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View Full Version : New to this community--advice for growing out damaged hair?



pahbee
August 8th, 2015, 04:46 AM
Hair type:

Thin, naturally straight, prone to damage. Prone to being frizzy with flyaways throughout the lengths (breakage?).

Routine:

I don't use heat, use natural sulfate-free shampoos/conditioners to wash it, use a hair mask weekly, and don't use the blow dryer. And also I trim every three months. I don't use any hair styling products. I treat my hair gently and brush from the bottom up.



This summer I swam maybe 4-5 times under the peer pressure of hanging out with my friends at the pool.
Even though I used swimming shampoos and a swimming detangler, my family said that they see significant damage on my hair. It doesn't look shiny, it looks messy and frizzy.
That was a huge bummer because I'd been trying to grow my hair out healthier for almost two years and felt like I lost my progress. :doh: I'm really disappointed. They say that I should just give up on long hair since I'm just not meant to have it. :undecided (Thoughts?) Even though I don't like my hair damaged, I'm afraid of and don't wish to chop off all of my hair.

Any haircare tips? Is it possible for me to gradually grow out the damage without a drastic chop?

lapushka
August 8th, 2015, 04:53 AM
Don't let them discourage you. A picture so we can see, would be nice - if you have one.

Your routine sounds great. It would be a shame to waste all that progress.

Welcome, BTW! :)

Hypnotica
August 8th, 2015, 04:56 AM
Welcome.

You may want to read the sticky: http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=120052

Maybe you should look into getting a comb (because they tend to be gentler) instead of a brush. I suggest you clarify your hair and then look at it to determine what you need. Prodcut buildup can make hair both dry and frizzy. If it is still that way after you have clarified it, you may want to do deep treatments. Oil is also popular around here to keep the mane healthy. Also look into wearing you hair up.

renia22
August 8th, 2015, 08:31 AM
Welcome.

You may want to read the sticky: http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=120052

Maybe you should look into getting a comb (because they tend to be gentler) instead of a brush. I suggest you clarify your hair and then look at it to determine what you need. Prodcut buildup can make hair both dry and frizzy. If it is still that way after you have clarified it, you may want to do deep treatments. Oil is also popular around here to keep the mane healthy. Also look into wearing you hair up.

I second this. Since you've been swimming, you can try clarifying your hair with a swimmer's shampoo (something with sulfates like Ultra Swim or Paul Mitchell Shampoo 3, assuming yours was sulfate free?) to get the chlorine out. Between using sulfate free and using the pool, it sounds like build up is possibly all it is. Good luck!

meteor
August 8th, 2015, 08:32 AM
Welcome to the LHC, pahbee! :cheer:

I hope you comb with fingers/wide-tooth comb before brushing to reduce mechanical damage. ;)
If you already experience signs of damage (white dots, breakage, split ends, extremely unruly ends even after clarifying...), I would highly recommend a protein treatment once in a while and always followed by a good moisturizing treatment:
e.g. something like Joico K-Pak Reconstructor or Redken Extreme Builder Plus or - my favorite - DIY gelatin treatment: http://science-yhairblog.blogspot.ca/2014/04/gelatin-protein-treatment-recipe-update.html
Follow up by moisture, like the SMT: 1 part honey + 1 part aloe + 4 parts conditioner.

Also, pre-poo oiling with penetrating oil (e.g. coconut) should make a big positive difference: http://science-yhairblog.blogspot.ca/2014/03/oil-pre-shampoo-or-pre-wash.html
Damaged hair can be oiled pre-wash, post-wash ("LOC" to seal moisture) and even every day or every other day, whenever dryness attacks. Coconut oil has been shown (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12715094) to reduce damage (reduce keratin loss) during washing and combing, so I would apply it every time before swimming anyway, both to reduce hygral fatigue, but also to keep a small permeable barrier against pool chemicals (it has been claimed that coconut oil chelates iron and copper, too). Next time you swim, always rinse in tap water and then use special chelating (a.k.a. "swimmer's") shampoos to remove pool's chemicals from hair.

Damaged hair usually loses its natural ceramides, so using conditioners/masks with artificial ceramides might help restore the balance temporarily (more on this, plus references here: http://www.thenaturalhavenbloom.com/2010/08/ceramides-patching-up-damaged-hair.html).

Of course, once hair is damaged nothing can permanently repair it, but you can handle it gently, preventing further unraveling and you can also coat and patch-repair things temporarily and add slip and shine with hydrolyzed proteins, oils, silicones, etc.

kitcatsmeow
August 8th, 2015, 09:11 AM
I second this. Since you've been swimming, you can try clarifying your hair with a swimmer's shampoo (something with sulfates like Ultra Swim or Paul Mitchell Shampoo 3, assuming yours was sulfate free?) to get the chlorine out. Between using sulfate free and using the pool, it sounds like build up is possibly all it is. Good luck!

This is exactly what I was thinking. Try a good chelating shampoo and follow with a nice deep treatment and you might be pleasantly surprised that it's not as damaged as you think.