Question: relaxer and low/no heat, or high heat and no relaxer?

[littlefastcar10]

Hi Ladies,


Quick question for you...

A little background: I haven't had a relaxer since April of last year, and I have been and plan to continue wearing my hair straight. I get my hair "old-school' pressed every 1 to 2 weeks, and I also work out about 4x a week. I had a pretty good DC w/ heat and then air dry routine before I stopped relaxing, so that is no issue. The most heat i would ever do was a rollerset. Also, over the course of the past year, I've trimmed from below APL to just below SL, so I'm trying to get my length back also, but mostly focused on health. And I bun a lot either way, but less so with pressed hair.


So, with the goals of overall health, thickness and fast growth/length retention in mind, which do you think is better: low/no heat relaxed, or flat ironed/ pressed natural?

 

[ChristmasCarol]

The only other Black women/girls I've ever known with MBL+ hair are natural and heat-straighten. IRL I have NEVER seen MBL or longer (thick) relaxed hair. There are some on this board, but even here, it appears that the naturals at MBL and beyond far outnumber the relaxed heads.

High heat, IMO, isn't good for anyone - relaxed or natural.

 

[BillsBackerz67]

long term for my hair, a healthier option is relaxed/rollersetting over being natural and longterm heat usage.

 

[prospurr4]

I'm texlaxed (intentionally underprocessed) and prefer wearing my hair straight-ish most of the time, mostly in buns and updos. I straighten my hair with rollersets and haven't used direct heat in over 6 years. This is the healthiest option for me.

 

[taz007]

I am relaxed but I was a heat straightened natural. As evidenced in my first pic, heat was not a good thing for my hair.

 

[littlefastcar10]

The only other Black women/girls I've ever known with MBL+ hair are natural and heat-straighten. IRL I have NEVER seen MBL or longer (thick) relaxed hair. There are some on this board, but even here, it appears that the naturals at MBL and beyond far outnumber the relaxed heads.

High heat, IMO, isn't good for anyone - relaxed or natural.

See, that's the thing. Me too- the only women I see, not withstanding the board, with longer (mbl) hair on a consistent basis are natural. I know because I usually ask them. And the only time my hair was wl was when I was natural as a child. Even with great hair practices, my hair seems to hover just below apl relaxed.

So I'm going to ride this natural thing out for awhile and see how it goes. I'm not swearing off relaxers forever, just taking it a day at a time. And I know I'm using too much heat- trying to figure out how to lessen the heat and still get my hair straight. Once I take out this weave, I'm gonna try rollersetting and then flat ironing to see how that works.

Thanks for your responses, ladies!!

 

[SuchaLady]

This is my reason for not going natural. I eliminate alot of potentially damaging steps by relaxing. Sounds backwards I know.