Hello ladies
I realised a little while ago that although I have mentioned stretching in previous posts, I haven’t written a detailed post the subject. Stretching can be beneficial to ladies who relax their hair, however if you don’t know what you are doing, it can do more harm than good.
In this blog post I will explain what stretching is, its benefits and the risks involved.
WHAT IS STRETCHING
Extending the amount of time between your relaxers for more than 8 weeks is known as stretching. For example, rather than relaxing every 8 weeks, several ladies on healthy hair journeys stretch their relaxer touch ups to every 10 to 12 weeks, or more. I relax my hair every 20 weeks.
I am currently on a stretch and I am 25 weeks post at the moment.
I have been wearing my Hair by Type 4 wigs for the last 10 weeks or so.
I wear my hair in box braids under my wigs and unravelled one for an impromptu length check.
WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF STRETCHING
1) Relaxing your hair less frequently will lead to stronger hair over time ( in comparison to a lady who relaxes very frequently)
During the relaxing process, some of the product will come in contact with previously relaxed hair thereby over processing that spot. This means that every time we relax our hair we create a point of weakness.
As an example, a lady who relaxes her hair every 4 weeks (I know ladies who do this) would have created 12 weak spots ( over processed spots) in a year. Alternatively, lady who stretches and relaxes her hair every 12 weeks would have only created 4 weak spots in a year. Over the years, which of these two do you think will have stronger hair and less breakage?
2) With stretching, our hair and scalp has less exposure to relaxers which can be extremely damaging.
Relaxers weaken our hair; however relaxed hair can still flourish (unless you are abusing it). Limiting how often we expose our hair to relaxers is a good idea.
Ladies who are able to stretch their relaxers successfully usually see improvements in the look, feel and length of their hair.
WHAT ARE THE RISKS OF STRETCHING
Let me be start by saying point blank that stretching can lead to a setback on your hair journey. A stretch that goes wrong can lead to thinner, damaged and shorter hair. Challenges often faced by ladies who stretch their relaxer includes:
1) Shedding. Some ladies who stretch their relaxer notice an increase in their shedding rates. I have explained how to reduce shedding in a previous post.
2) Breakage at line of demarcation. The point where the relaxed hair and natural hair meets tends to be fragile and can break if not handled with care.
3) Hair care is generally more challenging. Ladies who stretch their relaxer tend to have a lot of new growth as well as their previously relaxed hair. Managing these two textures on the same head is very challenging. The difference in textures can lead to an increase in tangles and matting. Washing, conditioning, detangling and styling tends to take longer the further you go into your stretch.
The most common setback a lot of ladies experience when stretching is extreme matting that occurs during washing. In some cases, the hair actually forms locs which are very difficult to unravel and often leads to a lot of breakage. This has happened to me on more than one occasion (before my hair journey). It’s really not pretty but it can be easily avoided.
So there you have it, the basics of stretching, its pros and cons.
In part two, I will explain why you must have a game plan if you decide to stretch, why you shouldn’t try to run before you walk and how I’ve gone from having setbacks to comebacks with stretching.
Stretching successfully helped transform my hair so please come back for part two in which I will share my personal tips for stretching.
X
Lade
Learn | Chang | Grow
Waiting earnestly for part 2. I’m 12 weeks post and need the info right about now. Thanks mucho :D.
Author
Working on part two today. already have the first rough draft done. So it will be up sooooooooon.
🙂
How do you not get matting at 25 weeks and in the 20 braids?… that is unheard of to me. I am currently using your method of wearing wigs for an extended period with my hair braided or twisted underneath but my roots are so thick that they mat as early as 6 weeks so I have to unravel fix the problem and re-braid. What is your secret?
Author
Hello Tammy
I wish I could get away with 25 weeks with no matting…..I don’t. I think you may have miss read my post.
I am 25 weeks post. I keep my hair in box braids under my wig which I redo every THREE weeks.
You are lucky if you can wait six weeks before redoing your. Mine can only go for three weeks or else trouble sets in.
I hope that clears things up.
x
Lade
Hi, what salon, do you retouch your hair at.
Author
hello Fade
I self relax at home, my sister helps me with the back.
Please do not do any chemical service yourself unless you know what you are doing. relaxers in the wrong hands can be very dangerous.
Hello, im interested in the type 4 wigs, how can i purchase them? what is the price range? Thank you…
Author
Hello Tunrayo
Please send an email to hairbytype4@gmail.com. I will send you the pictures and the price list.
thanks
Hi Lade, sent you a mail about 4 weeks ago asking to buy your type 4 wigs. Can you please let me know. I am based in Lagos and need a response soon. thanks!
Author
Hello Anots
You should have received an response by now. Some emails unfortunately turn up in our spam folder and are not seen immediately. Please accept my apologies for the delay.
Please check your inbox for pictures and the pricelist for the wigs.
Thanks
Lade
Dear Lade, thank you for your posts. They are usually simple to follw and you make effort to explain, indeed you really educate others. I started my hair journey just November last year when I discovered Dabs online and since then I have followed a few more blogs and I am quite happy with my hair. I am currently stretching my touch up and I am at 15 weeks. Luckily I have discovered crochet braiding and its been a life saver. Now I am interested in having a good wig but more like my hair. Please contact me for more details.
Author
Hello Sisimi
Thank you sooooo much. I do try to keep things as simple and straight forward as far as possible.
I have a few friends who looooove and swear by crochet braiding. Co-incidentally they are all natural, I wonder if you are too?.
Please send an email to hairbytype4@gmail.com and I will send you pictures and the price list for the wigs.
x
Lade