PDA

View Full Version : Combing conditioner vs wet hair



SpeakingEZ
May 7th, 2010, 03:47 PM
This might be a simple question. I'm a little confused about girls who comb their hair in the shower to make sure all the conditioner is worked in. Does this damage hair the same way that combing wet hair would when outside the shower? Does the conditioner lubricate the hair enough that the comb does not pull at it to the point of causing damage?

Sorry, I couldn't find a thread appropriate to ask this, it's been on my mind though.

Anje
May 7th, 2010, 03:53 PM
I think the conditioner lubricates hair, so breakage is a bit less likely. It's important to remember that conditioner-filled wet hair is still more fragile than dry hair, though.

In my observation, the people who get the most out of combing their hair out wet (usually with conditioner) are people with curly hair. They'll go from having nice clumpy curly tendrils to a big foofy mass of hair if they comb dry. Straight-haired folks usually want to avoid the clumps and won't get super-volume when they comb dry and don't need the lubrication to get a comb through their hair, so they're usually better off waiting til hair is dry before combing. Wavies tend to choose depending on how much they like clumps.

chopandchange
May 7th, 2010, 03:54 PM
I used to do this years ago. I don't any more, but when I did, it wasn't to "make sure the conditioner was worked in," but to detangle my hair. Some people (especially people with curly/wavy hair) just prefer to detangle when in the shower. Everyone's different. :)

Amraann
May 7th, 2010, 04:14 PM
This might be a simple question. I'm a little confused about girls who comb their hair in the shower to make sure all the conditioner is worked in. Does this damage hair the same way that combing wet hair would when outside the shower? Does the conditioner lubricate the hair enough that the comb does not pull at it to the point of causing damage?

Sorry, I couldn't find a thread appropriate to ask this, it's been on my mind though.

I do not know if gently combing wet hair is damaging. I have always been taught that is what your suppose to do.
I use conditioner in the shower and comb it to detangle but not often.
Usually the conditioner alone detangles it.

Rennire
May 7th, 2010, 04:35 PM
I have to detangle my hair when it is wet and full of conditioner because I would never be able to get it untangled otherwise. I wish I didn't have to but I honestly think I'd do more damage to it if I tried to get the tangles out when it's dry. My hair is wavy and it loves to wrap around itself.

StormVixen
May 7th, 2010, 04:43 PM
There is no way I could comb my hair if it wasnt covered in conditioner... Even with conditioner it takes at least quater of an hour!

If i do try to comb it dry it just floofs up and ends up more knotty than how it started out!

:D

SpeakingEZ
May 7th, 2010, 04:58 PM
I didn't consider it would be strictly for detangling purposes, that seems kind of obvious now. . . . I wouldn't see how that would work with how I dry it, I seem to put a lot of tangles in when I wrap up my turban!!

Thanks for clarifying, I won't feel so guilty when I have to comb my hair during deep-conditioning.

spidermom
May 7th, 2010, 08:00 PM
There's a major rule out there about not brushing while wet, but combing while wet is more of a gray area. As long as you're gentle and methodical, no problem.

pineconejg
May 7th, 2010, 08:23 PM
My hair is 1b (straight) but if I don't comb it when it is at least wet, no comb is going through it. That's pretty much at any length. I don't comb my hair in the shower anymore, though, because I see less fallen hair if I use just my fingers.
JG

Flynn
May 7th, 2010, 08:45 PM
I have to detangle my hair when it is wet and full of conditioner because I would never be able to get it untangled otherwise. I wish I didn't have to but I honestly think I'd do more damage to it if I tried to get the tangles out when it's dry. My hair is wavy and it loves to wrap around itself.

Yeah, another wavy here. if I let the tangles dry in, they are a nightmare to get out. And then the hair has dried with kinks in it, so the knots just come back!

Going by the splits I have in my hair right at the moment, combing with conditioner in the shower is probably more damaging, but it does make my hair look better. Go figure.

Twil
May 7th, 2010, 08:46 PM
I comb my hair in the shower, then work in conditioner and let it sit (while still in the shower). I find that running water helps detangle so you don't have to yank at your hair as much, then immediately following it with conditioner prevents breakage :)

ravenreed
May 7th, 2010, 08:48 PM
I brush with a tangle teezer before I clean my hair, and I brush or comb after, while my hair is still pretty wet. I do it gently, but I find if I let any tangles stay until dry, they make knots I would have to cut out.

ericthegreat
May 7th, 2010, 10:37 PM
I definitely have to comb out my hair when its both wet and full of conditioner. If I don't detangle my hair when its wet, I will NEVER be able to get any of the knots out my hair when it dries. I know I would get MUCH more breakage from hard brushing or combing my hair dry then combing it out wet when its much more pliable and easier for a comb to go thro it.

Loreley
May 8th, 2010, 12:11 AM
I never combed my hair in the shower. After putting it in a towel turban I detangle it with a wide tooth comb. It's much easier to do so now than before LHC because my hair was much more demaged. But I think it's pretty demaging even if you have conditioner on it. A friend of mine had to detangle her WL hair in the shower because it was so demaged she couldn't do it after the washing.

julliams
May 8th, 2010, 12:47 AM
I always comb my hair when it is wet - I just make sure that I am gentle and that the tool I am using is safe for my hair with no snags. I find that combing with the conditioner in allows any tangles to just slide out as opposed to having to work through them.

Themis74
May 8th, 2010, 01:36 AM
As a curly person I only comb my hair when it's wet with conditioner on it!! If I combed when dry (a) it would hurt and (b) my hair would be three times wider than my body.

I only comb once a week though, I would love to have the kind of fine silky hair that you can whip a brush through whenever you want!

09robiha
May 8th, 2010, 08:28 AM
ok, so this is the only way I can do my hair in the shower without losing masses of it!
I part my hair in two and apply my condish to either side then twist it up and but it in a shower cap for 5 or so minutes.
Then i take my hair down and split it again, dunk one side in the shower at once and comb my hair out directly under the shower stream and repeat on the other side.

Tresses
May 8th, 2010, 12:32 PM
I gently comb out my hair while wet after towel drying and applying a leave-in conditioner. For some reason, every time I've tried to comb conditioner through my hair in the shower, I shed like mad.

FrannyG
May 8th, 2010, 01:49 PM
I used to comb my hair in the shower with conditioner, but I've stopped combing my hair when wet either in the shower or out of it. I make sure to condition thoroughly, touch my hair once I've taken my turbie towel out, and add some leave-in conditioner where if feel I may need it. I then let it air dry for a while and then slowly and carefully finger comb it.

I can get all of the tangle out very gently with my fingers. I comb my hair with a wide-toothed, seamless comb only after my hair is 95% dry.

I can tell you that my new growth since finger-combing my damp hair only has significantly less breakage than it did when I combed with conditioner in the shower.

Perhaps different hairtypes can comb with conditioner, but my hair is very fragile. Wet hair, even coated with conditioner stretches. If it's stretched too far, it will lead to damage that can lead to breakage. I would always rather err on the side of caution.

Themis74
May 8th, 2010, 03:13 PM
I used to comb my hair in the shower with conditioner, but I've stopped combing my hair when wet either in the shower or out of it. I make sure to condition thoroughly, touch my hair once I've taken my turbie towel out, and add some leave-in conditioner where if feel I may need it. I then let it air dry for a while and then slowly and carefully finger comb it.

I can get all of the tangle out very gently with my fingers. I comb my hair with a wide-toothed, seamless comb only after my hair is 95% dry.

I can tell you that my new growth since finger-combing my damp hair only has significantly less breakage than it did when I combed with conditioner in the shower.

Perhaps different hairtypes can comb with conditioner, but my hair is very fragile. Wet hair, even coated with conditioner stretches. If it's stretched too far, it will lead to damage that can lead to breakage. I would always rather err on the side of caution.

I think hair type is the key. I promise that as soon as I can get hold of a decent camera I will get a picture of the back of my head in my profile - I have very thick cork-screw curls and unless it's sopping wet, with lots of conditioner on it I can't detangle it.

My rationale is that I only do it once a week.

Your hair looks so sleek and lovely - I am jealous :)

x0h_bother
May 8th, 2010, 03:24 PM
I used to do this years ago. I don't any more, but when I did, it wasn't to "make sure the conditioner was worked in," but to detangle my hair. Some people (especially people with curly/wavy hair) just prefer to detangle when in the shower. Everyone's different. :)
Yep. I finger comb to detangle in the shower. I find a comb in the shower is harsher. I also detangle when wet and then do not brush my hair dry (although I am guilty of absent-minded finger combing my hair dry.)

ccmuffingirl
May 8th, 2010, 03:41 PM
I like to comb my hair with a wide-toothed comb while the conditioner is being rinsed out of my hair. To me, that gives it the most slip. I've tried detangling with conditioner in my hair, and personally I prefer detangling my hair the first way.

McFearless
May 8th, 2010, 08:23 PM
For me the conditioner helps detangle my hair if I comb it in the shower. I'm very careful though. If I wait until my hair is dry it becomes a huge poofy mess:P

Ravenne
May 8th, 2010, 09:05 PM
I started combing with conditioner a little while ago. I rather like it. I feel like all of my hair gets an even distribution of conditioner, which is good for my poor damaged dyed parts. :o I do make sure I'm super super careful not to rip through any tangles. I also comb it with my wood comb before getting into the shower and I comb it back when I get out of the shower (again, I'm crazy careful and gentle). I like the way my hair sits since I've started doing this. My part isn't crazy all over the place and my cowlick isn't as noticeable. I haven't noticed any more damage than before I began doing this, but if I do, I'll certainly stop.

Beatrice
May 11th, 2010, 05:28 PM
I'm with the conditioner-combers. Even finger-combing doesn't distribute the conditioner as well as a wide-toothed comb, for me. I also find that my hair tangles less as it dries, if I first detangle in the shower.

Yozhik
May 11th, 2010, 08:19 PM
I used to comb my hair in the shower with conditioner in it on-and-off before I joined LHC, but I did find that I shed a lot.

Now, I either let my hair dry wavy, or if I want it straighter, I comb it after I've gotten out of the shower and had it up in a towel turban for a good 10 minutes.

ArienEllariel
May 11th, 2010, 08:24 PM
I've found that combing with conditioner in does nothing for my hair.. except pull hair out (which I want to avoid) so I just comb when it's damp.