Brushing damage?

[Charli800]

Does brushing damage my hair? Is it better to brush or to comb (if I'm looking for maximum growth)? I don't think I could stand not detangling at all, though!
Sorry if I'm asking something really obvious, but a couple of posts I've seen have made me wonder.

[spidermom]

I get split ends so I tried not brushing for a year. It really made no difference at all. Now I have the Goody Jojoba-Infused Styling brush, which I love because it has soft rubbery bristles on a flexible base, so it can't rip through tangles. Brushing counts as a scalp massage, so if your hair can tolerate it (some curlies can't), I think it's a good thing.

[squiggyflop]

i get more damage when i use combs only instead of my wood bristle brushes.. they have a nice soft pad.. i use a wide tooth comb in the bath and a wood bristle brush later.. sometimes ill use a seamless fine tooth comb or a horn comb.. but combs only didnt work for me..

[Carolyn]

We have almost the same hairtype. I brush but only with straight bristled brushes such as a boar bristle brush or the straight quill brush from Body Shop. Any brush with those ball tips just grabs on to my hair and rips it out. My hair ties itself in knots around those little tips.

I usually finger comb to do a major detangling. On wash days I like to give my scalp a good brushing with my BBB. It feels great and I think it's good scalp stimulation.

[GlassEyes]

It depends on hairtype.

Brushing can be wonderful for some because it distributes oils well down the hair shaft as wel as detangles. As a curly-head, I can't use them because of the boo, and they damage m hair as well due to it being finer than some. But for others, they can be great! It really depends.

Just don' rip one through and you should be fine. Go from the bottom up.

[sibylla]

I think it depends on your hair. I´m a brushaholic and brushing gives my hair lots of volume and a clean scalp. I have no split ends. I would loose lots of volume if I only combed my hair.

[Charli800]

Just don' rip one through and you should be fine.
I need to work on my patience for that! But I'm glad my brush isn't universally hated. :) I'm just going to have to do some reading to figure out what makes a good brush.

[granitbaby]

I haven't brushed my hair for almost a year, and in december I finally throw my BBB in the garbage. Almost every kind of brush ripped my hair and caused splits, just like I suspect fine tooth combs doing.
For a few weeks now I have only detangled with finger and a wide tooth wooden comb and I hope I will see some improvement this year.

Brushing also gives my hair an enormous volume, it looks like pyramid- or mushroom hair, only straight not curly. Maybe that didn't make much sense :lol:

[HairColoredHair]

I don't brush because I am horrid about not pulling/ripping tangles through, mostly because I don't feel them as easily with a brush.

[lora410]

I truly am beginning to think combing is thinning my ends. I do use a BBB once in awhile. I think it is all about preference.

[Deborah]

I love brushing. For me, combing is what snaps hair, not brushing. I use a comb some, but much prefer brushes. I never seen any split ends, so I don't think brushing causes them.

[Elphie]

Another "brusher" here. I detangle first, either with my fingers or a wide toothed comb, and go slowly, from the bottom up.

A good brush is any kind that isn't breaking your hair. If you're hearing snaps and you're being careful, start looking for a more hair friendly brush.

[Johanna64]

I never brush my hair,because my curls don't like it and I'm afraid of breakage.
I comb it one or two times a year before I go to the hairdresser.
For the rest I fingercomb :)

[Charli800]

Brushing doesn't seem to give me split ends and, if I go carefully, I don't snap hairs (even with my cheap'n'nasty brush), so I guess I'm going to keep brushing. Thanks for all the advice, everyone!

[Curlsgirl]

My hair does better also with combing with a wide tooth comb. It's probably because I can tell when I hit a tangle better and take the time to untangle the snag better. When I brush I tend to hurry a little more and I hear snapping it seems even if I do detangle with a comb first. I do use a brush on the crown when I do an updo or something though and a Denman when I wear my hair straight. I don't have many splits or breaks at all so I guess I am doing what is right for my type of hair. I do think it is different for different types just like everything else.

[Violeta]

Imo YES! I used to only use brushes on my hair and I had a lot of splits all the time. Now, I use wide tooth combs and that is one of the main reasons I was able to have my hair this long with minimal damage!
But that’s just me …

[sissadawn]

I couldn't stand to completely give up my brush, but I have gotten more careful and learned that ripping through my tangles is not a good idea, lol. ;)

[Melisande]

I ditched brushing years ago. My wide toothed combs made me happy, the Heavenly Harvest horn comb is my holy grail of detangling ;-)

I'm glad to see, however, that many people love their brushes. My daughter brushes her hair, and I hope her hair likes it as yours does...

[scalawaggirl]

I brush with either my BBB or wood-toothed brush and detangle after CO with my Heavenly Harvest bone comb. I would never brush my hair wet though I do use brushes to blow dry but it's already combed and partially air-dried - I really try to avoid blow drying for the most part.

My hair is really thick and wavy w/no split ends but it looks nice when I brush it as well as feels good (scalp massage).

I do agree that you shouldn't pull through any tangles at all because this would snap your hair and that was good advice to start from the bottom as well as to go slowly.

Once, I heard to treat your hair like a fine piece of lace (probably here) and so that's what I've done for some time.

[Sister13]

I brush with a smooth-tipped, widely spaced bristle brush after oiling. Feels so good and I guess it's somewhat like scritching before I wash. As a curly, I'd never brush all the way through the length.

I get straighter the oilier and dirtier my hair is. Do all curlies get that way? I wonder.

:eyebrows:

[rogue_psyche]

I'm a brusher. I used a Goody Ouchless brush for years and found it great for my hair until the bristles got bent. :cry: I replaced it recently with a Denman, and I'm not sure it is for me, but I might just have to get used to it. :shrug: I imagine cleaning to be easier with the Denman though. My Ouchless brush was hard to clean, especially when they got all the buildup from poo bars. :rolleyes:

I'd like to try combs, but have yet to find one I'd be willing to invest in. I remember the ones I tried in the past not working though...

[QueenAnne'sLace]

I brush with a smooth-tipped, widely spaced bristle brush after oiling. Feels so good and I guess it's somewhat like scritching before I wash. As a curly, I'd never brush all the way through the length.

I get straighter the oilier and dirtier my hair is. Do all curlies get that way? I wonder.

:eyebrows:

I do the scritching as well, and likewise as I get oilier and dirtier, my hair straightens. Must get heavier somehow... :shrug:

[RancheroTheBee]

I tried to give up the brush, but I couldn't. It doesn't cause any harm for my hair, unless you count brushing out what few spiral curls I have. But I find it necessary to distribute oils, and with enough practice, it's easy not to rip through your hair. :) Keep it!