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Rapunzel_to_be
May 11th, 2018, 06:08 AM
Hey guys:)

I would like to know if anyone has experienced or has any tips regardinf the following:

Basically l stopped using heat tools 3 years ago, and ive not dyed my hair nor used any stylig products, just oiled (natural oils, coconut, olive oil etc) it regulary (usually once a week) as well as the loc method (natural products) and some addicional oil on my ends after its dried. In addition to this i had a big chop almost a year and a half ago, where i cut my waist length hair to shoulder length, just to get rid of all previous damage (i used to flat iron my hair all the time prior to going natural).
Ive taken very good care of my hair (or so i thought), ive only used sulfate free, silicone free and paraben free shampoos. Ive been braiding my hair evey night in a looaw braid sleeping on a satin pillow case. Ive used a wooden comb gently and also finger combed my hair. And never ever blow dried or used the flat iron... i did move to a colder climate a year ago, so air drying takes longer now, but i dont think its that much longer. Oh and we have soft water where i live. I s&d my ends regularly using a scissor for hair, and ive gotten my ends trimmed regularly. Basically i feel like ive done what i can to avoid split ends/other damage, but ive noticed apart from the split ends ive been getting (not as much as when i flat ironed of course) my hair strands also have “bubbles” in them, i dont know how to explain it, but it seems like theres no damage but then it kinda split in two not at the end but higher up, like in the middle of the shaft. I cant recall ever seeing this kind of breakage in my hair before, ans im wondering if it could be from the air drying. (My hair is thick and waist length just)
Has anyone else experienced anything like this?

lapushka
May 11th, 2018, 06:47 AM
Normally air drying doesn't cause things like this. Maybe it is from past heat styling? Did you heat style a few years before going all damage-free? Because if you are waist, that damage can for sure still be there. It takes *many* years to grow out.

I do think meteor had links to articles that said that air drying for too long wasn't beneficial. And blow drying helped.

Rapunzel_to_be
May 11th, 2018, 06:54 AM
Thanks for replying:) yes, i did heat style many years prior to this, but i had many trims and bigger chops these past 3 years as well as the last big chop one year and a half ago, whwre i went from waist to shoulder length, so i was hoping all of the damaged hair was gone :(

I must add that i have startes blow drying the past month, after continuing to find the type of damages described above. I blow dry on cold/warm setting, moving the blow dryer constantly and holding it far from my hair🤗

Oh thank you, ill try to find the articles you're referring to🤗

lapushka
May 11th, 2018, 07:15 AM
Yeah, I can't find them... I'll see what I can do... hang on.

Take a look at this thread:
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=131137

Rapunzel_to_be
May 11th, 2018, 07:26 AM
Thanks, going to read right now🤗🌻

Glitch
May 11th, 2018, 02:00 PM
This happened to me a few weeks ago, and I did everything the same as you (quit heat styling, regular S&D, trims, oiling regularly, oiling ends after washing, etc.). What instantly made my hair so back to smooth, soft and silky was washing my hair with an actual clarifying shampoo, using an oily conditioner to soak in for a while, air drying, and then NOT oiling my hair at all after. Like magic, my hair was rescued! I just experimented until I found the problem, which turned out to be build up from too much oil usage and just the average silicone use. As crazy as it may sound, even oils can cause damage on some people's hair, even without them going overboard sometimes. It can even cause hair loss in some, but anyways - sulphate-free shampoos are great, and are my regular choice as well, but they can't deeply clean like a clarifying shampoo can. Once in a while, oil products, silicones, other ingredients in general etc. will build on the hair and clarifying it off once in a while allows the strands to breathe again and absorb the fresh oils/products later on. If this doesn't help, I totally recommend to keep experimenting until you find the culprit. Personally, I've used oils and silicones for many years and only now got this strange reaction. Perhaps the healthier the hair is, the less it needs help!

WyntreBlossom
May 11th, 2018, 02:03 PM
Ive heard cold weather alone can break hair, maybe try a gentle thin layer of oil before going into the cold air and see if that helps.

DryadicSeaNymph
May 11th, 2018, 02:07 PM
I do not see in your message that you use humectants as well as oiling? My hair always desires both. YMMV!

DryadicSeaNymph
May 11th, 2018, 02:10 PM
My husband uses a clarifying shampoo from BWC, it is sulfate free, and omgoodness it does the job *just* fine. I wash with his a couple times a year, when I feel like I need it.

Rapunzel_to_be
May 11th, 2018, 02:13 PM
Thanks so much for sharing your experience!:) I actually did not use any silicones, but i did use oil, so ill give what u said a try:) i did however a week ago buy a sulfate shampoo cause my scalp is so oily (always been, even before switching over to sulfate free shampoos) so i thought it might be a good idea to once in a while use a sulfate shampoo:) thank again, and i hope ill succeed in finding a solution like you did🤗😊

Rapunzel_to_be
May 11th, 2018, 02:14 PM
Yeah, i heard that as well, it could be that too... maybe blow drying a bit during the winter months could help. Its spring now, so I might try and see if there’ll be any difference

Rapunzel_to_be
May 11th, 2018, 02:16 PM
Oh, pardon the stupid question, but do u mind giving me examples of humectants please?🤗

Rapunzel_to_be
May 11th, 2018, 02:16 PM
Thank you, ill definetly check that out😊😊

Glitch
May 11th, 2018, 02:17 PM
Thanks so much for sharing your experience!:) I actually did not use any silicones, but i did use oil, so ill give what u said a try:) i did however a week ago buy a sulfate shampoo cause my scalp is so oily (always been, even before switching over to sulfate free shampoos) so i thought it might be a good idea to once in a while use a sulfate shampoo:) thank again, and i hope ill succeed in finding a solution like you did🤗😊

You're welcome! And yeah, I did the same, but even the sulphate shampoo was not enough to get the job done. I only noticed a true, giant difference after clarifying twice in a row during that wash, and I also hope you experience the same <3 Good luck!

DryadicSeaNymph
May 11th, 2018, 02:26 PM
Oh, pardon the stupid question, but do u mind giving me examples of humectants please?��

I use honey whipped into conditioner (I have used maple syrup in a pinch), and I like vegetable glycerine.

I have read that there are other things less expected too though, like hibiscus powder! I would like to expand my repertoire... I think my hair i bored. It is definitely DONE with me using coconut oil, for example.

Oh and maybe you could use some protien? I only use henna and beer myself, so I am not one to offer advice there. My hair liked it though.

DryadicSeaNymph
May 11th, 2018, 02:32 PM
Glitch, my daughter is the same way. I shampoo her scalp twice to get the job done right. I could never do that to myself or her sister. Sometimes it is that second wash that really gets the excessive sebum up. We have experimented over the years to make certain the washing was not causing the woe in the first place. It is not. She just needs good cleansing washes more than myself.

Glitch
May 11th, 2018, 02:39 PM
Glitch, my daughter is the same way. I shampoo her scalp twice to get the job done right. I could never do that to myself or her sister. Sometimes it is that second wash that really gets the excessive sebum up. We have experimented over the years to make certain the washing was not causing the woe in the first place. It is not. She just needs good cleansing washes more than myself.

So good that you realized it early on! It took me forever to realize that's just what works for me. Definitely need to wash well, twice, to get it right :o Great to know this is meant to be for her hair - no more uncertainty!

DryadicSeaNymph
May 11th, 2018, 02:48 PM
Thank you. :) I agree! Her hair is longer than mine, and all virgin. I am grateful we found what is best for it at the moment.

waff
May 11th, 2018, 03:13 PM
My scalp is the same way. I have to wash at least twice or even three to get it clean. Especially that I only wash once a week.

Zesty
May 11th, 2018, 03:57 PM
I don't think that damage would occur from air drying, though of course leaving your hair wet for too long isn't great for it in general (I use a fancy hair turban and often blow dry on cool partly for this reason). As lapushka said, it may be old damage, or you might want to tweak your routine and S&D in the meantime and see if that helps. I did have those white dots for several years after very minimal heat styling, so if you were doing it regularly it could still be hanging around.

MusicalSpoons
May 11th, 2018, 07:18 PM
I used to get what you describe, and I've never used heat (well, I did occasionally in my childhood and early teens, but not in the last 10+yrs, so never on my current hair!) or any chemical processing of any sort. I stopped finding the bubble splits once I eliminated the main causes of mechanical damage, although it sounds like you've done a good job of that yourself. The only two things that come to mind are: how do you wear your hair during the day? And, could your sleep braid possibly be rubbing against anything else, e.g. pyjamas, or if it goes under you/your head at night, etc.?

Otherwise I suppose it could still be old heat damage, depending on how far up the shaft it is; a chop 1.5 yrs ago would have been when you had 1.5yrs' heat-free growth, which if your hair grows at the average rate of 0.5" per month would give you 9" of undamaged growth - that's 9" stretched, of course. So if it was shoulder length curly after your chop, there may have still been some damaged hair left - possibly, I don't know how long shoulder length actually is anyway or how much shrinkage your texture gives you.

I've read the science-y articles about damage from air-drying, though I can't find them at the moment. It seemed to mostly apply to to hair that has lots of product in that never fully dries, and hair that takes literally days to air-dry (for whatever reason). On here, there are people who can't air-dry because it takes too long and gives them scalp issues, and some that just can't because it takes too long to accommodate in their everyday life, but I don't recall having read about anyone having to not air-dry due to it definitely causing actual damage to the hair shaft.

Deborah
May 11th, 2018, 11:40 PM
Sounds like old damage. Hang in there. It will eventually be trimmed off and things will be better than.

Rapunzel_to_be
May 12th, 2018, 02:56 AM
You're welcome! And yeah, I did the same, but even the sulphate shampoo was not enough to get the job done. I only noticed a true, giant difference after clarifying twice in a row during that wash, and I also hope you experience the same <3 Good luck!

Thank you :) <3

Rapunzel_to_be
May 14th, 2018, 02:53 PM
I use honey whipped into conditioner (I have used maple syrup in a pinch), and I like vegetable glycerine.

I have read that there are other things less expected too though, like hibiscus powder! I would like to expand my repertoire... I think my hair i bored. It is definitely DONE with me using coconut oil, for example.

Oh and maybe you could use some protien? I only use henna and beer myself, so I am not one to offer advice there. My hair liked it though.

Thank you so much for all the good advices! I'll definitely try with a humactant :)

Rapunzel_to_be
May 14th, 2018, 02:56 PM
Glitch, my daughter is the same way. I shampoo her scalp twice to get the job done right. I could never do that to myself or her sister. Sometimes it is that second wash that really gets the excessive sebum up. We have experimented over the years to make certain the washing was not causing the woe in the first place. It is not. She just needs good cleansing washes more than myself.

Does this mean that sebum can cause this? Cause I do have an oily scalp... and no matter how much ive tried ( for months at a time) to stretch between washes, it just doesn't work for me... So ive recently gone back to washing my hair every night ( If I was it every day during the day, I can skip a day, but when I was at night time, I need to wash it every night ... kinda strange...

Rapunzel_to_be
May 14th, 2018, 02:58 PM
I don't think that damage would occur from air drying, though of course leaving your hair wet for too long isn't great for it in general (I use a fancy hair turban and often blow dry on cool partly for this reason). As lapushka said, it may be old damage, or you might want to tweak your routine and S&D in the meantime and see if that helps. I did have those white dots for several years after very minimal heat styling, so if you were doing it regularly it could still be hanging around.

Yeah, maybe thats the reason.. I think I'll try air drying for a bit and then blow drying on cool and then see if maybe that works better for me, or maybe it is just old damage like you guys say.

Rapunzel_to_be
May 14th, 2018, 03:08 PM
I used to get what you describe, and I've never used heat (well, I did occasionally in my childhood and early teens, but not in the last 10+yrs, so never on my current hair!) or any chemical processing of any sort. I stopped finding the bubble splits once I eliminated the main causes of mechanical damage, although it sounds like you've done a good job of that yourself. The only two things that come to mind are: how do you wear your hair during the day? And, could your sleep braid possibly be rubbing against anything else, e.g. pyjamas, or if it goes under you/your head at night, etc.?

Otherwise I suppose it could still be old heat damage, depending on how far up the shaft it is; a chop 1.5 yrs ago would have been when you had 1.5yrs' heat-free growth, which if your hair grows at the average rate of 0.5" per month would give you 9" of undamaged growth - that's 9" stretched, of course. So if it was shoulder length curly after your chop, there may have still been some damaged hair left - possibly, I don't know how long shoulder length actually is anyway or how much shrinkage your texture gives you.

I've read the science-y articles about damage from air-drying, though I can't find them at the moment. It seemed to mostly apply to to hair that has lots of product in that never fully dries, and hair that takes literally days to air-dry (for whatever reason). On here, there are people who can't air-dry because it takes too long and gives them scalp issues, and some that just can't because it takes too long to accommodate in their everyday life, but I don't recall having read about anyone having to not air-dry due to it definitely causing actual damage to the hair shaft.

I do not think it rubs against anything when I sleep, except my skin or maybe the bed sheets at times. I do actually wear my hear down a lot, but I try to be very gentle with it, and lift it out of the way of seat belts, bag straps etc, I tend to mostly keep it on one side, so it just lays there. I understand wearing it down can cause some damage, but I just feel that this damage is caused by something else.. as Ive always worn my hair down all my life, and never experienced anything like this.

Yes, maybe it is old damage, although I was almost certain I had gotten rid of it all :shrug:

Good to hear that no one else has experienced damage from air drying, cause I felt so good about air drying before and felt kinda bummed out thinking that Ive been air drying for so long for no reason :p

shaluwm_agape
May 14th, 2018, 03:12 PM
your hair may also not like braids people can experience breakage through braising

Dark40
May 14th, 2018, 03:54 PM
I agree with lapushka. Airy drying doesn't usually cause damage. It may have been the heat styling prior to that. I air dry my hair all of the time, and I don't ever have any issues. It helps me to cut down on blow-drying time. I only have to blow-dry my hair for 5 minutes. Because, it is already 100% dry from the air drying.

Milady_DeWinter
May 16th, 2018, 12:49 AM
I also agree, it's the heat what causes the damage. Sometimes I air dry my hair in cold/warm mode and it does no harm :)