Once you stretch you'll never go back

[JenniferMD]

Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

Since I stretched my relaxer out for 9 months I can never go back to relaxing my hair every 6-8 weeks. I'm not saying that I'll get relaxers once a year but I'll definitely only be getting them every four months. I'm at 7 weeks post relaxer now and even though I have some newgrowth it's not unbearable like before. I guess now that I know how to care for the newgrowth I don't feel the need to rush with a relaxer. Has anyone else who stretched experienced this too? And for ladies who are currently stretching out their relaxers...don't give in until you reach the time you set for yourself, you'll love the results afterwards.

 

[Dolce_Dawn]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

Jen, I'm totally w/you on this one. Now that I have the proper ammo to stretch my relaxers, I will continue. Plus, I love playing in my new growth!

 

[JenniferMD]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

LOL! I love playing with my newgrowth too. If this was a year ago, I would have been getting a relaxer next week. But now, I can't even think of relaxing my hair right now. Stretching out my relaxers has also taught me a lot of patience too because I just can't handle my hair any kind of way now.

 

[Dolce_Dawn]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

Absolutely!! lol... I'll go into work w/my hair looking nice and then when I go for a bathroom break and look in the mirror, my hair has all these "lumps" in it from where my fingers were groping my new growth! I can't keep my hands out of it!

 

[AnjelLuvs]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

well I stretched and I defintely am goin back, the longest I went was 12 weeks.

 

[jainygirl]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

So true

i'm at 6.5 weeks right now and before i started stretching out, i would be getting my touchup within the next 1.5-2 weeks. Now i already know i'm going to at least 12 weeks and anything over that is just better

Also, i love the way my hair comes out after touching up since i started stretching. My hair gets SOOO much lift at the roots. It's as though All my new growth was relaxed but because of the the amount of newgrowth being much more now after touching up i have all this body at the root leaving my hair feeling all nice and swingalicious

 

[JenniferMD]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

[ QUOTE ]
AnjelLuvsUBabe said:
well I stretched and I defintely am goin back, the longest I went was 12 weeks.

[/ QUOTE ]

What happened that you'll be going back? Was it too hard to maintain? Maybe we can offer some suggestions because I know that my hair loved the stretch.

 

[Lorraine]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

Jennifer, I broke down after just two months but if I could hold on as long as you I think I would reap even more rewards. I got at least two inches out of it during that time and when I finally relaxed I was shocked by the amount of hair that rested on my back!

 

[JenniferMD]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

WOW 2 inches...that's great LorraineG!

 

[Tonya]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

Transitioning or trying to has taught me alot. I don;t feel pressure to relax or straighten myhair ever time I see waves. I hate straight straight hair. I don;t even want relaxed straight hair anymore. It looks so much fuller and healthier when you stretch it out!!! I love it!!!

 

[AnjelLuvs]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

yeh I think the major issue was breakage, I think after this perm I wont perm till the end of the summer (like september 23, which will be week 16).which I will perming in less than 2 hours. I am at week 8 now.

 

[JenniferMD]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

I don't know if my fellow stretchers experienced this but in the beginning of my stretching process I went through the shedding/breakage phase. It didn't last very long, but it was very nerve recking, and I can see why one would go back to relaxing soon afterwards. But for me I ONLY wore my hair in a bun and moisturized a lot during the phase and it didn't last long. I think maybe the hair goes into shock or something...I'm not sure.

 

[ChasingBliss]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

[ QUOTE ]
JenniferMD said:
I don't know if my fellow stretchers experienced this but in the beginning of my stretching process I went through the shedding/breakage phase. It didn't last very long, but it was very nerve recking, and I can see why one would go back to relaxing soon afterwards. But for me I ONLY wore my hair in a bun and moisturized a lot during the phase and it didn't last long. I think maybe the hair goes into shock or something...I'm not sure.

[/ QUOTE ]

Yes this happened to me too but made it to my 4th month, the second time around, stretching my relaxer was a breeze, I learned what worked, what products to use and the breakage and shedding didnt happen after that. I could never go back at this point...And I love the surprising new length you see after spending 4 months with all that shrinkage,

.

 

[nolechik]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

Jennifer, I'd love to stretch my relaxers out but breakage is my main issue. I usually relax at 8wks, but this time around I stretched it out to 14wks. This has been the longest stretch EVER!!! If you have a suggestion as far as the breakage, that would be great. I just hated washing my hair b/c I had sinkfuls of hair coming out of my head. Keep in mind though, I've never had a good protein treatment done on my hair. I'll try to get some apoghee or AO GPB to see is it'll help this time with the "stretch out" process!

 

[JenniferMD]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

[ QUOTE ]
nolechik said:
Jennifer, I'd love to stretch my relaxers out but breakage is my main issue. I usually relax at 8wks, but this time around I stretched it out to 14wks. This has been the longest stretch EVER!!! If you have a suggestion as far as the breakage, that would be great. I just hated washing my hair b/c I had sinkfuls of hair coming out of my head. Keep in mind though, I've never had a good protein treatment done on my hair. I'll try to get some apoghee or AO GPB to see is it'll help this time with the "stretch out" process!

[/ QUOTE ]

If there's one thing I learned through the stretching out process it was how to wash my hair without loosing tons of it. I use to wash my hair thinking that I was "doin' the damn thang" by taking my hands and massaging the shampoo all over the place with the hair on top of my head. BIG NO-NO, the tangles would be horrible and there would be hair lost in the washing process...I thought that was normal but it's not. Now, and throughout my stretching out...it's important to comb out your hair before washing and only wash your hair in one direction. You may even want to plait your hair into sections and wash it like that. This helped me out so much because I didn't lose hair after it was time to blowdry. YES! I used the blowdryer throughout my stretching process...I would have looked a hot mess trying to airdry that stuff.

 

[AnjelLuvs]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

yeh that is the point, I realized now that my washing every which way was causing the tangles and NOOOO conditioner could really untangle that mess with out clumps coming out.
I found and used Elasta QP breakage control serum, and I think this will be a staple in my next phase of no perming, because it works soooo well. I have gone 12 weeks without a relaxer and I loved the new growth I seen when I got a perm, it seemed like it grow over night.

take vitamins, like MSM, so my hair is not thattt hard to comb, when moisturized. AND I my roots dont look bad at all when I tie it down, so my summer style will be braidouts and wet ponytails, but I want a nice flowing str8 style before I begin this 16 week mission, because my roots just didnt want to act right without a perm, and I dont really have a flatiron too assist with the new growth, being that I have a job now, I can invest in a CHI Flat iron, which will also help with the stretching.

BUT I am still goin to perm tonight, LOL

 

[Chichi]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

I noticed this same thing when I transitioned for six months. I know how to handle lots of new growth now. I love

how my hair came out after I relaxed it. Thanks to all of the conditioner washes that I did, my stylist told me that I had no breakage whatsover. I usually relax at three months but may go for four this time round.

Chichi

 

[kitchen_tician]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

Yes, I learned alot about my hair during my transitional phase for 7 months. I used to go 8 weeks until a relaxer now I stretch it out to 12 with no problem.

I could actually go further if it wasn't for this small patch at the top of my head, which is a "beast" to handle. It's about 2 textures different than the rest of my hair. I get breakage after 12 weeks in that area only, but the rest of my hair is fine. I may try to tame the "beast" with a little extra "tlc" and then stretch it out to 4 months. Now, that I'm using Wildgrowth Oil, I think it may help me tame it without breakage.

We'll see how it goes.

 

[Poohbear]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

JenniferMD,
Have u noticed if your hair grows at a faster rate without applying the relaxer so often??? (if this makes sense)

 

[GodsPromises]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

For the first time I am stretching my relaxer. This is my 11th week right now, going to get a relaxer next week which will be 12 weeks. I can't wait to see the results. I have found CO washes to be a godsend.

 

[Poohbear]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

If I do not continue with my transition to natural, Im going to stretch my relaxer to 4 months

 

[Ayeshia]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

when i was relaxed i stretched it to 25 weeks. 4-8 weeks wasnt in question because my roots didnt show any curl patter till the third or fourth month. If i did relax that soon, my hair would have been over processed.

 

[MizAvalon]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

Jennifer, you are so right! Back in the dark ages, before I found this board I actually believed that I had to relax every 6-8 weeks! Now, I try to go 13-15 weeks. It starts getting a little rough around week 10, but the results are so worth it! I'll never go back.

 

[Vanessa22]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

[ QUOTE ]
JenniferMD said:
Since I stretched my relaxer out for 9 months I can never go back to relaxing my hair every 6-8 weeks. I'm not saying that I'll get relaxers once a year but I'll definitely only be getting them every four months. I'm at 7 weeks post relaxer now and even though I have some newgrowth it's not unbearable like before. I guess now that I know how to care for the newgrowth I don't feel the need to rush with a relaxer. Has anyone else who stretched experienced this too? And for ladies who are currently stretching out their relaxers...don't give in until you reach the time you set for yourself, you'll love the results afterwards.

[/ QUOTE ]

This last time I believe I went either 6 or 7 months I can't remember. However, the benefits I reaped were totally amazing. Thanks to conditioner washes and monthly protein treatments, I saw changes in my hair that I had never seen before. My hair was so much more thicker, and the length I received was astonishing.

In the past, the longest I would wait would be the 6th week mark, however, now, I refuse to relax any sooner than necessary. It has already been 2 months, and I'm going for 7 more! Wish me luck this second time around!

 

[deborah11]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

I transitioned for 19 months before getting a texturizer. It was an enpowering experience for me. My hair is so much thicker and I know that I will never again get a touch up every 6-8 weeks, 4-5 months is the minimun for me. relaxers 2-3 times per year is the limit for me, I shooting for touchups every 5 months. if I went 19 months without one, surely 5 months is attainable. thank God for this board.

 

[lovechic]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

YES!!!!!!! I'M LOVING THE STRETCH OUT TOO! BECAUSE NOW I KNOW HOW TO CARE FOR MY NEW GROWTH BETTER! CO WASHES HELPS MAKE IT EASIER! PLUS I LIKE PLAYING WITH THE TEXTURE IT HAS. MY HAIR IS NOT AS LIMP AS IT USED TO BE!

 

[BabyCurls]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

<font color="purple">My last relaxer touchup was in March of this year. I'm in my 2 months of stretching, and I can really see and feel the difference when not touching up my hair every 6-8 weeks. My goal is 7 months, and have 5 more months to go, but maybe longer than that. If you can keep your new growth stronger with CO washes, protein treatments, supplementation and moisturization, it'll become softer, thicker and growing more beautifully. Maintaining the new growth will be easier than you've never done it before. That's what I'm shooting for. Hope for the best. </font>

 

[Isis]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

I love stretching out my relaxer now that I know what to do.

Before, stretching wasn't even a concept. Not only is my hair healthier and stronger, but it's more economical to wait.

 

[ballet_bun]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

I think the condition of my hair has improved, since stretching them out. I am actually beyond my 4 month mark now. I think I'm going to relax at 5 months this time.

 

[alliyah4eva203]

Re: Once you stretch you\'ll never go back

i love stretching out my relaxers. it's a nice surprie to see how much your hair has grown.