Split ends...I think?

[lyssymae]

Many of us here have been where you are now at some point. You will need patience. It can be done though. You can have the long hair you want. It will take time. You can do it.

ETA: Start by listening to your hair, literally. I do not mean that it will talk to you, lol. You will however, become accustomed to sounds. You can hear hair tear when a comb or brush rips through it. If you squeeze you ends next to your ear and they sound "crunchy" like breakfast cereal before milk makes it soggy, your ends are dry.

If when you go to smooth out your hair or while washing it you get tangles in the same place, you problably have hair(s) that need trimming, not necessarily at the hemline. Find the culpret(s) and snip of the individual ones that have white dots along the shaft or are split. Be kind to the others.

Oh my goodness! I can totally hear hairs ripping when I comb through. I HATE that sound. It makes my scalp hurt and it makes me want to cry knowing that I'm harming the little hair I've got!

[ktani]

Oh my goodness! I can totally hear hairs ripping when I comb through. I HATE that sound. It makes my scalp hurt and it makes me want to cry knowing that I'm harming the little hair I've got!

You need to stop doing that starting now. It will be OK. Someone here with incredible hair did that recently with a brush. One small step starts a journey.

I have not used a comb or brush in years. I gently separate my hair with my hands and it is tangle free. You do not need to do what I do or use on my hair. You have to find what your hair needs and you prefer.

You can buy seemless combs, wide toothed ones and regular ones. Kent combs are seemless and available in department stores. The Body Shop sells a wide toothed wooden one. Start combing if you do from the hemline up, gently, not from the scalp down.

You never said whether your hair is processed, colour-treated etc.

You need to consider its state in order to choose the right conventional products if that is the route you decide to go.

Keep asking questions here and let people here know what you are doing to your hair. It helps those trying to help you to know details.

More tips in an article linked here, http://ktanihairsense.blogspot.com/2...hair-care.html. My full blog is at the end of each of my posts.

[lyssymae]

You need to stop doing that starting now. It will be OK. Someone here with incredible hair did that recently with a brush. One small step starts a journey.

I have not used a comb or brush in years. I gently separate my hair with my hands and it is tangle free. You do not need to do what I do or use on my hair. You have to find what your hair needs and you prefer.

You can buy seemless combs, wide toothed ones and regular ones. Kent combs are seemless and available in department stores. The Body Shop sells a wide toothed wooden one. Start combing if you do from the hemline up, gently, not from the scalp down.

You never said whether your hair is processed, colour-treated etc.

You need to consider its state in order to choose the right conventional products if that is the route you decide to go.

Keep asking questions here and let people here know what you are doing to your hair. It helps those trying to help you to know details.

More tips in an article linked here, http://ktanihairsense.blogspot.com/2...hair-care.html. My full blog is at the end of each of my posts.

I hop I'm not just piling my problems on you! My hair has never been color-treated, but about four years ago I stopped blowfrying and using curling irons on my hair. I've been combing and brushing it wrong for years I figured out! One last question then I'll finally leave you alone! Is braiding better or worse for your hair? Thanks!

[ktani]

I hop I'm not just piling my problems on you! My hair has never been color-treated, but about four years ago I stopped blowfrying and using curling irons on my hair. I've been combing and brushing it wrong for years I figured out! One last question then I'll finally leave you alone! Is braiding better or worse for your hair? Thanks!

You are not "piling your problems" on me. I chose to post in this thread, to try to help you and ask you questions. I choose to reply or not.

I used to comb my hair wrong too. And my hair paid the price.

It is great that you stopped heat styling regularly. With protectants and occassional use, that is not so terrible.

Braiding is great. It can help protect the hair by keeping it from tangling.

Please feel free to ask all the questions you want here. I for one, will reply to you.

[lyssymae]

You are not "piling your problems" on me. I chose to post in this thread, to try to help you and ask you questions. I choose to reply or not.

I used to comb my hair wrong too. And my hair paid the price.

It is great that you stopped heat styling regularly. With protectants and occassional use, that is not so terrible.

Braiding is great. It can help protect the hair by keeping it from tangling.

Please feel free to ask all the questions you want here. I for one, will reply to you.

I know who I'm nominating for best member of the year! ONE more question. Where do you find "hair safe" hair ties, or hair bands...whatever they're called. I'd like to keep my hair in a braid, can't keep it together!

[ktani]

I know who I'm nominating for best member of the year! ONE more question. Where do you find "hair safe" hair ties, or hair bands...whatever they're called. I'd like to keep my hair in a braid, can't keep it together!

There are many members here who help out. You will see that the more you post in other threads and your own.

I do not use hair ties. I hold my hair up with a roller pin, http://haircare.guidestobuy.com/jumb...wn-roller-pins. I find it the most comfortable. I "painted it" with Sally Hansen Teflon Tuff nair hardener to keep it from rusting and losing its finish. I do have a collection of hair ties though. I bought mine at dollar stores, drugstores, many places.

Look for those without a metal piece, made of smooth material to not rough up hair cuticles, with and without elastic (covered if with elastic). There are all kinds in all sizes and prices.

I am not limiting you to a number of questions.

[torrilin]

Oh my goodness! I can totally hear hairs ripping when I comb through. I HATE that sound. It makes my scalp hurt and it makes me want to cry knowing that I'm harming the little hair I've got!

If you hear stuff, yes... bad.

Finding hair on your comb or brush is not bad tho, and does not automatically mean you're ripping your hair out. We all shed hair every day. For some people, it's easy to get all the shed hairs out with finger combing, or they do really just fall out. For others, the shed strands will start wrapping around other hairs and cause really nasty tangles. If your hair is the nasty tangle sort, you may need tools to help you detangle.

If you look closely at your shed hairs, you can learn to see what healthy hair structure looks like. There should be a little "ball" end that used to be rooted in the follicle, and the other end should be pretty smooth. Really, given how tiny our hairs are, if you can see anything on your shed hairs where the shaft isn't perfectly smooth... that's a bad sign. That's how I learned to see split ends really.

And yes, my take on split ends is to just cut them off. On my hair they do travel, and the split pieces will attempt to wrap around other hairs, and they especially like to form death grips with other splits. I only schedule a trim when my splits have gotten out of control. Most years, that's every 3-6 months. If I don't have the tell-tale tangling and visible splits... I won't get it cut.