Well, it’s here. Protective styling season is upon us! Sure, caring for your hair while wearing the style is essential, but what you do immediately afterwards is probably just as important. Here are five hair care tips you should use after removing your protective style to keep your hair healthy and on the right track!

1. Finger Detangle/Pre-Poo

Whether you’re removing synthetic hair or removing a style done on your own hair, shed hair and tangles are inevitable. Finger detangling is the best way to feel for those tangles and remove the shed hair you’ve accumulated during all those weeks. Remember, you’ve been shedding hair on a daily basis, so don’t worry too much if you end up with a nice sized ball of hair in the end.

Adding a moisturizing product to your hair will help you work through those tangles with ease. Mielle’s Pre-Shampoo Treatment with Mongongo Oil is made specifically for this purpose — to pre-condition hair so that it’s ready to be manipulated in the next step! Take your time with this and be gentle so as not to cause any damage.

2. Clarify Hair and Scalp

Once you’ve dealt with your shed hair and tangles, you can now wash your hair with no issues. Even if you’ve managed to cleanse your scalp somewhat while using a protective style, you can still have product buildup in hard-to-reach places. Overall, this is a way to give yourself a fresh start!

To really clarify the scalp and remove buildup, our Mongongo Oil Exfoliating Shampoo gives you the deep clean you need and leaves your scalp feeling refreshed without stripping the hair of its natural oils.

3. Deep Condition

The need to deep condition your hair probably goes without saying, but this is one of the times you’ll need it most. After weeks or months wrapped up in synthetic hair, your strands can become weakened. Restore both strength and moisture by infusing them with a deep conditioner that contains protein like our Babassu Oil & Mint Deep Conditioner. There’s no need for the two-step process of a protein treatment and a moisture-balancing conditioner — we’ve got both in one step!

Deep conditioning with the help of a hair steamer is a great way to maximize the results! Steaming opens up the hair cuticle and allows the conditioner to deeply penetrate the hair shaft for best results. No steamer? No problem. Use a plastic cap and cover with a towel for a similar effect.

4. Moisturize

By now, your hair should be feeling great! Next, follow up with your moisturizing routine as normal. Applying a leave-in conditioner, then an oil, and following up with your favorite cream or styler (a.k.a. the LOC Method) is the route many naturalistas have found works best to hydrate the hair and seal in the moisture. Be sure to give the ends of your hair some extra love, since they’re the oldest part of your hair and more susceptible to damage. Moisturized strands lead to less breakage and fewer split ends.

5. Trim

There’s a good chance that if you didn’t do it before installing your protective style, you will need a trim after removing it. Let your stylist take a look and assess how much needs to come off to maintain healthy strands. Hopefully, if you’ve been good to your hair, you won’t have to take off too much, but let a pro determine that to be sure.

Honorable Mention: Let Your Hair Breathe and Rest!

Because protective styles make life easier for a few weeks or months, it can be tempting to install another one right away. But now is the time to give your hair and scalp a little break to rejuvenate. Try wearing something low maintenance like simple roll, tuck, and pin styles. These styles won’t put too much stress on the hair, require little manipulation, and can stay in for a few days or even a week if you wrap it up at night!

Are you a regular protective style wearer? What’s your fave?