My Hair dilemma, help please :(

[JSantiago1035]

Hey all.

So I'm new; i've had this problem with my hair over the years and it has led me to resort to the forums to try and somehow make my hair better.

Anyways, my hair till the 6th grade used to be smooth, silky, straight hair. Kind of like this:

https://image.ibb.co/mqK5y6/IMG_1471.jpg

However, my hair started to change around 7th or 8th grade. I don't know why the texture and all changed. Now it's all rough and coarse, and doesn't feel nice. If anything, all I remember was hearing some girl shampoo her hair everyday 2-3 times so it smells extra nice so I also started to do that. Also, I have eczema and is unfortunately on my scalp as well,so it's dry and flakey. So, those were the only things I know that could affect my hair.

My hair after some time after a shower:
https://image.ibb.co/i37fWR/IMG_1428.jpghttps://image.ibb.co/bQ2Qy6/IMG_1429.jpghttps://image.ibb.co/kEaOkm/IMG_1430.jpghttps://image.ibb.co/nKpG5m/IMG_1431.jpg

My hair during the day:
https://image.ibb.co/c6PurR/IMG_1472.jpghttps://image.ibb.co/iDzG5m/IMG_1473.jpg

Also, some of my hair, mostly my sides, they are straight. Like perfectly normal. And some of my hair strands are way too easily to pluck out compared to a straight one. Some are even more curly than the ones I show, and they are all very easily plucked off my head. The straight strands are harder to pluck. They look like this:
https://image.ibb.co/bMZ5y6/IMG_1470.jpghttps://image.ibb.co/mM6JJ6/IMG_1469.jpghttps://image.ibb.co/fb1ky6/IMG_1468.jpg

If I could get any help or suggestions to make my hair better or straight again, I'd greatly appreciate it! Thank you!

[JSantiago1035]

Oh and also, when I put my hair up in like a manbun, ponytail, etc. When I take it off, my hair just stays there, different than the other peoples' who goes back down.
And more info, I condition my hair everyday, and shampoo every 3 days, as what my barber tells me.

https://image.ibb.co/ffXm5m/22751372_1484504361596886_23546917_o.jpg

[Beeboo123]

You can't make hair straight again, unless you have it chemically processed

[Corvana]

Sounds to me like a normal texture change during puberty. It's not uncommon at all. You can't get your old texture back, sadly, so really all you can do is learn to care for the texture you've got!

[Simsy]

Seconding the texture change idea, puberty can have some interesting effects.

With regards to the ease at which some hairs are coming out, you might be having issues with shedding. Some shedding is normal and happens all the time. Heavy shedding can be a reaction to a number of things; including but not limited to hormones, stress, diet, damage, and hair care routine.

If your shedding is not causing concern or thinning out your hair; then you are mostly likely just working through a texture change and will simply need to learn to deal if you don’t want to chemically straighten it.

If your hair is thinning, then you have something else going on. The easiest things to resolve will be stress and diet, followed by your haircare routine. You may even have to just deal until puberty settles down, and see what you are dealing with afterwards.

[lapushka]

I had 1b/c hair before puberty, and came out with 2b/c hair after. I went through a texture change myself. Above posters are right, there is nothing, short of chemical processing, that you can do to make it back into what it was. This is your texture now. You'll have to somehow deal with it.

What if you blowdry it straight after a wash, does that help?

[Obsidian]

My hair is thick, wavey and about the same length as yours. If I brush it back like yours, it will stick up too.

It absolutely will not lay flat unless I brush it forward. Once it gets longer, it will start to lay better.

Any plans to grow it out or are you keeping it short? You might need to find a different hairstyle.

Something like this where the hair is combed more towards the face and the waves allowed to be a bit wild.
https://i.pinimg.com/736x/2e/3e/6d/2e3e6d99e2c18d97c4ca915768647865--mens-haircuts-hairstyles-men.jpg

[-Fern]

Don't fear... I also have coarse hair, but it can actually be really nice in different ways. The key, as Corvana mentioned, is learning to care for your hair type. My mom has fine hair, so until I was in my 20's, my hair was totally unruly because I just had no clue how to care for coarse hair.

You will have to experiment with what works for your hair and your scalp, but for me OILS and deep conditioning have both been game changers. The deep conditioning keeps my hair moisturized and supple and easy to work with... The oils help keep the moisture sealed in and help make the hair softer.

I am on my way to work now but will try to come back later to link you to specific care methods you can try.

Wishing you luck!

[girlwithsixarms]

If you have eczema, you may find that taking an omega supplement will help keep your scalp from being as itchy and flaky. Also, you might want to consider a daily antihistamine - I take one to help prevent contact dermatitis and it works very well.

[spidermom]

Don't wash your hair multiple times in a row. That will only dry it out. Hair texture can change several times over the course of your life. I think it's best to roll with the changes, not try to force your hair to be something it isn't. Of course many people disagree and do all kinds of things to their hair to force it to do something that isn't natural for that hair type.

I agree that a different haircut might make all the difference. There's a way to manage every length and texture.

[JSantiago1035]

Alright, thanks guys! I wasn't really aware that texture could change over the years, I just thought I did something wrong and made it like this. But yeah, I usually don't have my hair out this long, it's usually short with a comb over. My barber has just been really busy, and so was I, making it hard to get a cut. I appreciate the comments though guys, thanks again!

[JSantiago1035]

I've never had Omega supplements before. I googled and does the fish oil one work?

And I use a eczema daily moisturing cream from Neosporin on my skin and it works wonders. For my hair, I just used drops of oil onto the scalp. Usually I have times that my head gets extremely itchy to the point that I have to scratch and then it goes to me scratching constantly and my scalp burns when I would get in the shower.

[JSantiago1035]

I had 1b/c hair before puberty, and came out with 2b/c hair after. I went through a texture change myself. Above posters are right, there is nothing, short of chemical processing, that you can do to make it back into what it was. This is your texture now. You'll have to somehow deal with it.

What if you blowdry it straight after a wash, does that help?

I have not before, I always thought that it would damage your hair so I stayed away from it.

[JSantiago1035]

Don't wash your hair multiple times in a row. That will only dry it out. Hair texture can change several times over the course of your life. I think it's best to roll with the changes, not try to force your hair to be something it isn't. Of course many people disagree and do all kinds of things to their hair to force it to do something that isn't natural for that hair type.

I agree that a different haircut might make all the difference. There's a way to manage every length and texture.

I tend to workout everyday though which causes me to sweat a lot. Would it still be fine to not wash my hair when I do?

[-Fern]

Oils: I go back and forth between directly oiling my hair (you would probably only need a drop or two on the palm of your hand, rub palms together, then run palms through hair) and the rinse-out oil method... Again, you would probably only need a drop or two for your length:
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=129191

Deep conditioning: about once a month, I do an SMT:
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=128

[spidermom]

I tend to workout everyday though which causes me to sweat a lot. Would it still be fine to not wash my hair when I do?

You might be able to let water run through your hair between days of washing it. But do what is best for your scalp.

[girlwithsixarms]

A fish oil one would be fine, although I (and a lot of other people) tend to prefer ones that advertise that they have no fishy aftertaste/repeat. I like an Omega 3-6-9 in order to contend with Canadian winters, but a 3 should also be just fine. Cooking with flaxseed or perilla oil might also do the trick (they're vegetarian and have high Omega-3 ratios, but you won't be getting quite the same concentrated dosage you would with a supplement).

A few years back I had similar scalp itchiness issues and I found that the Head and Shoulders with almond oil was very helpful in controlling that.

[akurah]

Hair staying in place after doing an updo is not uncommon. My buns often stay in place for awhile after I undo my clip, unless I take it out or move a lot.

ETA: Apparently there are two pages.

Regarding not washing hair after workouts... When I used to workout daily, I washed my hair 1x a week. Sometimes I rinsed, sometimes I did not. It did not adversely affect my hair any more than not working out.

[lapushka]

I tend to workout everyday though which causes me to sweat a lot. Would it still be fine to not wash my hair when I do?

You might want to gauge that for yourself a bit. Your hair is short, if it gets absolutely drenched in your work-out, I would rinse; if it's a minimum of sweat (not running down your face sweat), then you might be able to leave it as is.