Thin, Breaking Hair- PLEASE HELP!

[Merkaba]

Hello All,

My whole life I have had very thick hair. I mean that both I had a lot of hair AND each individual strand was thick and strong. However the last few months the individual strands of my hair have become very thin and fine- and are breaking off at an alarming rate.

I have tried multiple protein treatments, cutting back on shampoo, and am eliminating using all products. I noticed that my co-worker and my bf (who live in the same city as I do) both have the same thing. My ideas of what it could be:

1) Our water has changed somehow
2) I colored my hair with Naturtint a few months ago, although I had already done Henna 3 months before that (and it says right on the package not to do that)
3) Too much or the wrong kind of shampoo

Does anyone know what might be causing this? Each strand is very baby fine, and the strands are clinging to each other like cobwebs. I've tried clarifying already. Please please please help!:(

[Khiwanean]

How is your diet? Nutritional problems will have a big effect on the hair. It might be best to visit your doctor, since medical problems, especially those involving the thyroid can cause thinning of the hair.

[LouLaLa]

That sounds pretty bad! You seem to be doing all the right stuff.

Do you dye or take vitamins?

Aside from that if you say that your bf and co-worker have the same issues, if I were you Id start washing my hair in distilled or bottled water. I know that might seem a bit extreme, but lord anything could be in the water if (and assuming ths is the cause) its thinning your hair. Im sure someone here will have a good idea of whats causing it. Do you know if the water was hard or soft previsously (do a litmus test on the water if you can).

Good luck this must be very distressing *hug*

[florenonite]

I second Khiwanean; rule out any medical problems before trying to treat the hair itself. Thinning hair might be merely a symptom of a wider problem, or it could be the problem itself, and you need to know which it is before you know how to deal with it.

It could also be too much protein and not enough moisture; that can make hair break. Or if you've got hard water that could cause problems, too. It wouldn't hurt to try a moisture treatment while you're waiting to find out if it is a medical problem.

[kristymarie87]

I agree with the diet! Has anything changed? Are you eating different food?

Aslo are you taking any medications? That could be a factor. Even vitamins...just anything you are putting into your body that you dont already.

Do you live in a hard water area? Have you been through a recent trauma? Had your thyroid tested?

Theres so many things it could be! Genetics? Maybe you are getting too much protein? That can be a problem.


I've included this link, as you could find out if maybe you are getting too much protien-
http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=44

I hope it helps if even just a little bit!

Other than that, try sleeping on a silk pillow, dont use tight hairbands and make use of protective updos if you can :D

[teela1978]

So how fast did this change happen? If its been over a few years, then you might want to look into diet/illness/etc... If its been over a few months... diet would only affect the top inch or two of hair. My bet would be on the naturatint. Are your roots healthy?

[Merkaba]

Thank you all for your responses.

I looked into the thyroid thing and I have no other issues. My diet has remained the same, and I've been taking my hair vitamins on and off as normal.

My gut tells me that it's either the water or the dye. I think what happened is I was using a cheap brand of henna (the kind the prob has metals in it). The color kept washing out, and that's when I tried the Naturtint 3 months later. At first there didn't seem to be any issue, but now I'm getting massive breakage.

I'm going to have to cut back to around shoulder or APL, and I *just* reached BSL. At least that will get rid of the last of the dye from the bottom 2-3 inches.

I'm so depressed. The breakage is really noticeable even to others, and nothing I do seems to help. For the last two years I've been working on getting beautiful hair, and then I messed everything up.

[Khiwanean]

Based on your reply it is likely to be a combination of the Nutratint and the henna, especially since you mention that the henna was cheap and likely not to be pure. For now, I would recommend you try some moisture treatments and see if protein overload may be causing at least some of your breakage. Other than that, you may have to cut some off just to get rid of the damage.

[teela1978]

Just treat it gently. Have you checked out the damaged hair article (I think it was written by nightshade, not sure though)? There's a wealth of knowledge in there.

[spidermom]

I've heard bad things about the Naturatint also.

The Joico K-Pak Reconstructing deep treatment gave me a lot of benefit, so if you're looking for a good treatment, I can recommend that one. And, of course, there's always the LHC favorite -- SMT.

Don't do anything crazy like hack off a bunch of inches. Take it slow, try one thing at a time.

[Phexlyn]

Just treat it gently. Have you checked out the damaged hair article (I think it was written by nightshade, not sure though)? There's a wealth of knowledge in there.
This. Don't give up yet, and try to save as much of your hair as possible. I would also suggest checking the moisture/protein balance of your hair so that you don't overdose on protein.

[Nightshade]

Based on your reply it is likely to be a combination of the Nutratint and the henna, especially since you mention that the henna was cheap and likely not to be pure. For now, I would recommend you try some moisture treatments and see if protein overload may be causing at least some of your breakage. Other than that, you may have to cut some off just to get rid of the damage.

I agree with this. Please don't beat yourself up too badly, it'll just make you feel worse. We'll try to find some positive changes you can make to improve things :flowers:




Just treat it gently. Have you checked out the damaged hair article (I think it was written by nightshade, not sure though)? There's a wealth of knowledge in there.


This. Don't give up yet, and try to save as much of your hair as possible. I would also suggest checking the moisture/protein balance of your hair so that you don't overdose on protein.

The article they're talking about is linked in my siggy :) PLEASE ask me questions if you have any. I trashed my hair with dye (it broke off from hip to BSL and what was left was barely worth trying to save) so it CAN be done!

Some things I would try if I was you (in this order):

Take a big deep breath.
Take another.
Remember that is is just hair.
Remember that at this exact second it is growing and will continue to do so.Those out of the way:

I agree with the comments that your hair seems to be suffering from protien overload. Lay off the protien for awhile.
While doing that, don't use straight coconut oil as it will just retard the protien loss.
Try Fox's Shea Conditioning Cream (it's easy and cheap to make). My hair HATED oils, and I think that's common with very damaged hair. The shea butter will help your hair's cuticle lay down. The little bit of coconut oil in this may be okay, or you can swap in something else you like, such as aloe.
Consider some water-soluble silicones. There seems to be a trend on the boards where those with F strands really benefit from the protection and slip that cones give.
Remember to clarify if you use cones.
Hang in there. I did it. Took me 5 years, but I made it. You will too :grouphug:

[runaway177]

My hair is also in a very sad state so I'm in no position to give any advice but I'm totally rooting for you! I was recently looking at old photos when my hair was extremely long and thick and people always complemented me on my hair but now it's gotten so weak and thin that sometimes I can't help but literally cry when I look long enough in the mirror. I'm still at a loss for why its become this way. I never dyed or used chemicals in my hair but I did use henna once or twice as a child. In my teens I used to use heat to style it on special occasions. Other than that I don't think it went through as much abuse. I've lost weight over the years so that may play a factor and my diet has changed significantly. Now I've lost so much hair thickness that my scalp is visible. Many have noticed and it's very depressing so I always wear my hair up and keep it covered in scarves or bandannas to avoid having anyone see its dismal state.

It's a long learning process but if others have done so can we. I pray we both reach our hair goals.