Nests

[Amber_Maiden]

This has always happened to me:

I'll be combing my hair and will run into a snag.
The snag will turn out to be a nest of hairs all tied together.
I'll spend a long time trying to untangle them-
only to find that they are all dead hair tied together!
This mostly happens under my hair, near my neck... and are comprised of as many as 50 strands of long hair.
This usually has to be cut out.

help?
and why does this happen when I am so careful???:confused:

[Madora]

Brushing every day gets rid of dead hairs everywhere. If you don't like to brush, then combing thoroughly should help eliminate those nests of hair.

[WaitingSoLong]

Using a boar bristle brush after detangling helps to pull out loose strands. Once a day I cleanse my hair of shed hairs in this manner.

I cannot say that has ever happened to me.

I get the tangles but they are all still firmly attached.

[Kiwiwi]

Do you brush from the ends up to the roots, or the other way around?
Going (slowly) from the ends up is the best way to avoid this problem.
If you are already doing that then I have no idea as to how to help you :(

[spidermom]

My shed hairs tend to take up residence in my hair, and though brushing will remove a number of them, it loosens up the next batch, so I never feel that I'm ahead of the battle. I had to very carefully pick out a knot this morning - 2 shed hairs knotting up some still-rooted hairs.

[squiggyflop]

i havent had this problem since switching to the tangle teezer.. my shed hairs end up on ther teezer and dont form nests as much..

also, you are combing from bottom working to top yes?

[Fairlight63]

When I get knots of hairs together, I try to loosen them with my fingers first - trying to work it out. If that doesn't work I add a little jojoba oil & keep trying to work it out - it usually will come out.

[Quetiepi]

This happens to me, also. I am glad to know I'm not the only one.

[Amber_Maiden]

Yes, I work from the end of my hair up, and I do brush at the roots. I brush my hair twice a day- once in the morning, once at night. I also brush more if i have a shower- since that tangles it easily. I use a comb. I've always had this problem. I'm gentle with my hair, buts it rather thick.
:confused:

[Becky9679]

i havent had this problem since switching to the tangle teezer.. my shed hairs end up on ther teezer and dont form nests as much..


Me too, the tangle teezer seems to be an excellent tool for removing shed hairs. So much so that the uneducated think they contribute to hair breakage!

[Airmide]

I've been wondering that about tangle teezers, so that's good to know! I'm debating getting one.

I get little knots with a few tangled hairs, but they're almost always still attached. I start combing or brushing at the bottom and work about 2/3 of the way up, then I switch to the top and work my way back down, alternating from top and bottom, if that makes any sense lol. If I get bad knots I use jojoba oil to help get them out.

[Lady Neeva]

Apparently I'm no help, but when I got a huge dead knot once, it took 30 minutes for my dad to get it out with rubbing the interior of it with a sissor..

[longhairedlady]

When I get knots like that I use some oil and comb it out.

[Yozhik]

I see we have the same texture and about the same length. I get these, too, usually at the nape of my neck, but only if I leave my hair down for some amount of time. Typically they're a combination of attached and shed hairs, but as long as I don't leave my hair down for too long, they don't develop into massive tangles.

My solution-- wear my hair up. :)

[julierockhead]

Since you are getting these knots at the nape, try adding extra oil there...if it's a little greasy nobody will know. My daughter used to get the knotties there and I would spray there there extra well with a coney leave-in, and that worked too.

[Capybara]

How do you usually wear your hair? I find that I get these types of tangles when I've been wearing my hair down, or when it's been in a loose braid. Detangling and bunning may be a solution for certain days :)

[EdG]

Nape tangles are a common problem.

I finger-comb, and then use a wide-toothed comb to get underneath the tangles.
Ed

[ddiana1979]

I also get nape tangles, anytime my hair gets longer than BSL. The only thing I can do to prevent them is keep my hair up, completely off my back or well-braided at the very least. . . ponytails don't work, then I just get knots where the ponytail swishes across the neckline of my shirt. :( When I do get them though, I put a little bit of oil or silicone spray on the knot and carefully separate the strands with my fingers or brush it out with a Tangle Teezer.

[teal]

How do you usually wear your hair? I find that I get these types of tangles when I've been wearing my hair down, or when it's been in a loose braid. Detangling and bunning may be a solution for certain days :)

Yes, this. Some hairstyles are worse than others!

[Cania]

I had this once, but I didn't cut it out. I just sat and kept combing, combing, combing until it came out. Took so long that I had to do it in four or five 20 minute spurts |:

[lacefrost]

If it's just one section of hair that does it, why not braid it? A simple english or rope braid could help prevent the knots and when your hair was down no one would know. And if you put your hair up, it would look cool.

I think that's what I would do anyway. I know we have vastly different hairtypes so feel free to take that with a grain of salt.

[celebriangel]

I find that I can remove all of my knots - as long as my hair is well moisturised and has some leave-in in it - by manipulating them very gently with my fingers.

I finger-comb to remove larger knots, then tangle teeze to detangle my hair. I find I *can* use the tangle teezer on its own, but it's even more gentle on my hair if I use my fingers first. I think because I am tempted to use it too fast.

[Lostsoule77]

My hair gets the most knots in the nape area. I just work at them with my fingers. I can almost always get them out or down to only 2 hairs. It takes time and patience, but it can be done. Once in middle school my hair was so badly knotted that a friend's hairdresser said it would have to be cut out. Instead her mom took mayonnaise and a few hours and combed it all out! Try to be more patient with detangling or wear your hair up more. Good luck. :)

[Amber_Maiden]

Thanks everyone! I think wearing my hair up more might do the trick... I just love it down though! agh! :)

[long&blonde]

I get this too. Seems to happen most after a long weekend of benign neglect. Either on purpose, for hair health, or, I'll set off with pretty air dryed fresh washed waves;first day of my weekend; and Heaven help me for hair nests if the long weekend is spent enjoying life w/DBF. One of my favorite things about having very long very wavy hair,is even with;actually:especially with;benign neglect,a sudden rainstorm, a helmetless motorcycle ride, my hair will look awesome;till I decide to try to comb brush or otherwise detangle. Lol. Hair Nests.

[ktani]

Try this. It works for me every time.

Gently separate your hair at the back into two sections and bring one forward over each shoulder.

Then take your hands and smooth down the section from root to tip. Then separate each section as if you were going to braid it but in small sections and smooth the hair down again. Loose strands will come out at the bottom. It is not finger combing. If you run into resistance, separate the hairs and pull the hair up if you have to. Pulling up means the hair is going vertically in the direction of the way the cuticles are aligned.

ETA: Forgot to mention. I smooth my hair on top and put the sections behind my ears. I grab the hair to smooth it from the nape roots to the ends. I wear my hair down most of the time. This never fails me.

[RapunzelKat]

Here is a suggestion you might try if you want to wear your hair down and keep it less tangly: comb it frequently throughout the day. I actually have to do this when I wear mine down, or it would form one giant matted dreadlock by the end of the day :p I love dreads but one giant one would not be a good look for me. ;) I would say when my hair is down I probably run a comb through it 10 times a day or so, more if I'm outside. I keep one in my purse. (This is one reason I don't wear my hair down much.)
Your hair is quite different from mine, so I don't know if it would work or not, but maybe just a few quick combings through the day would do it? I have also had healthy hairs become the victims of nests, so I feel your pain. :(

[Hollyfire3]

I have the same problem, esspecially after sleeping. My hair just gets so tangled, it looks shoulder length! And its BSL..I often take a comb to it in smalll sections and just detangle gently...then i put my hair up until i feel i can deal with the nests again. Try a braid if you want to show off your length but i know what you mean about wanting to wear your hair down, i usually carry a comb with me and detangel throughout the day, not fun but it works.

[my2cats1]

I get nests around my nape, too. What helps me is prep work before I go to bed: some extra conditioner, putting my hair in a bun high on my head, and then always sleeping with a silk or satin pillowcase. It's amazing how much a simple change of pillowcase material can help!

[Amber_Maiden]

I get nests around my nape, too. What helps me is prep work before I go to bed: some extra conditioner, putting my hair in a bun high on my head, and then always sleeping with a silk or satin pillowcase. It's amazing how much a simple change of pillowcase material can help!

Only use satin pillowcases anyways. :)

[Piyo]

Man, I thought for sure I was the only one getting these horrible nests, and that my hair must be in terrible condition for it to happen. Glad that's not the case!


About 6 months ago I got one at the nape of my neck that so so bad that I ended up just cutting it out. I've been more careful since, but every now and then even after thinking I've brushed every section of my hair, I find some nest that has been hiding and it drives me nuts. Sometimes they're in the middle of normal looking chunks of hair. Arrg!

[blondie9912]

This used to happen to me as well! I have fine hair, but a decent amount of it. I used to get these awful snarls at the nape of my neck, especially after a long day shopping or something (with my hair down and rubbing against my neck) Wow, I honestly completely forgot about this until you just mentioned it. It's funny how we forget about things that used to bother us when they go away. I believe I solved the problem by cutting the chunk that used to tangle about 4 inches shorter.

[teal]

You've said before your go-to style is a sort of top knot bun. When I wear my hair on top of my head I get tangles like that at the base of the neck. In winter that kind of tangle is hard to avoid, but I do find that the closer the hairstyle is secured to the problem area (eg. nape of neck) the lesser the problem becomes. There are several inches of hair between your nape and the top of your head, and it doesn't seem to matter how tidy that gathering on top is - there's lots of room for those hairs to move and get "naughty", lol. ;)

tl;dr: Wear a lower hairstyle.

[Amber_Maiden]

I should really update...

UPDATE:
The problem got solved. It was the way I was combing my hair. Not the style I was wearing my hair. No more problem! :D