Dry ends vs damaged ends

[ihavelonghair]

I have a question about what to do about my dry ends. My mother used to chop 3-4 inches off whenever my ends became split, dry or tangled.
Now that I'm grown and taking care of my own hair, I've been dusting every 2 months or so but now I'm noticing that the last couple inches are very dry and there's little I can do about it (I've tried SO many conditioners). Upon inspection, I see little to no damage (no splitting).

Is this dryness from any kind of microdamage (i.e. should I chop it) or is there a failproof cocktail I can use to get my ends silky?

Thanks!:)

[HintOfMint]

I have and have had the same problem as you.
It could have many causes. Sometimes it is a protein overload (it is present in many conditioners, so often a conditioner may only make it worse), sometimes it is silicone buildup, and other times it is simple dryness. The easiest way to check this, is to look at your ingredients and make an educated guess.
The first step, regardless of the problem is to clarify. That means using an SLS shampoo from roots to ends. That cleans off any dirt, product, oil, and excess protein you may have on the ends. This allows whatever treatment you follow with to really soak in.
This is what I did for my hair. I did an SMT (Snowymoon's Moisture Treatment--the recipe can be found in the recipes and herbal haircare forum) because, unlike a lot of conditioners that rely on oils and other fatty acids to coat the hair to retain moisture, an SMT is heavy on humectants. Humectants (honey and glycerin come to mind) draw moisture from the air (or the conditioner it is mixed with) into your hair. After the treatment is finished and rinsed out, when I am out of the shower and have towel dried my hair to the point where it is damp but not sopping, I apply coconut oil to seal the moisture in my hair. That has all but cured my dry ends. I've been using an SMT as a regular conditioner though. I wash my hair at the beginning of a shower and then I apply the SMT and leave it on until I'm finished doing other shower duties.

A really good "ready made" conditioner (if you don't want to bother with an SMT) is Garnier Fructis Triple Nutrition. It is silicone free and protein free.

Good luck, and don't be afraid to experiment!

[spidermom]

That's good information, HintofMint; I second it.

You can usually see damage under a strong light. There will be splits or white dots or the cuticle will looked roughened up.

I think of dry ends as a maintenance problem. I can get them to look and feel well moisturized and flexible, but they go right back to dry again. They're usually at their best the day I wash my hair and their worst 3-4 days later. The sebum never gets down that far, so I have to continue to apply oil and/or conditioner and/or leave-ins of various kinds.

[Anje]

I'm with HintofMint on this one -- ends that aren't silky are usually the result of buildup, dryness, and/or damage. Buildup could be from silicones (which might hide damage), or a zillion other things like protein, hard water, various other conditioner ingredients, you name it.

To address this, my usual answer is to (1) clarify hair by shampooing, maybe twice, all the way to the ends with a clarifying shampoo, then (2) do a protein-free SMT (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=128) (my favorite moisture treatment), which will help re-moisturize after clarifying as well as help with any existing dryness. If you see serious damage once your hair is dry after all this, you might want to consider trimming, but most longhairs prefer to see if their ends can be remedied before chopping them off. :)

You might also benefit from applying a small amount of oil to your ends as a leave-in (coconut oil's a perpetual favorite for this), or from bunning your hair while it's damp and tucking the ends in where they can absorb some of the moisture.

[xoxophelia]

Are you heat styling your hair? You texture says that you are wavy/curly but your avatar has long straight hair. When I was flat ironing my hair I also wouldn't get split ends but the bottom few inches would be dry no matter what I did.

The only thing that fixed it for me was to stop heat styling (if I didn't want frequent large trims)

[ihavelonghair]

Thanks for the advice ladies!
I S&C once a week and never use styling products but I'm going to head over and try that clarifying wash/SMT anyway.

xoxophelia, that avatar was one of 3 times I ever ironed my hair (to show it's true length; otherwise it looks around classic length) and I don't think I'll EVER heat style again! A few days of silky hair is not worth a lifetime of damage.

[spidermom]

It's a beautiful avatar picture, which will last a lifetime.

[xoxophelia]

Thanks for the advice ladies!
I S&C once a week and never use styling products but I'm going to head over and try that clarifying wash/SMT anyway.

xoxophelia, that avatar was one of 3 times I ever ironed my hair (to show it's true length; otherwise it looks around classic length) and I don't think I'll EVER heat style again! A few days of silky hair is not worth a lifetime of damage.

Aw I was hoping I had solved your problems haha XD

Good luck with the SMT. I haven't tried it myself.. but it sounds like it does wonders for people.

[white line]

I agree, that is a beautiful picture

[whoanellie]

I admit, I haven't ever really been able to figure out what dry ends really look/feel like. That probably sounds silly but it's true. I can't figure out if I have them or not. I suspect I do but I'm not really sure. :o

[GRU]

Sweet Almond Oil.

My ends LOVE it and just drink it up!!!