Is this considered low-manipulation / benign neglect?

[MagusBride]

I've been browsing old threads and reading about the benefits of low-manipulation, benign neglect routines. I cannot tell if my current routine is considered low-manipulation enough to get the benefits of "leaving your hair alone".

My current routine:

• Every morning, I take my hair down from its protective style (usually two french braids sealed with aloe vera gel) to water and nourish it (warm water in a spray bottle followed by olive oil to seal it in, followed by aloe vera gel), then put the hair back into the french braids. Leave it alone all day and then repeat in the evening before bed.
• I clarify (to prevent product buildup) and then deep condition my hair for two hours once per week.

Is this considered low-manipulation / benign neglect?

Or does there need to be even less manipulation to be considered benign neglect?

For reference, I have low porosity, type 4 hair.

Thank you.

[cjk]

You do a lot more to yours than I do to mine. I put mine in braids on Saturday and haven't touched them yet. Unless you count clipping them up to stay dry while showering.

I'll probably take them out later this week.

Ultimately it's about what works best for you. Benign neglect CAN be wonderful for hair, in many cases the more you do and the harder you try, the further from healthy it can get.

But that's not true for everybody.

Focus, not on what you heard might work, but what proves itself to work for you.

Is what you are doing benefiting your hair? If so, keep it up!

[Spikey]

Benign neglect is more about not manipulating too much for your own hair, and since everyone's hair is different, you can't really compare your routine to someone else's to see if you're "doing too much". As long as your hair is healthy, I wouldn't worry about it. Especially because your hair is much curlier than other LHCers, it has totally different needs. Your routine sounds fine for type 4 to me if you aren't seeing any crazy splitting or knotting.

[Begemot]

Yes, I would consider that low manipulation/benign neglect

[Sarahlabyrinth]

I comb mine once a day in the morning, put it in its bun and it doesn't get touched again until I do the same thing again the next morning. Everyone's hair is different however and you need to find out what works for your hair What you do is too much manipulation for my hair, but it may well work well for you.

[lapushka]

I think going from braid to braid with a little misting in between is pretty much benign neglect, it is also a protective style.

I think you're good with this!

I sleep with mine down, and then bun (no combing, no brushing, not even finger detangling). That's it, and at night I take it down (no combing, no brushing, just a little finger detangling aka separating strands to get sheds out). These days I encounter a lot of knots, so braids might be an awesome way to prevent those from occurring.

I say you're doing just fine!

[Positivitea]

Personally I think it's still too much. My hair looked great when I did nothing with it. I basically only washed it, let it air dry, and then brushed it. I'd use a tiny bit of oil to control frizz. Also I didn't brush my hair until the next time I washed it, which would be 2 to 3 times a week.

[blackgothicdoll]

Moisturizing the hair daily can weaken it, in my experience. Could you leave the braids in for 2 or 3 days and only moisturize it on those intervals instead of every day?

eta: I want to be more specific; the cycle of moisturizing and sealing hair daily caused issues for me. Once you've sealed the hair, moisture isn't really getting into it. Instead, product, is repeatedly building on hair and pretty much suffocating it. This is specifically something I dealt with when I tried the same method. it also allowed more tangles to be created due to having the hair revert multiple times. Take that for a grain of salt, as that's just my experience, but I figured I'd mention it as another type 4.

[Zesty]

Well the two terms are not synonymous. I might call it relatively low manipulation since you're not messing with it frequently (though twice a day is more than I often do lol!) but your product routine doesn't sound like benign neglect IMO. Deep conditioning *at all* removes it from that category for me.

A true low manipulation routine for me would be the same style for days and minimal brushing etc. You are by definition manipulating your hair when you take it down and re-style twice a day.

Benign neglect is leaving your hair alone and not thinking about it much. So they go together but aren't *the same*.

That being said, it doesn't really matter. If your routine works for your hair and your lifestyle then don't worry too much about what to call it! Besides, not all hair thrives on benign neglect, some of us need to give a little more love.

[lapushka]

Well the two terms are not synonymous. I might call it relatively low manipulation since you're not messing with it frequently (though twice a day is more than I often do lol!) but your product routine doesn't sound like benign neglect IMO. Deep conditioning *at all* removes it from that category for me.

A true low manipulation routine for me would be the same style for days and minimal brushing etc. You are by definition manipulating your hair when you take it down and re-style twice a day.

Benign neglect is leaving your hair alone and not thinking about it much. So they go together but aren't *the same*.

That being said, it doesn't really matter. If your routine works for your hair and your lifestyle then don't worry too much about what to call it! Besides, not all hair thrives on benign neglect, some of us need to give a little more love.

I do my "regular" wash day, WCC + ROO + LOC/LCO and then call it a day, rest of the week is just a bun when I get up. I call that benign neglect.

Maintaining your hair by conditioning it well, is just "normal", and does not not make it benign neglect. IMO. That would just be plain "neglect" and that is not what this is about!