Hair feeling very dry after wash

[Lunami]

My hair feels dry after i wash it. It doesen't matter what i use to wash it. I use CO but have also tried using a SLS-free shampoo. It feels like you would describe a protein build-up, which i don't have. I always prefer my hair the second day because my hair is less dry and a little darker again. On the second day it will feel smooth as silk with lots of shine.

I'm just wondering if someone else has hair like this? I really wish my hair would feel great after i washed it... As in the commercials hehe.

[spidermom]

Maybe you need to leave conditioner in.

My ends feel very dry after washing if I don't leave some conditioner on them. I use the same stuff that would normally be rinsed out. It works fine so I don't see the need to buy a special "leave-in" conditioner.

[GeoJ]

My hair is always at it's worst soon after washing, and much improved the next day. At least for me, the feeling of dryness is not actually dryness, but my waves frizzing (each strand doing it's own thing, rather than lying nicely with the other strands). When I run my hands over my hair in that state it usually feels awful, but the hairs themselves are not damaged or dry.

I think my problem is from wavy hair that I think is porous (despite the fact that is all virgin or virgin that had been hennaed). I also have a tendency to compare it to my DD's lovely silky hair, which is not a fair comparison.

I did see some improvement from mixing coconut oil into my shampoo, and from a protein treatment that I tried. I tested on shed hairs first! I have more details on those in my blog. It also helps my hair to feel nicer if I smooth a small amount of coconut oil on it when it's damp.

[ratgirldjh]

My hair always feels weird on the day I wash it. The second day it looks great too!

Maybe this is normal for your hair?

[Debra83]

Here's what helped me, and the pics of the difference:

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=50881

Good luck!

[HairFaerie]

This happened to me too depending on which shampoo/conditioner I used. I kept buying different stuff until I finally found a few that work for me. Now I rotate between those.

I thought I would never find the right stuff. Things either made my hair feel too dry or too greasy. I was looking for soft & shiny. Luckily I found a few that accomplish this.

Unfortunately it took me a while to find stuff that worked to my liking and I have A LOT of bottles of stuff I don't use. My sisters make fun of me all of the time and sometimes refer to my bathroom as "the beauty supply store". Then I end up giving stuff to them that I don't use anymore.

[jenwexler]

I have tips on the link in my signature ^_^

[Lunami]

I always use leave in. I *think* that oil might be a good solution, but my hair may feel weighed down by it. It would be easier if i could stick to just a few products but i like to switch! And when i feel i should use the same a few times i want to jump into the shower everyday but that's not my normal routine so it wouldn't help anyway.

Actually, today i used Triple Nutrition! But i used sls-free shampoo with it. I'm not sure if i shed less with shampoo but i will quit it and use conditioner wash as usual. My hair has some natural movement in it but second day it is completely straight. No conditioner has ever felt too heavy for my hair but i can easily over-oil it.

GeoJ your description sounds just like my hair.

My hair type is very complicated. I've posted before about my "mysterious curls". For a few months i had spiral curls big and tiny as well as wave all over my hair. At that stage i had blunt cut APL-BSL lenght hair. These curls dissappeared overnight and were never seen again. I am soon at APL lenght and the hope for my curls to come back is still with me, but my hair is layered now. It took a lot of work helping my curls with plupping and leave-ins. I did use a lot of glycerine, something i should take up again?

[little_cherry]

Have you tried a deep moisturising treatment after clarifying? The conditioner may be building up on your hair making it feel dry.

[jeanniet]

I use Kimberlily's defrizz spay, minus the glycerin--so a mix of distilled water, aloe vera gel, and oil. It detangles and gives a nice moisturizing boost.

[Henrietta]

I am SO with you!

Even after CO my hair feels and looks dry. And in the morning or even after few hours and a good brushing it's smooth, shiny...

Maybe it's about water? It has to "calm down" after being wet or something...?

At the beginning I was sad, mad, terrified. Now I accept it. I treat is just as a temporary stage. It's not my hair's natural stage;)

[jojo]

Here's what helped me, and the pics of the difference:

http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=50881

Good luck!

I was just going to point her to your thread!:cool:

[aenflex]

I would be screwed without using a leave-in after washing. I'm serious. Rinse days and CO days, not so much. But after an SLS wash and cone conditioner, I still use a healthy amount of leave in conditioner. To me it's like salad dressing or cake frosting or something, things just aint complete without it :) Helps a lot with 1st day hair blues...

[Deborah]

I wonder if you might have very hard water? I do, and without using an acidic rinse each time I wash, my hair can feel funny and rather dry. If you don't already do so, try an acid rinse (either vinegar in water or citric acid powder in water. And DON'T rinse it out.)

[Lunami]

It's nice to know i'm not alone! I will try some different washing techniques and see if it could change. It's not a huge problem after all ;) I'm not sure if i have hard water... but i have AVC at home and I've been meaning to try it, but no one could ever really tell me the benefits so i haven't been inspired enough to do it yet.

[emmabovary]

My ends were behaving just like your hair, super dry after a wash. ACV rinses and leave in conditioner saved them. I ended up cutting an inch though, they were just tangling too much and driving me crazy.