Henna+Breakage.

[EvilPigeon]

Okay, my 3rd henna on the roots(trying to darken them up,as they are much lighter than my length) and I experienced alot of breakage at the top. Does anyone else experience this,and if so, do you feel that it is from the weight of the henna,a protein overload,both or some other explanation?

[Nightshade]

I'm going to vote for mechanical damage from rinsing the mud out...

How are you rinsing? Do you keep the henna covered while it's on your head so it doesn't dry out? How thick is your mud; if it's too thick, perhaps a thinner paste would be easier to get out of your hair?

Sorry for all the questions :)

[wintersun99]

Do you use lemon juice or something that is as strong? You could be getting dryness and/or breakage from too much ... although, I have only experienced this on the length and my fragile ends, not near the roots. If you think it may be the Lemon Juice (or acid in general) try using only water or a dilute ACV/water mixture next time.

[Flaxen]

Well, there isn't any protein in henna, so it's not that. One of our members had terrible breakage from the lemon juice in her henna, but it was on the length. I agree with the others that it's something like the acid or manipulation, though.

[morningstar]

I know that when I started to henna I found little stubbles on my hairline and it was actually new growth not breakage. I was chemically coloring my hair and when I stopped and started to henna the hairs were growing back.

[squiggyflop]

I'm going to vote for mechanical damage from rinsing the mud out...

How are you rinsing? Do you keep the henna covered while it's on your head so it doesn't dry out? How thick is your mud; if it's too thick, perhaps a thinner paste would be easier to get out of your hair?

Sorry for all the questions :)
i vote for this too... i broke off quite a few hairs before i started mermaid soaking out my henna... and thinner mud makes it easier to rinse for sure... or it could be when you are applying your henna... if you are too rough you are breaking hairs... i think a squirt bottle is the best way... and make sure your hair is damp when you apply your henna...

[khyricat]

I get new growth, not breakage.. I do OCCASIONALLY get breakage around the ears if I am not careful to make it covered and keep that section from drying out... I do find I shed a bit more when I henna, but less in the 2 weeks after than I do at other times.. I think this is also mechanical from rubbing to make sure I get it all out.. I mermaid soak adn the amount of loss is much lower..

Amie

[Girltron]

Well-there IS some protein in henna, like in all plant materials. But not very much. It sounds like it's worth looking at your mix ingredients and application method, as well as frequency of use.

Are you using a gelled mix? I found those too heavy for my hair. Also you might be using more mud than you need for coverage, definitely that can be heavy.

Some types of henna can be more gritty. The soft, fine, stringy ones go in easiest. Add lots of sugar to make it more stringy.

[Elfling]

Another vote for not breakage, just losing hair from all the weight of the henna. I did a sort-of gloss last time, with full-strength henndigo in my usual amount (~250 grams) and thinned it out after the initial mix of chamomile tea with conditioner. That seemed to help some, but I still had a fair amount of shedding.

[Rain]

Are you sure it's breakage rather than new growth? Maybe your new baby hairs just show up better post-henna because they're darker.

[Henna Sooq]

I'll wait for some of the answers but you guys asked some amazing questions and brought up some great points.

[Riot Crrl]

I'm also going to vote for a) acid or b) mechanical damage. What was the mix and can you describe your rinsing technique?

Along with mermaid soaks I think one thing that really helps is COing it out with a ton of CO, even if you do not normally CO. I have to reapply the CO several times, let it soak in for a couple minutes, rinse and repeat.

Also if you don't get it all out really good, it might result in weird stiffness which could make it fragile. Toward the end of my COing stages, I begin to detangle with a wide tooth comb. The comb is a light color so I can inspect it very well to see if any henna dust is still coming out.

When I'm sure it's all out, I apply a very heavily moisturizing conditioner and bag it up again. I let it sit as long as I can stand it, which isn't long because at this point I'm pretty sick of having a bag on my head.

Then rinse again. At this point I have spent quite a while showering for one day, and sometimes my skin dries out, so you might want to watch out for that, LOL.