chop it off?

[Gertlush]

Hii guys,
I need you help, My hair is between mid back and buttlength. I used to dye my hair lots and I straighten it every day. It is very very damaged and i have split ends poking out every where,not to mention how dry and disgusting the ends look.My sister is a hairdresser,and suggest that I cut a lot of the length off and start to grow it again so it can grow back healthier,or should I just get a trim?
I would be so greatful to hear all of your advice!
xx

[Madame J]

First of all, you're probably going to get a lot of people suggesting that you stop straightening everyday. There are a ton of members here with beautiful 3b hair (GlassEyes, where are you?) that wear it air-dried and wild. If you need it out of the way, you can try some of the updos in the hair styles articles section of the website.

Second, check out Nightshade's Damaged Hair article. It's under "Hair Care" in the Articles section. I don't have the link right here, but she might post here and the link is in her signature.

Third, if it were me, I would chop off to BSL and re-grow fresh hair. I went from APL to just longer than a pixie back in 2007 to get rid of dyed growth that was looking damaged, and have been re-growing from there. But that's not for everyone. Others might suggest trimming it by a half inch each month so you don't lose net length, but you don't get any longer until the damage is gone. It's your choice.

Good luck and welcome.

[babybabycat]

Nightshade has a great article about damaged hair.
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=79

Click on the above link and scroll down to:
Rehabilitating Damaged Hair
There is a link to Fox's Shea Conditioning Cream, that stuff will work wonders on your hair.

Also, coconut oil, amazing!!

Just trim your hair, don't go for a big cut.

[Nightshade]

Welcome to LHC!

Babybabycat already linked you to the article, but I wanted to second her advice- there's no need to lop it all off. I grew out some very damaged hair as well (destroyed it with dye until it had broken off from hips to midback) and with the methods used the the article have gotten it long and healthy again.

I'm not for large chops (unless you're REALLY sure you just want to start over, they knock your socks off), as unless you're cutting into healthy hair the ends will split at the same rate as they would have if you'd cut just 1/2in or an inch off the bottom.

My main trick was to cut off half my new growth a month, but you could always maintain at your current length and just improve healthy by figuring out how much your hair grows a month and trimming that :)

[Gertlush]

Hello both of you!
Thank you very much for your advice
I've already learnt lots of tips from the link you sent me so thankyou!
shall definately try them out.
I'm kind of getting fed up with long hair anyway,I know i'll regret it if i get a lot of it cut off though. I'm thinking about just cutting of 3-4 inches to see if I like it that length and if not then I can always cut it shorter. Also do you think it is a good idea to do the cut myself? I always trim my hair myself,but seem to get split ends again straight away,probably through the straightening!
Again,all of your advice would be apreciated and thankyou again!x

[Nightshade]

It may be the straightening that's making it split so soon, as you're still trimming into damaged hair, but it may be your shears too :) Do you have a special hair shears that is ever and only used on hair? That's very important as dull shears crush the end of the hair and cause it to fracture and split.

If 3-4 inches sounds good to you, then go for it! After getting off the worst of it I'm sure you'd be able to manage the rest with small trims and S&D.

[Shermie Girl]

Hi. And welcome. :D

Okay, I am going to suggest that the very first thing you do is ditch the flat iron. You are killing your hair with it. You are so lucky to have beautiful, natural curls. Rather than torturing your hair into being something it is not, may I suggest that you learn to love your natural texture? There are lots of members here who are curlies and they can give you tons of help in caring for your hair and getting the most from it's beautiful texture.

If your hair is terribly damaged, a pretty good trim may be in order. As much as it can pain to take a lot of length, if your hair is so damaged that it is splitting and breaking off, some of it needs to go. I would start conservatively. Try a couple of inches and see how it goes. If you still have a lot of trouble, take a little more. Remember, you can always trim a bit more if you need to but you can't put back what has already been cut off. ;)

If you treat your hair well, give it lots of moisture, do away with the heat and try deep treatments, you may be able to save a good bit of your length and grow your hair, slowly trimming away the damaged parts over time. You will need to do a lot of reading and some experimenting and see what works best for your hair. It will take some time, but the results could really be worth it! :D

I hope this helps a little. :)

[lora410]

I have always regretting every single cut I got. I would trim GRADUALLY instead of a huge chop.

My dd has naturally curly hair, and I find coconut oil does wonders. Once its all dried naturally she has the most gorgeous shiny curls ever.

[redneckprincess]

Nightshade has a great article about damaged hair.
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=79

Click on the above link and scroll down to:
Rehabilitating Damaged Hair
There is a link to Fox's Shea Conditioning Cream, that stuff will work wonders on your hair.

Also, coconut oil, amazing!!

Just trim your hair, don't go for a big cut.

where do you find coconut oil?

[wintersun99]

...............

[neon-dream]

where do you find coconut oil?

I get mine from Holland and Barrett, pure coconut oil used for cooking and moisturising. It's so nice.

http://www.hollandandbarrett.com/pages/product_detail.asp?pid=690

I reccommend it for Gertlush to improve their damaged hair as it worked wonders on mine, as I also straightened for years and years! My splits are almost gone now and the shine I get from it is incredible! :D

[redneckprincess]

I would recomend getting some deep conditioning/protine treatments and if that dosent help and you still need to cut, then maybe do so at small increments. (but Im no expert) I do though recomend Hask Henna Plecenta treatments (from Sallys) I have found them to work the absoulte best on my over processed, bleached, damaged hair, and wishing I would have tried THAT before I cut to my pixie last year....(but I wouldnt be here today hade I found that, lol) and your already here BEFORE your cut so try it, and maybe not just one treatment will do it...If you need to give one every couple of days, just put it on cover it up and leave it on all day. Hope this helps some ♥

[Gertlush]

Thankyouuu for all your advice!
I'll post a few pics on here when i have a spare 5 mins, Still don't know what to do about this 'situation'! (:
Think I should cut/trim it myself?
x

[Gertlush]

Thankyou for all your advice!
All your hair that I have seen in the pics is absolutely gorgeous!
I'm going to go and hunt for some coconut oil on saturday.
I also ride my horses every day and will be training to be a jockey soon and my hair is getting in the way as I can't put it up because f my riding hat,any people who ride or have any suggestions please tell me! (:
Does any of you cut/trim your own hair regularly?
x

[neon-dream]

Thankyouuu for all your advice!
I'll post a few pics on here when i have a spare 5 mins, Still don't know what to do about this 'situation'! (:
Think I should cut/trim it myself?
x

I always trim my own hair, so I would say yes if you are confident enough. If not get someone you trust to do it for you :)

[enfys]

A lot of us trim our own hair using Feye's method, and it's very successful. I'd trim not chop.

If you use the search function at the top you can see if anything comes up for horse riding, jockey etc. I can't think of anything myself.

And welcome!

[abritta3]

I would think about it! When I was a junior in HS, I cut off 4inches because of the split ends just from blow drying WITH a diffuser (heartbreaking for me)...
So, think long and hard before you make a decision...just 3in takes 6months to grow back

[Gertlush]

I have just cut 3 inches off of my hair,thing is,you can't even tell that it has been cut! it is still damaged as ever and the length still looks the same.
I was looking for a new healthy look:(

[Fifty-Five]

Don't worry. Keep working on it and it'll be healthy in no time. Just follow the advice these smart ladies have given ya, and it'll be okay. You're in good hands here =)

[Gertlush]

decided to keep growing,One of my friends has offered to cut it to whatever length I want to if I get fed up of growing it!
Hows all your growing going guys? x