First of all, if you’re in protein overload, it’s going to be okay! I am going to help you get out of it. Just keep reading.
As I’ve discussed in both posts right before this one, protein mimickers can make it look and feel like you have too much protein. I’d recommend first looking into seeing if its a mimicker reaction because it’s a much easier fix. Click Here to read more information about these mimickers. The worst offender is coconut. Try clarifying, then going 3 washes with no coconut and see if that does anything. Any ingredient with the word “coconut” or Cocos “Nucifera”. If it’s not a mimicker, or you can’t tell and you are unsure on which direction to go(moisture or protein) or feeling overwhelmed, it won’t hurt to assume it is protein overload. Worst case scenario, your hair may get overmoisturized, but this is much easier to get out of. I always recommend to try moisture before protein for this reason.
This is what can cause protein overload:
1) Doing protein treatments (Aphogee, gelatin) when you didn’t need to
2) Doing protein treatments too often
3) Leaving protein treatments on too long
4) Not deep conditioning after a protein treatment
5) Doing protein treatments and also using protein heavy products
6) Using protein heavy products for weeks or months without balancing with moisture
7) Loosing track of how much Neutral Protein Filler you’ve been using, using too much of it, or using it too often. This is a very potent product, and if you have hair that can’t tolerate too much protein, this can definitely put you hair over the edge.
It’s important to also check by FEELING your hair. Is it rough, dry, brittle, tangled under layer, stringy, cast wont break? So rough that it pricks you through your shirt?
So how do you get out of protein overload?
1) Clarify. ACV rinse will work fine. Click Here to see a tutorial of how I do it. Or if you prefer or a clarifying shampoo that’s fine too. Just make sure you deep condition after!
2) Immediately stop using any products with protein. Click Here for an easy to read list of the different kinds of protein.
3) Deep condition more often. Like weekly.
4) Try not washing out all the conditioner from your hair. Leave a little in there
5) Try spending more time doing STC
6) Leave more water in your hair before and after styling
7) Try using more leave in conditioner
8) Try plopping for longer. Like 30 min.
9) Click Here to read more tips for adding moisture.
Once you think your hair is starting to balancing out,(this could take a while, like a few months depending on how much extra protein you have in your hair, so hang tight) you can slowly start adding in a products with protein again so you don’t tip the scale too much towards the other direction of overmoisturized hair.
Keep in mind that even those who have been CG for years can still get confused with this balance, only it does get easier over time to know what your hair wants.
I’ve FINALLY figured out my hair doesn’t need too much protein. It doesn’t need protein treatments. It just wants products with protein sometimes, mostly in conditioners and gels. But my hair’s favorite way to get protein is by adding like 3 drops of NPF into the conditioner I use or the deep conditioner I use. NPF added to my normal wash day products is too much for me. I have to give a big thank you to my curl friend Megan for helping me with this. She has soooo many helpful posts explaining how she knows he hair doesn’t need much protein, how she figured this out, and how she keeps her hair balanced.
If you would to have a one on one Curly Consultation with me, Click Here for more details.