Ok... let me start by saying, this review is based off my experience not following the directions. I'm a fine-haired, curly, high-porosity, 3-C girl. Our hair can be fragile - if you know, you know! I was originally using Dove Intensive Repair shampoo & conditioner, which is amazing! It was really strengthening my hair, allowing it to grow longer and healthier. The underside of my hair which usually doesn't grow that fast & is the weakest part of my hair, started flourishing unexpectedly! I was in LOVE! Then I came across this concentrated version, which said you only need a very little, which meant it would last a long time. That sounded great to me for a product I was already in love with. I think where it went wrong was the conditioner. Because my high-porosity hair needs a conditioner with a lot of slip to detangle, and this conditioner is thick with little viscosity, (even when adding water), I had to use way more than advised to coat all my hair. I also have to leave conditioner in while detangling, which takes a long time. Protein was already in my hair from the original Intensive Repair, so this concentrate was just protein overload for me. I read some of the other "critical" reviews that said it left their hair dry, bushy, tangled, etc. It sounds like they also had protein overload, their hair may be naturally protein-sensitive, or maybe they didn't need protein to begin with. When the hair is lacking, protein can deliver amazing results; but when it's added unnecessarily, or overdosed, it has the opposite effect. Moral of the story: know your hair type, state, and tolerance, and research what active ingredients are in the products you're using. My hair was flourishing last year, and all of a sudden, it started getting dry and I had some breakage at the crown, which never happens. I couldn't figure it out because I wasn't doing anything different, except using a new gel. I realized it was the same particular type of dryness I get w/ protein overload, but I wasn't using protein. Finally, something told me to just check the damn gel ingredient list, & lo and behold, one of the 1st ingredients was rice water - a protein! I knew it! That's the benefit of really getting to know your hair, you can intuitively know what's wrong and what to do. I used the Dove concentrate in November, and I'm still battling my way back to lush, juicy curls in April. Thankfully, because I take care of my hair, there's no breakage, just bushy dryness. I'm about to start going hard on intensive masks, treatments, (protein-free!), and leave-in's to restore my hair's former glory. I gave this review 3 stars because many people rave about this product, and part of my unhappiness was due to not following the directions, and the state my hair was already in before use. Learn your hair, do your research, and FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS, if you choose to use this!! If your hair's fragile or protein-sensitive, follow up with a good deep conditioner for support. Happy washing! :)
