Avoiding Setbacks| Prepare for the worst

Welcome back to another installment in our "Avoiding Setbacks Series."  Please, pour a cup of bamboo tea and make yourself at home.  So far we've talked about the importance of consistency and making sure we "act fast" whenever see signs of damage approaching.  Today, we are going to focus on acting preemptively to keep setbacks from happening in the first place.

The lesson for today is:

In a previous lesson, we noted that essentially, there are two main types of setbacks.  The kind creeps up on you ever so slowing and the kind that can happen in the blink of an eye due to excessive trauma to the hair.  Most of the time, the traumatic setback could be avoided or minimized if we proactively prepare for any issues that could arise.

Whenever we are going in for a chemical service, we should be taking the proactive approach. For instance.  My last relaxer yielded less than stellar results.  Why? Because I didn't take adequate amounts of pre-caution to limit the impact of the chemical processing.  Sure, I poured a capful of Pure Protein and silk amino acids into the cream to prevent my new growth from over processing, but I didn't do a good job in protecting my previously relaxed hair.  In the past I would use Preservo Serum on my dry hair as a means protecting the hair even further.  Just imagine how things could have been if I used the serum to protect the length of my hair and pure protein/silk amino acids for new growth protection.  I'd leave almost no room for mishaps to occur.  Instead, I moved forward, knowing I didn't have my beloved serum and hoped for best.

Hoping for the best in the exact opposite of what we should do in our hair journey.  Whenever we are faced a situation that could go "either way" we should always be over prepared.  Situations can include but are not limited to:

• Relaxer Touchups.
• A visit to the stylist for any reason whatsoever.
• A major detangling session.
• Prior to heat styling
• Other chemical process like coloring/bleaching the hair.
• Trying something new with your hair like a clay mask or something your hair has never experienced before.

Those are just a few examples to get you thinking.  Pretty much, whenever we are about to enter in a situation where something could go wrong, always prepare for the worst.  Take extra precautions to over prepare your hair so you limit the number of casualties.  If you are going to detangle stubborn knots, make sure you have the best product on the market to help you.  If you will be using heat, protect your hair like never before.  Planning on doing an intense protein treatment?  Figure out how to balance with moisture as quickly as possible.  You get the picture.

The point is that whenever your are about to undergo an experience with your hair, always, always think of the worst case scenarios and plan to address them accordingly.  Got it?  Good!