawberry-coppery blonde!:eek: I also asked her if one of those colors was less damaging and she said no. Well if my hair is lighter doesnt that mean bleach of some kind was used? Sorry about crying on your shoulder!:p Im at a loss on how to fix this. The generic shimmering lights did tone it down a little and that helped me feel better. I guess this hair color snafu has thrown me back years in my hair health and I cant get past it. Thank you so much for responding about the shampoos:)

[Long_hair_bear]

I bleached mine last year and it was angry. Cones and babyface protein treatment really helped with tangles.

[Shermie Girl]

Thank you so much! The bad color I got three weeks ago has turned brassy and I dont like it. I dont like the color period. I think about how much I hate it at least 10 times a day. Plus the fact that the only reason I got my hair colored to begin with was to go back to my natural color-ash blonde. I knew I wouldnt be able to grow out the bleach because of how bad the dermafication would look so I figured just one more hair color to help the grow out and Id be set! My hairdresser said to go one shade darker or one shade lighter-I should have asked why. Why not just go ash blonde! I picked lighter and got strawberry-coppery blonde!:eek: I also asked her if one of those colors was less damaging and she said no. Well if my hair is lighter doesnt that mean bleach of some kind was used? Sorry about crying on your shoulder!:p Im at a loss on how to fix this. The generic shimmering lights did tone it down a little and that helped me feel better. I guess this hair color snafu has thrown me back years in my hair health and I cant get past it. Thank you so much for responding about the shampoos:)

I don't mind. My shoulder is fairly absorbent. :D

If your hair is too warm/strawberry/brassy an ash toner might help. You could go to the beauty supply, pick up a tube or bottle of toner in a cool/ash that is your level and some 10 volume developer and do a strand test and see if it will cool down the brass and strawberry a bit more.

Since your hair is already so stressed, I heartily suggest that you do the strand test first, both to check how the colour and to see if your tresses can take yet another process before you commit to slopping it all over your head. And keep up with the purple shampoos. They certainly can't hurt. :D

[Shermie Girl]

I bleached mine last year and it was angry. Cones and babyface protein treatment really helped with tangles.

I saw a thread about Babyface protein treatment on another part of the boards and went and did a little recon on it. It looks like amazing stuff and I am going to order me a bottle and give it a throw. I was thinking of using it with the Bioterra (the Biolage knockoff you can get as Sally's) to do the moisture part of the treatment. I have heard good things about that line. They make intense moisture treatments that are cone free, which is nice for deep protein treatments. :D