Thinner on one side, help please.

[LouLaLa]

Hi everyone

Ive learned so much about haircare here but my hair is thinner on one side still.

To give the backstory about 6 months ago I went the hairdresser to get a trim and she commented that my hair is thinner on one side than the other and I needed to "move my hair about" to stop it coming out. She said it was probably because I was sleeping on one side more than the other.

I have tried sleeping on the other side, combing my hair move over the other way etc, but I cant control moving about when im unconcious so im concerned about this.

All was well for a while but last night when brushing my hair I noticed my scalp is more visible on one side than the other when I comb, its more noticeable since my hair is growing out to its natural medium blonde.

I was wondering what to do, can anyone help me? :(


For extra troubleshooting help here is my routine since beginning LHC:

CO only (made my hair much better)
SMT once/twice a week
Dip my ends in EVOO on the night prior to wash day
Full head massage prior to wash day to let the oils penetrate
Tie my hair in a loose braid to sleep
No dye
No hair dryers (but I never used styling implements anway)
I always use detangler prior to any brushing and I brush all my end tangles out before working up the length
Multivitamin (always taken this, I took MSM in the past but it made me feel really ill even when I drank sufficient water etc)

My hair is in fantasitc conditon after all this (thanks to LHC!) but I don't want long hair thats lopsided :(

Its depressing me a bit as im trying to be really good to my hair and I just dont know what to do! :confused:

Thankyou everyone for listening to my long winded tale, I really need advice :(

[squiggyflop]

i have the same problem.. i believe mine is due to me parting the hair on that side (my widows peak doesnt like to part so i always part it on the side..)

perhaps if you parted it differently?

[ruffian]

Well...unfortunately I haven't found a way to permanently solve this problem either but I just wanted to say I can definitely relate. My hair is thinner on the left side (the side I usually sleep on), it goes through periods where it's not so bad, and then other times it's pretty extreme.
I've always kind of instinctively known it was from sleeping on one side all the time (this has been an issue pretty much my whole life), but when I'm sleeping alone (i.e. no-one or nothing there to force me to sleep on the other side), I always wake up on my left side, my hair feels smooshed, and it gradually gets thinner.
I've tried everything to change my sleeping habits, but...no luck. I inevitably end up on my left side.
But hey, at least your hair isn't dark like mine - believe me, my bright white scalp is really noticeable through my black hair when it's at a thin point (like it is now :mad:).
I'm definitely going to watch this thread and see if anyone has any ideas I haven't tried yet...
Good luck!:)

[LouLaLa]

Thanks Squiggy and ruffian!

Im going to try comb my hair in a differrent direction or something but aside from a pony tail or half up to "gather the top section" my hair just seems to always fall down the centre even when I "re-set" it when wet. I just toss and turn when I sleep theres no logic to it so I cant fix that :p

Squiggy do you just "flip" your part over? Or wear it in a pony etc?
Its just so annoying as you try so hard to be good to your hair and some things I cant fix :( My hairdesser blamed dye (which I gave up) and straighteners (???? I NEVER use them! Im 1a!) as contributing factors to the sleep issue.

I hope someone has out foxed it a little and can help :(

[squiggyflop]

Squiggy do you just "flip" your part over? Or wear it in a pony etc?
Its just so annoying as you try so hard to be good to your hair and some things I cant fix :( My hairdesser blamed dye (which I gave up) and straighteners (???? I NEVER use them! Im 1a!) as contributing factors to the sleep issue.

I hope someone has out foxed it a little and can help :(
best way to train the part to go to the other side is to sleep in piggytail braids or pigtails..
my hair is long enough now that i can just flip the part over and the weight of the hair will hold it down.. i used the pigtail method to go from an extreme side part (which is the way my hair parted for 18 years of my life) to one just barely off center by a centimeter.. it has helped a lot with the thinning on the right side..

i cant help much with the way you sleep but i do suggest getting a silk pillowcase.. or rayon satin.. poly satin might make your skin break out

[pookatrina]

My hair is thinner on my right side. It's a combo of sleeping on that side, having a few cowlicks that flip my hair aways from that side & a small extension accident years ago. Nothing I've done over the years has ever really changed it, so I've just accepted it & other than a few styles where I have to get creative with my part I just ignore it.

Have you tried a sleep cap or satin pillowcase? That may help with the sleep part at least.

[hmmm]

My hair was always thinner on the sides of my head and near the side I always parted on. When I was in school, some idiot even commented that I was going bald on the side of my head. (wtf?)

Since LHC :D ... I've solved this problem, but it takes a long time, so you have to have patience. It took a few months for me, and a few more months of looking crazy due to new growth all over my scalp (ETA I'm still getting some lol)
I'm not sure if there was any one thing I was doing to affect it... between henna, bhringraj, castor oil and other herbs, it could be any or a combination of all of those. I also think giving up brushing helped... as well as quitting coney conditioners.

You might want to try castor oil, a lot of LHC members have had good results with it. Just mix it with another oil (or honey) 50:50 or less concentrated, and use it as a pre-wash treatment. Be warned that it's very heavy and -may- darken your hair slightly.

I wouldn't go through the trouble of ordering Indian herbs, though... I'm sure there are western herbs that work just as well without the hype :D There are a lot of good articles on LHC, you should look around.

Hope that helps :)

[TrudieCat]

My hair is actually thicker on the side of my head that I usually sleep on. I always assumed that I just naturally grew more hair on one side of my head, and that's why it's thinner on one side. I figured I'm just not symmetrical. My eyebrows are the same way - one naturally grows in thicker than the other. :shrug:

[lapushka]

Isn't it normal to have one side that is a little thinner than the other?

[LouLaLa]

Isn't it normal to have one side that is a little thinner than the other?

I thought this too but my hairdresser looked at me like she was about to announce I had a massive bald patch or my hair had gone magically blue and seemed genuinely concerned. I know that she has no money motive in freaking me out as she still only charges me £5 for a cut (any style) as ive been going since I was a baby :p Also I think it must have gotten worse as the salon usually comment on how good my hair is.

Its just a little disheartening when im so good to it.

hmmm that castor oil tip sounds like a good idea, I think I will give it a go and look into the herbs (im sure you are single handedly trying to save my hair- id know nothing of oils without you :p).

I will also take the advice of moving my part and maybe the sleeping cap if I can get one (will a silk scarf and pillow do for now?)

Im glad to see it is "normal" though, even if mine has increased a bit, thanks guys :) My hairdresser just really freaked me out as the look in her eyes was panic!

What would I do without LCH! Everyone is so nice and helpful thankyou :flower:

If there are any more ideas id love to hear them as im really committed long term to achiving hair health, starting SMT made me realize how much id abused my hair as it felt "real" again.

Growth is great but im willing to hold back on that till I have my hair/scalp in good condition.

[hmmm]

Silk instead of satin should be fine. I can't stand those fabrics because it's way too hot here. I just use cotton :silly:

I'd like to add that it's also possibly cyclical - if you shed more in one season or for part of the year it might be more noticeable. Or it might be a hormonal cycle. It's also very possible that it's not even that noticeable - seeing as you didn't notice it yourself until the stylist pointed it out. I don't trust other people when they comment about my appearance, usually especially if they're in the 'beauty business', because they tend to have a skewed perception of normality. :p

Enjoy your hair! :flowers: