how have your split ends changed?

[Katze]

Since coming to LHC, I've been doing regular S&Ds (used to pick or bite the splits off!) and have noticed a drastic difference in their number and type.

My hair was always dry at the ends (thanks to bleach and dye) and I had some really spectacular splits - multiple branchings, splits-on-splits, splits way up the length, and so on. Basically, everything you can imagine in the encyclopedia of split ends!

In addition to lots more moisture on the ends/length, including weekly SMTs at the beginning, misting, leave-in conditioner, I've been trimming a lot, probably trimmed at least 12 inches since coming here, and the character and type of my splits has changed a LOT.

Now I have a few white dots, maybe 1 per 15 hairs or so, some split "bends", and occasional fairy knots and mini-splits (where just the end is forked; barely visible except under good light).

My ends are still color-treated, and I probably have max. 5 inches left of colored hair. I am hoping that when they are gone, my virgin hair will have little to no splits at all! :D

I believe that the extra moisture is the #1 factor here, as I was already fairly gentle with my hair (no brushing, gentle handling) and since I usually wear my hair down. Lately I have been sleeping with it up (finally found something that works) and hope that this will further decrease "unconscious" damage.

What about you? Have your splits changed? What have you been doing?

We might never win the war against splits, but we can drive them back, back, into the hills...!

Katze

[Hypnotica]

Well....my splits seems to be stronger so the hair doesn't break off so easily...? :D :D :D

[ilovelonghair]

My split ends keep coming back, with a vengence!

[Melisande]

I'm very happy to say that I didn't see a split end in a long time - in spite of the chemical dyed ends that are noticeably drier and crunchier.

What helped? When I switched over to plant dye, I treated the whole hair. I feel the plant dye makes it much stronger. I keep my ends moisturized the whole time (Sheabutter conditioning cream (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=4586), a lifesaver for me, and deep oilings the night before washing). I dampbun, I nightbun, I handle extremely gently, and I dust every six months (with very sharp hairdresser's scissors). I've heard many good things about catnip tea and I'll definitely give it a try in the near future.

My ends will have to go sooner or later, but for now, I keep them until my hair is longer. The day I see a split is the day I'll have the old ends cut off. Let's hope it's not so soon.

[jojo]

Hi Katze,
When my hair was coloured I used to find the exact same as you did, nowadays no chemicals on my hair I found three 1/4" ones, so mine have run back to the hills! but I am guessing as I get longer they will run back down and attach themselves to my ends!

Its the downside to fine hair isn't it?

[Arctic_Mama]

My hair has always been very resistant to splits, which amazes me considering how fine it is and since it was razored and colored (though I think the razor work was cut off, thankfully) but I don't have splits now, not a single one I can find. I know when my hair gets to be about waist length I'll start to find a few, but it is nice that even with the abuse my hair is still healthier than most.

The biggest LHC difference for me is combing - I am not finding broken hairs sticking out all over my crown anymore, since I've stopped tearing through it. Me and my hair both love this site dearly!

[Sarahmoon]

I still have my pre-LHC splits (wearing hair down all day... brushing... shampooing the length... swimming every week) but thanks to better hair care an jojoba oil, the ends look less dry now most of the time so people don't see the splits unless they come real close. And I'm not sure but it seems I get new splits less fast now. I still often find some spectacular ones in my hair though!

[MandaMom2Three]

I WAS at the point where a 15 minute S&D would yeild MAYBE 3 splits, even though my ends are notoriously dry. However After trying a bbb for a few days last week my hair got shredded :( . I trimmed 1/2 inch shudder: and am still catching a lot in S&D's :( . Until then though I couldn't believe how few splits I had :D

[JessTheMess]

BBBs kill my hair!:( I do weekly S&D's and the amount of splits has drastically decreased.

[ktani]

Catnip tea, for me = no split ends.
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=476

[longhairedfairy]

The difference in my splits is that they're somewhere else instead of attached to me partly because of S&D. I usually don't have very many splits anymore:D

[Addy]

I haven't seen a split end in ages <I have checked> but the breakage is tearing my heart apart! :(

I never really noticed the breakage until I came here and it is just awful! I need to get this color to grow out ASAP! It's funny how it never bothered me before and now I know what it's from <chemical dye>. My grays are really coming through and a 1/2 inch past most of my gray, it's broken off and non-existant. :disgust:

I think my only option is to grow out and baby my hair.

[ktani]

I think that some people are genetically predisposed to having hair that does not get split ends (chemical damage is a different issue).

I used to get split ends regardless of what I did or did not do to my hair.

My hair is currently virgin, except for catnip. Prior to catnip it was also virgin, with split ends.

[spidermom]

My most common splits are the type that look like light stripes on my hair, but when I bend the hair, little ends stick out where the stripes are. I also get a lot of the Y type. Splits probably number no more than 1 out of 25 hairs, though, maybe even less than that. (I don't know that my splits have changed. In the past, I didn't pay attention to them. But since I've been hanging out here, I obsess over them. I wish I were still oblivious.)

[Ryanne]

It never occured to me that my hair could split, then I started lurking here, and learned why my ends were in such a terrible state. I don't know if there has been a change though.

[Aisha25]

No splits now before I had few but now I see maybe one or two white dots that I cut off but thats about it and now I only have to check for splits once a month maybe so it is very nice:D

[Bloodflower]

I used to have those horrible multiple splits, and tons of them. Since quitting chemical dye and wearing my hair up almost constantly the condition has improved a lot. I get only a few tiny splits (Y-type) and those dots Spidermom described. I really have to search for them, though.

[Jessikinz]

Pre-LHC I use to actually split my split ends apart. Why? I don't know, I was bored and didn't care for my hair at the time. The split ends never bothered me at all back then. Now that I'm here, I'm always doing S&D's and obsessing over them. I don't see as much as I did back then. Because I keep my hair up all the time, and I oil my ends everyday and after I wash it.

[Akiko]

I used to have lots of split ends when I went scuba diving on daily basis two decades ago. Now I don't have split ends. Or I just grew old and cannot see such small things. :eye:

[Boots]

3 things have helped me. Growing out the colored hair and getting back to virgin, adding moisture (smts and locking it in with oil), and banning heat. My S&Ds yield much less now!

[chickpea]

Since coming to LHC, I've been doing regular S&Ds (used to pick or bite the splits off!) and have noticed a drastic difference in their number and type.

My hair was always dry at the ends (thanks to bleach and dye) and I had some really spectacular splits - multiple branchings, splits-on-splits, splits way up the length, and so on. Basically, everything you can imagine in the encyclopedia of split ends!

In addition to lots more moisture on the ends/length, including weekly SMTs at the beginning, misting, leave-in conditioner, I've been trimming a lot, probably trimmed at least 12 inches since coming here, and the character and type of my splits has changed a LOT.

Now I have a few white dots, maybe 1 per 15 hairs or so, some split "bends", and occasional fairy knots and mini-splits (where just the end is forked; barely visible except under good light).

My ends are still color-treated, and I probably have max. 5 inches left of colored hair. I am hoping that when they are gone, my virgin hair will have little to no splits at all! :D

I believe that the extra moisture is the #1 factor here, as I was already fairly gentle with my hair (no brushing, gentle handling) and since I usually wear my hair down. Lately I have been sleeping with it up (finally found something that works) and hope that this will further decrease "unconscious" damage.

What about you? Have your splits changed? What have you been doing?

We might never win the war against splits, but we can drive them back, back, into the hills...!

Katze

This is so much like my hair, which has damage from old bleach and colour. I mostly get white dots and the forked kind of split ends.

I switched from chemical dyes to henna & indigo, wear my hair up most of the time, and trim off the damaged bits regularly. My hair is a lot more moisturized since I started washing with shampoo bars.

[Calanthe]

I'm not really sure how they have changed. I never cared, split end, what's that?

Since becoming a longhair again I'm a bit more split-end-conscious. I don't have that many but you can still see that the ends are a bit ratty. Strangely, I never had white dots, just the normal kind of splits. Most split ends are around my face anyway, but that is my own fault. I usually have two long strands hanging dowin, kind of bang-like, and they are forever catching and pulling.

I quit the S&D a while ago, because that made me crazy - I trim about three times a year. Mostly, I do this to even out my hemline which is still not what I'd like it to be. Getting rid of splits is an additional benefit.

My putting in moisture like crazy seems to help, too. My hair is much more flexible and that seems to prevent split ends - at least for me.

[Juneii]

my hair generally never got splits when I was young but when my hair stylist encouraged me to use a flat iron I got split ends like crazy. I remember a few months ago I just got my hair trimmed and had no split ends, buy the next week I had split ends on almost every strand because of the flat iron!
so what I'm doing now is just gently brushing my hair, bunning it after I shower to keep it moist. and when I don't want to pay attention in class, look for the split ends and snip them off. I can't find any split ends now and I'm really happy :]

[longhairedfairy]

I used to have lots of split ends when I went scuba diving on daily basis two decades ago. Now I don't have split ends. Or I just grew old and cannot see such small things.

(Sorry to hijack, but I can't start new threads on this computer:/) What's the best way to protect your hair during scuba diving? I've always wanted to try it. I wonder if heavy oiling, conditioning, and/or a swim cap would be best.

[joyfulmom4]

I had never paid much attention to my ends before. I would just go trim a few inches when they got bad. I haven't heat styled in years though and have never chemical treated/colored my hair, so that helps.

Still, when I first began doing S&D, I did find quite a few splits, including some long ones and ones that were very frayed on the ends. I think I've got most of the bad ones trimmed out now so it looks smoother.

I still find some splits when I check. I'm not sure if they're new ones or just ones I haven't found yet. The ones left are smaller and typically just split in two, not frayed. Some are just the beginning of a split that looks lighter at the tip.

Trimming out the splits definitely makes combing easier. It's almost as good as it used to be after getting a few inches trimmed off. Imagine that!

Of course I'm also doing other things to make it softer and healthier, like oiling.

[joyfulmom4]

................. Now I don't have split ends. Or I just grew old and cannot see such small things. :eye:


LOL! I hate to admit this, but I recently discovered that I DO have split ends that I couldn't see due to my eyes getting older. It's only been this past year (since I turned 40) that I need reading glasses to read. And to find split ends!

[Akiko]

(Sorry to hijack, but I can't start new threads on this computer:/) What's the best way to protect your hair during scuba diving? I've always wanted to try it. I wonder if heavy oiling, conditioning, and/or a swim cap would be best.

I did not know about oiling back then. So I did not try. If I were to go now, I would oil and wear a big hat when I am out of water.

Scuba diving itself may not be that harmful to your hair. I believe the cause of damage was a combinations of sea water wet hair under intense sunlight day after day.

I traveled to remote islands all over the pacific. Almost all the scuba divers who dive frequently in subtropical and tropical regions have sun-bleached damaged hair. The environment is not hair friendly.

I tried to wash my hair as soon as possible after diving. But that was not so easy. I would spend 45 minutes or so under water. Then come up. My air tank would be almost empty then. Then I used to take a break for an hour or so outside. Then go back in again. No time or place for a shower for hours.

If you are interested, try by all means. It is a wonderful experience. It changed my view of world and life. I especially love Palau. It is a paradise for divers.

[Akiko]

LOL! I hate to admit this, but I recently discovered that I DO have split ends that I couldn't see due to my eyes getting older. It's only been this past year (since I turned 40) that I need reading glasses to read. And to find split ends!

My hair world is wonderful without reading glasses. I don't see any problems!!!:whistle:

[Deemeeuh]

I haven't seen a split end in ages <I have checked> but the breakage is tearing my heart apart! :(

I never really noticed the breakage until I came here and it is just awful! I need to get this color to grow out ASAP! It's funny how it never bothered me before and now I know what it's from <chemical dye>. My grays are really coming through and a 1/2 inch past most of my gray, it's broken off and non-existant. :disgust:

I think my only option is to grow out and baby my hair.

I have a similar experience to Addy.

Have your splits changed? I used to be able to find 5 or so, pre-LHC and also pre-coloring. I was just searching through my hair just now and couldn't find a single split end of any description. (My last hair trim was over 2 months ago.) Very surprising and good! However, like Addy, I do experience some annoying breakage due to past coloring I think. Sigh.

What have you been doing? 2 months ago I had my hair colored back to its natural color (almost :/) so no more chemical dyes. I do SMTs (should do more often) and Aphogee 2-Step Protein Treatments (only when needed and no closer together than 3 weeks). I use a seamless comb and BBB. The blowtorch is used about a third less. I occasionally do overnight coconut oilings and CO washes to rinse it out. I am gentler when I wrap up my hair in a towel as well. I think all these things have helped prevent splits.

[spidermom]

Terrible, horrible, awful split ends. Sometimes the ends of the splits are split! It seems worse than ever since LHC because I never used to pay attention. Now I obsess about them, so they multiply.

But really, I think I only find one damaged hair out of 50 or so. But do I think about the other 49; nope - only the damaged one.

[RocketDog]

I can count the number of split hairs I've seen in my life on one hand... My hair doesn't split when it's damaged, it just breaks off. My post-LHC care routine has led to less breakage, which I can only assume would mean less splits if I actually developed them!

[Monsterkitti]

I think I have fewer splits since LHC as it gets much gentler care now but im still very prone to white spots on my ends.

Ive pretty much given up on S&D for the moment as im lazy but I will be going back to it regually in 2010 as it does make a difference :)

[rogue_psyche]

When my hair was virgin I very rarely got split ends, even at BSL (longest I remember my hair ever getting). I got splits halfway between APL and BSL because my hair is peroxided. I never got around to trimming after bleaching my hair either, and then joined LHC and went straight into the no trim club. I plan on trimming in 2010, though.

I get splits in the form of white dots, clear ends, Y splits, and the rare splits that looks like a wide-tooth comb or a tree branch.

I really would like to start being more regular with catnip treatments, but at least I S&D every 1-2 weeks.

[Captain Nikki]

Prior to the last couple of years (when i started to take care of my hair) i used to S&D quite regularly but always had millions of split ends. Over the last couple of years they have definitely lessened. During yesterday's S&D i could hardly find any! This is a huge shock for me! And i'm loving it especially cause i haven't had a proper trim in about 3 months! Woo hoo!

[Gulbahar]

My hair always splits and breaks no matter what I do. It's not noticable for others, but I see it all too well. At least half of the hairs that stick out of my braid seem to have split ends or white dots. Apart from that my hair looks very healthy. It has great shine and is (far too) soft.
Even before coming here I treated my hair very well. No chemicals, no heat, regular henna and deep treatments. I would love to be able to use catnip more often to see if it makes a difference, but it just doesn't agree with my life. Sometimes I manage to S&D every week which reduces the damage considerably. But as soon as I stop this, the splits come back - practically over night. I suppose my hair won't ever be free of splits. :shrug:

[Dars]

I first started S&D'ing over a year ago when I was using cones and heat. There was a lot more damage then, more splits. Now I am cone and heat free (among other new things) and the damage I find is mostly bent ends with white dots and mini splits coming in second place.

[freckles]

My hair always splits and breaks no matter what I do. It's not noticable for others, but I see it all too well. At least half of the hairs that stick out of my braid seem to have split ends or white dots. Apart from that my hair looks very healthy. It has great shine and is (far too) soft.
Even before coming here I treated my hair very well. No chemicals, no heat, regular henna and deep treatments. I would love to be able to use catnip more often to see if it makes a difference, but it just doesn't agree with my life. Sometimes I manage to S&D every week which reduces the damage considerably. But as soon as I stop this, the splits come back - practically over night. I suppose my hair won't ever be free of splits. :shrug:
this is me, too. my splits are horrible. I get a whole inch of hair sometimes that is just 'feathery' with split ends, and more often I get normal splits or white dots. S&D helps somewhat but only if I do it all the time. I think probably LHC, wearing hair up, conditioning like hell, has helped somewhat but I am still prone to splits. I haven't yet tried catnip though and I plan on doing so.

[ravenreed]

My hair has always been split happy, virgin or not. At shorter lengths with a different routine, I got little tree looking ends, where the branched splits would go up and up and up. Now I have less of those, but more bends and kinks, and thickening. Maybe I am catching them before they become trees, I don't know.

[Rapunzal2Be]

I don't get split ends.

I used to, when I bleached my hair blonde, but not anymore. Now I use henndigo instead - my hair is shiny, healthy, thicker, and stronger, with no split ends.

[Centifolia]

I used to have multiple splits, splits-on-splits, splits way up the length, white dots and so on. I never payed much atention to them, I just played with them and damaged my hair even more. But now I found LHC, I have started wearing my hair up very often, and stoped using flatirons and blowdriers and brushing my hair. Ah, and I CWC with a milder shampoo and a conefree conditioner.
Finally I almost do not have splits and all I have are the baby ones and the small Y shaped. My hair is becoming happier and happier!

[Arctic]

I don't have that many splits but I have (had) other kinds of damaged ends and breakage. Mine have changed since coming to LHC. I have kept notes about them too, in my blog. I once compared hair damage to onions, as it seemed that once I get rid of one kind of damage (onion layer) I start noticing an other kind of damage (onion layer) and keep "peeling the onion" this way with my S&D missions. Probably all the damage types were there all along I just didn't pay attention to them all and thus the damage seemed to change.

For a while I saw lot of improvement in my hair (but not on my scalp!) after coming to LHC and started to take care of my hair better. I have always been quite obsessive personality and my S&D was/is really obsessive to me and I easily spend/t hours at times snipping ends, damaged and also my coarse, wiry hairs I though were damaged.

I seem to have very finicky hair and scalp/skin and it has taken lot of tries and failures to find routines that work for them both. A little more than year ago my hair started to get worse and worse. It became rough, tangly, non-flexible, stiff, etc etc. I spent humongous number of hours S&Ding. Then the breakage started, really bad breakage. I was at my wits end as I was already taking great care of my hair and it just went worse all the time. I had lots of breakage and weird crinkly, stiff ends.

I noticed I get build-up super easily and have been living with perpetual build-up despite of regular clarifying. I also started to reduce protein and finally gave up all protein-y products. These helped a bit but my hair really didn't return to the way it was. I was kind of desperate, my hair was coarse and rough and felt wrong to me.

Finally this autumn I tried ascorbic acid rinse, after reading it can remove (chelate) minerals from hair that usually come from water. I tried it and wow! After one treatment I had my soft hair back, almost like it had been. There still were some damaged ends, but it was so much better and has stayed that way afterwards.

I can not say for sure what it was that was making my hair this way, it looks like I had both too much protein in my hair and some kind of mineral build-up. These factors were actually damaging my hair even though I took good care of it. It has been quite frustrating at times to to try to grow my hair and take great care of it, and it still gets damaged all by itself (it seemed).

I had to cut my hair to shoulders because of the damage, breakage and over-zealous S&D sessions (and trichotillomania) had left my hair very thin. I still have lot of "natural layers" from breakage left, that will take a loooong time to catch up with the rest.

Now it looks like I have found the routine that finally works for my hair and skin and I can get length and reap the benefits of taking care of my hair instead of it getting damaged with no-reason (as it looked like to me).

Sorry about long and rambling post :o

[detritus]

When I first joined LHC, nearly every hair on my head had a split end. Mostly white dots, but also some spectacular "tree" splits. My hair was highlighted and had the front section (what would be bangs if they had been cut) bleached and dyed pink. I washed every day with SLS shampoo and blew it dry on high.

Now, I looked for splits the other day and found only one. All the bleach damage has grown out and my hair is 100&#37; virgin again. My routine has changed a lot. Currently, I'm CO washing about 50-75% of the time and washing with a gentle sulfate free shampoo otherwise. (Whole Foods 365 brand for both.) I never heat style. I do deep conditioning treatments or overnight heavy oilings at least every couple weeks, usually more. I also lightly oil my ends afters shampooing. Occasionally I'll treat it with catnip tea as well. I never do S&D missions and I haven't had my hair trimmed in about 6 months.