Quick questions on hair care

[Friesiangirl]

So, if you only wash every three days or so, do you get your hair WET every day?

I WO now, but I was rinsing daily. I've decided to cut it down to every 3 days because I'm thinking all the water "action" could be damaging.

Also, as far as using a BBB, how often? I use it once a day, and I've decided to finger comb only. I'm gentle and don't brush for very long...

And finally, what about the breakage? I have some in places all over. I see people with hair like GLASS and I look at mine and go "oopsies". Should I cut the ends off of the breakage even if I don't see a split? I've just taken to cutting them off and oiling more.

I'm trying to learn, thank you for your patience! :D

Hayley

[freznow]

I wash with a shampoo bar once per week. If the bar I used wasn't cleansing enough, I'll do a WO and ACV rinse once inbetwixt.

One thing about when I was WO, I never felt 'guilty' about washing more. I'd just rinse it whenever I felt like it. There was no perceived damage, though I did typically rinse no more than every other day. It is important to keep in mind that if you move to every other day (instead of every day), it's half the mechanical damage. Every 3 days is 1/3. That's significant. A WO rinse isn't much mechanical damage (less than a BBB, for me), but it is some. Your goal is rather long, like mine, and my mantra is to avoid as much damage as possible, even if it seems negligible. Daily washing over the ~7 years to get to terminal gets to be a lot! (Also, longer hair takes forever to dry! Getting it wet every day doesn't work for me)

The rinse every 3 days sounds like a good goal. And if it doesn't work, you can always go back to washing more often. I find an important part of experimenting is testing your hair's limits. Going NW/SO helped set my limits, and give me more options, and I'm much happier for it.

(As for BBBs, my hair hates them. If it tolerated them, I probably wouldn't use it more than once a week, at the moment I use it occasionally to see if my hair has changed it's mind. It MUCH prefers a horn comb.)

And finally, the S&D depends on you. If I see a white dot or a split, I'll cut it off. But mostly if there is no visible damage I leave it alone.

HTH!

[Friesiangirl]

Awesome, so even if it broke off, but didn't split, leave it alone? I think I can do that.

Thanks for all the help :D

Hayley

[Electronika]

I just do what my hair wants me to do. Try to listen to what your hair is silently saying?

These days for me, my hair is saying every third day for a washing. If my hair feels dry I go longer or do different things to it.:p

[freznow]

Have you checked out the articles section? Here's an article (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=44) that talks about whether you need more protein or moisture.

When is your hair snapping? When you detangle? It may be your hair asking for either protein or moisture.

[sexyjacksparrow]

Yes, I wet pretty much every day and just detangle with conditioner on non-wash days.

The only time I don't wet is if my hair is going up in a fully protected do (plait or bun) two days on the trot - then I don't bother re-wetting on the second day as my hair is generally calm enough and tangle free.

[Friesiangirl]

Have you checked out the articles section? Here's an article (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=44) that talks about whether you need more protein or moisture.

When is your hair snapping? When you detangle? It may be your hair asking for either protein or moisture.

I never hear it snap. I just see the damage. I sleep with a satin pillow case too with my hair up. I think the damage may be old....?

I've read all those articles too, but thank you!

[danacc]

On non-wash days, I don't wet it. For me, part of the benefit of not washing every day is from the fact that it is not wet as often. It is more vulnerable when wet.

I don't use a BBB regularly any more. For my hair, it was more damaging than a comb. I will use it on occasion (once in several months) to get a super-smooth look to my pulled back hair.

Whenever I see damage on a strand during a search-and-destroy session, I cut a little above the damage. I cut splits, white dots, and white-dotted ends.

[Friesiangirl]

Danacc, we have very similar hair types so maybe the BBB is my big problem? I'll try and stop using it and see how that works :/

Hayley

[Darkhorse1]

Hey fellow horsey gal----if you are outside a lot, you might want to try oiling your hair. I did this recently and found it really helped. I used olive oil, and while you'd have to use what worked for you, you might find a routine best for your hair.

In regards to split ends, the only way to get rid of them is to cut them. Conditioners lay them down so they don't progress up the length of the hair shaft and weaken it, but cutting is the only way to fully remove them.

I got a BBB and wasn't too thrilled with the results. Probably because I have some natural wave to my hair. I use a wide tooth comb and an anti static brush, and found good results with all three.

Hope that helps! Feel free to message me or read my blog in regards to what I do with my hair. I work with horses daily, so my hair takes a lot, but has been much healthier since I found this site :)

[vampodrama]

I wash my hair twice a week and I don't wet it in the meantime. but that's just me, the girl who does NOT like water. I must have been a cat in the previous life or something.

I do have a BBB but I find it turns my hair very greasy very fast so I don't use it much.

[Arctic_Mama]

If you're dealing with breakage, maybe hold off on a BBB for awhile and just fingercomb and comb to detangle and distribute oils. It's just going to be less tugging on individual strands and less chance for damage. Good luck!

[nisolu]

I wash 2-3 times a week and do a light oil every day. On the off days I don't usually wet my hair as it takes hours to dry. I will mist my hair if it is just to frizzy. I have a BBB and I only use it if I want to slick my hair down for a certain style when its wet, otherwise my hair frizzes really bad. Daily I use my fingers or sometimes a wide tooth comb.

[Slug Yoga]

No, I don't get my hair wet unless I'm washing it. I dislike having wet hair.

[mira-chan]

I only wet my hair when washing, that's once a week to two weeks. My hair does not like to be wet, nor do I like dealing with wet hair.

What do you mean hair like glass? Usually hair that looks very shiny and sleek like that is straight. I for example have wavy hair, my hair will never look like that. Its a hair type difference. If you mean your ends feel dryer, try oiling them. It will give them protection from wear and tear, will help in detangling and will give them some shine. Just a drop or two of oil needed for this.

I don't use the BBB. Not only does it not go through my hair fully, just skims the top, it also causes friction damage on the hair for me.

[Carolyn]

I do a CO or CWC 3-4 times a week. I don't wet my hair on non wash days. However there are times when I'll feel like washing 2 or 3 days in a row. I think getting hair wet adds moisture and my hair needs all the moisture it can get. I try to pack the moisture in by using rich heavy conditioners and a light oiling on wet hair after washing. Sometimes I'll add about 1/2-1t of oil on alternate days. My hair would be a dried out rat's nest if it wasn't wet at least every 3 days. Now and then I've gone to a 4th day and the ends are so dry. I don't mind wet hair at all. I kind of enjoy it. I've been know to spray it with water in the evenings just to add some moisture and to enjoy the feeling of damp hair. Weird, I know :D I believe if I detangle before washing and carefully detangle afterwards, that I am causing very minimal damage. I hard ever hear a hair snap. My BBB gets used right before washing to remove as many shed hairs as possible and once or twice in between washings to remove shed hair and to add shine. I go slowly and carefully and always detangle before brushing.