conquering protein overload

when trying to conquer protein overload the best battle strategy is to only use moisturizing products with no trace of protein. It took me a while to realize many of my moisturizing products, and even shampoos, had traces of protein. I also didn't want to spend a lot of money, so I tried getting the most effective and cheapest products I could. below I've listed how I changed my regimen to combat protein overload, listed from the most helpful.

PRODUCTS

• Hairveda Whipped Ends 
• very good leave-in, a little expensive with shipping, especially if you're buying it alone. the shipping for american residents is about 7 dollars.
• Hairveda Sitrinillah
• also very good, but can be expensive with shipping like the whipped ends.
• Aubrey Organics Honeysuckle Rose 
• also kinda expensive, but it was the most effective in reversing my protein overload. I used it as a deep conditioner and diluted it to use as a leave-in to stretch the dollar. this is also easier to get, usually found at your local vitamin shoppe. 
• Queen Helene Cholesterol 
• has mineral oil, but was very helpful. breakage is associated with protein overload because the hair is stiff and has little elasticity, but cholesterol helps restore elasticity. one thing that people may not like though, is that it has a distinct smell. to me, it smelled like the ferret shampoo I use to bath my ferret with. so I actually liked it because it brought back memories! 
• Honey & Molasses 
• cheap ingredients to add to conditioners to give them a moisture boost.
• Mane n Tail Detangler 
• helped detangling, because protein overloaded hair tends to stick together, making it knot easily. I only used it a couple days before washing because it has cones, which will not mix good with protein overload if there is a build up. 
• Suave Almond & Shea Butter 
• simple cheapie conditioner with no protein

REGIMEN

• deep condition or co-wash once a week with steam 
• helps the conditioner to penetrate the barriers of protein. I used the steam from my college's steam room and sauna.
• clarify (with castile soap and jojoba oil) every two weeks 
• clarifying dries the hair, but it also gets rid of the traces of protein product coating your hair. product build up is also not a good combination with protein overload. the castile soap also opens your hair's cuticles to take in moisture better. just make sure to close them back afterwards. 
• final apple cider vinegar rinse 
• to keep the hair's ph balance stable since I could no longer us roux ph corrector, which has protein in it. this also helps to keep the scalp clean when co washing and seals in the moisture after deep conditioning and using castile soap.
• baggying & wet bunning
• baggying excessively is one of the top things that really helped me. if I didn't do excessive baggying and wet bunning I'd still have protein overload ( wet bunning is when you bun your hair after washing and conditioning it, so that the hair stays wet and moist longer ). what finally got rid of my last traces of protein overload was when I left a bag on for 3 days in a row! with a good leave-in 
• protective styling 
• I kept my hair in braids (at least 8 total), and later twists. I found the twists worked better from keeping my hair from tangling. I also kept them in the shower because that's when my hair would really tangle. the only times I took them out was to detangle and moisturize my hair. 

THINGS I LEARNED

• not to pile your hair with moisturizer or conditioner, because that just creates build up. being light handed and not heavy handed is more effective. 
• stay far away from all protein ingredients, even if it's a little bit. especially from any hydrolyzed protein, which means the protein is small and molecular so it can penetrate the hair better. 
• stay away from coconut, avocado, and banana ingredients, especially as a leave-in. coconut helps keep the protein in you hair, and all of them have little traces of protein. 
• don't use any ayurvedic powders like amla, shikakai, and henna, because they all have strengthening properties like protein. 
• extra virgin olive oil and grapeseed oil are the best oils to seal with. especially with relaxed hair because they're light, but penetrating.