What do you do on days when you hair is crunchy, brittle, and knotted?

[Tangles]

I used to just tear through tangles with a fine toothed comb. Ouch.

Usually my hair is pretty cooperative these days, but once in a while I have a velcro day. My hair will get so brittle that I can't detangle without feeling like I'm breaking it (this even if I use loads of conditioner and/or oil).

I am not sure what the best way to cope with this is.

If I don't detangle all the knots I run the risk of doing further damage. But detangling inevitably will cause breakage when my hair is in that state. In fact, on days like today my hair feels so dry I fear I'll break it just my TOUCHING it.

Quite a quandary.

[whisper]

I hate when that happens!

First I try spritzing with water or kimberlilly's defrizzer recipe. If that doesn't help and if I have time I'll put my head under the faucet and add a good conditioner. I then try to comb through the conditioner. That usually works.

[sklent]

I'd like to know this too.. I usually drown my hair in (coconut)oil and I think the detangling does get a little easier..

[Aisha25]

Oil them like crazy then do some sort of honey treatment:)

[Gumball]

I just go through my hair nice and slowly with my horn comb. It takes longer than I'd like and longer than I usually take on most other days, but I'm not going to go through a day with tangles from the day/night prior because that just complicates things further. If the tangle seems a little resistant to the comb then I pick through it slowly with my fingers (this also ensures it's handled properly if either it's a tangle or caused by a small amount of buildup).

[OhioLisa]

I used to just tear through tangles with a fine toothed comb. Ouch.

Usually my hair is pretty cooperative these days, but once in a while I have a velcro day. My hair will get so brittle that I can't detangle without feeling like I'm breaking it (this even if I use loads of conditioner and/or oil).

I am not sure what the best way to cope with this is.

If I don't detangle all the knots I run the risk of doing further damage. But detangling inevitably will cause breakage when my hair is in that state. In fact, on days like today my hair feels so dry I fear I'll break it just my TOUCHING it.

Quite a quandary.

I have never had this issue,so just guessing here, but could it be the products you are using? Some sort of build-up? What are you using?

[HairColoredHair]

I usually clarify my hair then heavily condition them with a no-cone no-protein conditioner, often mixed with honey. :)

[RancheroTheBee]

Honey has also helped me get back a lot of the slip to my hair. I still get the odd tangle, but mind you, I also flail in my sleep.

[serenitygal]

My hair does that if I leave it down on a windy day without oiling sufficiently before.
Set aside a little time for yourself. I usually pop in a movie and bring my hair stuff to the couch in front of the TV.
Spritz the hair with plain water to the point of overall dampness. Put a dollop of aloe vera gel and some oil--about half the amount of the aloe vera--in the palm of your hand.
Spritz some water into your hand, rub the goo together briskly, and then begin spreading it into your hair. Work from the ends up; don't try to comb it through, just sort of work it through (if that makes any sense). Make more of this goop as necessary, and keep adding it into the hair. (Note: Do not do this if you're expecting BF/DH/SO to call and ask you out somewhere. Trust me.)
Having done that, pour a few drops of oil into your hand, rub your hands together, and run them over the last couple of inches of hair until those ends are saturated with oil. If you have dry ends (I do), you'll be AMAZED by how much oil is soaked up!
Let the whole mess sit for a couple of minutes. Nibble on a piece of chocolate, paint your toenails, whatever.
Now start fingercombing. Again, begin at the ends and work your way up. If you come across a tangle, let your fingers do the detangling. This is time-consuming, but if you're watching a good movie you won't notice the time, really.
Once your fingers can slide easily through your hair, pick up the wide-tooth comb and start combing--again, from the ends up.
After it is all combed, you might add a little more oil (and I do mean just a few drops) to the length.
Finally, braid it (I usually do a single French braid as that tucks the ends in best, but YMMV), finish the movie, put a towel over your pillow, and go to sleep.
(Don't forget to budget time next morning to wash your hair.)
In the morning, wash your hair as usual. I prefer a CO wash after an oil treatment, but again, YMMV and you know your hair best. Following the wash, put it up for the day.
Whenever I do this, I find my hair to be gorgeously happy after the treatment. The snarls come out without tearing, the hair is pampered by the oiling and aloe vera, and I find the whole process generally soothing.
Hope this (loooooooooong!) post helps! :flowers:

[HoneyMouse]

Maybe a de tangle spray ? you get them for children and you can use them on both dry and wet hair.

[Kleis]

If I have to go somewhere, work or elsewhere, I twist it up and jam a hairstick through it. Then, when I come home, I oil the heck out of it and work through with my fingers, and then finish the job in the shower with some conditioner.

This happens quite frequently. Lint. Darn lint.

[lora410]

When this happens I seriously know my hair is lacking something. Usually a good clarify, a deep treatment, or protein treatment.

[Anje]

Honestly, this happens to me mostly when I've put something in my hair that it didn't agree with. (Aloe gel, the supposedly soluble cone detangler spray, fenugreek, protein buildup....) Therefore, my solution tends to be to break out the sulfate shampoo and give myself a good full-length suds and conditioning.

Tangles from lint are also well-remedied by washing out the lint, but I sometimes grab my BBB, which seems to be a bigger lint magnet than my hair. After trying to detangle as much as I can, I'll detangle bottom to top with the BBB, which seems to de-lint me pretty well.

[neon-dream]

I normally use my wooden comb from the body shop slowwwly.
I add some aloe vera or some oil :)

[ktani]

I used to just tear through tangles with a fine toothed comb. Ouch.

Usually my hair is pretty cooperative these days, but once in a while I have a velcro day. My hair will get so brittle that I can't detangle without feeling like I'm breaking it (this even if I use loads of conditioner and/or oil).

I am not sure what the best way to cope with this is.

If I don't detangle all the knots I run the risk of doing further damage. But detangling inevitably will cause breakage when my hair is in that state. In fact, on days like today my hair feels so dry I fear I'll break it just my TOUCHING it.

Quite a quandary.

I went through something similar when I had build-up on my hair. I got a few knots but mostly breakage and I had split ends.

You may want to clarify and go over what you are using to see where the problem is. It may just be that you need to change a few products or alter your routine slightly. It may be the overall accumulation, not one product.

Some things that can coat hair and build-up; polysaccharides (for me, they were in chamomile tea made very strong but also in aloe gel), cellulose (usually in conditioners under different names but ending in the word cellulose), mucilage (in plants), polyquaternium anything, (usually in shampoos and some conditioners), resins (plant resin washes out between use), hydrolyzed proteins (usually in shampoos and conditioners), oils of various kinds, pvp and acrylates (some shampoos and conditioners), latex (in shea butter), waxes (mostly in conditioners but some shampoos too now).

[jera]

My hair has been way less crunchy and tangly since I began using Pantene Daily Moisture Renewal conditioner. Go figure. But of course, everyone's hair is different. Maybe you could experiment with all the good adice you've got so far and see what works for you. :)

[Anje]

What's in the conditioner that you used last? What you describe sounds a lot like how my hair gets with a protein conditioner after a few washes.

[curls2grow]

Tangles, I love your screen name. :D

My hair tangles easily. When it's dry, if it's tangled and I have to go somewhere, I gently finger-comb through as best I can without breaking any hair -- which means that much of the time I am not able to get my fingers through it from root to end. Then I put it up in a bun somehow and hold it with a hairtoy that will cooperate with the mess (usually a Ficcare Maximas because it goes over and under, rather than through my mess).

Somehow, when I CO wash, the tangles loosen up. When I get out of the shower, I dont' put a comb or fingers to my hair without first putting in leave-in conditioner. My tangles almost literally fall out with gentle finger combing. Using either Beauty Without Cruelty's or John Masters Organics Citrus & Neroli Detangler have made a world of improvement in my post-shower detangling process.

[Tangles]

curls2grow--thank you! My name really suits me not just because I sometimes get tangles, but because I have a tangled up personality and mind. LOL!

anje--I've been using Aubrey Organic condish and my hair seems crunchier than normal. Funny enough, it is very straight and shiny when I use this product--but tangled.

[ratgirldjh]

my hair started behaving exactly like you posted: dry, brittle, tangly, etc. after a long period of using natural soap and shampoo bars with ACV rinses.
even a coconut oil treatment didn't have much success.

[Starr]

I don't have crunchy days anymore!:cheese:

Knots however are a different story.

[Fillette]

Somehow, when I CO wash, the tangles loosen up. When I get out of the shower, I dont' put a comb or fingers to my hair without first putting in leave-in conditioner.

I second the CO wash idea. Whenever my hair feels like that, I do a CO. I wet my hair, saturate it with conditioner and leave it for 5-10 minutes. Then, with the conditioner still on my hair, I detangle it with my fingers. This usually takes care of most or all of the tangles. Then, I keep detangling with my fingers while rinsing out the conditioner. And that's about it!

HTH :)

[whisper]

I think I read this in someone else's post already but just wanted to second it.
When using your fingers or comb to work through the tangles start from the bottom up. If you start from the top it can make the tangles/knots worse.

[darkwaves]

Mine goes like this whenever I wear it loose in winter. There's no humidity inside most buildings -- including my office -- and my hair freaks. So, I wear it up a lot, even when it's knotted. As Kleis says (and thanks for the reminder about oil!):


If I have to go somewhere, work or elsewhere, I twist it up and jam a hairstick through it. Then, when I come home, I oil the heck out of it and work through with my fingers, and then finish the job in the shower with some conditioner.

This happens quite frequently. Lint. Darn lint.

[Für immer]

When that happens, I want to stay in my bed for eternity. ;

[ratgirldjh]

i agree with the CO idea - that is what i finally tried after the soap and poo bars had started making my hair break and feel crunchy. immediately after one CO wash my breakage stopped

however i know that CO isn't a long term option for me- in the long run it too dries out my hair :(

[Tangles]

Guys, does Aubrey Organics Honeysuckle Rose contain protein?

This may be why my hair is so shiny yet so "flippy" and crunchy.
It says it contains some coconut "fatty acid."

[Anje]

Well, I don't see any obvious ones listed, though the "coconut fatty acid cream base" could potentially have some. The name "fatty acid" indicates that it's primarily oil-based, but who knows what else is in their cream base.

My inclination would be to wash with a sulfate shampoo, condition with a different protein-free, cone-free conditioner (I'm currently partial to Suave's aloe & waterlily right now), and see if it feels better. Then give the Aubrey Organics stuff another go, and if it starts to feel tangly again pretty quickly, you may have to blame the conditioner.

[Carolyn]

anje--I've been using Aubrey Organic condish and my hair seems crunchier than normal. Funny enough, it is very straight and shiny when I use this product--but tangled.IIRC AO conditioners can have a ton of protein. That could be your problem if you are using it each wash. My hair was horribly dull and tangled with AO even when using a white vinegar rinse. I'd ditch the AO for a while and see if that helps. I know others have reported crunchiness with AO.

If I have that happen and I have to work that day, I do what Kleis does. I do the best I can with finger combing and then I do a messy bun and skewer it with a stick. That night I will probably do more careful detangling and then do a full clarifying wash with one of my clarifying shampoos on the entire length and then do a deep moisturizing conditioner, leaving that on a while before rinsing. A little oil on my wet hair and the problem is solved.

[itslex71]

I clarify with clarifying shampoo mixed with a lot of baking soda. That takes care of it and my hair regains its shine and loses the tangles.

[Tangles]

I've been using a sulphate shampoo (Herbal Essences "Drama Clean") on scalp only for a while now. I let the suds run over my length, so I don't think my issue is buildup.

The thing is, AO does make my hair pretty shiny and strong feeling. I'm going to try a different shampoo with it next time and see what happens. I'd like to be able to use this product.

I like Suave's detangling properties (and it's way cheaper!), but I get lots more shine and straightness with AO.

[HairColoredHair]

Well, I'm not sure protein washes off as easily as cones do. :)

Maybe try alternating the AO with something that's very moisturizing?

[danacc]

I had dry, velcro length for several days in a row; it was noticeably worse in the last 3 inches from the ends. Here's what worked for me.

I normally CWC, and I continued with a shampoo on my scalp, but I added a deep oiling to the length before starting, and skipped the last conditioner because it would have cleansed more oil out of my hair, and I want some to stay.

I'm using olive oil since my usual coconut oil likes to be solid in the winter. I literally drench the ends by dipping them in the olive oil. I apply olive oil ears-down to the rest of the length. I let that soak in a while, then add a cheap, light conditioner on top. Next, I apply a shampoo to the scalp, then rinse everything out at once. I can feel that there's still a little oil remaining in the length and ends when finished, but it doesn't look at all greasy when it dries. I've washed it this way for a couple of weeks now, and my length and ends feel wonderful. My scalp is staying happy, too; it complains loudly if I put conditioner on it, so CO is not an option for me. This way, I'm basically doing oil + CO on my length, and shampoo on my scalp.

I noticed an immediate difference in the ends. They felt wonderful, but visibly had some splits and dreaded dots. I followed up the first wash with a couple of serious S&D sessions over the next several days. Now my ends are quite happy--no more velcro.

[GlassEyes]

Clarify.

That's usually how my hair gets if I'm using cones for a few days and I've been doing CO still. Otherwise it means I haven't used enough conditioner for my CO or something.

My problem lately hasn't been velcro ends, but this gummy, icky buildup. xD; It's from using too much product trying to 'weigh down' my hair.

[Velvettt]

I alternate my AO conditioners with Giovanni conditioners. I also use an ACV rinse every second or third time. If I use ACV every time, I get crunchy hair and tangles. If I use any conditioner too many times in sequence, I get crunchy hair and tangles. Some of us just have hair that likes variety.:D I also do a presoak with any VO5 conditioner before washing if I've got very tangled or oiled hair.

[elizza]

I had dry, velcro length for several days in a row; it was noticeably worse in the last 3 inches from the ends. Here's what worked for me.

I normally CWC, and I continued with a shampoo on my scalp, but I added a deep oiling to the length before starting, and skipped the last conditioner because it would have cleansed more oil out of my hair, and I want some to stay.

I'm using olive oil since my usual coconut oil likes to be solid in the winter. I literally drench the ends by dipping them in the olive oil. I apply olive oil ears-down to the rest of the length. I let that soak in a while, then add a cheap, light conditioner on top. Next, I apply a shampoo to the scalp, then rinse everything out at once. I can feel that there's still a little oil remaining in the length and ends when finished, but it doesn't look at all greasy when it dries. I've washed it this way for a couple of weeks now, and my length and ends feel wonderful. My scalp is staying happy, too; it complains loudly if I put conditioner on it, so CO is not an option for me. This way, I'm basically doing oil + CO on my length, and shampoo on my scalp.

I noticed an immediate difference in the ends. They felt wonderful, but visibly had some splits and dreaded dots. I followed up the first wash with a couple of serious S&D sessions over the next several days. Now my ends are quite happy--no more velcro.

Thank you very much danacc! Dealing with equal problems as Tangles described I just tried your routine today (different oils used, sunflower and jojoba) and it worked very well. Will definitely go on with it for more improvement. :)

[AmyJorgensen]

I am having a little tangle trouble too now that I am trying no cone conditioner. Some of you mentioned honey treatments and putting honey in the conditioner. All I ever see info about is honey lightening(which I am not interested in). Could you talk a little bit about the specific ways to use honey to moisturize...I am sort of worried that I would get sticky hair.:confused:

[Tangles]

I alternate my AO conditioners with Giovanni conditioners. I also use an ACV rinse every second or third time. If I use ACV every time, I get crunchy hair and tangles. If I use any conditioner too many times in sequence, I get crunchy hair and tangles. Some of us just have hair that likes variety.:D I also do a presoak with any VO5 conditioner before washing if I've got very tangled or oiled hair.

Yes, my hair is polygamous ;)