How do I know if my hair is in a good condition?

[LadyCelestina]

Hi people :flower: !

I'd like to state one thing right at the beginning.This thread isn't meant to be a provocation or something. I just have trouble deciding if my hair is healthy or not,for the reasons below. :)

To briefly describe my hair...
I have chemically dyed hair of normal thickness and coarseness almost down to my waist (straight) and I like to wear it loose,so let's assume I should have some minor damage. I do get breakage from handling my hair not too gently,and my hair is somewhat frizzy with some flyaway hairs that are certainly from breakage,but I retain all the lenght that grows from my head.I measure that.
It takes protein conditioners pretty well,I've never had trouble with protein overload.
I have minimal amount of splits,I've found as little as around five over the course of 6 months.



As you maybe can tell,I'm confused,because how can I know if I'm causing damage if I don't know what damage looks and is like ?Is there a way to find out whether my hair is healthy or not? Are split ends the only indicator of damage? Should I be worried that my hair takes protein so well? Is being frizzy normal even for healthy waves-curls?

Thanks !

ETA: I'm so ashamed of posting such stupid questions! Not only it sounds like I'm bragging,but one could easily say if I know how breakage looks and if I know how splits look I must know how damage looks,but I just can't work out the connection somehow ! If a part of my hair is damaged,does it mean it just splits and breaks?

[Arden]

I don't think this I'd a dumb question at all. I had hair dressers brag about how beautiful my hair was when it was color treated. I have had hair dressers brag about my hair natural.

Splits and breakage happen. Health comes from within. I think as long as your scalp is healthy, your hair grows at a reasonable rate and you arnt having it fall out in droves then your probably fine.

Hair is more or less an extension of your integumary system. It is the outter warning of your inner health. Skin, nails and hair. However in your modern society many people paint there nails and "paint" there hair giving a false vision to the world. This is intentional and subconsciously an act of not just vanity but a deeper desire to be pleasing to a potential mate.

The only way to know for certain the true nature of your hair is to allow it to be completely natural. The removal of dye and cones and mineral buildup will show the virgin nature of the hair. Everything else is an illusion.

When my hair was dyed I went to painstaking lengths to kept the appearance of health and as such even "professionals" could not tell it was unhealthy. You learn to manage it according to your style.

Growing it out naturally brought new challenge because my virgin hair disliked the same treatment as my colored hair.

If you want natural hair be prepaired for the social stigma to come. While the ideas of health and beauty are shifting in many ways hair is largely the last stand.

We are compared and often compare ourselves to unnatural colors and heads full of extensions. Self acceptance is really the key.

[LadyCelestina]

Thanks for such a detailed reply,Arden! I'm very interested in hearing more about your routine with your natural hair ! But I don't think I'd ever be able to have completely natural hair,nor completely healthy hair without chemicals...

[jacqueline101]

It sounds healthy to me. We have people here who dye their hair and its healthy. That's not an issue unless you've over processed it or damaged it a lot.

[Arden]

Well the question I guess to you is do you want healthy hair? Or simply the appearance of healthy hair? Chemical treatments by definition change the structure of your hair. Dye is no better really than relaxers or perms in that they all reconstruct the hair on some level. When my hair was colored it was course and really craved deep moisture. The strands often felt thicker and it was more porous.

My natural hair is silky fine so heavy conditioning does nothing really but make it too soft and limp.

In some ways my routine hasn't changed as far as what I don't do. I avoid styling products and heat. I generally air dry my hair with few exceptions. The main difference between how I cared for it then and how I care for it now is that I don't need extra products like protein treatments or deep conditioning treatments. I'm more or less wash and go.

I have been experimenting with different combing methods but honestly I could pretty much finger comb and go.

As to curly / wavy hair. Humidity causes curls to frizz because they are thirsty. Some frizz / static is normal but if your curl pattern is totally out of wack you may have to experiment.

Tell me a little more in detail about your hair type

[LadyCelestina]

No,no,I don't mean dye,I meant shampoo and cones.Shampoo is what keeps my scalp flake free and cones protect my hair much better than non cone conditioners. I don't WANT to use non-coney conditioner.I have been using it for some time even on virgin hair and it's just not for me.

I do use DT's for the fun of it :D My ends crave them from time to time,but that's okay I guess,since they've had a lot more dye on them than the lenght above which is mostly just henna and two layers of dye. ETA :So I guess that indicates some damage,right ?

What should I say? It's medium in thickness,medium coarseness,probably not too porous as it doesn't suck up dye at all...I'd type it as something between 2c/3a,with more 2c in it.

[Sillage]

No,no,I don't mean dye,I meant shampoo and cones.Shampoo is what keeps my scalp flake free and cones protect my hair much better than non cone conditioners. I don't WANT to use non-coney conditioner.I have been using it for some time even on virgin hair and it's just not for me.

CONE HEADS HOLLA!!!!!!

I have a question for you, how do you know your breakage is breakage? I used to assume I had a lot of breakage until I really stated studying the ends of my "broken" fly away hairs. They were all tapered, meaning they were short because they were new, not because of damage. Same thing with my ends-- no spits, just straight cut hair.

For the fly aways, what really helps my hair are intense protein treatments (ApHogee 2 Step), leave in conditioners (see my sig), and shea butter.

[LadyCelestina]

Oh,jacqueline101,I'm sorry,I somehow overlooked your post! Yes I know there are many members who dye their hair and still can grow long! But the bottom of my hair is definitely over-processed ( I think it must have at least six layers of various dyes,one of them was supposed to make even brown hair turn bright red so it probably contained bleach) and it worries me that I see very little of what I would call damage! So I'm not sure if my hair is just resilient or I'm totally wrong with my concept of damage.

Sillage,I've seen you post in the forums and have realized how similar our routines are just a few days ago ! :D Lol I'm creepy
I know I do have some breakage because of the pop sound my hair sometimes makes when manipulated with :).
ETA:
What I always imagine when I hear the term "conehead"

http://cdn.buzznet.com/assets/users16/reillywitt/default/cone-head-yeah-heard--large-msg-119561051876.jpg



____________________
So,anyway,can I be calm about the condition of my hair ? What do you think ?

[spidermom]

It seems to me that if your hair behaves well and doesn't knot up or stick together like Velcro, it's in pretty good condition.

[Sillage]

Sillage,I've seen you post in the forums and have realized how similar our routines are just a few days ago ! :D Lol I'm creepy

LOL not creepy at all-- that's what my sig is there for :)


I know I do have some breakage because of the pop sound my hair sometimes makes when manipulated with :).

I literally said "ouch" when I read that! Maybe a protein treatment is in order? Otherwise, I agree with Spidermom, it sounds like your is pretty well off.



ETA:
What I always imagine when I hear the term "conehead"

http://cdn.buzznet.com/assets/users16/reillywitt/default/cone-head-yeah-heard--large-msg-119561051876.jpg

LOL our Dear Leader!

[ravenreed]

I think a lot of this depends on hair type. I dyed my hair for years. I also grew it out to complete virgin for 3 years, realized I hated my virgin hair and went back to dyeing again. I didn't notice a huge difference either way. I used the same routines, and although my dyed hair was a little drier, it wasn't so destroyed that I needed protein packs or excess moisture. I did get a lot more split ends, but I was also wearing my hair down 24-7, and using a more conventional routine of shampoo and conditioner. I still got to waist despite dyeing my hair every 3 - 4 weeks and wearing my hair down.


Well the question I guess to you is do you want healthy hair? Or simply the appearance of healthy hair? Chemical treatments by definition change the structure of your hair. Dye is no better really than relaxers or perms in that they all reconstruct the hair on some level. When my hair was colored it was course and really craved deep moisture. The strands often felt thicker and it was more porous.

My natural hair is silky fine so heavy conditioning does nothing really but make it too soft and limp.

In some ways my routine hasn't changed as far as what I don't do. I avoid styling products and heat. I generally air dry my hair with few exceptions. The main difference between how I cared for it then and how I care for it now is that I don't need extra products like protein treatments or deep conditioning treatments. I'm more or less wash and go.

I have been experimenting with different combing methods but honestly I could pretty much finger comb and go.

As to curly / wavy hair. Humidity causes curls to frizz because they are thirsty. Some frizz / static is normal but if your curl pattern is totally out of wack you may have to experiment.

Tell me a little more in detail about your hair type

[LadyCelestina]

Thanks spidermom for pointing out the tangling issue :).
So far as I understand,signs of hair damage may include
Breakage
Splits
Increased tangles
Frequent DTing needed
A lot of effort put into making the hair appear healthy ?
Unpleasant changes in texture ( hey I actually noticed this one on my ends and past hair pics :O ... seems like I get curlier with damage O.o ...)

Now this makes some sense to me finally :D. I think while keeping these points in mind, now I can distinguish real damage from hair rebelling against some product or weather or whatever,much better than I did before.

In the end...My hair is probably not more damaged than I thought it is. Thanks everybody :inlove: !

Protein treatments actually do help with breakage,Sillage? :O I'm feeling like I'm on a way to some great hair enlightement.
I always thought they did the same as moisture treatments,just in a different way.

[Sillage]

Protein treatments actually do help with breakage,Sillage? :O I'm feeling like I'm on a way to some great hair enlightement.
I always thought they did the same as moisture treatments,just in a different way.

Yes! Protein treatments can certainly help with breakage. Even if you're like me and you don't have any breakage, protein treatments can work wonders on your hair. I remember the first time I tried ApHogee 2 Step. The results were amazing. My hair looked so much smoother and sleeker. Even lighter protein treatments like GVP K-Pak make a lasting difference. Moisture treatments on the other hand have never done much for me once I shampoo them out.

[LadyCelestina]

I remember the first time I tried ApHogee 2 Step. The results were amazing. My hair looked so much smoother and sleeker. Even lighter protein treatments like GVP K-Pak make a lasting difference

Sadly,probably neither is available here and I'm not comfortable ordering from foreign countries.But thats okay.I'll go and smash an egg on my hair and see what it does :D

[ravenreed]

Depending on your hair type, protein can be good for your hair or damaging. Any time I use protein, my hair goes nuts, gets all crunchy feeling, and snarls up to the point where I have to clarify several times and trim to get it back to normal. Also, a lot of those symptoms can be signs of build up. It can be hard to tell. There is a reason it takes some of us a while to figure out a good routine. Everyone's hair needs different things, and part of the process is figuring out what works for you.


Thanks spidermom for pointing out the tangling issue :).
So far as I understand,signs of hair damage may include
Breakage
Splits
Increased tangles
Frequent DTing needed
A lot of effort put into making the hair appear healthy ?
Unpleasant changes in texture ( hey I actually noticed this one on my ends and past hair pics :O ... seems like I get curlier with damage O.o ...)

Now this makes some sense to me finally :D. I think while keeping these points in mind, now I can distinguish real damage from hair rebelling against some product or weather or whatever,much better than I did before.

In the end...My hair is probably not more damaged than I thought it is. Thanks everybody :inlove: !

Protein treatments actually do help with breakage,Sillage? :O I'm feeling like I'm on a way to some great hair enlightement.
I always thought they did the same as moisture treatments,just in a different way.

[Sillage]

Depending on your hair type, protein can be good for your hair or damaging. Any time I use protein, my hair goes nuts, gets all crunchy feeling, and snarls up to the point where I have to clarify several times and trim to get it back to normal. Also, a lot of those symptoms can be signs of build up. It can be hard to tell. There is a reason it takes some of us a while to figure out a good routine. Everyone's hair needs different things, and part of the process is figuring out what works for you.

I agree, but LadyCelestina has already said that her hair likes protein. :)

[Brenna]

okay - what is a protein treament? how do I do it? how often?

[Sillage]

Brenna, protein treatments are treatments that are designed to pt protein back in your hair. How you do them depends on what product or recipe you choose. There are people who do gelatine treatments, egg masks, K- Pak, ApHogee 2 Step... as for frequency it all depends on your hair and what treatment you use. Usually the guide line is that if your hair is stretchy and weak it needs protein. My hair never got to that stage but it loves protein anyway. I can do GVP K-Pak once a week with no problems. ApHogee 2 Step I do much less frequently because it's such a pain and it's more intense than the GVP K-Pak.

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Hmm, so if I whisked up an egg and put it through my hair, would that count as a protein treatment? I'm not sure how to tell if I need to though.

[LadyCelestina]

Hmm, so if I whisked up an egg and put it through my hair, would that count as a protein treatment? I'm not sure how to tell if I need to though.

Yes,that definitely counts! Eggs are rich in protein...They are probably the best protein "hair food" you can find... I mean you aren't going to drench your head in meat or cheese...Well cheese maybe yes :D I'm thinking about soya,as soya protein is found in conditioners,but I have never had anything made from soya at home aside from a bread spread...
Oatmeal could make a good treatment...I have a feeling it's richer in protein than eggs.

Can anybody imagine using potatoes? :D I heard some people use rice water.So why not mashed potatoes? :D It's not like they smell bad or are hard to rinse out... :D


Ravenreed ,yeah I know how my hair reacts to protein :) I hope I won't come off as rude If I ask what made you realize you hate your virgin hair? Was it just a colour issue ? Just out of curiosity,I know people who dye their hair because it changes the thickness,shine,texture or whatever other aspect of their hair... (Actually,doesn't a lot of henna/cassia users do that too?)
Good for you,anyway,you must have really strong hair then! Every 3-4 weeks sounds like a lot of dye!

_________________________________________________

So I did use some protein today and my hair seems normal,although it didn't pop and break at all in the tub,so I guess it had a positive effect! :)

[Mayflower]

There are different kinds and different degrees of damage. Some people call dry hair damaged, I say cotton candy-like hair or very split hair qualifies as damaged to me (basically hair that can't be saved anymore and needs to be cut off). My hair's quite soft and grows fast, but I do get some breakage from not having used conditioner for years (though I still got to waist). I have to use very moisturising conditioners to combat the breakage but I don't see my hair as damaged because I have maybe 10 split ends throughout my entire hair at any given moment.

Frizzy hair isn't necesseraly damaged either, it could be a reaction to the weather or just new hairs growing in. I actually love a bit of frizz in my wavy hair!

If you're healthy, have a healthy scalp, use a routine that suits your hair and you're not doing anything too crazy to it, you're probably good. :)