A little help for my mother :)

[DancingQueen]

As the title say, my mother need a little advice on her hair. She have a condition that causes her hair to thin out, and she is a little depressed about that. So, I am hoping some of you guys might be able to help :)

There are just a few things you need to know about her: She is not looking to grow her hair longer, and she is very suspicious about new things (meaning no oiling, vinegar or other things like that). She is very busy, so she is not likely to spend hours on her hair, or put it in updos. (She probably thinks we are doing :pins: and :stir pot: )

Right now, she wash her hair with stuhr mild family shampoo (no parafums or parabens, as she is very sensitive about chemicals - she gets headaches.) every day. She let her hair air dry for an hour or so, then blow-dry her hair. She uses a LOT of hairspray, as she thinks her hair is so thin. She does use the tangle-teezer or a wide tooth comb.

My question is: Do you know any ways for her to make her hair look thicker without using hairspray? Hope someone can help her :)

[Arya]

Do they sell dry shampoo in a can over there? The application process is similar to hairspray....you just brush out the excess. It really does help with volume. (Don't tell her the main ingredient is usually rice flour)

She could also try biotin or prenatal vitamins to thicken her hair naturally?

You might also want to show her pictures of some of the really beautiful older women in hollywood. I noticed that a lot of my grandmother's sisters and friends are always trying to convince her to cut her hair really shot and perm it and spray it big for max volume...but she has lovely straight hair between chin and shoulder length with very little volume, much like helen mirren. A quick search will show that glenn close, judy dench, meryl streep..all of them have rather sleek hair. We always point out that older glamourous women who don't do the q-tip look whenever my aunties bring it up.

[malin_798]

As the title say, my mother need a little advice on her hair. She have a condition that causes her hair to thin out, and she is a little depressed about that. So, I am hoping some of you guys might be able to help :)

There are just a few things you need to know about her: She is not looking to grow her hair longer, and she is very suspicious about new things (meaning no oiling, vinegar or other things like that). She is very busy, so she is not likely to spend hours on her hair, or put it in updos. (She probably thinks we are doing :pins: and :stir pot: )

Right now, she wash her hair with stuhr mild family shampoo (no parafums or parabens, as she is very sensitive about chemicals - she gets headaches.) every day. She let her hair air dry for an hour or so, then blow-dry her hair. She uses a LOT of hairspray, as she thinks her hair is so thin. She does use the tangle-teezer or a wide tooth comb.

My question is: Do you know any ways for her to make her hair look thicker without using hairspray? Hope someone can help her :)

Well.. First off, she should stop blow-drying her hair.. It only makes it thinner. Then, maybe curl the hair to give the illusion of fuller hair :) Heat-free curls of course! :) Sorry I can't be of more help.

[caiti42]

I suggest dry shampoo, volumizing sprays and thickening conditioners.

[DancingQueen]

Hey there, sorry for my late answer, but I went straight to work after posting this, and I only just got home now :)

Thank you for all the answers. I think I will try to pass on the dry shampoo or the volumizing spray, if it really does give volume.

There is no way she will stop blowdrying, she just doesn't have time. She already let it air dry for an hour or so. She is up from 7 am to 11 pm, and spend most of the time working. (she runs her own business) :)

I don't think she is going to take pills for it either. Her hair is not going to grow thicker, she is just looking for ways to make it look thicker. But thank you for all the advice so far, please write if you think of more things. ;)

[whitedove]

Would she have time to use rollers, maybe the steam ones? You can still do things while wearing them :) or she could wear them over night.

[DoubleCrowned]

You mentioned that she is sensitive about chemicals. I am, too. I recently noticed that if I have been exposed to the chemicals that bother me, more hair falls out than normal. I lose gobs of hair if I use most hair care products.

I don't think she will want to hear this, but my suggestion is that she eliminate as many chemicals from her life as possible: body care products, detergents, anything with added fragrance, petroleum products, food additives and flavorings... Shampoo and conditioner ingredients can soak in to the skin, so may be a cause of hair loss for her. She probably will not want to start washing her hair with herbs or water only, but maybe you can find an all natural shampoo, like Aubrey and some other companies make.

[Amanah]

she could use a round brush, add voluminzing mousse to the root of the hair and lift the hair upwards while blow drying it so that the mousse and blowdrying lift the hair up and away from the scalp. hope i explained that correctly.

[Helix]

I was going to suggest castor oil and maybe a DHT blocker/hair vitamin (after it's cleared with her doc of course), but since she isn't into those maybe you could rollerset her hair? *shrugs* Curls can make the hair look thicker.

[DancingQueen]

Would she have time to use rollers, maybe the steam ones? You can still do things while wearing them :) or she could wear them over night.

Hmm, I don't think she have time, but I guess I could suggest it :)


maybe you can find an all natural shampoo, like Aubrey and some other companies make.

She is very specific about this already. Since she stopped using parabens and parfums, she rarely get headaches. Don't think she is going to try herbs, she already thought I was going crazy when I was oiling my hair. :roll eyes:


she could use a round brush, add voluminzing mousse

The mousse would probably be a good idea, if I can find one she likes (with no parabens) :)

[skaempfer]

What about the health issue? Is the thinning going to be permanent, or is this temporary?

Also, is there any chance that something in the hairspray is causing the thinning?

Good luck!

[Emy Sue]

My hair thinned a few years ago due to a medical condition. I found that dry shampoo after I dried completely would "fluff" up my hair. Also, I used a loose powder foundation (for the face- to set liquid makeup) in a shade close to my hair color (I am ashy blonde.) This changed the color of the part in my hair on the scalp to a darker hue, matching my hair color, thus making it look thicker. I applied with a blush brush, and made poking motions instead of sweeping motions to get the powder to the scalp. I'm sure there is mineral makeup that has no chemicals in it available.

[DancingQueen]

What about the health issue? Is the thinning going to be permanent, or is this temporary?

Also, is there any chance that something in the hairspray is causing the thinning?

Good luck!

Permanent, unfortunately. :( She have not been diagnosed yet, but her sister, and her fathers sister have it, and a lot of factors point to that answer. It is not going to help with prioin or other things. Additional, she is sensitive about especially parabens and perfumes.

[skaempfer]

Oh! I see. Well, you've got some good suggestions there, so I'll just ask, what are her sister's and aunts hair like? I guess she has already asked them what they do about it?

[Silverbrumby]

I bought some terrific real human hair clip In extensions in my color. Got them really cheap from china on ebay. 8 clips for about 36 dollars

Adds great volume.

[cloudcatcher]

I put Neutral Protein Filler in towel-dried hair and it makes it feel five times thicker. When used for coloring, you use it straight, but for general volumizing, you dilute it, spritz it on towel-dried hair and blot dry again. If I blow dry, my hair looks like a lion's mane. If I shape it and air dry it and then blow it dry, I don't have to use any hairspray at all. I have to tame it down a little with aloe vera gel.

[jacqueline101]

I'd start with a multi vitamin and hair skin and nail vitamin. Then I'd try dry shampoo and some volume products like mousse and hair spray.

[DancingQueen]

Oh! I see. Well, you've got some good suggestions there, so I'll just ask, what are her sister's and aunts hair like? I guess she has already asked them what they do about it?

Her sisters hair is rather thin as well, but she is not sensitive to chemicals, so she use those products, which my mother can't :)


I bought some terrific real human hair clip In extensions in my color. Got them really cheap from china on ebay. 8 clips for about 36 dollars

Adds great volume.

Well, she doesn't want it to be thicker, not with extensions either, just look thicker the easiest way. She is more of a wash, blowdry, finish type. :) I asked her this morning if she would use a mousse, if I could find one without perfumes and parabens, but she said "Most likely not" :rolleyes:

[lapushka]

Blowdrying it upside down for a little while during the blowdrying process is an option. It gives a lot of root volume esp. with shorter hair. She can flip back up and blowdry / style as usual.

[Arya]

So your mum doesn't want to use products with harsh chemicals, but she also doesn't want to use only natural products. And maybe she doesn't want to use any products at all. I don't think you're going to find anything for your mum unless you work on her a bit. Or, you know, mislabel a pot of cornstarch as a whole bunch of chemicals she DOES like.