Scalp massagers---a question.

[girlcat36]

After a very long break, I have finally gotten back to nightly scalp massage(due to thinning hair and big sheds).
It seems to be causing a lot of shedding. As I recall, when I did this before, massage seemed to cause shedding initially, then things really improved. It seems to be taking a while this time around though, and I wonder if I am doing more harm than good.
So did you have an initial period of more shedding at first, and did it resolve, and how long did that take?
Thanks!

[Spring]

This is a good question and I would like to hear of others experiences with massaging too. I never felt comfortable massaging on dry hair.... it seemed like I was damaging the strands. I think if someone does a CWC, ... during the pre-shampoo conditioning process, massaging might be less damaging to the strands (I'm thinking out loud here :D).

But I am definitely curious to see if it causes shedding with some people....

[ChloeDharma]

Whenever i start scalp massaging after a period of forgetting to do it i shed huge amounts. If i do it daily then it rarely lasts more than a week but of course other factors influence that.
I tend to grin and bear it because once the shedding calms down i loose very few hairs after that.
The massage shouldn't damage the hairs though, the pads of your fingers should be directly in contact with the scalp, not massaging on top of hairs, the action is also not necessarily aggressive and focuses on moving the scalp over the skull in gentle movements not rubbing like when you use an erasor to rub out pencil.
HTH

[Spring]

I knew I must have been doing something wrong. I thought I was being careful, but I could still hear the sound of hair grinding together. This is going to take a little more practice.

[girlcat36]

Thanks, Chloe!
It's been about two weeks; still shedding---but I'll give it a little longer!

[walterSCAN]

I have a really hard time getting my fingers all the way down there... and keeping from tangling my hair horribly. It tangles if I look at it wrong, so any friction at all is usually a no-no. Not to hijack the thread, but does anyone have any suggestions? I'd like to try this...

[walterSCAN]

oops-- I forgot to add (and can't edit yet), is there a main thread for scalp massaging here? I haven't found one....

[GoddesJourney]

Uh, yeah. Don't massage your scalp straight through your hair. Start at your hairline and slide your fingers in along the roots. Massage is small areas so you're not tangling your hair. Take your hands out and find a new spot. Repeat. Be sure to slide your fingers in also at the temples and up from the nape so you can get everywhere. I do this while laying in bed to get to sleep sometimes and my husband makes fun of me because it's exactly what my bird does. Anyway, it feels great.

To answer the first question. I notice a very slight difference in shedding (basically, while I'm doing the massage) sometimes. This massage method is pretty effective for me since it doesn't tangle my hair or even really pull on it. However, sometimes I'll grab a big chunk of hair between my fingers close to the roots like this and gently pull it. It feels great and I feel like it brings some circulation to my scalp. Theoretically, this should improve overall scalp health. Some people use this method of massage and gentle hair pulls to combat the thinning of hair. Anyway, try it.