Insanely Soft Hair After Flat Ironing

So I recently flat ironed my hair for the first time in many months. I used a silicone based smoothing gel beforehand, and found that my hair would not really stay flat--it kept frizzing. I don't know whether it was humidity, but I got the impression that it might have been related to the smoothing gel holding in moisture.
In any case, I used a tiny bit of some old light-hold hair spray that for some reason I still had hiding behind cobwebs way back in my cabinet, and my hair stayed pretty straight until I washed it.

Getting to the point, when I washed it, it was SOOOO SOFT! Even after a good washing with a strong shampoo to get rid of cones and hairspray, my hair felt incredibly smooth, soft, and moisturized. My guess is that flat ironing thoroughly sealed/flattened the cuticles. This was two weeks ago, and my hair still feels better than it did before.

Does anyone know why? Any guesses? Anyone else have this happen?

I dont really know and can only offer my ecperience but when I flat ironed my hair remained EXTRA soft for about two weeks.. Like softer than it usually is. So I dont know if its something to do with the heat and the products we use when flat ironing or what. I was nervous that my hair wouldnt revert but it actually did and I had no problem with heat damage. My hair was also sort of easier to style within those 2 weeks and even when I used some leave in, it wouldnt curl up like it did when I hadn't straightened it.

I'm glad to hear your story--I was a little nervous too, and even after it curled back up just fine, I've still been worried simply because I hadn't experienced this before. It felt nice for my hair to feel so soft, but I didn't know whether that was just... damage, or something.

So thanks, I'll exhale now--phew! And I won't be straightening again any time soon

Yeah I think I'll only straighten every once in a while too, just because I was so nervous my hair wouldnt revert after all my hardwork I put in...Glad I helped you exhale!!!

I just flat ironed my hair today and it is extremly soft as well. I contribute it to taking better care of my hair. Before my healthy hair quest, I didn't take care of my hair the way I do now, so i just assume that my hair is healthier now and that's the difference. I know now how to protect my hair when wearing flat ironed hair or my hair in it's natural state. I think that's the biggest difference.