This Natural Hair Treatment, That Natural Hair Treatment, HELP!

Hey people,

This is a post culled from Nappily Nigerian Girl. Sometimes you read natural hair blogs, and there's a lot of talk about Protein Treatments, Moisturizing Treatments, Henna Treatments, Blah blah blah Treatments, and it can get really confusing. I know to do Deep Conditioning (DC) treatments when I wash my hair, but heck if I know when to do one of these other treatments. For me, I wonder when people have the time to do all these treatments routinely when we have only 4 weekends a month. Well, when I saw this post on NNG's blog, I knew for sure that I would reblog it at some point. Enjoy.

Sometimes, natural hair treatments might look like a lot and with the thousands of different concoctions promising to make your hair long, strong and gorgeous, it's very easy to get confused and give up already!

However, there is a method to the madness. You don't really need to do all the treatments unless your hair needs it....well, that's how  I roll sha....lol! I feed my hair on demand.

So here's what natural hair treatments I do and when.

- I do a HENNA TREATMENT when I notice my hair breaks at the slightest touch. I have fine natural  hair so I need all the reinforcement I can get. Henna binds strongly to hair protein thereby strenghtening it from within. I also do a henna treatment to dye my grey hair (inherited) a nice shade of reddish gold.

- I do a HOT OIL TREATMENT and scalp massage whenever I notice my hair is dull, doesn't retain moisture well and tangles easily. Coconut oil, olive oil, palm kernel oil, grapeseed oil, and soya bean oil are amazing. I also do the treatment when my scalp feels really dry/itchy and prior to heat stretching. This includes the Indian oiling method which helps me retain moisture, improve the elasticity of my fine hair and prevent breakage.

- I do an ACV (apple cider vinegar) RINSE to rid my hair of product buildup, revive my coils and reset my hair to default. It also helps with itchy scalp, tangles and dull sheen.

- I do a PROTEIN TREATMENT with Aphogee, eggs, milk or gelatin when I know I'll be heat styling or manipulating my hair a lot to reduce breakage. I do these protein treatments in between henna treatments. They are temporary protein treatments but they help my hair.

-In any event my hair feels very hard from protein overload, I do an intensive moisture DEEP CONDITIONING TREATMENT.

-To get well defined coils in my wash and gos, twists or twistouts (I love curly ends that go boing!) I alternate between a HIBISCUS RINSE, moisturising deep conditioner and weekly cowash.

- For unexplained shedding, I do TEA RINSES. I prefer the moringa/ginger/black tea mix for my rinse.

- Just before I put my hair in a long term protective style such as braid/twist extensions or weaves, I do an OVERNIGHT MOISTURE DEEP CONDITIONING TREATMENT followed by a HOT OIL TREATMENT to make sure my hair is well hydrated so it doesn't dry out, tangle or break off during take down.

- MANSHANU (ghee as it's called in Nigeria) DEEP TREATMENT gives me the softest shiny hair but it's been a bit difficult to find until Providence brought a nice Fulani lady across my way who promised to supply me with the freshest, yummiest butter.....in addition to the creamiest 'fura da nono' ....millet ball in cows milk...it tastes divine served cold!

What a wealth of information, right? Are there any treatments that you do regularly? Which ones do you do and why?

Berry Dakara