Maintaining Moisture in your Natural Hair

Hey, curlies! Thank you for checking out my blog today. Let me know what you think about this post. I actually can't believe that this is a topic I haven’t discussed on its own yet. Moisture retention!  

When I first transitioned back to my natural hair this was my biggest issue. First, know that it does take time and consistency, but I know for a fact if you follow these tips you’ll start to retain moisture a lot better! Are you struggling with dryness? Keep on reading, sis. 

1. Water is the purest form of moisture. When washing your hair, take a few extra minutes before and after each step just to let the water run over your hair. A good moisturizing product (your leave-in conditioners, hair creams, deep conditioners...)  will have water as the first (or second) ingredient. Aloe vera juice and rose water are also very moisturizing and tend to be high up on the ingredient list for moisturizers.

• If you straighten your hair often and struggle with dryness when wearing your natural hair, keep in mind that heat styling completely strips the hair of water a.k.a moisture.

2. Don’t skip deep conditioning. Like ever! It’s not worth it. Deep conditioning is essential for healthy,moisturizednatural hair. When deep conditioning, you should be alternating moisture and protein based on what your hair needs.

Deep Conditioning Your Curls The Right Way

Sis, you need to deep condition

Must-Have Deep Conditioners for Naturally Curly Hair

3. Always seal your hair! Not sure what I mean by “sealing”? After we apply our water-based leave-in conditioner or hair cream, we need to seal that moisture in so it doesn’t go anywhere! Oils and butters are “sealants” - theyseal in moisture. My ayurvedic oil does a great job at this! Depending on your hair texture and porosity, you might prefer a butter instead, like this one. You can also make your own whipped butter if you’re up for it. The order in which you layer your products may also vary. 

5 Tips for Healthy Natural Hair

If you are following these tips and your hair is still dry... listen up. Which products are you using? Throughout my time blogging whenever someone reaches out to me to discuss an issue with their hair, that’s my first question! Pretty much all products sold in stores have a ton of chemicals, that’s expected though, right? They need a shelf life after all. However, not all chemicals are created equal - some are more drying than others! Click on the post linked above and read tip #5 for a more in-depth explanation. I guess I have discussed a lot of this on my blog before! Still, I thought a more specific post would be beneficial. Making the switch to better quality products was a game-changer for me! Not sure which brands to try? Start here. 

In addition to the ingredients discussed in the linked post, let’s talk aboutprotein. Protein isn’t bad, we can all agree that it’s definitely necessary. But, remember how when we talked about deep conditioning I said you need a protein and moisture balance? Well, leave-in hair products can have protein in them too. Depending on your individual hair needs, this can alter that balance. I know it may be difficult to tell what has protein and what doesn’t! Check out the infographic below with the most common protein words/ingredients that you might see in your products! If you think you’re getting too much or too little protein, having this on hand can help you decide which products to use and which to avoid.

 That's it, loves! Those are the top ways that I am able to prevent dryness and maintain moisture in my natural hair. What are some of yours?