Seriously Heat Damaged Natural Hair

[BPenny]

I've been natural forever but up until a few years ago struggled with excessive straightening. Now I usually only straighten my hair November- April. After my previous flat iron my hair will not curl. I've tried DIY masks and deep conditioners. Nothing is working. I refuse to big chop has anyone else ever experienced this after just one flat iron? I was using a new flat iron the NUME I can't remember which one I gave it away after this experience.

[bharvey]

If you reeeeally don't want to chop you could go to the salon, get a single process colour close to your natural, no lightening, and have an olaplex treatment. Your stylist will still suggest you cut it, they know best, but you can nod and smile. Keep going with the olaplex step 3 and seal in moisture with an oil. 

[lylysa]

Hi, BPenny, while the thought of a massive overhaul hair cut or trim is never a fun idea, you're not doing your hair any favors by keeping an excess of dead, dried out, and damaged ends intact either. In fact, keeping damaged hair and refusing to trim those regions only means they're soaking up all the wonderful product you may be using in hopes to treat them but not actually able to process their benefits and thus improve your hair's health. 

Depending on your hair length currently and its texture, you may consider getting layers cut in or consult with a hair dresser to see if they can focus more on targeting damaged regions while preserving some length so you can at least get a compromise on being ultimately rid of portions that are beyond saving and not having to sacrifice the rest if your hair. It's very possible that with timely scheduled trims you can remove damage little by little without having to hack off your hair in one full swoop. 

Moving forward, I would highly recommend utilizing a thermal/heat protectant product that is suitable for your hair type and texture so shield strands from excessive heat damage be it from a flat iron, blow dryer, or any other heat styling tool. I'm unfamiliar with the Nume flat iron you currently have, but by chance is there a temperature control or gauge on it? If so, be sure your temperature setting is suited for your hair type, while it may be tempting to find the hottest flat iron there is (temperature-wise) or crank a dial to max heat to speed up the job, this will only cause unneeded stress to hair and make its condition worse in the long run with damage that could have been avoided in the first place. There are many styling products now that also help preserve the results of styling, so try to also check into these so that your smooth, sleep strands that have been straightened last longer so you're not having to touch up constantly to maintain straight locks.