How Long Is Too Long? Knowing When to Take Down Your Protective Style
Protective styles are a staple when it comes to Be Beautiful Hair. Be it braids, twists, or crochet, these styles help to, as implied in the name, protect your hair and in doing so, reduce and prevent breakage and damage. They’re also a greatly convenient way to manage and maintain healthy hair. However, as with everything in life, too much of a good thing can become toxic.
While styles offer numerous benefits for your curls and coils, leaving them in too long can result in unwanted side effects like scalp irritation, hair breakage, and thinning edges.
With that, Be Beautiful Hair wants to highlight the importance of understanding the benefits of protective style, but also to know when it’s time to stop protecting your style.
Understanding Protective Styles
As mentioned, protective styles are meant to protect your hair, but from what exactly?
Environmental stressors such as humidity, the cold and heat, as well as mechanical stressors like heat styling or excessive manipulation. With protective styles, your hair is tucked away and experiences minimal exposure to the weather, and manipulation and your hair is given a chance to rest and grow.
Popular protective styles include:
- Box Braids
- Senegalese Twists
- Cornrows
- Wigs
- Weaves
- Twist Outs
- Bantu Knots
Benefits of Protective Styles
Now before we showcase the risks of leaving protective styles in for too long, it’s important to first highlight why we love them so much.
Aside from minimizing hair manipulation (combing, brushing and styling) and your curls from the elements, protective styles can also promote steady growth and they also give you a chance to experiment with different looks, all whilst protecting your curls.
How Long Should You Keep a Protective Style In?
Now while there is no one-size-fits-all answer as protective styles come in different forms, the general rule of thumb is to keep it in for six to eight weeks.
So, how do you know when it’s time to take out your protective style?
- Box Braids and Twists: Four to six weeks as with time, the hair beneath our Gold Braids can begin to grow out, making the braids look messy and uneven.
- Wigs and Weaves: Four to six weeks as you need to keep your scalp is adequately healthy, hydrated and happy.
- Cornrows, Twist Outs and Bantu Knots: These can be left in for about four to six weeks.
When Is It Time to Take Down Your Protective Style?
While you can wear a protective style for four to eight weeks, you may need to take it down sooner if you begin to experience any of the following:
- Irritated Scalp
If your scalp becomes itchy or irritated, it’s time to say goodbye to the protective style.
Scalp discomfort typically occurs due to buildup of sweat, oils, and products and if left unchecked it can lead to scalp infections.
- Product Buildup
When wearing a protective style, your hair may struggle to absorb the products you use, leading to buildup on your scalp or hair. This can lead to clogged pores, dandruff, and an irritated scalp.
- Tension
Protective style can cause tension and hair loss in the form of traction alopecia, which leads to thinning edges. If you begin to notice strain on your roots, then it’s time to take out the style.
- Frizzy Appearance
Yes, protective styles are beautiful, but if they begin to look frizzy, loose, or unkempt, then that means it’s time to switch it up.
- Unusual Odour
Aside from a frizzy appearance, protective styles may also emit an unusual odour, which suggests bacterial growth, as bacteria thrives in moist and warm environments. Now, if you notice a musty smell, then you need to do more than wash your braids – you need to take them down.
Caring for Your Hair After Removing the Protective Style
Removing your protective style is just one part of the haircare journey, as you also need to care for your hair after the fact. To do so, here are a few tips:
- Detangling
After removing your protective style, your hair may be feeling dry, so it’s best to give it some moisture.
- Scalp Cleanse
A clean scalp is a healthy scalp to be sure to cleanse your scalp thoroughly with a gentle shampoo to remove any buildup.
- Deep Conditioner
Using a leave in conditioner, detangle your hair of any knots and then use a deep conditioning treatment to restore moisture, and strength to your hair.
- Give Your Hair a Break
Just because you took down one protective style, doesn’t mean that you need to rush into another.
6Kampus Productions/Pexels
Instead, let your hair to breathe for a few days, or even weeks, before your next look. In doing so, your coils and scalp get much-needed rest so that they can be in best condition possible for your next Be Beautiful Hair look.
Conclusion
Yes, protective styles are a fantastic way to protect your hair and promote growth, and we have a plethora of options at Be Beautiful Hair. Yet, despite our offerings, we understand the importance of knowing when to take them down.
