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View Full Version : Is scritching and preening appropriate for all hair types?



saff.cel
July 11th, 2017, 09:54 AM
I have fine hair and it doesn't seem to like scritching or preening, I'm getting a lot of hair fall. I'm not sure if my technique isn't good or if it's just not a good idea if your hair is really fine.

When I was searching scritching in the older threads it seems like a lot of the hair types where listed as M and C, and I know fine hair is just fragile in general.... should I just make a resolution to touch it as little as possible?

I know all hair is different and that different techniques work for different folks, but I'm wondering what the fine haired consensus is. :flower:

lithostoic
July 11th, 2017, 10:07 AM
You're getting hairfall because this stimulates the loose hair to come out. Same as using a hairbrush. Same as a bird preening their feathers, same as a cat giving themselves a tongue bath.

saff.cel
July 11th, 2017, 10:08 AM
You're getting hairfall because this stimulates the loose hair to come out. Same as using a hairbrush. Same as a bird preening their feathers, same as a cat giving themselves a tongue bath.

So it's nothing to worry about, perfectly normal, keep going? :) I just want to make sure I'm not actually pulling it out. *nervous laugh*

lithostoic
July 11th, 2017, 10:22 AM
Count the hairs. Average daily shed is 100 hairs. More or less is normal as long as you don't notice any thinning.

Reyn127
July 14th, 2017, 02:23 PM
In general, neither scritching nor preening is necessarily bad, unless it is literally causing you to loose more hair than you would, normally. Like lithostoic said, it's normal to lose in the ballpark of 100 hairs a day. A bit more or less is also normal. It's really easy to track how much hair you're losing if you keep it up for a few days, and only take it down to comb it out and then put it back up.

Also, it's possible that your scalp likes one or the other more. My scalp, for instance, doesn't respond that great to scritching, but preening is necessary to my routine and actually really helps me. Scritching just makes my scalp feel slightly irritated, and dry the next few days afterward.

Just experiment slowly, and everything should be fine.

saff.cel
July 14th, 2017, 03:00 PM
In general, neither scritching nor preening is necessarily bad, unless it is literally causing you to loose more hair than you would, normally. Like lithostoic said, it's normal to lose in the ballpark of 100 hairs a day. A bit more or less is also normal. It's really easy to track how much hair you're losing if you keep it up for a few days, and only take it down to comb it out and then put it back up.

Also, it's possible that your scalp likes one or the other more. My scalp, for instance, doesn't respond that great to scritching, but preening is necessary to my routine and actually really helps me. Scritching just makes my scalp feel slightly irritated, and dry the next few days afterward.

Just experiment slowly, and everything should be fine.

Thank you so much for the advice. I've definitely already noticed what you're talking about with the preference. I wish my scalp were less opinionated ;)

lapushka
July 14th, 2017, 03:39 PM
I have fine hair and it doesn't seem to like scritching or preening, I'm getting a lot of hair fall. I'm not sure if my technique isn't good or if it's just not a good idea if your hair is really fine.

When I was searching scritching in the older threads it seems like a lot of the hair types where listed as M and C, and I know fine hair is just fragile in general.... should I just make a resolution to touch it as little as possible?

I know all hair is different and that different techniques work for different folks, but I'm wondering what the fine haired consensus is. :flower:

My hair hates any kind of manipulation that is "too much", like massage, or... things like that. I try not to mess with my scalp too much as I have SD (seborrheic dermatitis), and an oily scalp, so I think maybe drier hair types are more inclined to scritch & preen?

lucid
July 14th, 2017, 08:09 PM
I don't think 100 hairs a day is the average. As far as I know up to 100-120 is considered within the normal, with the average being about 50 hairs (increases with age though). So if you're noticing increased shedding with manipulation, I would suggest maybe counting shed hairs for a period to keep track.

Cg
July 15th, 2017, 12:02 PM
My baby-fine hair asks me not to over-manipulate it so I don't. If yours doesn't like smp, don't do it. Everyone's unique, and hair routines likely should be too.

Deborah
July 15th, 2017, 08:42 PM
I thought scritching was for folks who were going water only or sebum only for washing their hair. Why would others do it? I don't see what it would accomplish or how it would cause any benefit. Maybe I'm missing something here.

Hairkay
July 16th, 2017, 01:43 AM
I thought scritching was for folks who were going water only or sebum only for washing their hair. Why would others do it? I don't see what it would accomplish or how it would cause any benefit. Maybe I'm missing something here.

My understanding is that everyone does this using whether they'r using shampoo or not. It's just shampoo users won't spend that long doing it as those doing WO method. The movement helps stimulate the scalp and can help the shampoo do it's work more effectively. If you look at shampoo instructions they usually mention rubbing in the shampoo.

01
July 16th, 2017, 01:15 PM
I have to scritch daily, else my scalp is angry. Can't figure out how often I should dentangle and preen, probably not often...

saff.cel
July 16th, 2017, 04:10 PM
I thought scritching was for folks who were going water only or sebum only for washing their hair. Why would others do it? I don't see what it would accomplish or how it would cause any benefit. Maybe I'm missing something here.

It's supposed to increase blood flow to the scalp which apparently helps with growth. Also if you're using dry shampoo, it is not supposed to stay on your scalp, you have to brush it out or scritch it out.