Is It Necessary To Protective Style?

Protective styling has long been established as the standard for retaining length in ethnic hair. One of the first things I did when I began taking care of my own hair was compile a list of protective styles--ones I knew worked and ones I wanted to try. As my hair grew, I became disenchanted with all of the protective styling and moved away from the practice. I found that even without protective styling I continued to retain length. Despite what I'd found I still saw and continue to see people deathly afraid of wearing their hair loose.  

Protective styling serves to protect your hair from elements that could possibly cause breakage. These elements can be wind, dryness, or friction from your hair rubbing against materials.Being that your hair is much like fabric, it makes sense why protective styling has effectively helped many retain length. However, we can protect our hair in other ways. Protective styling is not the "end all be all."

You can protect your hair by strengthening it to keep it from breaking due to the manipulation of styling and daily wear. You can moisturize your hair so that it isn't brittle and less likely to break. You can decrease manipulation by washing your hair once or twice a week and practicing low manipulation styling. As stated in an old post of mine, sealing your ends is also very important.

It is because of these reasons that I STILL do not find it necessary to protective style.

Do you think protective styling is necessary? Comment below! 

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