I stumbled upon a “Tweet” in 2016 by Strawberricurls about a Naturalista going to the salon to get a wash and style but, instead, the beautician gave her a relaxer by mixing the relaxer in her conditioner.

Here’s some of the story:

“I agreed as long as it didn’t take too long and she promised it wouldn’t. To the back of the salon, she goes to mix up a deep condition treatment. I didn’t find this abnormal. I often mix things together to use as a DT myself. She started to apply to my hair and it smelled weird, I asked her about it and she said it’s one of the ingredients for Ph balance.

Ummm.. okay.

About ten minutes in it started to burn which I found weird but she assured me it was just “tingling” and it was good for my scalp… another 3 minutes and I told her to rinse me because I was having some sort of allergic reaction or something (I have pretty sensitive skin so this was possible). She rinsed me out and moved me to the chair. My hair was noticeably straighter as my hair wet without product is very curly and big and poofy, lol. This time my curls hang straight-ish which wasn’t normal. She assured me that it was temporary from the heavy conditioner.

“Okay…” I said”

Say what?! Hold up. Hold all the way up. You say what now?  

First, the beautician was wrong for putting a chemical in this women’s hair without her permission. It doesn’t matter if they think it will make the hair more manageable or not, this is not safe or honest. To even THINK to add a chemical to a client’s hair without their consent, is wrong! Dead wrong!

Read the rest here: http://strawberricurls.com/2010/06/09/it-happened-to-me-a-stylist-added-relaxer-to-my-conditioning-treatment/

I am certain many of you Naturalistas will say you don’t go to salons for this very reason and you just knew folks were trying to relax people’s hair on the low.

But,

First, as a paying customer, you have to have some common sense. You have to ask questions and be aware about what the stylist is doing to YOUR hair. No one is going to care about YOUR hair more than you. Some stylists are out to make a quick buck so, know that some will try to cheat you.

•  Whispering– This is rude. Point blank. Period. If the stylist is whispering, pointing, giggling, etc. about your hair or making you uncomfortable, get up and leave. Don’t pay someone to be rude to you.
• Unknown treatments– Don’t let people play mixologist in your hair! If you don’t know what they’re mixing up, ask them. “Excuse me but, what is that?” A simple question and if they don’t/can’t answer you, tell them to pass on putting that product in your hair.
• Smells like a perm, look like a perm, it’s a perm!– If you smell something funky, ask questions. If you’re natural then no conditioners or shampoos need to have a strong chemical smell. Ask what brands they’re using on your hair and by all means, look at the ingredients!
• Help them out-Being a natural, sometimes you have to let stylists know what to expect. When calling to make your appointment, ask the stylist how you should prep your hair. Some stylists ask that you blow it out first, shampoo it, detangle it, etc. Not all stylists know how to deal with every type of curl so do your part.
• Listen up– If the person fixing your hair is talking negatively about it, calling it unmanageable, nappy, etc. Get up and leave! It’s obvious they don’t respect you and don’t care for your hair type/texture. Go somewhere else, where the stylist at the very least…. has manners.

There comes a time in our lives when we can no longer say “Oh I didn’t know!” or “No one taught me!”. As a paying customer to any establishment, know that you have the right to ask questions. Don’t let the lust for the end result be it, a new hairstyle, manicure, whatever cloud your judgment. Better safe than sorry.