Why is my hair dry and strawlike? Will oiling it help?

[Nbvoid97]

Hi,

I'm new to this forum. This is my second post. I'm a male (20) who has been growing his hair for the past year. It is currently shoulder length.

Does anyone here have any experiences/tips for someone who is dealing with hair that is very dry and feels like straw? Even after I wash it, it feels very rough.

this is my current hair wash routine which I also changed very recently:

-wash hair 3 days a week. It usually goes something like; wash Monday, Thursday ,Sunday, Wednesday and so on.


I very recently changed my shampoo and conditioner from tresemme to the Kerastase discipline range. Have only used it twice so far. I don't straighten my hair and I don't blow dry it. In the photos I attached, I actually attempted to blow dry it but gave up halfway because it seemed like it was making my hair even more frizzy. I usually let it air dry. I don't oil it either.

As as you can tell, I keep my hair regimen very simple. I have left a few images. This is my hair when it's clean. It's annoying when you know your hair is clean but it doesn't look like it is :(

http://imgur.com/nX6OsQL
http://imgur.com/xXQIblD

I may have answered my own question with the oiling part but any tips? I have scheduled a hair appointment with a Toni & Guy two months from now. This will be my first haircut since I've started to grow it.

[Sarahlabyrinth]

You could try washing less often, and dilute your shampoo with water to make it gentler on your hair. If you want to oil your hair, try using a drop of oil and stroke it through slightly damp hair, and see if that makes a difference. Your hair looks wonderfully wavy, too. I don't know if you use a hairbrush, but wavies usually do better just with a wide toothed comb. Anyway, try experimenting and see how you get on :)

[lapushka]

From the looks of it, it is a little wavier than you think. It isn't straight by any means. :)

Try detangling it in the wash when it is wet and full of conditioner, and leave it alone after that. No finger combing when it's out of the towel, no nothing. Just leave it to dry (whether that is airdrying or blowdrying).

You could use the LOC/LCO method for styling. The link to that is in my signature.

[Borgessa]

I do light oiling frequently through the week not every day but a few days after wash, I wash once a week, but thats not for everyone, especially when your younger and still have more natural oils. Then a heavier oiling the night before i wash, braid and sleep with it. The next day I put more oil in it, its okay for me my hair is a little bit longer.. BSL and i can then bun it and no one knows all that oil is there, I will leave that in a few hours, and before i wash my hair, I dampen my hair, and put in my favourite conditioner which I believe Lapushka recommended, hello hydration from herbal essance.. I leave that in a good half an hour shower shampoo just my scalp and condition again.. I believe its called CWC condition wash condition. I can't tell you how soft this leaves my hair the difference was amazing. It may work for you, Oils i use differ, I use coconut oil, argan oil, and jojoba oil, it doesn't really matter for me which sometimes i mix them all together.

[Arctic]

You could do a hair typing photo for us, so we can see what kinf of curl/wave pattern you have. Often frizz is caused by a) lack of moisture and b) brushed out curl pattern (or wavy/curly hair that is treated like straight hair type). To do hair typing, you wash and condition your hair normally, you may comb it in the shower before final rinsing. Then step out of shower, gently pat your hair with old t-shirt (the smooth texture is better than most towels). Try not to disturb the way the hair lies when you pat the drips aways gently. No rubbing, wringing or anything. Then comes the difficult part: you would need to leave it 100% alone untill it has air dried. No touching, no finger combing, no combing or brushing, no products. Then take photo for us.

As for hair not looking clean after washing, have you ever used a clarifying shampoo? This is a type of shampoo that is designed to periodically deep clean the hair, clean off all the stuff that accumulated on your hair strands (from normal shampoos, conditioners, styling products, air). Most of us need to clarify from time to time, buildup can happen even if we don't use lot of products. (Even water can leave minerals on your hair, it needs its special shampoo to remove, called chelating shampoo, but often times a clarifying is enough and is a good first step.)

You hairs, the individual strands. When you roll one between your fingers (thumb and forefinger) do you feel it? Does it make any sound? Can you easily see individual hairs on the floor that are shed? If you think these apply, you hair might be coarse, meaning the individual strands are thick/wide (on the opposite side of spectrum is fine hair, where one can't even feel a strand between their fingers and can only barely see it). Some coarse hair might simply be a bit rough feeling naturally, and if this is the case there is not tons you can do. These hair are usually very strong, so what is missed in softness is gained in other areas. But in my experience well moisturised coarse hair that are free of buildup can be pleasant to the touch, even if they might not be able to be as soft as fine hair can.

If you can post ingredient lists to your products that would help us too. In general many hair types like to be clarified (especially if it's been a longer while) and moisture. Some heads of hair don't need so much moisture but it's a good change that someone just beginning their hair care routine the LHC way is very likely in need of moisture. More of that later when we know more about your products. Oh and oiling, lots of our members swear by it. You can oil in MANY ways, for example before shampoo, in between shampoo and conditioner, or as a leave in after washing (damp hair) or dry hair. Many possibilities, and many oils to try, all can have different effects. I suggest starting your experiments with any good quality oil you happen to have in your kitchen for cooking, olive, coconut, canola for example. Start with small quantities, maybe try to apply it either an hour before shampooing or applying few (1-2) drops on damp hair after washing. See how these feel. (But save these experiments to different time from your hair typing photo.)

[Nbvoid97]

You could try washing less often, and dilute your shampoo with water to make it gentler on your hair. If you want to oil your hair, try using a drop of oil and stroke it through slightly damp hair, and see if that makes a difference. Your hair looks wonderfully wavy, too. I don't know if you use a hairbrush, but wavies usually do better just with a wide toothed comb. Anyway, try experimenting and see how you get on :)

I use a hairbrush by Kent. I bought one that was meant for thick hair types believing it would make a difference. My hair doesn't shed a lot in general and it said that the brush should deter shedding so I couldn't see any major changes. Will try a wide toothed comb to see if it makes a difference.


From the looks of it, it is a little wavier than you think. It isn't straight by any means. :)

Try detangling it in the wash when it is wet and full of conditioner, and leave it alone after that. No finger combing when it's out of the towel, no nothing. Just leave it to dry (whether that is airdrying or blowdrying).

You could use the LOC/LCO method for styling. The link to that is in my signature.

Didn't really know leave in creams were a thing until I looked at that video. This looks promising especially because the girl in the video has hair that's even wavier than mine. If it worked for her, I don't see why it wouldn't for me.


I do light oiling frequently through the week not every day but a few days after wash, I wash once a week, but thats not for everyone, especially when your younger and still have more natural oils. Then a heavier oiling the night before i wash, braid and sleep with it. The next day I put more oil in it, its okay for me my hair is a little bit longer.. BSL and i can then bun it and no one knows all that oil is there, I will leave that in a few hours, and before i wash my hair, I dampen my hair, and put in my favourite conditioner which I believe Lapushka recommended, hello hydration from herbal essance.. I leave that in a good half an hour shower shampoo just my scalp and condition again.. I believe its called CWC condition wash condition. I can't tell you how soft this leaves my hair the difference was amazing. It may work for you, Oils i use differ, I use coconut oil, argan oil, and jojoba oil, it doesn't really matter for me which sometimes i mix them all together.

This is pretty much what my mum does. Her hair is normally thick and hard to manage like mine unless she does something like what you mentioned. She has been doing this for years.


You could do a hair typing photo for us, so we can see what kinf of curl/wave pattern you have. Often frizz is caused by a) lack of moisture and b) brushed out curl pattern (or wavy/curly hair that is treated like straight hair type). To do hair typing, you wash and condition your hair normally, you may comb it in the shower before final rinsing. Then step out of shower, gently pat your hair with old t-shirt (the smooth texture is better than most towels). Try not to disturb the way the hair lies when you pat the drips aways gently. No rubbing, wringing or anything. Then comes the difficult part: you would need to leave it 100% alone untill it has air dried. No touching, no finger combing, no combing or brushing, no products. Then take photo for us.

As for hair not looking clean after washing, have you ever used a clarifying shampoo? This is a type of shampoo that is designed to periodically deep clean the hair, clean off all the stuff that accumulated on your hair strands (from normal shampoos, conditioners, styling products, air). Most of us need to clarify from time to time, buildup can happen even if we don't use lot of products. (Even water can leave minerals on your hair, it needs its special shampoo to remove, called chelating shampoo, but often times a clarifying is enough and is a good first step.)

You hairs, the individual strands. When you roll one between your fingers (thumb and forefinger) do you feel it? Does it make any sound? Can you easily see individual hairs on the floor that are shed? If you think these apply, you hair might be coarse, meaning the individual strands are thick/wide (on the opposite side of spectrum is fine hair, where one can't even feel a strand between their fingers and can only barely see it). Some coarse hair might simply be a bit rough feeling naturally, and if this is the case there is not tons you can do. These hair are usually very strong, so what is missed in softness is gained in other areas. But in my experience well moisturised coarse hair that are free of buildup can be pleasant to the touch, even if they might not be able to be as soft as fine hair can.

If you can post ingredient lists to your products that would help us too. In general many hair types like to be clarified (especially if it's been a longer while) and moisture. Some heads of hair don't need so much moisture but it's a good change that someone just beginning their hair care routine the LHC way is very likely in need of moisture. More of that later when we know more about your products. Oh and oiling, lots of our members swear by it. You can oil in MANY ways, for example before shampoo, in between shampoo and conditioner, or as a leave in after washing (damp hair) or dry hair. Many possibilities, and many oils to try, all can have different effects. I suggest starting your experiments with any good quality oil you happen to have in your kitchen for cooking, olive, coconut, canola for example. Start with small quantities, maybe try to apply it either an hour before shampooing or applying few (1-2) drops on damp hair after washing. See how these feel. (But save these experiments to different time from your hair typing photo.)

Here are photos of the shampoo and conditioner I use. Hope it's clear enough

http://imgur.com/c57Po0r
http://imgur.com/lrgFffy

I will try the hair typing method next time I wash my hair and will post photos. This sounds like it's going to be really difficult. I have never used a clarifying shampoo. I thought I would never need to use one because I don't really use any heavy products in my hair. Will look into buying one. I can feel an individual strand between my fingers. I can easily see individual shed hairs too. I would say my hair is definitely thick and coarse.

[akurah]

My favorite clarifying shampoo is by Suave

It's possible you are washing your hair too frequently as well. I'd start with the oils as suggested first though! If various oils do not improve the condition to your satisfaction, I would recommend you consider stretching your washes further. If you decide to try to stretch your washes because you think oil does not work, it might be worthwhile to wait a month or two after you try using oils, because the improvements may not be as quick as you might expect.

I wash my hair once to twice a week. More often and it frizzes out and feels dry. I almost always wash it once a week, but when I do wash it 2x, it's after at least 4 days from the first wash.

Right now I'm making an exception, but that's because I'm trying to hurry up and wash out a temporary dye from my hair. My hair does not approve of it either, but I do want the color gone.

[Andthetalltrees]

For a different opinion. My hair is just naturally dry and stiff feeling for whatever reason that is, Oiling makes it worse, So does washing less frequently. Washing it every other day with normal products(usually with sulfates and silicone) and using a leave in conditioner occasionally is what's helped me the most.

[Ophidian]

I have thick wavy hair that tends to be dry too. Thought I'd say something about oils specifically which is part of the reasoning behind the LOC method but is worth mentioning on its own I think. Oils do not moisturize, but they can be used to penetrate the hair shaft and make it more flexible and/or seal in moisture from other sources. I oil my ends almost every day, and I find that I have the best results when I spray them with water (you could also use water mixed with a little conditioner and/or something like aloe) and THEN apply the oil. If my canopy feels dry I will do this too, only using a tiny bit of oil. If I oil hair that already feels dry without moisturizing it first, it just feels like, well, dry oily hair. Just a tip. I think oils can be a great addition to a routine but there are many different ways to use them.

[Aredhel]

I have thick wavy hair that tends to be dry too. Thought I'd say something about oils specifically which is part of the reasoning behind the LOC method but is worth mentioning on its own I think. Oils do not moisturize, but they can be used to penetrate the hair shaft and make it more flexible and/or seal in moisture from other sources. I oil my ends almost every day, and I find that I have the best results when I spray them with water (you could also use water mixed with a little conditioner and/or something like aloe) and THEN apply the oil. If my canopy feels dry I will do this too, only using a tiny bit of oil. If I oil hair that already feels dry without moisturizing it first, it just feels like, well, dry oily hair. Just a tip. I think oils can be a great addition to a routine but there are many different ways to use them.
My hair is pin straight and quite thin, but this is true for me too. Whenever I oil my ends, they have to be at least damp for the oil to actually make my hair soft, otherwise the ends just look stringy and oily. :)

[spidermom]

I think you should do one or two clarifying washes followed by a deep treatment. I'm looking forward to seeing a hair typing picture. I suspect you have at least a little natural curl. Curls misbehave badly when they're brushed.

[Kat-Rinnè Naido]

Hi welcome to the LHC.
You have received great advise from all, therefore I won't add any more except to say good luck and please keep us updated on your progress.