Stretching relaxers

Hi Brownie29,

Stretching is the key for many of us who are growing healthy hair.  By stretching, you prevent overlapping the relaxer on previously-relaxed hair.  Therefore, you are preventing overprocessing and unnessary and all-too common damage. 

The length of time you can stretch a relaxer, without breakage, varies depending on what type of hair you have, the amount of manipulation you apply to your hair, etc...  The key is to keep your new growth well-conditioned and moisturized while stretching because it keeps the hair both healthy and manageable. 

Low-manipulation hairdos are great while stretching, especially if you are trying to protect your ends from everyday combing, rubbing on your clothes, snapping off, exposed to particles in the air, etc...

Determining how long to stretch depends on you, your hair type, and your lifestyle. For instance, I used to relax every 6 to 8 weeks.  However, once I started researching about healthy hair maintenance, I realized that I was overlapping the relaxer chemicals on my previously-relaxed hair, which was the primary reason for my hair breakage.  I decided to double the length of time I relax, which is now 12 weeks.  This gives my hair time to grow a safe amount of new growth, to avoid overprocessing.  In the meantime, during my 12-week stretches, I deep-conditioned my hair once a week.  I washed in the mid-week.  After every wash, use a leave-in, a moisturizer, and an oil.  I always paid extra attention to the last two to three inches of the hair, which is the part of the hair shaft most vulnerable to breakage, especially during stretches. 

So, reexamine your routine, and stretch a few weeks longer than you are used to.  Give your hair enough time in between relaxers to breathe and enough space to avoid overlapping.  The average stetcher starts around 12 weeks but the other common timelines are 8 weeks, 10 weeks, and 16 weeks.  There are super-stretchers out there, but you have to be able to handle that type of commitment or have a texture that can handle the stretching without breaking. 

Keep track of your progress, and you will determine what works best for your hair, schedule, and goals.  Good luck and happy growing.

You just have to take care of your hair, you can stretch it untill your almost natural you just have to make sure that you protect both textures of your hair. I for one have stretched for 3 months and plan to stretch 6 months my next relaxer because I'm trying the new phyto relaxer.

my the keys to streching a relaxer is a good moisturzer, detangler and hair reconstructor