Washing hair in sections

[meteor]

A lot was said on the LHC about the importance of not piling hair on top of your head while washing to avoid tangling and mechanical damage, but does anybody on the LHC wash hair in sections? Can you please share your techniques and tips? I think sectioning hair in the shower is popular among some curlies.

[Madora]

Yes, I section my hair (thoroughly brushed out beforehand). I center part it and braid one side only.
Then I thoroughly wet all the hair, then pour my diluted GM Pink Crème shampoo on the hair that is unbraided, then gently rub it in, following a certain pattern, i.e. top to bottom, then front to back. Then I undo the braid and repeat what I just did on the other side. During most of the process I try to keep both sides separate. I then rinse both sides thoroughly with warm water, then bend down and rinse again (with all my hair in front of me). I follow the rinses with a final cold rinse (really short because I can't stand cold water).

I use a hand held shower device which helps a lot.

I use my palms to express as much water as I can from my hair, then wrap it up in a towel while I clean the shower stall, etc. (about 15 minutes). Then I take a fresh towel, cover my hair (which is hanging in front of me), then press my palms against the towel covered length. Then I remove the towel and then apply 4 drops of mineral oil to my hands and then apply my hands all through my hair to help detangle it. Lastly, I section my hair in 2 again and begin to detangle with a wide tooth comb.

Sectioning hair is really a life saver when it comes to helping diminish tangles!

[meteor]

Thank you so very much, Madora! :)
Your instructions are extremely helpful and very clear!
I notice that when I flip my hair a lot in the shower and move it from side to side too much, it's much harder to detangle later. So I will try to section in the future.

[Teazel]

I have always washed my hair in two sections, parting it down the back from crown to nape and bringing the two halves in front of my shoulders. I don't think the back of my head would get properly clean otherwise.

[Madora]

Thank you so very much, Madora! :)
Your instructions are extremely helpful and very clear!
I notice that when I flip my hair a lot in the shower and move it from side to side too much, it's much harder to detangle later. So I will try to section in the future.

Glad I could help, meteor. I'd try not to flip it, though. Just take your hair and bring it to the desired position gently w/o flipping. The less you have to manipulate your hair (apart from the actual shampooing motions with your fingerpads, the better).

[cathair]

I have washed my hair in two sections the last few times, following your advice Madora. It was definitely less tangly when I went to condition it. It was also easier to wash my nape hair which was a nice added side benefit. I always find that the most tricky bit to wash. Thanks for the tip :)

[meteor]

You are absolutely right, Madora! That unnecessary manipulation and flipping may "feel" like it helps to get to hard-to-reach areas of the scalp, but it only causes more tangling and breakage.

[Madora]

You are absolutely right, Madora! That unnecessary manipulation and flipping may "feel" like it helps to get to hard-to-reach areas of the scalp, but it only causes more tangling and breakage.

Yes, the hard to reach areas seem to be (for me) the hardest to deal with, as far as tangling goes. The head down position is great for your nape area but when I stand erect and detangle it later, that area seems to be the most tangle prone, even though I'm very careful to detangle slowly. I'm not a fan of putting anything in my hair to help detangle but in the long run it just boils down to being patient. When I WAS using conditioner it did help a lot when it came to tangles, but now I have to rely on the mineral oil to help with detangling.

[meteor]

Yes, I section my hair (thoroughly brushed out beforehand). I center part it and braid one side only.
Thank you, Madora! I have a follow-up question: how do you thoroughly wash the temples area and the areas around your ears after you've center-parted and washed each side? I find that my temples / ears area becomes the greasiest, flakiest part of my scalp, and I feel like it would be a bit harder to get there if I did a center part.

[Madora]

Thank you, Madora! I have a follow-up question: how do you thoroughly wash the temples area and the areas around your ears after you've center-parted and washed each side? I find that my temples / ears area becomes the greasiest, flakiest part of my scalp, and I feel like it would be a bit harder to get there if I did a center part.

After you've dowsed your hair with your shampoo and you're ready to begin, just start at your temples and gently massage the areas that give you the most problems. The thing to keep in mind is that if you start at your temples, then continue to work towards the back of your head...i.e. in a continuous row. Then move down an inch or so, and place your fingers below where you started and continue to massaging in the shampoo..again, working in a row, to the back of your head.
Once you have done what I call "front to back"rows, then do "top to bottom" rows. Start at the center part and showly work down the head to the nape. Continue with the next "row" until you reach the back of the head.

Working both "top to bottom" and "front to back" covers all your scalp area. If you want to give special attention to your "pesky" areas, then just massage in a little bit more. For those areas, you might want to gently use your nails to "scratch" any stubborn patches.

Truth be told, I do enjoy scratching with my nails myself..but not too much. It just feels good!

[meteor]

After you've dowsed your hair with your shampoo and you're ready to begin, just start at your temples and gently massage the areas that give you the most problems. The thing to keep in mind is that if you start at your temples, then continue to work towards the back of your head...i.e. in a continuous row. Then move down an inch or so, and place your fingers below where you started and continue to massaging in the shampoo..again, working in a row, to the back of your head.
Once you have done what I call "front to back"rows, then do "top to bottom" rows. Start at the center part and showly work down the head to the nape. Continue with the next "row" until you reach the back of the head.

Working both "top to bottom" and "front to back" covers all your scalp area. If you want to give special attention to your "pesky" areas, then just massage in a little bit more. For those areas, you might want to gently use your nails to "scratch" any stubborn patches.

Truth be told, I do enjoy scratching with my nails myself..but not too much. It just feels good!

Thanks a lot for the detailed explanation, Madora! I guess I should spend a bit more time just massaging during the wash, I am usually done washing my scalp in 5 minutes, and that's probably too quick.

Oh, and I completely agree with you about the light scratching. I usually scratch a bit while washing (never to the degree of pain, of course), and I don't think it's damaging at all. If exfoliation with sugar, clays, herbs and powders is OK, then using nails lightly is probably fine, too.

[Madora]

Yes, a little light scratching does your scalp good. Well, if you do a good job with cleansing in 5 minutes, more power to you! Wish I could get away with that! Do whatever works for your scalp and hair.

[teddygirl]

I part my hair into thirds, so I basically make a mohawk down the center of my head all the way to the nape. I put shampoo in my hands and lather it a bit, then i apply it over the exposed scalp sections down my head, and then i apply it around the perimeter of my head (front, ears, nape). Then I can get my fingers in and make sure the shampoo gets all over.

I find that if I dont do this, I end up with greasy/dirty spots when I get out of the shower. Very annoying! I also make sure that I brush out any tangles before i get into the shower, which also helps.

[ositarosita]

At the length my hair is at currently - no .. however once I reach around BSL/ Midback I will have to start sectioning it.. just parting it in two to make sure I get everything taken care of...I discovered that when I was about WL/HL, if I didn't part my hair I would miss sections when cleansing (by miss sections I mean I would end up completely neglecting the underside of my hair..ie from ears to nape)

[lapushka]

A lot was said on the LHC about the importance of not piling hair on top of your head while washing to avoid tangling and mechanical damage, but does anybody on the LHC wash hair in sections? Can you please share your techniques and tips? I think sectioning hair in the shower is popular among some curlies.

My hair is washed in the bathroom sink (seated and bent over). I have iii hair so it needs to happen in sections. My mom puts shampoo on the back of my head, on the underneath (so top of the head), and another glob divided: for both sides. Then she puts a tiny bit of water with each section, rubs/massages the back, the top of the head (underneath), and both sides. Slowly the suds move down, and then the suds are squeezed and massaged through the lengths. Water is added again, a bit of a rinse-out, but not quite, and the whole entire head is suds-ed up again (so washing twice technically). It works wonders!

[Aderyn]

My hair is pretty thick and I don't wash in sections. I find just working the shampoo into my scalp with my hands while my hair lies down my back and pulling/gently pushing my hair up out of the way temporarily to reach the underside/more difficult areas to reach to be more than adequate for my scalp without any additional manipulation. For instance, when washing around my ears to nape I will just gently push back the hair around that area and work in some shampoo into that area, let the hair fall back down and then continue with my just my hands (from the other sides) to cleanse more thoroughly then rinse.

I have tried washing in sections before (even tried after reading this thread) and it just resulted in more tangles for me. I think because when the length is all in one "clump", it clumps together a bit more strongly than it would if it was in two or three sections and having to pull around two/three sections all over. A lot of unnecessary manipulation that way as I just let my hair lay down the way it normally would when washing. Washing in sections takes a lot more time, causes more tangles and is just generally unpractical, for me.

If I'm deliberately cleansing the length of my hair, though, I will part it into two sections to ensure the cleansing is more evenly distributed.