beefcake

I am probably going to receive an offer from a large company that I know gives hair tests. I am 5' 10", 225lb Caucasian w/ reasonably thick light brown hair on my head, thin white hair on my arms, slightly thicker hair on my legs, and even thicker brown hair on my chest. I have an average metabolism and have lost 75lbs since January (not sure if that matters).

My usage history -

Daily through March 15 (usually 1 or 2 tokes of good stuff)
One or two hits (of good stuff) per weekend through May 31st.

So I've been clean for a total of 49 days. I anticipate my test will be in the 56-65 day range.

I have not been given an offer yet, but my first question is...will companies give you some time to actually go to the lab? I have a hectic schedule and it may not be feasible to have anything less than about 1 week of notice. I'm just not sure what kind of mandatory timelines are typically given.

That being said, I may be going to visit their HR rep in about a week. Is there any chance they would give an on-site surprise test or are these things always done via a separate entity where planning/scheduling is needed? I would like to defer doing any of the hair damage items until I know they have made the offer.

The hair on my head ranges from 1/4" to 2" in the front. I think my hair grows faster than average. When I get it cut, I have 3/4"
to 1" removed each month. Am a guaranteed to have them use my head hair or do some tests specify taking it from another place no matter what? How short do I need my body hair to be in order to guarantee they won't use it? I'd really prefer not to shave/cut my leg & arm hair since I wear shorts frequently and people will notice. With the lightness/thinness of it...what sort of treatment would I use there if I can't be guaranteed a head hair test?

I've done a ton of reading on this forum and am so happy I did. I initially started the Mac method, but have decided that it may be too risky to rely on that (some of the chemistry facts contradict that plan except for perhaps the Tide). Bleach/Redye isn't really an option for me. I think with my areas of short hair, people are going to notice that I have recently dyed (staining on my scalp).

I am open to doing a relaxer treatment but have a couple questions about it. What will it do to straight, fairly thick light brown hair? Will it be obvious to others that my hair has been altered? Will the areas where my hair is short show chemical burns? How much should it cost to do it professionally (estimated...)? Can something like the relaxer be done the day before or do I need to give my hair/head some recuperative time?

Finally, based on my constraints and situation. What would be the best plan for me?

My current treatment plan (pending feedback) is:

Baking Soda Paste (20-30min)/Tide/PM3/Propylene Glycol based conditioner daily until I have received an offer.

Relaxer treatment after receiving an offer & continue the bs/tide/pm3/PG Conditioner until the test date.

Bakingsoda/Zydot/PM3/PG Conditioner the day of the test.

The basis of this plan is that baking soda & tide have a high-enough PH to open the hair up. The tide will release some the oils and get some of the contaminates out, then the PM3 will take it a step further and help clean things out. If it matters, I'm actually using the 2X/Concentrated Tide.

I am also considering TGel to help combat the drying of my scalp. Any thoughts on this? Since the basic treatment could go for 2 weeks +...any thoughts on whether this is a good idea or not?

So, lots of questions and thoughts. Thanks in advance for any of your thoughts!

1tokeovertheline

Yes. That is exactly what the company I work for did. The sample was taken by the collector on the first walk through. Quite a few walked out and decided they didn't want to work there.

1Toke

beefcake

Thanks. So was that after you accepted an offer or before that?

I would think they would have you sign the background check consent before being able to do that...was this the case?

1tokeovertheline

Before....I didn't know if I wanted the job until I knew what exactly it was.

The job advertisement clearly stated that all canidates would be subject to a drug test and background check. I had an inside source that tipped me off what kind of drug test I would be taking. I knew I would pass the background check and took a chance I could beat the hair test and I did.

I don't know why a bunch walked out. It wasn't any secret that they would be drug tested. They just didn't know when and neither did I.

1Toke

beefcake

Wow, that's pretty hard-core. Thanks for the information. I'll have to keep this in mind. They have mentioned that they would be testing (not the method). I'll have to decide whether I'm going to risk it until they give me an offer or not. My gut tells me that they would give one beforehand...but you never know, right

1tokeovertheline

Check out this site and maybe your company is listed and what type of drug test they do.

:</title> <link href="cotest.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" /> </head> <body> <table width="769" border="0" align="center" cellpadding="3" cellspacing="0"> <tr> <td><div align="right"><a href="default.asp" class="topNav">HOME</a> | <a href="sea

1Toke:wave

PS
I couldn't get the link to post right for some reason but I tried it and it works.

beefcake

Oh, wow...I got different results between that site (urine) and this one (hair):

Search our Database of companies that do drug testing

The testclear website has a 2006 record for my company..which says hair, so I have to prepare as if that's going to happen.

You have any thoughts on my approach?

I did some further reading on relaxers and I'm much less concerned about using it on my hair once or twice.

beefcake

Bump for hopes of an opinion on my other questions