Dry ends (AGAIN)

[DiyaC]

Hi all,

The topic of dry ends has been discussed extensively over here, I know, but I really have to bring it up again.

The problem is, nothing works for me. My ends are EXTREMELY dry and I just don't know what to do about them. SMT does not help. Conditioner does not help. Aloe gel does not help. Oiling does not help. In short, nothing at all helps.

The final 3 inches of my hair look and feel like straw. Can anyone give me some advice that would make this problem go away? I hate to even touch the ends these days. They feel terrible.

[salamander]

How are you applying your mosturizers? How often? When my ends were really bad, dampening them and putting a little oil on every single night kept them decent. If you apply whatever works best for you daily, you could get better results.

S&D really improves ends. Spending half an hour snipping out damage makes everything go more smoothly. You don't lose length, and you give the health a nice boost. And have you clarified? You could have some sort of build up, that's a very common cause of rough ends.

[Leisa]

Hi:)
I used to have that problem. Are you ends just naturally dry, or are they dry from chemicals or flat ironing..etc.

If they are damaged and dry I'd say cut them off!

If your hair is natural, and just dry, then I think you can resurect them. First clarify to make sure it isn't product build-up. Then once they are totally clean then I would slather coconut or olive oil on them and then just leave them alone.
I would put oil on them everyday for the next few weeks. Wash once in awhile and then oil again. Oil, oil, oil. And if possible braid.
After a few weeks they should come back to life. If not, cut them off.

[spidermom]

If you haven't tried a good clarifying followed by a moisture treatment, give it a go. But if you've really tried everything, and they haven't improved, and you don't have religious objection, get those bad ends cut off. I've been absolutely shocked by how much faster my hair will gain length when I cut off bad ends. Since spring when I measured 34", then had several inches cut off because they were all splitty, and six weeks later measured 34.25", I have no fear of cutting. I'm not losing length; I'm gaining a growth spurt. Maybe you will experience the same.

[jojo]

My ends have been a pain too, thinning and dry compared to the rest of my hair. I SMTed , clarified and nothing has worked in the long term. Im finding herbal rinses are really helping the condition of my hair, but I don't or didn't like the ends, so I have cut 1/2" off yesterday and the dryness has gone.

So my advise is to do a trim, just a small one the difference is amazing. At the end of the day, yes I want long hair, but I want nice looking hair and if that means cutting every few months and taking a little longer to get there, then so be it for me.

[DiyaC]

Thank you for the advice. I trimmed off about a quarter of an inch today. I oil and braid regularly. And my hair is just naturally dry, not damaged-dry. I've never flat-ironed it or damaged it any other way. I haven't clarified though. Maybe I should try that out.

[Toadstool]

I have dry ends and herbal shampoos, oils etc always make it worse. But cones make it feel fantastic, particularly if I do a deep condition with them. I was going to cut it off cos I thought it was damaged but the hairdresser I went to said there is nothing wrong with it and it is fine to grow long, just that it is coarse and thus will feel dry naturally.

[suicides_eve]

i agree a small trim maybe in order, i found that misting with a good condtioner/water mix has really combated against summer dry hair/ends

[Cichelle]

I used to have dry ends all of the time, despite the fact that I kept my hair moisturized and/or oiled. I discovered that, for the most part, my dry ends were from product build up. Once I started shampooing regularly with a mild shampoo, the problem reduced significantly. I had been cowashing and using shampoo infrequently. I thought that was the right thing to do because I had it drilled into my head that shampoo was bad and caused dryness. What a surprise to find the opposite.

ETA: Oiling my ends often made them crunchy and dry. I use oil successfully just before shampooing, though.

[Curlsgirl]

I used to just wet my ends and soak in coconut oil, one of my favorite salvages. Yesterday I tried something that worked TONS better!

1. Braid hair and tie off leaving 3 inches at the tassle.
2. Pour distilled water over the tassle wetting thoroughly.
3. Using a sulfate, clarifying shampoo or baking soda mixed with shampoo add to tassle and massage thoroughly.
4. Rinse VERY thoroughly.
5. Add as much as you want of conditioner (I used Beauty without cruelty leave-in) use one that is good for leaving in.
6. Press out excess drips with fingers gently.
7. Add thorough soaking of whatever oil your hair likes (I used coconut oil)
8. Press out drips again gently with fingers.
9. Put in an updo that covers the ends and leave for a day or however long you can.
10. Take down and VOILA beautiful, soft, moisturized ends!!!(If still damp just let dry by itself)

I am thinking I may do my whole ponytail next time and braid and then bun or just bun.

[Anje]

Curlsgirl, that sounds perfect.

I was just going to add another vote for clarifying. It may not solve everything, but it should make the moisturizers you use more effective if they don't have to penetrate a wall of gunk to help your hair.

[Deborah]

If my ends are a bit dry I stroke a tiny bit of shea nut butter through the bottom 6 inches or so while my hair is still damp from washing. This works great!

[Riot Crrl]

Curlsgirl, that sounds perfect.

I was just going to add another vote for clarifying. It may not solve everything, but it should make the moisturizers you use more effective if they don't have to penetrate a wall of gunk to help your hair.

ITA. I totally had so much stuff on my hair for years and didn't even know it and had no idea why no deep treatment seemed to work. It doesn't feel great immediately after clarifying, at all, but voila, treatments can penetrate.

[missy60]

Curlsgirl that is the exact treatment I used alot when my hair was damaged it saved my hair from being cut. I did do the braid though my hair was to short for that or my skills werent good enough to braid shoulder length hair. I just did a high pony tail and left it on over night and CO it out in the morning. In fact my hair got over conditioned with this routine but at the time that was a good thing. My hair was parched and these treatments saved it

[DiyaC]

Curlsgirl, that sounds like a great remedy. I'm going to try it out immediately. Thank you so much.

[chelles2kids]

Unfortunately, it sounds like you are having the same problems as myself.

Nothing, short of a small trim will help them, once they get in this condition.
Once trimmed, keep them oiled as much as possible.
It will help to keep them conditioned AND protected.

But I refuse to trim them until November, so for now, I just have to live with them.

I wouldn't go all out though, I would try just a small 1/4 inch trim or so and then leave them alone for a few months and then decide whether you can live with them or another small trim might be in order.
Sometimes just that little bit off the ends make all the difference in the world.

Good luck!

Michelle