The lack of knowledge or experience with dealing with relaxer stretched hair might cause a person to inadvertently inflict damage on the tresses. The individual can get overwhelmed with what seems to be an unmanageable amount of hair that just doesn’t behave like normal, relaxed hair should. It might not like your products, or your attempts to make it flat. Handling the hair roughly, or just having a bad attitude about your hair in general can cause you hair problems. Expecting unrealistic goals and keeping that same relaxed hair regimen going is not going to work well for hair that is well out post-relaxer– and it can ultimately lead to breakage.

The thing I see most often in stretching is breakage from over-manipulation of the strands. Because relaxer stretched hair is fragile near the line of demarcation (where the relaxed hair meets new growth), combing the hair frequently can cause unnecessary breakage at this fragile point. During a relaxer stretch, you should try to wear styles that reduce your combing rate and simplify your styling. Seek out long term styles like braids, protective weaves, and simple curly sets or buns. Finally, the opposite of over-manipulation: neglect, can also lead to breakage during a relaxer stretch. Always keep your hair fully detangled to avoid matting/dredding– another key contributor to relaxer stretch damage and breakage.

When you have a significant hair texture differential between the new growth and relaxed portions of the hair strand, you create a hard demarcation line that causes your hair to be more susceptible to breakage at this fragile point. This differential occurs if you normally relax your hair bone straight. The difference between your natural growth coming in and the chemically altered portion is too stark and is highly incompatible. When the demarcation line is strongly defined, stretching can prove more difficult. I always advise people to texlax, or relax their hair to about 80% straightness. This allows the hair to remain processed straight, but preserves a significant amount of natural elasticity and critical protein bonding within the hair shaft for natural strength. With a softer demarcation line, you are able to stretch the hair with greater ease because the difference in textures is not so significant.

The other major cause of breakage during a relaxer stretch is hair breakage from massive heat use. Many people think that cutting back on the relaxer means they can get a little leeway in the heat styling department. Not so! Relaxer stretched hair usually requires more heat to style than hair that has been freshly relaxed. Because the new growth is close to the scalp, whenever the scalp perspires- the new growth is first to frizz. You can end up with a situation where you are flat ironing the new growth on a daily or weekly basis, and this can unfortunately defeat the whole point of relaxer stretching to protect hair and nurse it back to health. You are simply trading one detrimental styling tool for another.

Often, the relaxer stretched new growth hair is also naturally drier than what the relaxed hair tends to be. Applying heat to this delicate hair, so close to the line of demarcation is asking for trouble in the long run. Use heat during your relaxer stretch in moderation!

Protein and moisture needs may vary significantly between hair textures. Incoming new growth tends to crave considerable moisture, while chemically relaxed ends tend to waiver between moisture and protein conditioning from week to week. During a relaxer stretch, it is imperative that the needs of both textures be monitored and addressed separately if need be. “One size fits all” treatments rarely work for relaxer stretched hair.

Shedding is perhaps the first reason most people end long term stretches and transitions. The cause for shedding during a stretch is really not known and has been hotly debated. Shedding tends to occur in phases and can coincide with the time that the relaxer would have been applied which for most people is every 6-10 weeks or so. Shedding does eventually subside, but often the tangling, breakage, and stress it can cause as those hairs fall– rushes many folks back to the relaxer before the end can be seen. The best approach to shedding is to simply wait it out. Some shedding is normal, and occasionally we all enter periods of heavy shedding as our hormones fluctuate and the seasons change.

For Long Term Stretchers (16 weeks + )

For everything thing there is an end point, or a point of no return. This is true with relaxer stretching as well. Your hair is at the point where your relaxer stretch is looking more and more like full on transitioning to natural hair! Once you’ve gotten significantly far out from the last relaxer service, say 5, 6, 7, 8+ months plus, your new growth starts to become a dominant texture. Breakage problems may increase at this juncture, and this is simply the natural course of things. (No pun intended!) Relaxed and natural new growth are not compatible with one another and simply aren’t designed to be maintained on the same head together for long periods of time. If you are having considerable breakage at this point, it may be time to start making some hard decisions on next steps. You may decide to end the stretch by relaxing the hair, or simply removing the relaxed hair completely and wearing your hair natural.