Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I should first note that I have medium-length (nearly mid-back) relaxed (but naturally coarse) hair. I am very into hair care and have accumulated a lot knowledge over the last couple of years via research about how to properly care for African American hair. In the process, I learned about Aphogee Two-Step, a heavy protein treatment. I was wary of it because I had read that it is an extremely strong treatment that turns your hair rock-hard when left to dry and, if used improperly or if your hair does not need protein, can have disastrous results. Despite my worries, I bought this product over a year ago, but had not used it for a long time simply because I was too scared to use it. I finally decided to use it recently out of desperation. Though my hair is pretty long, it is typically limp, dull, has very little body, and feels very weak. I've also been having issues with breakage, particularly after washing my hair, and have noticed that I have been losing some of my length. Because I do all other things recommended to care for relaxed hair, I suspected that it was my reluctance to use a lot of protein that was finally taking its toll. I researched heavy protein treatments again and read that if you are relaxed, you almost certainly need heavy protein treatments to counteract the negative effects of the relaxer. I have actually known this for a long time, but, as I mentioned, I was too afraid to use the treatment and convinced myself that because my hair was long, I was doing fine. Wrong! Though I do take care of my hair, the relaxers have been taking a toll on it and I'm so glad that I finally decided to take the plunge! I have only used it once, but have already noticed drastic results. After the entire process was over and I was done detangling, which usually results in the loss of countless small hairs, I saw that I had VERY few broken-off hairs in my comb or anywhere else. I was already sold. Once my hair was dry and styled, I noticed that my hair had more body (it holds a curl much better) and felt stronger (I could pull on it and run my hand through it without also breaking off strands). My hair just has more life and structure and I can't wait until it's time to use it again so that I can continue to see improvements in my hair. Before I end this (long) review, I just want to advise people about a few things regarding this product: -Use only every 6 weeks. If used more often than that, you will oversaturate your hair with protein and it will eventually become dry and brittle and break off. If you relax your hair, it is recommended that you schedule these treatments so that you have one either a week before or after a relaxer. -Don't manipulate your hair when it is drying/dry because your hair really does become hard as a rock and it will break off if manipulated. The instructions say to comb it through while it is still wet in order to saturate the hair, but I found that my hair was too sticky and that the treatment was drying too quickly for that. I just sprayed it on with a spray bottle to saturate my hair, quickly finger-combed it through, and sat under the drier with my hair UNCOVERED for 20 minutes. -It is recommended by Aphogee that you use their Balancing Moisturizer immediately after rinsing out the treatment. This is meant to return the pH of your hair back to normal and is not intended to function as a moisturizing deep conditioner, which you will DEFINITELY need to use, as well. It's unfortunate that the directions don't inform customers of this, as some people won't be aware that your hair will become hard and break off if you don't follow up with a moisturizing deep conditioner. After rinsing out the Balancing Moisturizer, apply a good moisturizing deep conditioner (look at the ingredients to make sure it has little to no protein in it!) and leave it in your hair (under a plastic cap/bag) for 45 minutes to an hour. Rinse it out, apply your leave-ins/moisturizers and style as usual. BTW, this stuff smells PUTRID, but it's worth it in the end and the smell goes away once the treatment is rinsed out, anyway.