I need support - Fine, 2a ish and lots thereof - Tangles

[Cupofmilk]

Ok I realised nmy real issue is I still hate my hair. I have a real problem with the length - I went from near Classic to BSL - approx 18 inches. I have grown back 6 of those and am now below waist - approaching hip. But I still feel like my hair is really short.

One of the biggest problems which used to be the bane of my life when my hair was long and part of the reason I caved into pressure to cut - was tangles. I still have issues.

Pre LHC with long hair - my routine was - wash scalp only (made that bit up myself) and then use some thing like Aussie three minute miracle as a conditioner or miracle moist. Braid my hair when wet and sleep on it like that and always keep hair braided - whether up or down. Morning after - braid was still damp and tidy - so I wouldb't touch my hair until the next day - 36 hours after washing I would brush with the Mason Pearson and detangle - even took it to the hairdresser - nothing else worked - all combs brushes would get stuck. Brush out again and wash again after 48 hours repeat etc.

Now I have joined LHC - I have tried cone and sulphate free - irritated my scalp but remained cone free and founf t-gel is the only shampoo I can tolerate on my scalp. I condition the hair (not scalp) cone free and coconut oil whenever I feel the need. I have dicovered different buns and updos. I can go 3 and sometimes 4 days between washes. I have tried the coconut oils shampoo with some sucess.

One thing still remains tangles. I tried to comb my damp hair out and it took half an hour. The underside of my hair is almost curly - some spirals and my hair is 2a ish - varies. Sometimes I comb or brush over one shoulder and by the time I flick over the other shoulder to do more it has tangled back up again.

I can't do a hairtyping - no conditioner would end up with me needing scissors to undo the knots!

My ends have all been trimmed recently. I found after the 18 inch cut there was some improvement in tangles but I still sufferefd from them. The longer my hair gets the worse they are. I used to have them at chin length even - when I had my hair cut 1 inch every 3 months.

Has anyone any useful suggestions?

[Annalouise]

:)I have the same hairtype (but less hair) and the same problems so I'll just sit back and hope someone has the answers.:D

[CarpeDM]

Although my hair isn't very long, I too suffer from unrelenting tangles. Have you tried using an apple cider vinegar rinse after you wash? I used to buy tons of detanglers and conditioners but they didn't really help with the tangles. However when I do an ACV rinse, I don't have nearly as many tangles, the comb just sort of glides right through.

[Becky Safari]

My hair is the same way, I still have not found a routine that helps alleviate the tangle issues. I am beginning to discover however that the problem is buildup. I do clarify, but between my hard water and products that I've tried the buildup is what causes my hair to become velcro-y and tangled. Even the coconut oil shampoo caused too much buildup for my hair to handle.

The only thing which seems to help is a ACV rinse after every wash, and I am looking in to Indian herbs for washing my hair instead, hoping this works.

[Cupofmilk]

yes I do use an acv rince after every wash - I would agree it helps but it's still a fight. I do clarify with the T-gel sometimes - it's very very harsh.

[lapushka]

I normally don't have tangles, but I still have a big section in my hair that's been permed and therefore it's rougher, dryer... and it needs to be handled differently. In the past my hair was even rougher, dryer (bleached / dyed a lot, processed a lot).

What helps combat the dryness is using a conditioner that's chock full of cones (or the Garnier Triple Nutrition conditioner), and then either using a wide tooth comb to detangle it or a tangle teezer (huge help). I detangle wet, after my hair's been in a towel for at least 10 minutes. I clarify each wash, esp. when using cones in my hair.

Try washing the length and clarifying it!

[Roscata]

Have you considered that your hair might like cones? I hear people have an easier time de-tangling hair when they use cones because the hair is slipperier. (To Cone or Not to Cone (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=13))
I also suggest trying a detangling spray or making your own, I used to use this one: link (http://www.overstockdrugstore.com/product_images/b/381370040583.jpg). That, or try a leave-in conditioner.
Good luck! :D

[SpinDance]

What kind of comb do you use? I use my fingers, or something like these:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/62493405/exquisite-handmade-organic-horn-hairpin
http://www.hairsense.com/images/210.jpg (their Volume comb)
http://www.etsy.com/listing/43134855/handmade-hair-fork-comb-hand-carved (Mine is purpleheart)

I do much better with very deep teeth, widely set apart than anything that resembles a "normal" comb. The teeth are just too close together and not long enough to go through the waves in my hair.

I also wonder if you are actually much curlier than 2a, and it only looks 2a because you are combing it?

In any case, I use a wide fork usually (the one from Quecraft) to help loose hairs come out of the rest of it more easily. I do this before getting into the shower, then while my hair is under the running water I'll carefully use my fingers to detangle and remove any remaining loose hairs. The loose ones cause me the most trouble, as they always wrap around the other hairs and make snarls. After it is smooth I'll apply the conditioner or whatever and make sure I can carefully finger comb through that. No bending up onto my head, and after I've rinsed everything out and gently pressed/squeezed the water out of the hair I bend back to let it swing free and put a towel under it. I usually wrap the ends of the town up over my head which encases my hanging hair in a towel tube to soak up the drips.

Hope you find what is causing your hair to be so easily tangled!

[Deborah]

My (tailbone length) hair is less tangly when I CO wash, then end with an acidic rinse, which I don't wash out. My water here is very hard, so the rinse helps protect my hair from that.

[Aurantia]

I also wonder if you are actually much curlier than 2a, and it only looks 2a because you are combing it?


I second this: Cupofmilk I have 1c/2a fine thick hair and when it is combed out completely it is stick straight. If you have spirals at the end and are still retaining lots and lots of body (perhaps even curls) after you detangle I would guess you actually have curlier hair than you think.

Regarding tangles -- the only thing that has worked for me is fingercombing + going longer between washes and using an oil on the ends. Before LHC I would have thought that ONLY fingercombing my hair was downright impossible; now I don't know how I ever brushed or combed my hair. I haven't used a comb or brush since June and my hair is much easier to handle now -- easier to detangle, less tangle prone, and in drastically better condition.

I don't have time at the moment to give more detail but if this method is of interest to you please respond in this thread or pm me and I will be happy to discuss everything I've learned about managing my hair this way.

A few other tips: a silk or stain pillow case (if you don't already have one) will be a revelation in tangle-free existence. Second, If you're wearing a braid for several days straight it might be worth the effort of taking it down each morning and slowly fingercombing up as you unravel, then redoing the braid. I find that even when my hair is up all day and/or night it still manages to catch on itself in places; the idea of having a single braid for over 24 hours is a scary thought! But YMMV.

[Cupofmilk]

Thank you all. I have a wide tooth horn comb. It's not bad actually. I also have the wooden wide tooth comb from the body shop. I might need something closer to those combs.
I have stopped oiling as much over the winter as the oil is solid all the time. I might extra oil my ends again. I do occasionaly try fingercombing - I might start doing more of that.
I never wash my hair in the shower as this makes my hair awful. It's best in the bath behind me.
I would love to do a hair typing but I am really worried about dealing with the ensuing tangles and fairyknots - the nape hairs are very different - real spiral curls.

[laughinglynxie]

I wish I had real help for you! (For the most part, I wanted you to see that I saw your thread...and heck, I might need support once my hair gets longer.)

I will also second that maybe your hair will do well with 'cones if you aren't using them now?

The tangles that I get are mostly caused by dye-damaged hair...so that might be a different beast, but I find that the Garnier Triple Nutrition Conditioner makes my hair glide like silk (it's 'cone-free) but it doesn't do much for making my waves look good. I've also noticed that since I've been trying to use a shampoo bar (and failing because of very hard water), the ACV rinse actually made my hair harder to deal with. But that could just be me, haha.

[Anje]

I agree with the other posters. Consider giving cones a try in your length. Also, I don't know if you've clarified the length lately -- if you haven't, that might help with the tangles.

I know my hair gets extremely tangly and rough if I use protein-containing conditioners, and it tangles less the more moisturized it is. (Mine also tangles more a few days after using silicones, as they seem to dry my hair out. But mine's weird about protein and silicone, whereas they can be miracle ingredients for some folks.) So I'd suggest clarifying if you haven't, and try adding or subtracting, one at a time, protein and silicone. Also try something like an SMT as a moisture treatment. Well-conditioned, moisturized hair tends to tangle less.

[Kaeita]

I'm still learning my way around wavy/curly hair, so I'm not overly knowledgeable, but have you tried aloe vera? I put it on my son's hair earlier this week, after it was badly damaged with wind tangles, and it made a huge improvement. I only applied it once, after his bedtime bath, on wet hair, then detangled, and it didn't catch at all. I rinsed his hair the next day as we were going out, and it's our usual routine, and his hair was slightly rougher, until it dried, but still very smooth, and barely tangled at all. If I'd had more aloe prepared (I have plants, which I take the gel from), I would have applied it after each rinsing of his hair (I use water only on his hair, as he's sensitive to soaps etc), but even the improvement after one application was dramatic. I love aloe on my own hair too.

[Cupofmilk]

Thank you all - I have some three minute miracle - cones and some aloe vera to try - will report back on this.

[madeline_]

I have really, really tangly and dry hair, so I feel your pain. I don't think I'll ever make it to WL, I've been trimming at BSL for six months and the bottom two inches are still a disaster.

Could it be build-up or some kind? I think that in my situation that's mostly the case, because it looks good on day one and then starts to tangle after the first night sleeping on it. The Movie Star shampoo method is supposed to really help with tangles, and since it doesn't involve conditioner, there won't be any build-up. I'm about to try it out...

[MandyBeth]

Do you have hard water? I am a 1c/2a and if I get the buildup from hard water, I am very tangle prone. Club soda rinse with a distilled water rinse fixes it.

[Quahatundightu]

Mine tangles less when I have a small amount of coconut or jojoba oil on the ends. Fine hair just loves to tie itself in knots!

Also it sounds like you are handling your hair quite a bit, but maybe that's just coming from a wurly/curly! I detangle in the shower with my hair covered in conditioner (also sometimes fingercomb before getting in, with some oil on my ends to prevent knots) but once I get out I don't touch my hair very much. Either I just let it dry without combing, or I fingercomb it gently (again with oil on the ends) and put it into a style. The more I handle it, the more tangles it gets, unless I am very careful.

So I would suggest maybe don't comb or brush as much, and see what happens if you oil (or put something like a serum or detangling spray) on the ends before handling it. I would agree with the people saying your hair could be curlier than you think, things like the spirals sure sound like it! My hair definitely wouldn't like being combed so much and would tangle up the moment I flicked it back over my shoulder too. Something to think about!