Stretching: the Good, the Bad, and the Plain Ole Ugly!

So, in my previous post, I shared my experience of stretching my relaxer with you and gave a brief synopsis of exactly what it meant to stretch. However, not everyone tells you the truth about stretching a relaxer, and I feel that I should have been a bit more frank with you guys. As with anything you do in life, there will be the good, the bad, and the plain ole ugly, and relaxer stretching is no different. I warn you in advance that not everything seen in this post will be easy on the eyes, and I apologize for that, but a girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do. So here we go! *cues Wild West music*

THE GOOD

1.               NO DOUBLING UP!! Stretching for longer than 8 weeks prevents the overlapping of relaxer unto previously treated hair. The longer time your hair has to grow, the more new growth you will have, and the more space you will have to work with for the relaxer. Think about it this way: is it easier to stay in the lines with a ½ inch of space, or upwards of 2 inches? Exactly.

2.               THICKNESS!!! Now, a lot of people will contest me on this one, but I firmly believe that stretching a relaxer improves the thickness of hair. Firstly, while you’re stretching, you hair looks much fuller. Also, because the chances of overlapping are less, your relaxed hair will be a lot thicker as well. (Overprocessed hair is generally thinner).

3.               LENGTH!! Retaining length will be a lot easier as well. Overprocessed hair tends to be prone to breakage, so…less overprocessing= less breakage = better length retention!

THE BAD

1.               WALKING THE LINE! When you’re dealing with two textures of hair it is imperative that you pay a LOT more attention to how you take care of it. The area where the two textures meet (the line of demarcation) is EXTREMELY fragile, and hair that is not kept moisturized or treated gently will tend to break off at that point.

2.               TANGLING!! Enough Said.

THE PLAIN OLE UGLY

1.               TORNADO HAIR! Wild New Growth and Relaxed Ends are NOT best friends. lol. It’s almost a guarantee, your hair will not always look perfect during a stretch. There may even be times when you get the “Girrrrrl, you did NOT come out the house like that” stares (Lord knows I have) but hey, I chalk that up to part of the experience. Below are just a FEW of my *wonderful* stretching hair styles.

Stretching is by no means the easiest thing to do in the world, but it isn’t the hardest either. Just listen to your hair. If you’re having ridiculous amounts of breakage or shedding, it may be time to call it in early and relax your hair. Who cares if you didn’t reach your goal of 24 weeks?! The integrity of your hair matters a lot more than that. Just remember, Deep Condition, Moisturize, and Avoid Over manipulation and you’ll be one step closer to a happier relaxer stretch.

Happy Hair Days!