How to get rid of a cowlick- or whatever you call it

[Yedda]

I've never heard of a cowlick until I took the first pic of the back of my head to post on here.

I have a bald spot on the back of my head and someone called it a cowlick, or where the hair parts.

Is there anyway to get rid of this "cowlick" or bald spot or whatever it is???:confused:

[vampodrama]

I have one too which looks like a bald spot (I have extremely white skin, especially my scalp, and darker hair. contrast is not my friend up there.)

what I did - I started the part of my hair directly on the cowlick, dragging it straight to the hairline. this way the cowlick simply looks like the end of a part, and not a random bald spot. the part in my case is way more to the side than I've ever worn, but whatever works. I was very frustrated and depressed over this cowlick, because I have thin, fine hair with not much volume and I really don't need anyone to think I am going bald.

[Lilylady]

Is it actually a bald spot, or just where the hair parts? Can you comb it another way when wet, so as to hide it?

My dd has a scar on her head where no hair grows, from an accident when she was a toddler. Unfortunately, it falls right next to the middle of her head, so any time I part her hair all the way down (like for pigtails or 2 french braids) it shows. I wonder what it would cost to have it tattoed brown to match...

:idea: I know what I'll do... I'll use a brown sharpie marker!! :idea:

[rymorg2]

I'm a stylist...

All that causes a cowlick is the direction the hair grows in. There's not really anything you can do other than trying to part your hair differently, growing it out more, or in some cases cutting some off (NOOOOO) to "get rid of it" and it won't really be gone anyway, just disguised. The best thing I can say is try to get used to it. Try different things to disguise it. But you can't lose it.

Btw, I have a big ol' whirlygig cowlick at my crown too. It never goes away. I hate it. I have to live with it. It drives me CRAZY.

[jivete]

With mine, if I comb my hair when it's wet, it dries to hide it. Unfortunately, I rarely comb my hair when wet, but I can coax the hairs to lay a little different. You can blow-dry it and that'll help too, but I avoid that as well.

The greasier my hair, the more mine shows. At that point, the hair really wants to lay the way it wants, not how I try to make it.

[vampodrama]

oh btw - I cannot comb my hair over the cowlick because then it will look exactly that - a comb-over. like on old balding men. even more unflattering and awkward.

[Yedda]

This is what it looks like:

[rymorg2]

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/picture.php?albumid=2499&pictureid=31514

Here is my picture of it. The thing is...I don't think it used to be there and I didn't shave my head and let it grow back so why would my hair be growing in like this now?:disgust:

Sometimes they don't show up until they get a certain length and then they pop in. Sometimes if you grow them out the weight pulls the hairs down and disguises one but then if you cut it short again BOOM it's right back. My guess is you always had it, but since your hair is getting longer it's just now showing up.

[Denebi]

I have to comb over the cowlick immediately after air drying my hair... Or do an updo which forces the hair to lay flat over it (which is what I do normally). However, a few days after washing, the cowlick battles its way up to the surface again. I can fight it back a bit with a bit of moisture (water and then comb), but it's a hopeless combat. ;)

[Coriander]

or in some cases cutting some off (NOOOOO) to "get rid of it" and it won't really be gone anyway,

:rollin:

When I was in 7th grade, I had bangs cut in. Problem? I have an enormous cowlick dead center on my hairline in front.

A few months before my school photo was taken I decided that I would simply cut the bangs off... OFF... at the hairline.

When the photo was taken, the hair that had grown in was sticking straight out. I'll try to find it and scan it in to show you how *not* to deal with a cowlick :laugh:

[feralnature]

I'm in good company :)

[PurpleAshes]

I dont have help for the cowlick, fortunately mine are in the front hairline, but, I do have to say, you have gorgeous hair! :)

[Xandergrammy]

I have one in the middle of my forehead and one on my crown. I've had them forever and there's no way to get rid of them. Trust me on this. Some of us refer to the back-of-the-head cowlick as "hair cleavage" :gabigrin:

[chamogirl]

I have 5 of the suckers and have learned to deal and you know there has never been a hairstyle pictured that shows someone how to deal with 3 cowlicks in the front of the hair-go figure.

[Ponytale]

Yup--forehead and crown for me too! I used to have bangs and they always curled sideways if I tried to straighten them. My one good stylist finally said--"No more bangs for you! They will always look funny."

I wish I could help you--I am only "sure" the back cowlick is hidden if I do an updo, then pull a rat tail of a comb through the pulled back hair to remove the "snarks" and cover it.

[rymorg2]

:rollin:

When I was in 7th grade, I had bangs cut in. Problem? I have an enormous cowlick dead center on my hairline in front.

A few months before my school photo was taken I decided that I would simply cut the bangs off... OFF... at the hairline.

When the photo was taken, the hair that had grown in was sticking straight out. I'll try to find it and scan it in to show you how *not* to deal with a cowlick :laugh:

Ohhhhhhh Coriander.....that's funny..........:spitting: I'd LOVE to see a pic.....

[SimplyLonghair]

My cowlicks are whorls of hair that part, and, or stick straight out. I also have Many! At least 6 or so. And the only way I have ever calmed them into submission, was my mom put straightener on it when she was straightening my sisters hair. She combed it straight and left it on the right amount of time, and then rinsed it off. But this isn't something that I recommend even though it did work. Way too smelly and harsh on the hair.:p

[tina1025]

AHHHHHHH i have it too....I thought it was a bald spot and i was freaking out....But then i saw people with thick hair and that bald spot so i figured it was normal but it still bothered me. Some one suggested on rubbing an onion. I tired it twice. I have just been so lazy to try it often. but i will try rubbing it everyday for next month to see if it changes.

[SimplyLonghair]

AHHHHHHH i have it too....I thought it was a bald spot and i was freaking out....But then i saw people with thick hair and that bald spot so i figured it was normal but it still bothered me. Some one suggested on rubbing an onion. I tired it twice. I have just been so lazy to try it often. but i will try rubbing it everyday for next month to see if it changes.
Be very careful of onion! We had a member, I don't remember who, that had onion smell:shocked: in their hair for a long time from using it for shedding I think. The smell lingered for a long long time, I don't remember what finally helped or if the smell just wore out:poot:

[Yedda]

:rollin:

When I was in 7th grade, I had bangs cut in. Problem? I have an enormous cowlick dead center on my hairline in front.

A few months before my school photo was taken I decided that I would simply cut the bangs off... OFF... at the hairline.

When the photo was taken, the hair that had grown in was sticking straight out. I'll try to find it and scan it in to show you how *not* to deal with a cowlick :laugh:

Yes, I think we are all very curious to see now:wigtongue


I dont have help for the cowlick, fortunately mine are in the front hairline, but, I do have to say, you have gorgeous hair! :)

:blushing:Well thank you very much PurpleAshes!


I have one in the middle of my forehead and one on my crown. I've had them forever and there's no way to get rid of them. Trust me on this. Some of us refer to the back-of-the-head cowlick as "hair cleavage" :gabigrin:

Hmm...Hair clevage...Almost makes it sound kind of sexy:eyebrows:


AHHHHHHH i have it too....I thought it was a bald spot and i was freaking out....But then i saw people with thick hair and that bald spot so i figured it was normal but it still bothered me. Some one suggested on rubbing an onion. I tired it twice. I have just been so lazy to try it often. but i will try rubbing it everyday for next month to see if it changes.

Please let us know if you do try the onion, and how well it works...

And thanks everyone for telling me your cowlick situation. :) At least we can all feel comfortable knowing that this is a rather common thing to have.

Now this may not be true at all, but I have an underlying suspision about this cowlick.

I used to have long hair, no cowlick, and then I cut my hair shorter and I have a cowlick. I used to sleep in various positions and almost always sleep in my bed. Now, I tend to pass out and always fall asleep on the couch, watching TV, so my head is pressured against the couch at the same angle everynight (toward the TV). I just very recently switched to silk pillowcases, but until then my hair would be against cotton or sometimes the couch itself.

I think there may be correlation between laying your head at the same angle everynight, and the pressure this could cause. My mom used to sleep all the time when I was growing up (pretty much all day-she was depressed) and she developed a rather large cowlick (now I would really call her's a bald spot-it was large.) She did not always have this.

So I am thinking there could possibly be a correlation-if this is the case then using my silk pillowcases and sleeping in different positions in bed (not the darn couch) might help.

We will see I suppose...What do you guys think about my thinking here?

[Deborah]

You never get rid of them, but if you wear a bun or a half-up the ones in back are usually invisible.

[Hairtada]

I have a long natural part that starts in front and goes all the way over the top and a couple inches down the back of my head. It culminates in a cowlick. I have hated that part/cowlick for years but have never found a way to cover it up. It is what it is and I have just had to live with it.I do notice that the longer my hair is the more it shows. I prefer the longer hair so just ignore it as much as possible.

At least I see I am not alone and in very good company!!

[Zindell]

You never get rid of them, but if you wear a bun or a half-up the ones in back are usually invisible.

Jupp. Half-ups cover the ones in the back very nicely.

[Forest]

I have a cowlick were my part ends, BUT it only shows when I CO-wash, never when I use shampoo. Anyone else experiencing the same thing?

[SimplyLonghair]

I have a cowlick were my part ends, BUT it only shows when I CO-wash, never when I use shampoo. Anyone else experiencing the same thing?
I know that when I CO my hair is much curlier so that could be your issue.

My cowlicks are why I have long hair, it is the only natural way that I have found to deal with them! LOL Weight! Long hair, no more cowlick problem, short hair, cowlicks everywhere!:silly:
To me it was a no brainer! :tongue:

[Katze]

Jupp. Half-ups cover the ones in the back very nicely.

IF you can get your hair to lay that way, that is! My hair only ever covers my cowlick if it is freshly washed and "poofy" (days 1-2) OR if it's "dirty" (days 4,5,6,7 after washing) and I can beat it into submission with brushing and oils. Still, it tends to fall back into the "cleavage" pattern on its own unless I put a lot of time and effort into forcing it to do otherwise.

My album is full of pics of this terrible cowlick, and my avatar pic shows it quite clearly. It's not from sleeping wrong, or from trauma (I was the victim of police brutality many years ago and they pulled out a large chunk of my hair there), but, rather, it's just how my hair grows - from a spiral right at the back dead center of my large round skull.

[Silverlox]

I'm with Katze on this one! Most people have hair that grows in a pattern, however, you only get to see the precise pattern if the hair is about half an inch long. :rolleyes:

With longer hair, it often just shows up as cleavage. If you let your hair part at the cowlick, you'll see that it looks like the centre part of a spiral, and that the hair grows perpendicular to the cowlick in all directions.
I've got the standard two cowlicks as well, one on the front hairline and one on my crown. Both are very powerful and have withstood years of hard work, trying to tame them. You just can't fight nature. :shrug:

lenac, if your theory was right, I wouldn't have the crown cleavage thing going on, as I've always slept flat on my stomach, with most of my face buried in my pillow. Never on my back. I wish you were right, though, as that would mean you could do something to prevent/cure them. :silly:

[rymorg2]

The way you sleep my AGRAVATE what is already there, so in theory using your silk pillowcase may help, but it's still caused by how the hair grows. Nothing will get rid of it, but with you having had longer hair and it wasn't showing means that the longer your hair grows the more it will be hidden now.

You can't get rid of it. Sorry.....

[Forest]

I know that when I CO my hair is much curlier so that could be your issue.

Hmm, I guess it might be that. That the curls start further up or that the hair kind of take more natural pattern. :confused:

Well, it is one reason that I will not give up shampoo.

[Fairlight63]

I have a bad cowlick also. What works best for me is the 1/2 up & make sure that the "gap" is covered.
I HATE the "gap". When ever I put my hair up I have to make sure that I have some hair covering it up.
That is the main reason that I wanted to grow my hair long is so that I could cover it up.

[avraea]

I have a long natural part that starts in front and goes all the way over the top and a couple inches down the back of my head. It culminates in a cowlick

This is exactly what I have too, when I let my hair dry naturally without touching it. I don't seem to have a problem parting my hair in the front elsewhere though, and I try to part it in a different place after every hair wash. The problem is no matter where I part it in the front, somehow the back stilll always parts in the same place, causing that cowlick/cleavage when you look at the back of my head. It drives me insane.

[Kylis]

I also have a cowlick on the back of my head on the right side and on the left side I have an 2inches long scar, which is bald. Plus I have fine hair. Really challenging to keep them both covered all the time. It is easier when hair is freshly washed but still, if I have my hair loose and wind gets into it, then the scar is right out. Not much I can do about it.

[plaidprincess]

I have a HUGE bald spot about half an inch into my hairline above my ear from a burn as a toddler. I also got burned on my eyebrow, so the hair on one eyebrow hardly grows - it looks kinda weird I guess, but I'm so used to it now I hardly notice it.

I always have longish bangs so it's mostly hidden, but when I pull the hair off my face in French braids or a bun you can really see it.

I'd never hide it with tattooing or anything like that - it's part of who I am and I get to tell anyone that asks about my burn horror story. And it could have been a lot worse!

[MunchkinBubble]

Scalp cleavage here too!! :)
I was so shocked when I joined LHC and started taking pictures of the back of my head - I had no idea I had this.

The only way I can hide mine is with updos then combing over it. Mine is slightly off center, so whenever I do two braids you see it really bad. Thin, fine hair is difficult with these.
I'm constantly touching mine - which I'm sure doesn't help the cause.
I guess we just have to learn to ignore it. :/

[lambhair]

The only reliable way I can cover my hair cleavage spot is to do the updo thing also. Sometimes I can get lucky and do my braids firmly enough to hide it. My cowlick is on the left side, just off to the left side of my natural part and it looks like a bald spot if left on its own-one reason that I hardly ever wear my hair down. It seems like it is more prominent with fine straight hair...it just falls away from the area. Funny thing-I play with it alot too and my hands seem to be drawn to it, especially when I am drying my hair. Its not visible in my avatar but you can see part of it in my sig pic. I guess half-ups would work too, I'm just not too good with styling those and it probably depends on where the cowlick/cleavage is located.

[restourceful]

Newb here. First post.

All of you with back-of-the-head cowlicks say you can cover with up-dos. I have one on the front hairline that has short hairs that NEVER grow. If I wear an up-do it sticks straight out like and antler or a horn and I have found absolutely NOTHING that will stick it down. *sigh* I guess I've made peace with it over the years since I know better than to try bangs ever again and I'll always be a long hair because of it.

If any of you more experienced cowlick conquerors have suggestions, I'm open.

[Kirzja]

I have two cowlicks, left and right of my crown.
When my hair gets oily, it looks terrible.
And also a whirl at the front, which makes my bangs look funny.

These things have really been annoying me. Good to know I am not the only one.

[julliams]

Get someone to have a look at it. It could also be a scar. My son has a couple of small scars on his head from where he fell and had stitches. Hair doesn't grow from them and they just look like small patches of skin between the rest of his hair. He has so much hair that you can't see them unless you go looking for them.


If it is a cowlick, best to work with it rather than against it. My daughter has one slightly to the side of her part. I cannot part it right in the centre and do braids. Nothing makes it sit flat. I have to work with her parting and have one braid slightly thicker than the other. Noone else would notice anyway and it just looks better on her.

Juliette

[Xandergrammy]

Newb here. First post.

All of you with back-of-the-head cowlicks say you can cover with up-dos. I have one on the front hairline that has short hairs that NEVER grow. If I wear an up-do it sticks straight out like and antler or a horn and I have found absolutely NOTHING that will stick it down. *sigh* I guess I've made peace with it over the years since I know better than to try bangs ever again and I'll always be a long hair because of it.

If any of you more experienced cowlick conquerors have suggestions, I'm open.


Have you tried gel and combing everything in one direction? I have one like yours, but luckily it's grown enough that it behaves most of the time, but sometimes I end up with the "unicorn" look too. I do try to work with it rather than against it (hence, I'll never wear bangs ever again either). I don't know if this helped or not, but I feel your pain. :flowers:

[Katze]

I have terrible 'scalp cleavage' ( mine is not a cowlick, i.e. not an EXTRA whirl of hair, but the normal whirl at the crown). It shows up worse on dirty hair, which is unfortunately the only time I can get really smooth updos. It is almost impossible to cover - pulling hair straight back over it creates bumps and loops - and my hair dries this way 90% of the time.

Washing more seems to help, because then I get the 'lift' (read: frizzy mess!) of 'clean' hair. I also never condition my crown hair in an attempt to get more poof that at least hides this awful scalp cleavage.

The problem with my scalp cleavage is that the contrast between pale skin and dark hair is so noticeable. And I also have a very large, very round head.

It is reassuring to see that MANY LHCers also have this issue though! :flower:

[Chibbylick]

I understood my hair so much better watching my son's hair grow in as a baby. I could see the hair growth patterns on his head, and finally understood that the variation in direction the hair comes out of the scalp is behind some pesky hair behavior. You need to work with hair growth, not fight it! One of my nephews has crazy cowlicks at the front of his head, but his mum keeps trying to slick it down. NEVER going to work. I keep trying to tell her, but she just won't listen!
Chibby