Newbie with fried hair ;<

[PastelAngel]

Hello, everyone, I'm a long time lurker of LHC and recently became a member. I'm about seven inches away from my goal length (tailbone length) and I try to take care of my hair as well as I possibly can.
I used to be a bleach freak and dye my hair all the time but stopped for good five years ago. Now, I wash my hair every three days (shampoo and conditioner, no cones, no sulfates), comb with a wooden wide-toothed comb, oil my hair with sweet almond oil regularly and occasionally use avocado oil as a leave in moisturizer after showering, I don't heat style in anyway, and only sleep with a satin bonnet.

That being said, my hair has recently started becoming fried. One day, maybe even just earlier in the day, my hair will be soft and silky and then later it some pieces will become extremely fried and dead looking, covered in split ends, and dry. I've thought about it just being the heat the summer brings that is causing this but, I honestly don't go outside very often so I'm not entirely sure. I also have been off biotin for a week, involuntarily, as I had to wait for my local store to restock.

Any suggestions or tips would be much appreciated ^_^ and I'm looking forward to being a long time LHC member.

[lapushka]

You said that you're about 7 inches away from TBL, which puts you at waist-hip. You used to use bleach and stopped that 5 years ago, which probably means the ends of your hair are still covered in damaged bits. Maybe you could microtrim, it's quite popular among those of us needing to get damage off. You could also try to S&D the ends of your hair. In any case, moisturize it well, and that means lots of conditioner, maybe even a good serum to "seal" the ends.

[Firefox7275]

Hello, everyone, I'm a long time lurker of LHC and recently became a member. I'm about seven inches away from my goal length (tailbone length) and I try to take care of my hair as well as I possibly can.
I used to be a bleach freak and dye my hair all the time but stopped for good five years ago. Now, I wash my hair every three days (shampoo and conditioner, no cones, no sulfates), comb with a wooden wide-toothed comb, oil my hair with sweet almond oil regularly and occasionally use avocado oil as a leave in moisturizer after showering, I don't heat style in anyway, and only sleep with a satin bonnet.

That being said, my hair has recently started becoming fried. One day, maybe even just earlier in the day, my hair will be soft and silky and then later it some pieces will become extremely fried and dead looking, covered in split ends, and dry. I've thought about it just being the heat the summer brings that is causing this but, I honestly don't go outside very often so I'm not entirely sure. I also have been off biotin for a week, involuntarily, as I had to wait for my local store to restock.

Any suggestions or tips would be much appreciated ^_^ and I'm looking forward to being a long time LHC member.

Welcome! Might be worth chelating to remove any hard water deposits, but sadly there does come a point where ends are just too damaged to be salvaged - has lost all its protective cuticle or too much structural protein. Usually that will be some way above visible splits when you are dealing with old damage, so it may be you are simply not trimming enough. Do you use protective styling/ up dos? If you want a better idea of what is going on/ how much needs trimming you might have a hair analysis
http://pedaheh.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/goosefootprints-hair-analysis-with-my.html

Proven beneficial ingredients for bleach damaged hair include hydrolysed protein, coconut oil, ceramides, 18-MEA and panthenol. Oils are not moisturisers, they do not add or increase water. In any case bleach damaged hair tends to be more porous so already take up too much water when washing which is damaging (hygral fatigue). Oleic acid in avocado and sweet almond oil may penetrate likely reducing porosity, but they are not proven to have the affinity for structural proteins so reducing protein loss when washing that lauric acid in coconut oil does. This should be applied to dry hair and left for twelve to twenty four hours, ideally as a prewash. Balance oil treatments out with the other ingredients mentioned, hydrolysed protein at the very least, since they have different actions.
http://www.naturallycurly.com/curlreading/curl-products/mineral-oil-versus-coconut-oil-which-is-better
http://journal.scconline.org/pdf/cc2003/cc054n02/p00175-p00192.pdf
http://www.thenaturalhavenbloom.com/2009/06/size-matters-protein-conditioning-part.html
http://www.thenaturalhavenbloom.com/2009/06/protein-conditioners-for-hair-part-2-of_03.html

Biotin is not the panacea, hair needs the full compliment of nutrients for healthy growth, everything from protein and essential fatty acids to minerals and vitamins. Supplementing one or small groups of nutrients can do more harm than good since nutrients work synergistically and in opposition.
http://igorsbelltower.blogspot.co.uk/2011/02/infamous-biotin-rant.html

[queenofheartz44]

First off welcome to the site! :flowers: You are going to find tons of information here on healthy hair care so you are definitely in the right place. Have you tried doing hot oil treatments focusing mid-shaft to your ends? I do this weekly by sitting under a hooded dryer for 20 minutes but you can also do this in the shower after you wash your hair. I'd invest in some shower caps the help keep the heat in. Ooh also for the S&D (Search & Destroy) pick up a pair of scissors only for cutting hair or a couple pairs so you can have one on you at all times. I have a ton of cuticle scissors that I find to be the perfect size for doing this (help eliminate the urge to chop--they are only so big!) So far it just seems like it will be awaiting game and babying the damaged parts of your hair. I'll add on if I think of more!

Firefox7275: I totally :heartbeat you! You're like a super awesome hair encyclopedia.

[Leeloo]

Hello there! Sounds like you need to clarify and S&D (or if there are too many splits then micro trim).

[PastelAngel]

Thank you all for the really helpful, and speedy, replies :D. I've never really tried any actual hair products before, besides hairspray, conditioner, and shampoo, of course, so I never really knew I could use a serum! I'll try to find one asap! And wow, Firefox7275 you seem like a seasoned veteran hair genius ^_^

[woolyleprechaun]

There's an awesome article somewhere here on damaged hair... http://web.archive.org/web/20120125071723/http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=79
There it is! You may find it some help; I certainly did! Microtrimming is a good option for ends as you have described. Welcome to LHC and may you enjoy your time here and your hair growing journey :)

[lapushka]

Just an FYI. You can use mineral oil (just a few drops of it) as a replacement of a regular hair serum if you don't like silicones in your hair. Just don't use mineral oil for full head applications, though, as it is a pain to get out!