I did a Brazilian blowout 4 months ago at a salon in Montreal and it held up really well. But now that my hair is growing back, the new growth is completely curly even though my natural hair was straight before. Is that normal or do I have a problem?
That's completely normal, it's just that the treatment only affects the hair that was there before, not the hair that grows in after. Your new growth is going back to its natural structure, so if it's curly now that's probably what it was before too - the Brazilian treatment was just masking that. It'll create a clear line between the treated part and the new growth until you get a touch-up, but there's nothing wrong with that.
Your scalp probably changed after the treatment! Brazilian smoothing can affect the natural balance of your hair and skin, and it can take a few months for everything to stabilize. New growth often reflects the true nature of your hair once the product's effect fades, so if it's curly, maybe you always had a slight wave that the treatment was hiding. Give it a bit more time, the balance should come back on its own 😊
The thing is, Brazilian straightening doesn't actually reset your natural hair texture - it just smooths out what was there when you got the treatment done. After 4 months, the hair growing back starts from scratch and goes back to its natural pattern, so if you're seeing curls popping up, it means your natural hair fiber has always had that tendency, even if you didn't notice it before.
After a treatment like that, it takes a while for everything to settle down. New growth can sometimes look different for a few months while your scalp really readjusts. If it's a drastic change that feels weird to you, you can ask the salon if they used something too harsh, but honestly that's rarely the issue - it's just that you've got two different textures side by side for now. It'll balance itself out over time.
Were your hair naturally straight before, or have you always had curls that you'd straighten? Because what you're seeing is just your real new growth coming in its natural state - the treatment never changed your scalp structure or your roots, it just locked in what was already there on the hair strand. I went through the exact same thing, and it was honestly jarring to see my roots growing in curly when I thought I naturally had straight hair. Nothing abnormal about it, it's just that now you're seeing the true texture growing back while the rest of your length stays straightened.
There's a pretty good chance your hair was never actually straight on its own - you were probably straightening it before the treatment without realizing it, or you had a routine that kept them straight. Now that you're neglecting them a bit (or the treatment is affecting how they behave), your natural texture is coming back. The first few cm that grow back are never touched by the Brazilian straightening, so that's what's showing you your real hair - which is where those curls are coming from that you didn't think you had before.
Brazilian keratin treatment gradually fades and only affects the treated hair, so it's normal that your new growth goes back to its natural texture 🍄 But here's a question: are you sure your hair was naturally straight before, or did you just get used to straightening it with a flat iron? Because sometimes after 4 months your scalp rebalances itself and your hair's true nature comes back, which can feel like a change when really it's just the treatment wearing off.
One tip people often forget: try a protein mask once a week on your roots, it helps gradually "smooth out" the new growth as it comes in 💆♀️ Otherwise yeah, it's just your natural texture coming back, nothing to worry about!
It's not your scalp that changed, it's just that the treatment is gradually wearing off and your hair is going back to its natural behavior. Brazilian straightening creates a protective layer around the hair shaft, but it slowly fades away with shampooing and time. So after 4 months, the roots that grew in during that time start showing their true nature - and apparently it was curly, not straight like you thought.
Here's a question I'm wondering about for you, though: are you sure your natural hair was actually straight before, or did you just have a permanent chemical straightening treatment done on you years ago? Because it's pretty common for people to think they have naturally straight hair when they've already had a treatment before. If you look back at photos from before your Brazilian straightening, you might notice that the roots already had a slight wave to them. Otherwise, your hair type might have just changed with age or hormones, that happens too.
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