AphogeeBalancing Moisturizer & Two-Step Protein Treatment

After having some annoying problems with my hair I did some research and self assessed that my hair was lacking protein. I have included a helpful info graphic that I found. The “too much moisture” section sums up what my hair was like with emphasis on the elasticity and breaking part. While brushing my hair it would go through the bristles of the Brush and stretch and then break. I had to be so careful when brushing but that didn’t help much. I tried drug store hair mask and such with no avail. Not having a lot of money for salon treatments I was on the search for an affordable at home product and I stumbled across this. It was beyond worth any risk I perceived. Within one use my hair was back to being healthy and no longer overstreching and breaking. Styling actually went a lot easier and my hair felt silky soft. To my surprise with one use, I did not have an issue with over moisture again. However, I used it once again a few months after just for maintenance even though my hair felt fine (instructions recommended). It’s been 7 months since the second time ( a little over a year since 1st use) and I have enough for one treatment left. I have shoulder length hair that tapers to mid back length. While my hair is fine and curly, I have a lot of it - so you get a fair amount of product from the small bottle - totally making this product a steal.After reading some of the negative review I believe that people are not using the product properly or do not need a protein treatment. Too much protein can be a bad thing too!Some caveats and tips:The protein treatment is very sticky and has a chemical smell - not super strong through but it can be bothersome to some. I apply over a toweled area to avoid any sticky messes.Most people don’t have the dryers you sit under, so hand drying with the hair can take a while. I can only do so much at a time before a have to take a break. It takes about 40-60 mins for it to completely dry.Yes, your hair with harden like you just emptied several cans of hair spray. It will be prone to breakage so be careful. It’s not as scary as that sounds I haven’t had an issue with that.To avoid issue - I shower wash my hair with shampoo (my own) step out towel dry off. Lay some towels down and sit. I brush any tangles out of my hair and I pour the product into my hand and apply to my hair. Once saturated, I’ll grab the hair dryer and start drying. Make sure to move carefully and not mess with your hair to much while drying. After, it is dry I hop back in the shower and let the water run through until most of the product is gone. Then I apply the second step for about five minutes and rinse.Yes, it’s a bit of a process, but the results are beyond worth it. I am so happy I found this product.Since using this, I also got rid of moisturizing shampoos and conditioner. I stick to clarifying or strengthing ones. I do use a multi purpose heat protection spray which offers some moisturizing benefits and about every other month or so I will use a little bit of the 2nd moisturizing part (you get plenty of it) just keep my hair balanced.

I was honestly a bit skeptical to purchase this product after reading some of the reviews but I figured with my hair damage, I didn't have much to lose.Back Story- I went to a salon about a month ago with years and years of black box dye buildup on my hair.. I told the stylist I would like to have a lighter brown hair color with some blonde highlights.. She proceeds to tell me I would need to bleach my full head to achieve this look.. So I go on with what she's telling me.. She ends up bleaching my hair once, leaving me with white roots and super orange ends. She insists on another round of full bleach, so I let her thinking hey she is the professional, right?! Wrong! My hair is still white roots and orange ends. So she decides that I just need a color with blue tones put over my two toned hair and everything will be fine. No. It does nothing to the ends.. Thankfully, my roots did look more blonde than white. She dries my hair and then tells me that there is nothing else she can do. At this point, I'm totally devastated. I can tell with how long it took for her to dry my hair that I'm experiencing a lot of damage.. So I go home with my blonde-orange hair and I am just super depressed for a week, thank goodness I'm a stay at home mom.. Otherwise, I probably would have shaved it off and bought a wig. I couldn't take a shower and comb my hair without it feeling super stretchy, sticky and mushy. My brush would be full of hair that had came out while I was brushing. I waited a week with this hair, before I decided to take matters into my own hands. I had already paid this woman $130 to take me down to blonde-orange, so I was desperate. I went to Sally's and purchased the wella t-14 toner, it helped take a lot of the orange out but I was still not in love with my color.. It looked kind of grey? So I waited a few more days with this color.. Trying to learn to love it until I got in the mood to just get rid of it and color my hair burgundy for fall... Which I'm in love with by the way. With all of the deep conditioning and non use of heating tools, my hair had improved a bit, however I was still experiencing the mushy, taking FOREVER to dry hair. So I googled, and googled and stumbled upon this product. I done as the instructions say; apply to wet hair and comb through then dry. It does dry super stiff. I then rinsed my hair and used the balancing moisturizer. After, I let my hair air dry for a while before I went to my blow dryer. I could tell some difference, but it was still taking forever to dry. So I waited a week and done the treatment again and I must say that my hair is so much better. It took me 2-4 minutes to dry with a blow dryer, which it odd because I have super long thick hair. I will say that the moisturizer smells worse than the actual treatment. Also, my hair is still super frizzy but I think I can continue to deep condition and it will eventually be repaired.