How to prevent split ends?

[Ella grace]

Hi all,
Apologizies in advance if this is in the wrong place.
I have very fine hair and don’t produce any oil whatsoever so I often end up having dry hair.
I used to have really bad split ends, despite never dyeing my hair, using heat products and taking really good care of my hair.
I’ve ended up cutting off about 2 inches and I’m trying to prevent split ends from forming again. I’m also trying to grow out my hair but it grows painfully slow despite me being a healthy person with a good lifestyle and my blood test results were all normal.

Any tips on how to grow my hair and prevent split ends?

[Ella grace]

Sorry that was meant to say NOT using heat products.

[paulownia]

I may not be an expert on split ends ;) because I don't get them, frankly speaking. Regular oil treatments work for me.
The usual advice for those who grow the hair lond and want to keep the ends healthy is to put the hair up (protective styling). Do some trimming - but not too often of course if you want to see some growth. And sealing the ends with silicone serum.
It seems to be an individual thing, with split ends. Some people don't get them no matter what, others get split ends even with the huge amount of care and babying.

[Ylva]

Wear your hair up.
Make sure your hair is as hydrated as possible with as much slip as possible.
Apply something protective on your ends, like oil or a hair serum.
Avoid any friction on your ends. For me it made a world of difference in terms of split ends that I greatly reduced the time my hair was in a braid.
Invest in a silk or satin pillowcase.
S&D or microtrim when split ends appear, so they don't split further. Make sure to do a clean cut, not a sideways one or with a razor. Invest in a good, sharp pair of hair scissors.
Brush your hair gently.

[kph12]

Ylva Do braids cause you to have split ends? I thought it was a protective style this whole time! Do you just do buns instead of braids?

[spitfire511]

Welcome Ella grace!

Ylva covered most all of the basics, and if you search around you'll find a bajillion posts on splits, growing and etc. Make sure to check out the stickies at the top of this page. I still use them routinely!

A huge part of growing is good habits - and part of it is taking the time to test and learn your hair. (And time around here is measured in months and years, not weeks. It's a long process to find what really works for you!)

Many of us find that wearing it up as Ylva suggests is hugely helpful.

It keeps you from obsessing over the length so much and also protects the ends. How you wear it up matters - many things can cause more damage than they help - which is why you see so many flexis, sticks and forks around here. Try not to stare at those ends - especially in sunlight (I'm the WORST for this) and ignore it for a bit. Good luck to you!

[lapushka]

I have very fine hair and don’t produce any oil whatsoever so I often end up having dry hair.
I used to have really bad split ends, despite never dyeing my hair, using heat products and taking really good care of my hair.
I’ve ended up cutting off about 2 inches and I’m trying to prevent split ends from forming again. I’m also trying to grow out my hair but it grows painfully slow despite me being a healthy person with a good lifestyle and my blood test results were all normal.

Any tips on how to grow my hair and prevent split ends?

You can't really "prevent" split ends. Is your scalp dry, or are your ends dry? I, for instance, have normal/oily scalp and dry lengths, so I tend to use the WCC method to wash. I wash my scalp & lengths these days and then double condition. Then I, on top of that, use the LOC/LCO method for styling, which brings additional moisture to the hair (methods are in my signature).

I wash weekly. My mom has dry scalp and washes monthly (and can even go longer than 2/3 months if need be, she has really dry scalp (no flakes though)). She dyes her hair 3/4 times a year and has no split ends, but she cuts her hair every 3/4 months, usually when she dyes it.

It all depends.

You can "attack" your splits with S&D (search & destroy, just cutting individual splits off). No need to really "trim" as often.

[Ylva]

Ylva Do braids cause you to have split ends? I thought it was a protective style this whole time! Do you just do buns instead of braids?

Not if they are "floating" or up and not touching anything, but in my case, the braid was rubbing against my back and my clothes, so my hair was experiencing a lot of friction. Braids are protective for sure when it comes to preventing tangling, though. You can still braid, but it would be a good idea to wrap the braid into a bun or around your head or something like that, instead of letting it hang loose, depending on how long it is. :)

[MusicalSpoons]

Ylva Do braids cause you to have split ends? I thought it was a protective style this whole time! Do you just do buns instead of braids?

Not Ylva here (obviously) but I'm another one for whom braids are not protective. I'm going to quote a post I wrote on another thread, because otherwise it's a lot of typing :grin:


Generally speaking, I think they're far better than just wearing hair loose, but it completely depends on the hair. For me they're not particularly protective; I always end up with fuzz, and to sleep in they actually result in more small tangles throughout the length than even sleeping with it loose. The ends of shorter hairs popping out all the way down means those ends are more exposed than in any other style, and there's also the issue of hairbands (hair ties) at the end - once in a while is okay (for maybe a braided bun) but certainly not often.

(I might feel differently if my plaits were thicker; perhaps I'd not mind a little more damage if I had more hair to start with! But mine are thin because my hair compresses so much, so I think that is a factor for me.)

Also, length of the hair counts too - a shorter plait that stays out of the way of chair backs, bag straps, etc., is going to be a lot more helpful than a knee-length or even TBL plait. In fact for shorter hair (APL or above?) it may well be the most protective hairstyle one can do at that length.

So yes, I live in buns!

OP, welcome! And for sure wearing it up, protected, using hair-friendly accessories is a major way to prevent damage that leads to splits. Brushing or combining carefully to detangle, and preferably stopping to work out any tangles with your fingers will help too.

This night seem a stupid question, but are they definitely split ends, or just feeling rough or tangly? If they're not actually split there are all sorts of ways to treat the problem before resorting to chopping them off :) (oh, and hairdressers will always describe ends as dead, damaged or split - don't take their weird for it! Have a look for splits yourself, and if there actually aren't many those can be snipped out individually.)

[kph12]

That's good to know...

My hair is thick and basically will hold any shape I put it into which is why sometimes buns can be annoying because once it's in a bun it becomes one giant wave that doesn't go away until I was it. I like wearing braids because then if I want to wear it loose it looks pretty and the braid helps it lie smooth (thus making it look longer :p) . I hadn't thought about friction from my clothes though...

[paulownia]

How you wear it up matters - many things can cause more damage than they help - which is why you see so many flexis, sticks and forks around here.
I hope that the claw clips and beak clips are not damaging! It’s the only ones I can use at the moment, as my hair is barely at shoulder lenght. I don’t own a flexi.... yet;) and a fork or a stick is out of question right now , I don’t have the length for it.
I want to start wearing the hair up as often as possible - I used to have it loose 99,9% of time:p

[MusicalSpoons]

That's good to know...

My hair is thick and basically will hold any shape I put it into which is why sometimes buns can be annoying because once it's in a bun it becomes one giant wave that doesn't go away until I was it. I like wearing braids because then if I want to wear it loose it looks pretty and the braid helps it lie smooth (thus making it look longer :p) . I hadn't thought about friction from my clothes though...

A braided bun would be protective, and looks fancy as a bonus :D

[Dark40]

Hi all,
Apologizies in advance if this is in the wrong place.
I have very fine hair and don’t produce any oil whatsoever so I often end up having dry hair.
I used to have really bad split ends, despite never dyeing my hair, using heat products and taking really good care of my hair.
I’ve ended up cutting off about 2 inches and I’m trying to prevent split ends from forming again. I’m also trying to grow out my hair but it grows painfully slow despite me being a healthy person with a good lifestyle and my blood test results were all normal.

Any tips on how to grow my hair and prevent split ends?

Well, to prevent split ends from occuring is to condition your hair after ever wash, and keep it well-moisturized. Do, DT's every week. Or, however often you feel that there is a need works for me. Also, oil treatments works for me as well, and I don't ever have any issues with split ends. It's been helping my hair to grow a lot!!! And, now my hair is about WL.