How long does this take?

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Ok, I'm getting very frustrated. I assumed that if I continued to co-wash and air dry, my hair would eventually get used to it and maybe even like it. So far, not so much. I'm sitting here in the airport with a bushy-head mushroom style looking a hot mess!

How did I get to this point - let me explain. I co-wash and air dried on Monday night. It went okay. I wasn't thrilled about it. It never really dries and its hard to wrap afterwards. I'm not even thrilled about the conditioners I'm using. So Monday, not so good.

I do my bun for Tuesday and Wednesday then that night, I co-wash again. This time I condition on dry hair (so I don't have to get in and out of the shower so much) and then I condition again in the shower. I air dry a bit and then I add the leave-ins and then I blow dry. Why blow dry? My hair is TOUGH! And I mean tough. I thought the conditioners would make the new growth softer, but nope. This stuff is not taking. So I figure a little heat will do me some good. So I blow dry, my hair is super fluffy and its soft, but still tough. So I bought yet another product - the wave activator moisturizer. And I use that to seal with my castor oil. It feels more moisturized than when I use the other products, however, that isn't saying much. Plus I don't like the smell.

That leads me to today. The bun didn't really work well. My hair is super fluffy, my head is sore with new growth, and I am hating my hair...

I want to relax, but I haven't done a protein treatment. I'm not sure what I'm going to do. I'm thinking cut down on the co-washes. Add more heat. And get a relaxer. When is this stuff supposed to start working? When does the frustration end and the fab hair begin???