Sounds like you need a protein treatment, which will stop any potential breakage and will generally strengthen your hair. The very best one is Apoghee Two Step from Sally's. It's super stinky (that's the real protein in it) but it works like a charm. Do the two steps then afterwards, use a moisturizing mask (I like Shea Moisture Manuka Honey, available at Target) for about an hour using a heat cap or a hot towel. Microwave a wet towel for 1 minutes then carefully wrap your hair. Redo the heating when it cools off. The combination of protein and moisture will greatly benefit your damaged locks. However, don't do a protein treatment more than every 6 weeks. Frequent protein treatments can make hair brittle. Bleaching is always a touchy issue and one best left to pros. Personally, I've bleached my hair several times at home and haven't gotten good results and pretty much did what you did. However, it is possible to lighten hair up to 5 levels without bleach. You would first need to remove the old color with a color remover. The most gentle and most effective remover is Vanish, which works by shrinking color molecules so that they simply slip out of the hair. Vanish requires heat but you can use a dryer. Your hair is longish so you'll need more than one package of Vanish. One package does chin length hair. Once you remove the old color, your hair will be a lovely shade of orange. Don't fret because there is a remedy for this. Blue neutralizes orange so you'll need a shade that has a blue base. Try Wella Koleston Perfect in 12/22, which has a double blue base to neutralize the orange completely. The ratio for mixing is one part color to two parts 40 volume developer. This is a high lift shade and will completely lift your hair while totally cancelling out all the orange. It will lift up to 5 levels. This will give you your lightest blond without bleach. One tube of 12/22 covers shoulder length hair. I get Koleston from ebay. Just put "Wella Koleston series #12" in the search bar. Then look for sellers offering 12/22 Matt Intensive. I hope this is helpful. If you have questions, post them here and I"ll respond as quickly as I can.
