Transitioning from everyday washing advice?

[iszolda111]

Hello everyone, I have been keeping up a new hair routine for over a week now. Previously I washed my hair every morning in the shower, I got a shower everyday solely to wash my hair in fact. I know I overwash it, because on the second day it is not greasy, it is actually dry. I wash it so I can condition it ( I leave in my conditioner through the entire shower maybe 10 mins everyday) and then when I normally blowdried and straightened the heck out of it, it would look shiny again. :rolleyes:
My problem and question is that I have been letting my wavy/curly hair air dry, and have only been washing it every second day to begin with. On the second day, like today, it is so dry and wavy, that everytime I touch it, or do anything with it, it is snapping and breaking and ripping out because it is tangling so easy! What do I do here? Is it better to wash it everyday just so it is not tangly at all and doesnt snap and rip out whenever it moves? It is a realy challenge trying not to wash it everyday, are the benefits of that really important?

[Madora]

Repeated washing will eventually strip your hair of its natural oil, leaving it like straw. To say nothing of the damage from handling it while shampooing and conditioning. For your hair's sake, try washing it only once a week.

[iszolda111]

I was going to start with one day, and work my way to 2 days, and so on. If I left it for a week right now, I would be confined to my house it would be such a mess. Thats what I was wondering about, the transition period. How other people have dealt with it? Some people here wash everyday, how do I know how often I should wash it if after one day it is tangling and breaking?

[Avital88]

in a few weeks it will be normal, try oiling or putting it up the second day.. i wash twice a week , and i already notice a difference when i do it 3 times sometimes.. dryer hair.. and to me dry hair=breakage, your hair will get used to it soon so hang in there

[Madora]

Some of your tangling problems might be due to how you're shampooing.

Do you gently detangle your hair with a wide tooth comb before wetting it?

Also, how do you shampoo? I mean, how do you use your fingers? If you pile all your hair on your head that will definitely cause a lot of problems.

I found that if I tried to keep my hair sectioned when shampooing and conditioning, I had a lot less trouble with tangles. By "sectioned" I mean parting the hair from forehead to nape so that you have 2 sections. Take one section and bring it in front of you so that it lays on your chest. Do the same thing with the other section. Try and keep the hair separated throughout the shampooing and conditioning process.

Also, how you use your finger pads can help cut down on tangles. I start at the top of my head and move my fingers on my scalp in one direction at a time..i.e. top down to side, then top of crown down the back of the head, then from front of hairline back to center of head in the rear.

Detangling is always done when the hair is full of conditioner.

[ravenreed]

My hair feels much better if I wash it more frequently than is recommended by most here at LHC. My roots get greasy and my ends get very dry if I go more than 48 hours between washing. Ultimately, you have to go with works for your hair. It might take some trial and error to figure it out but everything on LHC is YMMV.

[iszolda111]

I have actually been washing my hair properly for a year, I brushed it before my shower, now I comb. I only wash the roots gently with a small amount of shampoo. then I rinse and apply a lot of conditioner to the ends and whats left over on my hands to the top. Then I leave that in the whole shower, then right before i get out i rinse it and my hair stays tangle free the whole day, it is not washing the second day that has my hair feeling so dry and tangly. I would wear it up but I never ever do, I get such a bad headache from any style, even a braid, I get frustrated and take it out. I guess I'll et used to it? I will keep trying. if in three months I still feel like a mess everyday I will go back to blowdrying. I will give it a solid three months.

[iszolda111]

also oiling? I cant buy anything here but EVOO. I have used that, it makes my hair crunchy! like i fried it. I wish I just had someone with nice hair come here and tell me what to do! lol

[teal]

You don't have to use shampoo to use conditioner. Way before I'd ever heard of LHC my beloved hairstylist suggested using conditioner only during some showers to cut down on shampoo use. I wish she was still here and not almost 2000 miles away.

Anyway I and others here have also had success with stretching washes (and you will have to go through a transition phase. There is no avoiding at least some grease while your sebum production regulates itself) or conditioner-only (CO) washing.

[iszolda111]

I guess it is like your face, I started using bio oil on my face and it made it sooo oily for a few days, but I had a gut feeling to stick with it, and after 2 weeks my face stopped getting oily even during the day. I will try. I'll just keep obsessively looking at everyones hair here lol and that will keep me going. I did not want to go to the store today I looked so terrible.

[Shona]

I used to wash my hair everyday up until about a month and a half ago. Then i tried every second day, but hair is very oily so the only way i could be comfertable enough to leave the house was by using dry shampoo, i know it's not the best thing for my hair, but for me it feels like the only way! anyway,every morning i use dry shampoo now, i went from washing my hair everyday to washing it every tuesday and friday, now i was it just every tuesday, it's not amazing but my hair is feeling alot thicker now that i don't use cones etc! I still hate my hair feeling oily, but i think it copes better now without a wash. I would love to wash my hair everyday though it wasnt damaging :-)

[spike316]

I would recommend starting out CO washing, and sometimes you have to play with the oil. Personally my hair hates any kind of oil if I haven't clarified the silicones off after going to see my stylist or if I try to put it on my hair while it's wet, but other people have no problem with either of these. :shrug:

[iszolda111]

I have found a livable solution, but is it good enough??? Today I washed with conditioner only, then I blow dried it, BUT only using my fingers, with warm heat not hot. It was cool enough to old my hand directly under for a long time, unlike my normal heat setting that burns my hand. Will that cause damage somehow still? Is it enough to keep my hair healthy and growing??? I used my heat protectant and infusium 23 leave in conditioner.

[bna_rapunzel]

I have found a livable solution, but is it good enough??? Today I washed with conditioner only, then I blow dried it, BUT only using my fingers, with warm heat not hot. It was cool enough to old my hand directly under for a long time, unlike my normal heat setting that burns my hand. Will that cause damage somehow still? Is it enough to keep my hair healthy and growing??? I used my heat protectant and infusium 23 leave in conditioner.

When its on a cool setting, all you have to worry about is tangles (and breakage tangles cause) from being blown around. Try to let your hair dry about 80% of the way and use the blow dryer on the cool setting to finish it off if you really need it. :)
Be gentle detangling, too!
I'm glad you found a livable solution, you will get there. I was an everyday washer and now I can make it a week if I need to. I usually wash every 3-4 days though.
Also purchase a boar bristle brush if you can, I'm sure Madora will be along to tell you this too :)
Correct use distributes the oil and sebum, and it "cleans" your hair (dust, lint, etc) making it easier to stretch washes.
It also adds shine, makes it veeeerrryyy soft over time, and massages hair follicles which promotes growth! :)
Good luck!

[Mischamiu]

I only wash my hair once a week, and I honestly feel like a could go even more because my hair just doesn't get oily , but maybe it isn't healthy to not wash your hair for that long?

[Anje]

I have found a livable solution, but is it good enough??? Today I washed with conditioner only, then I blow dried it, BUT only using my fingers, with warm heat not hot. It was cool enough to old my hand directly under for a long time, unlike my normal heat setting that burns my hand. Will that cause damage somehow still? Is it enough to keep my hair healthy and growing??? I used my heat protectant and infusium 23 leave in conditioner.
This sounds like a great start. Blow drying (especially on high) will contribute to your hair drying out, so the cooler temperature is good. CO washing should also prevent hair from getting as dried out.

For what it's worth, I notice my hair getting overdry between washes if I use products with silicones in them. I don't think this is a common problem, but it's worth considering as a possible culprit. However, silicones are protective for lots of hair, especially for individuals with some damage or who use heat, so it's all a matter of finding out what works best for your hair.

[delsh]

Stretching washes is a really personal thing, and I don't know why people can accept that say, a certain oil doesn't work for everyone but everyone should be able to only wash once a week? It never made sense to me. I was a daily washer too up until a few months ago, when I started to switch to every other day. My hair would get pretty oily by day two, but not it has calmed down some. Although I think this might have a lot to do with me just getting out of those teenage years as well. I do the same thing as Shona - dry shampoo on my bangs, and put it up. If I stretch washes much longer than that my ends get dry and my hair feels brittle. I just need lots of moisture.

Give it a try! If you don't like your results, you can always go back to washing every day. There are some people on the board who have very long hair (classic+) and grew it that long while washing everday. I don't think the damage from washing/conditioning every day is really that bad at all. Everyone's hair is different!

[iszolda111]

Thank you so much! So much good advice. I am figuring it all out, lol. I definitly think blowdrying with my fingers on warm setting is a huge improvment from what I was doing. I will let it grow for three months like that and see how it is, I am being very careful with it while im doing anything, like antique lace thats how I heard to treat it. I hope soon I will have beautiful BSL hair and I can give all of my good advice. I do not have any silicone in any of my products. Maybe it would be good for me? I have always heard it was really bad for your hair so I avoided it.