I have difficult to straighten hair. It just wants to be curly! If you can't afford a Chi, then at Walmart and Target you can get a Remington Wet2Straight. It's $28 and was the only affordable flat iron that could successfully straighten my hair and NOT pull it out. If you are talking about trying to chemically straighten your hair, then I would suggest getting it done professionally. I had tried at home relaxers/straighteners and nothing worked on my hair.