Perming

> I'am 6 months pregnant and I got an Ogalvie home perm> 3 weeks ago that didn't take at all, my hair is pretty> much straight. I take perms really well and I have> heard that being pregnant can disrupt a good perm, but> I'am wondering if this happened because I used an> Ogalvie perm and what I really want to know is could I> try perming again or should I wait awhile? Help, I> want curly hair!!!!To Chris;I have done many perms on pregnant women with no bad results. Normally you should not perm during the first month of a pregnancy or the first month after a delivery. This is when your body is going through its most 'change' and your hormones are out of control! This can really affect chemical services. Also coloring or perming during your period or just before or after can cause problems, because of hormonal inbalance. If you don't believe me just ask your husband or boyfriend! During a pregnancy your hair can become dry and 'resistant' to chemical services. A pre-perming conditioning routine should be observed by deep conditioning several times before the perm and afterwards, also a clarifying treatment to remove buildup and open the pores for better penetration of the perm solution is reccomended. A porosity and elasticity test should be done by taking a dry hair between your fingertips and gently pulling on it and releasing the tension and watching closely to see if it will return to its original length and not break easily. You should be able to do this a couple of times with no apparent breakage if it is in 'permable' condition. Then take the same hair and carefully lay it on the surface of a cup of warm (not hot) water and check for porosity by observing if it immediately sinks or 'floats' on the surface for a while before it sinks. If it sinks fast it means it is very 'porus' and will absorb the perm solution very quickly and 'take' the curl very fast. (This type of hair should be permed only by a very experienced pro to prevent the risk of severe damage while perming.) If it lies on the surface of the water forever it means it is very 'resistant' and has a very 'closed 'cuticle and will require a stronger solution for this type of hair to be used. If it remains on the surface for a while and gradually sinks it means it is normal and if it passed the 'elasticity' test it can be permed successfully. A word of caution;- do a test curl before trying to reperm all of your hair, if it does ok and looks and feels good after being dried, then go ahead and protect it with a heavy coating of conditioner and roll it up like the rest of your hair, but mark it with a toothpick to prevent it from being 'repermed' over again. If your hair is very resistant, a 5 min rinse with 3% peroxide before perming will open the cuticle for better penetration of the perm solution, be sure to water rinse thoroughly before beginning to perm if you elect to go this way. william