how to tame tangles!

[hellopanpan]

I was wondering if any of you lovelies have any tips taming tangles? I recently switched conditioner and that has helped a lot, but I'm still having a lot of tangles. Mostly just at the bottom of my hair, and ESPECIALLY at the back of my head on the bottom layers. It's so bad that I have really bad breakage. Idk what to do -___-;;

[ladyfey]

I really like Kinky Curly's Knot Today as a leave in. It is in the ethnic hair care section at Target. My hair is stick straight, by the way, but I love that stuff!

[Yozhik]

How are you detangling? Some people find combs to be gentler, or tangle teezers.

Or you could detangle in the shower with a bunch of conditioner glopped on your head -- that's how some curlies do it. :)

Could it be residual damage from something? Maybe a sleep bonnet or silk pillowcase would help, as well as containing it in a braid or bun at night.

HTH! :flower:

[PorkChop]

I went to the hairdressers begginning month, I had my roots done. And then obviously my hair had to be washed.
Afterwards it was a god-awful xperience with her detangling my hair, took her about half an hour at the sink, and she had to really go at it to try and get the tangles out. It was very painful, my head hurt all day afterwards.

She told me I had to start using better conditioners blah blah etc. BUT i never have so much trouble when I wash at home myself, it takes me 5 mins tops to detangle it all. Yes i do have really tangly hair, but it gets nowhere near like it does when shes washed it at the hairdressers.

I wonder why this is? Maybe she have to 'scrub' it more cos i was having colour washed out? So it was more 'mushed' up?

But i really cannot take that everytime I go to the hairdressers

[Fairlight63]

I read that just a little ACV (apple cider vinegar) in water helps with the tangles, it closes the hair cuticles or something.
Anyway it said to put 1 tab. of ACV in 8 cups of water in a basin and put your head in it and also pour it over your hair. Supposed to also help with hard water.
I tried it recently & I think that it did help with the tangles.

[Anje]

When are you having tangles? At the end of the day, or in the morning? (Yes, you should probably be detangling at least twice a day with straightish hair, perhaps more if you wear it loose.) If it's at the end of the day, the best solution is to make sure you're wearing your hair in a contained style like a braid or a bun, or at least doing a cursory comb-through around mid-day if it's loose. If your hair is detangled at night and a total mess in the morning, you're probably a good candidate for a silk pillowcase or a silk/satin sleep bonnet to help limit the knotting overnight.

Make sure you start at the ends of your hair, detangle the bottom inches, then go up a few inches and completely detangle, working your way up to your head. Attack the big knots from the bottoms and edges and never rip through them. Ripping through tends to kink the hairs it doesn't break, and then they go and form tangles more readily.

Wearing silky shirts when your hair is loose helps with bottom-layer tangles, by the way. Though I know of some folks who gather that lowest section and braid it, then leave the hair loose over the top, so the curlier hairs they have at their napes don't get a chance to tangle.

[Madora]

The best way to tame tangles is to try and avoid them by wearing your hair up.

If that doesn't appeal to you, then you're going to need to find a method that controls the hair that tangles most. If nape and lower neck hairs are bugging you with nasty tangles, then section off that portion and loosely braid it, then let the rest of the hair hang over it to disguise the braid.

You might want to look into alternative updos to protect your hair, such as The Gibson Tuck.

[heidi w.]

I went to the hairdressers begginning month, I had my roots done. And then obviously my hair had to be washed.
Afterwards it was a god-awful xperience with her detangling my hair, took her about half an hour at the sink, and she had to really go at it to try and get the tangles out. It was very painful, my head hurt all day afterwards.

She told me I had to start using better conditioners blah blah etc. BUT i never have so much trouble when I wash at home myself, it takes me 5 mins tops to detangle it all. Yes i do have really tangly hair, but it gets nowhere near like it does when shes washed it at the hairdressers.

I wonder why this is? Maybe she have to 'scrub' it more cos i was having colour washed out? So it was more 'mushed' up?

But i really cannot take that everytime I go to the hairdressers

Once, a long time ago, a hairdresser decided to wash my hair before a trim, and what a frickin' nightmare to detangle. I guess she didn't know about detangler spray.

Eventually she gave up as I stated, "Here, it's easier if I do it."

I now don't have my hair trimmed wet, ever. Only dry.

For the OP: I am lucky in that I have found a conditioner product that speeds up drying time and also offers good slip for detangling. I can now detangle while hair is wet, and I mean wet, with no damage. It's a product line that I can't mention on LHC, and is a bit pricey.

You might instead though, search for a detangler spray, which is commonly made for kid's hair. Lots of parents breathe a sigh of relief when they find this kind of product for their kid.

Also, use a diffuser on your blow dryer, if you use heat; and make the setting cooler if you can, and don't hold a blowdryer too close to the hair's length. Sleep on a slippery fabric for hair to slip during the night, or in a sleep cap. Think about wearing hair in an updo of some sort or contained more of the time.

Ensure that you detangle with a comb instead of a brush, and definitely start at the bottom, slowly and carefully working your way up the length.

Just my immediate thoughts.

heidi w.

[heidi w.]

The best way to tame tangles is to try and avoid them by wearing your hair up.

If that doesn't appeal to you, then you're going to need to find a method that controls the hair that tangles most. If nape and lower neck hairs are bugging you with nasty tangles, then section off that portion and loosely braid it, then let the rest of the hair hang over it to disguise the braid.

You might want to look into alternative updos to protect your hair, such as The Gibson Tuck.

Madora offers great advice.

Tangles happen for just about every long hair. It's part of what comes with the territory. Learning avoidance techniques helps a lot.

heidi w.

[heidi w.]

My siggy pix shows some waves, but it's braid waves, which last about ten minutes on my stick straight hair.

With much effort, I can get my hair to bend, not curl, mind you.

I am a fine, but lots of volume, stick straight hair type. My hair if left loose, within about 15 minutes is a fine array of tangles. From movements of my head, to reasons such as breeziness, to putting on/off a jacket. So wearing hair loose for me is a troublesome event. I have to constantly visit the ladies' room and detangle. It's just the way it is for me. I wear my hair up most of the time, and this best handles the problem with tangles. PLUS my hair then is not a subject of attention or discussion wherever I go.

heidi w.

[heidi w.]

I went to the hairdressers begginning month, I had my roots done. And then obviously my hair had to be washed.
Afterwards it was a god-awful xperience with her detangling my hair, took her about half an hour at the sink, and she had to really go at it to try and get the tangles out. It was very painful, my head hurt all day afterwards.

She told me I had to start using better conditioners blah blah etc. BUT i never have so much trouble when I wash at home myself, it takes me 5 mins tops to detangle it all. Yes i do have really tangly hair, but it gets nowhere near like it does when shes washed it at the hairdressers.

I wonder why this is? Maybe she have to 'scrub' it more cos i was having colour washed out? So it was more 'mushed' up?

But i really cannot take that everytime I go to the hairdressers

Likely you're washing the length in a shower, with the water flowing in the same direction as your hair hangs; and at the hairdresser one washes the hair in a pool of soapy water. Tangle city. UGH!

I have a friend who designed a long-hair hairdresser wash basin. But there's little market for this type of tool. Just as finding a hairdresser versed in the care of long hair is hard to find.

heidi w.

[MychelleC]

I use a wide tooth comb in the shower. Saturate my hair with conditioner and comb very gently starting at the ends and working towards the roots. I comb out once more after the shower; spritzing lightly with a detangler and again combing from ends to roots with a wide-tooth comb. Then I bun it and leave it alone. I still tangle, but not nearly so bad.

[Corylina]

Before going to bed, I comb my hair with a wide tooth comb and do a braid for the night.
On the morning, I undo my braid and brush with a pure bristle brush. After that I can wear my hair dow or make an updo or another braid.... And never tangles! :D

But I must admit that having thick hair helps it much more that having fine hair... My sister has fine hair and keeps on not brushing her hair at least once a day: hair horror :(

[Madora]

Hellopanpan..how you shampoo your hair has a lot to do with how many tangles you generate.

I found that if part my hair from forehead to nape and drape each section in front of me, and try and keep the sections separate all through the shampooing process, that my hair doesn't get as tangled.

Also, how I use my fingertips when shampooing helps cut down on tangles. I use my fingerpads thus: first: gently shampooing from top of my head down the sides, moving fingers from top to bottom. Then I move back to the crown and move my fingers from the crown to the nape. Lastly, I move the fingers from front to the back of the head. I never, ever, moosh my hair on top of my head like a mop.

I wait until my hair is full of conditioner, then gently use a wide tooth comb to detangle small strips of hair, working from the ends of the strands up to the scalp, until all hair has been detangled. I rinse out in the bent at the waist position and try and keep the hair as straight as possible.

I hate snarls with a purple passion that goes back many years and have developed a routine that minimizes them when shampooing/conditioning and air drying.

[snowfitness1]

I have ultra tangly hair, and here are my two MUST HAVES! #1- Denman 'The Detangler' brush and #2- Terax Conditioner. The brush is the best thing EVER!!!! I cannot ever be without it!!! It's verrrry expensive, but worth EVERY PENNY if you have tangly hair of ANY length!! The Terax conditioner is the BEST I've found (out of zillions!) to come to the rescue in times of serious tangling! I always keep a bottle on hand in case I get some serious knots going on. I will even use it to detangle a stubborn knot that may form and seems like I'd have to actually cut it out! Not with Terax...I'll wet the knot and put a dab of Terax, then work the individual hairs right out of the crazy knot!
I sure hope this helps some of you! Blessings!

[hellopanpan]

Oh my goodness, all of these tips are great! Thank you so much! I've been trying to wear my hair up or in a side braid, but sometimes I'm just too lazy -___-;; I'm definitely going to start incorporating all of these tips, especially when i wear my hair down. to braid the hair at the nape of my neck. It's only a small section that is not only about 3 inches long because it all broke off :(

But after I wash my hair it's soft and smooth and not very many tangles. But throughout the day it gets tangled. Or even when I take it out of the braid it's tangled. I try to always braid my hair when i go to sleep. If I don't, then sometimes I'll wake up with a MASSIVE nest of tangles on the back of my head. I usually have to wash my hair at least two or three times to get it out.

I think my tangle problem (besides hair naturally being tangly) is that some of the ends are bent and broken, and I have a few splits (especially after I curled my hair the other night for an event, big mistake :() but I can't find the spirit to S&D. I tried once, and I gave up very quickly -__-;;

[Astrophil]

But after I wash my hair it's soft and smooth and not very many tangles. But throughout the day it gets tangled. Or even when I take it out of the braid it's tangled. I try to always braid my hair when i go to sleep. If I don't, then sometimes I'll wake up with a MASSIVE nest of tangles on the back of my head. I usually have to wash my hair at least two or three times to get it out.

If I'm wearing my hair down during the day I make sure to have a brush or comb with me. I cannot stand tangled hair, so I'll brush through my hair every couple of hours at least. I don't have a big problem with tangles overall, though, just if I'm outside in the wind, mostly.

I sleep with my hair loose and finger comb any snarls out in the morning, but there usually aren't any anyway. I'm not sure I'd like to get my hair wet if it were tangled in the morning... dry tangles are bad enough. You could try something like the Tangle Teezer, though I've never tried it so I don't know if it's actually any good. Or look for a detangling spray; my mom always used one on me when I was little, and it was a life saver.

[jojo]

My hair tangles like mad because its fine I think. I find using a coney conditioner on the last few inches really helps and also a kids detangling spray. Wish I knew this product you talk about heidi as it sounds wonderful, but I will stick to my coney ends and kids spray!

[Anje]

Other things you could look at (if the above tips don't help) are related to washing. For example, lots of people get more tangles when they need to clarify. People with hair that dislikes protein (I'm in that bunch, but trial and error is the only way to know if your hair loves it, hates it, or simply ignores it) find that protein-heavy conditioners cause all sorts of drying buildup that turns their hair into velcro.

[amberpotamus]

I obviously don't have enough hair to tangle now, but I've always had to use detangler by the time my hair is somewhere in the chin-shoulder range because it's so coarse and cranky and likes to do what it wants. My favorite before I cut my hair this last time as the Giovanni Direct Leave-In. Smells nice, I only needed to use a tiny bit, and my hair only ever tangled if I left it down in really windy weather.