My hair has been over processed. I got a perm and it didn't take. About three weeks later, I got another one. Now my hair is over processed and it's like cotton candy. What can I do (other than getting it all cut off) to bring some life back into it? Any and all suggestions are greatly appreciated.
Renee from St. Louis, MO
I am sorry to hear of your terrible experience. First: Don't use the same head dresser again. It was completely unprofessional advice to have another perm so soon, on already processed hair.
Now, try using the best conditioner you can afford or half a cup of really good olive oil and half a cup of mayonnaise mixed together. Slather all over DRY hair and leave on for as long as possible, I leave mine in all night covered with a shower cap and a towel on my pillow. Not conducive to romance, but wash out and condition in the morning and your hair will immediately show improvement. Use the mildest shampoo you can, like baby shampoo. Continue to do this treatment as often as possible and you will notice that it does regain its condition. Try and have a small regular trim, as no doubt your ends are split.
Also, try asking the manager of the salon who did this if they will provide you with free conditioning treatments. Bad experiences spread by one woman can do immense damage to a good salon, and they might like the opportunity to rectify this problem for you. Best of luck. (04/03/2006)
By Ang
I have done this (or something like this) before. Easy best fix; go to Walmart or any hair care place
and buy Afro Sheen products. It will restore moisture for your hair. Try them, it will really work.
The one conditioner with Castor oil is the one that I find works the best. Good luck. (04/04/2006)
When this happened to me years ago, I used Keraphix by Nexxus. Not cheap, but it worked wonders. (04/04/2006)
By Leslie
There are various products by FRIZZ EAZE which I am sure will help. The one called SERUM is especially good - I have used it after a bad perm and it really helped. It's available in drug and grocery stores. Good Luck! (04/04/2006)
By Joan
Ang, Have you considered the possibility that it was a home perm? (04/04/2006)
Hi,
I read about your hair dilemma. I have been a hair dresser for 40 years. If your perm did not take the first time, never, never, never get another one closer than 2 months, especially if your hair is treated by bleaching or lightening by more than 20 volumn peroxide. The perm will utterly ruin the hair, or especially if your hair is thin. The wisest thing to do is do a heat cap of olive oil for 20 minutes, and just let the hair grow out. If you do anything more than what has already been done, you really will have fuzz. Do the olive oil twice a week for about a month.
Please do nothing but TLC to your hair from now on. (04/06/2006)
By Mary Pallister
My hair is also over processed and VERY dry. Besides the perm, I've also been experimenting with hair color because I'm getting gray hair. I use conditioner every time I shampoo and every time I shower - even if I don't shampoo. I also got most of the perm trimmed off because the ends were so dry. The hair salons have some really good conditioners you might try. (04/09/2006)
I just found this page, as the same thing happened to me a couple days ago. The hairdresser got involved in 2 haircuts as my hair was processing. It is now like straw (it's colored). I did a hot oil treatment last night and used some frizz ease, but this morning it's all dried out again. It's so frustrating as this lady did it last time and it was okay. I think she just got involved in her haircuts while she should have been tending to my hair. What a mess!
(10/17/2007)
By carol
I'm black, I'm African, East African, and we tend to have all hair types because we are mixed with all sorts of tribes and cultures. So, I perm my hair to make it manageable. I've used optimum for a few years now and I keep hearing about this new olive oil perm. Can someone tell me if it's good to transition from Optimum to Olive Oil perm? I know that ever since I started using the actual extra virgin olive oil on my hair, it has been unbelievably soft.
Thanks (05/22/2008)
By LVG
Hi Renee, so sorry to hear about your bad perm. I've been a hairdresser and am a shop owner now for around 40 yrs. You shouldn't have gotten another perm after getting your hair over processed. This just further damaged your hair. I can't believe a hairdresser would do this. The shop where you got the bad perm should have given you free conditioning treatments and hair trims too.
I keep my hair colored blonde, have natural curl; but, once I decided to give myself a perm after letting it grow out some. I had one spot that was frizzy afterward. After using numerous what I believed to be very good conditioners, I still had a frizzy spot. I picked up a bottle of Pure Care conditioner, a very mild conditioner that you can use on your skin and hair. I shave my legs using it. This cheap conditioner worked great and took out the frizz, didn't rinse it out after shampooing and it didn't look oily. And baby shampoo isn't the mildest shampoo you can use. Look for a good beauty shop shampoo that has a lower pH level. This would be one especially formulated for permed or color treated hair. Best of luck! (05/22/2008)
By anorman
Put an "omni pack" on it. Ask for it at your nearest salon. (10/06/2008)
By korry
Okay, I have a miracle product line for you. A lot of people do not know about this line of products. It's called biolustre, you can get the treatment in a shop or you can buy it on hsn or ebay or from their site. it's a 4 step routine. Wash the hair with the first bottle, this will take out all the build up on the hair. Then the renew is applied. It must be applied in sections, so have someone help you, then you sit under a dryer for thirty minutes, hair gets very hard.
Don't let this scare you, be careful not to try and bend the hair, it will break. Then you rinse it 4 times to remove the renew and shampoo and condition with the other product line. It's the most amazing thing ever, it has keratin in it, which is what your hair is made of. If you go on ebay you will see some videos of how it's done. Or go to You tube and type it in. A lost of stars use this of course by their hairdresser, like Heidi Klum etc. Good luck, it's amazing and a miracle. (11/18/2008)
By Nancy
I'm going to try afro-sheen tonight. Hope it works on this old white gal. Thanks for the tip. (01/30/2009)
By Barb L.
I am a hairstylist and to be completely realistic there really is nothing you can do to "repair" it, because once the damage is done it technically is irreparable. But to prevent hair breakage you need to get protein treatments. Either from your local stylist or you can pick up treatments at Sally's Beauty Supply. It will return strength to your hair to at least prevent further breakage. And don't over condition! While it may seem that your hair is dry, it is more fragile and mushy than anything, so over conditioning will just make it more mushy. The idea is STRENGTH, so look for that when you buy shampoo and conditioner. (02/11/2009)
By Dea
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