Help my diagnose a new hair issue??Hi

[alxardnax]

Hi!

I have always had pretty healthy, virgin long hair (until an unwanted salon hack last spring); however, for the last number of months I noticed strands of hair that are fairly bendy and uneven. Like the surface seems thinner in some parts and thicker in others. I thought they were course, sort of curly hairs, which is strange because I don't have curly hair but I realized it is hair that has been stretched out and didn't go back to its natural shape. My hair use to have elasticity and stretch but now it seems to either snap easier or stretch but not go back to its original form, resulting is S-shaped hairs that have gaps or weak spots.

What is this and how do I prevent it. I am fairly certain I cannot reverse the damage on those hairs but how do I prevent it happening from other hairs. Luckily its not too many of them but I don't want it getting out of hand.

I would appreciate any help!

PS: I didn't mean to add the Hi in the title. lol.

[cowgirllong]

What did you have done to your hair in the spring? Depending on what it was, it could be the cause...

[Modarunner]

I would recommend that you take a look at this page, it could be an issue of hair that is overly porous and may need protein. This page explains it and it sounds a lot like what's going on with your hair.

http://public.fotki.com/Nappturall/porosity-testsink-o/

[alxardnax]

Well, it was only a hair cut.

My routine consists of CO wash, and light coconut oiling when my hair is damp after washing. Sometimes avocado oil. Emmm... I don't do anything really bad to my hair I don't think...

I have been wondering if I need some kind of hair moisturizer to alternate with oil, like a leave-in or hair mask but I don't know which cone-free ones are good.

[PurpleAshes]

You should do a stran test and go from there :) To determine wether it's lacking moisture or protein. You can look into that in the article section, I think.

[WaitingSoLong]

The only thing I can think of is it was brushed when wet, stretched out when hair is most elastic.

[alxardnax]

Thanks for the link!! I am going to try those tests now!

[Modarunner]

You're welcome, I hope it helps you figure out what's going on with your hair and give you an idea what to do to help with it.

[thelittlestdoc]

My money's on protein or rough handling while your hair is wet. A strand test should definitely help you figure out the problem :)

[alxardnax]

Well I actually passed the strand tests! So it would make sense that it is the brushing when wet scenario because this problem is only with a couple of individual hairs, not my whole head and I do brush my hair when wet. I know it is bad but I justified it because i used a seamless wood brush. lol. Guess I will need to stop that. Thanks everyone for the info. At least now I know what steps to take.

[Clem_Dela]

i have the same exact problem! so glad you posted, now I have answers too :D

[amantha]

I have the exact same problem too! I'm glad you posted this. :) I thought I was just getting randomly curly hairs but when I looked at them closer today I noticed there were chunks missing out of the strands. I use protein fairly regularly but I have only recently stopped using a brush when wet maybe 6 months ago and I only switched to a seamless comb for my wet hair only 1 month ago. So I guess those damaged hairs are leftovers from those days.

[alxardnax]

I have the exact same problem too! I'm glad you posted this. :) I thought I was just getting randomly curly hairs but when I looked at them closer today I noticed there were chunks missing out of the strands. I use protein fairly regularly but I have only recently stopped using a brush when wet maybe 6 months ago and I only switched to a seamless comb for my wet hair only 1 month ago. So I guess those damaged hairs are leftovers from those days.

Yes!! That is exactly what mine are like!! They have these gap/ missing chunk areas. It will be a curly strand with regular thickness in some spots and thin in others.

[alxardnax]

Well it is nice to know that I am not the only one.

[Clem_Dela]

and now it's time to stop wet brushing... is finger combing okay, do you think? :laugh: because I have to be out the door by 830 and that means my hair will be wet...

[heidi w.]

Hi!

I have always had pretty healthy, virgin long hair (until an unwanted salon hack last spring); however, for the last number of months I noticed strands of hair that are fairly bendy and uneven. Like the surface seems thinner in some parts and thicker in others. I thought they were course, sort of curly hairs, which is strange because I don't have curly hair but I realized it is hair that has been stretched out and didn't go back to its natural shape. My hair use to have elasticity and stretch but now it seems to either snap easier or stretch but not go back to its original form, resulting is S-shaped hairs that have gaps or weak spots.

What is this and how do I prevent it. I am fairly certain I cannot reverse the damage on those hairs but how do I prevent it happening from other hairs. Luckily its not too many of them but I don't want it getting out of hand.

I would appreciate any help!

PS: I didn't mean to add the Hi in the title. lol.

Are you conditioning and shampooing in addition to using a leave-in conditioner? IF yes, the snapping of ends may be caused by too much protein.

You didn't share your routine, so it's a bit hard to target the culprit without that information.

I wonder that you're using a flat or other hot iron product? These tend to produce white dots of burst hair cuticle throughout the hair, and then hair can break off at the white dot location, quite easily in fact.

Maybe a bit more info would be helpful, alongside a photo if you can swing it?

heidi w.

[heidi w.]

I have the exact same problem too! I'm glad you posted this. :) I thought I was just getting randomly curly hairs but when I looked at them closer today I noticed there were chunks missing out of the strands. I use protein fairly regularly but I have only recently stopped using a brush when wet maybe 6 months ago and I only switched to a seamless comb for my wet hair only 1 month ago. So I guess those damaged hairs are leftovers from those days.

Regarding the Use of Protein.

One can have hair breakage from too much or too little protein. VO5 products are known to carry a boatload of protein, just FYI.

I had a situation of protein-overload one time. I was recommended to use a leave-in conditioner and in response, my hair began to immediately and suddenly and in droves, break off. In discovery, I learned that manufacturers of shampoo/conditioner products balance the protein distributed amongst their given product line, and when you add a product from another brand line, you can easily tip the scale to too much, for example, and this is what happens, sudden, and lots of breakage. It ceased as soon as I read the product label where it instructed that for my hair type, to rinse the 'leave-in' out of the hair. Well! I just stopped using it.

The other important aspect is that I made one change, and was able to identify the culprit because I had a very informed hair guru as my go-to person; and this was the ONLY thing I had changed in my routine.

This is another reason we try one change at a time, in case it doesn't work out, we can identify the culprit.

Just FYI about protein, and to be careful when combining products from different brand lines.

heidi w.

[amantha]

Regarding the Use of Protein.

One can have hair breakage from too much or too little protein. VO5 products are known to carry a boatload of protein, just FYI.

I had a situation of protein-overload one time. I was recommended to use a leave-in conditioner and in response, my hair began to immediately and suddenly and in droves, break off. In discovery, I learned that manufacturers of shampoo/conditioner products balance the protein distributed amongst their given product line, and when you add a product from another brand line, you can easily tip the scale to too much, for example, and this is what happens, sudden, and lots of breakage. It ceased as soon as I read the product label where it instructed that for my hair type, to rinse the 'leave-in' out of the hair. Well! I just stopped using it.

The other important aspect is that I made one change, and was able to identify the culprit because I had a very informed hair guru as my go-to person; and this was the ONLY thing I had changed in my routine.

This is another reason we try one change at a time, in case it doesn't work out, we can identify the culprit.

Just FYI about protein, and to be careful when combining products from different brand lines.

heidi w.

Hi heidi w! I regularly use a clarifying shampoo (Neutrogena anti-residue shampoo) about 2-3 times a month, followed by a deep conditioner (I'm currently using Renpure's deep penetrating reconstructor) that I leave on my hair for about 5-10 mins before rinsing it out. I always use a leave-in conditioner (L'oreal's everpure leave-in) every time I wash my hair in addition to using a regular conditioner. I mainly put the leave-in on my ends though since they get dry very easily, and it really helps. Since I regularly use a clarifying shampoo, would I still have a protein build up? My hair isn't snapping off that I can tell, just looks like chunks were carved out of some strands. I tugged on them hard last night and they would not snap. My hair is shedding A LOT though (most likely due to iron deficiency) and I've been getting a lot of split ends the past 6 months or so. I feel like my hair has gotten worse since I've been trying to take care of it. When I used to just run a brush through it when it was damp, I RARELY had split ends. WTF? :(

Also, at least when it comes to my shampoo and conditioner, I always use ones in the same line because my hair tends to feel gross if I mix and match items....probably because of your previous explanation.

I do get those white spots you described though...in strands of hair that aren't missing chunks. I almost never heat style my hair...maybe like twice a year I will use a curling iron or deep waver on it but that's it..and I always use a heat protectant spray. Do you know of any other way those white, weak spots can appear? I also always wear my hair down....could that be the culprit? My hair is a couple inches shy of waist...so I don't know if friction from rubbing up on other surfaces could be causing those spots.