Texlaxing: The Relaxer for Natural Hair

Texlaxing: The Relaxer for Natural Hair

First of all, let us say any relaxer, lye or no lye, that gets put on any hair is indeed a relaxer. There is no way to chemically straighten natural hair with one. If you know of a way that does not involved harsh lye sitting on your scalp, please let us know! This new fad, “texlaxing” is basically a part-time relaxer for women rocking natural hair. Texlaxing is relaxing hair but altering the time the relaxer actually sits on the scalp. To texlax is to cut the usual 15 to 20 minutes down to 5 minutes for the relaxer to process completely. Texlaxing could also involve mixing heavy amounts of carrier oil like coconut oil, sunflower oil or avocado oil into the relaxer kit before applying to the scalp.

The hope is to get the best of both worlds: keeping the natural curls while taking advantage of some of the “benefits” to a relaxer. A popular way to texlax natural hair would be to apply the relaxer to the roots only, allowing the rest of the hair shaft to its natural curliness. Some have reported to seeing a lot less breakage after a texlax, while others say it gives them more versatility options. Frankly, it is too close for comfort for us. Leaving a relaxer from 5 minutes to 50 minutes does not change the fact that it is a relaxer and could still cause serious burn and damage to your hair and scalp. Relaxers, full relaxed or texlaxed, do not keep you from potentially developing fibroids. The chances are slim but who would want to risk it over hair!? Bottom line: any relaxer you see marketed as being “infused” with olive oil or coconut oil is trying to lure a natural from slipping back into the creamy crack. It still will work like all the other relaxers on the shelf.

Besides, there are plenty of ways to straighten natural hair. A Dominican blowout will give you incredibly straight tresses for weeks. But we caution not to get blow outs down often as they can be very drying and damaging to hair. An old fashion hot comb can keep your hair straight for a couple of days. The process is lengthy, especially if your hair is thick or long. You can band your hair together after a fresh wash and condition. This involves the hair being sectioned, conditioned and place into pony tails and wrapping a soft rubber band around it, keeping it straight. This method will take time because the hair has to hair dry. But after removing the bands, your hair will be a lot straighter than usual.