Befriending my hair

So I went to licensed beautician a week and a half ago for my first trim. After attempting to blow dry my hair to get it straighter before going to her and watching most of it fall to the floor, I decided I was going to step away from the blow dryer and let her combat my hair. Sitting in her chair I was getting ready for her to tell me that she was going to have to chop off all 4-5 inches of my 4-5 inches of natural hair but she didn't. She didn't need to. Only 1/2 an inch. She didn't even have to blow dry the rest since it was straighter than she expected. That doesn't mean that what I heard next made me feel any better after at least learning that I could keep my hard earned 3c/4a kinky curls. My hair was diagnosed as unhealthy. It was brittle and in distress. The regimen that I had been using up to that point was working against my hair, not for it. She went on to explain that hair thrives on a consistently clean and healthy scalp. This I knew but I thought I had some. Hair has to be cleaned and conditioned from the inside out, meaning that, this may surprise you, but shampoo is not a no-go for naturals. I asked her about the whole sulfate ingredient protest. She didn't have much to say about it but that the best products I could find for my hair would be found in a salon since they had less fillers than the shelved products in stores. At that point all I heard was $$ but I kept listening. She went on to explain that the heavy products I had been using for the last 6 months where coating my scalp and hair shaft preventing moisture from getting in, hence the brittle texture. My hair lacked lustre cause it was so coated, she said. The best thing for me to do was to go back home and really wash it good with the best shampoo I had, rub a little oil into my scalp and sit with a rinse-out conditioner, only for as long as it said to keep it in (I learned that there's not use for sitting with them for hours cause they stop working after a period of time anyway, whereas shampoos keep cleansing), apply a great salon-brand leave-in, and use minimal stlying products. So I followed her instructions to a tee and what was the end result????? Great hair! I didn't even recognize my hair. I worked with me better than it ever had. I saw an instant change. The most noticeable was that I didn't have to tamper with my hairline at all to get it to lie down flat and not roll up. So that was the secret all along for my hair and I had to wait this long to find out!