Heat damaged natural hair is constant challenge that many people experience in the natural hair community. Heat damage can be caused by so many things but is most commonly caused by the misuse of heat on natural hair or the constant use of high volumes of heat on hair. When treating heat damaged hair there are some simple steps that can be taken to ease the frustration. It can be hard dealing with heat damaged hair for the first time but imagine dealing with heat damaged hair multiple times. Atiyah Sanders is dealing with heat damaged for the third time. Her 3b hair has been heat damaged due to the misuse of heat by a hair care professional. “I was just looking for the stylist to silk press my hair so the style could last and I would have never thought that would cause me to be going through this again” said Atiyah.
In January of this year, Atiyah was looking to get a silk press(hair straightened) by a new stylist. She explained that what made her nervous about the process is when she realized the stylist did not use any heat protectant. “I was so nervous once I realized she had gotten through almost half of my head without using heat protectant. This was my first time getting a silk press and I just assumed that I should trust her process.” Adding heat to hair without a heat protectant can cause different levels of heat damage on different types of hair. Considering Atiyah has a 3b hair texture and her hair is not very thick, she should always use heat protectant to prep her hair before adding heat. “Since then, I have just trimmed pieces of the heat damaged hair out. My hair is getting better, but I never want to experience this again. The third time was the charm” says Atiyah. To properly treat heat damaged hair, trimming the damaged hair and properly taking care of the healthy hair will help to restore the natural curls.
Retired natural hair stylist, Phillis Ragins, has been treating and taking care a variety of different hair textures. In many cases she has seen the effects of heat damage on natural hair. “I have been in the hair industry for a while and I have had different women with different hair textures come to me with heat damage” Phillis says. Phillis explained how, heat damage can be damaging on so many levels. Phillis explained, “The best remedy for heat damaged hair is immediately removing the problem. Trim that damaged hair little by little and try to keep your hair in easy hairstyles that require little to no heat.” Removing the heat damagehair will avoid long term damage to the remanding healthy hair.
Low maintenance stylesthat require little to no heat will lock the moisture into the hair, while it recovers from the heat damage. According to Natural Hair Queen, looser and protective styles would be ideal for heat damaged hair. The best ways to avoid getting heat damage, is by using heat protectant on natural hair, limiting the amount of heat being used, and going to a professional who will properly straighten the hair. Heat damaged can be avoided, but stylists and other men and women with natural hair who choose to self-straighten must prep the natural hair and make sure the heat settings are correct based on the hair texture.