Sudden change in hair needs?

**Miss Thyme** · April 5th, 2020, 12:52 PM

About two weeks ago I noticed that the ends of my hair were super dry. The final 10-15 cm of my hair was coarse, rough, and gave an almost velcro-like kind of resistance to being separated. I say was, but the sad truth is that they are still like this

The thing is, I haven't made any recent changes in my hair routine, so I don't know why this happened so suddenly. Any advice?

About my routine:
I wash every 3 to 4 days. Shampoo, then conditioner.
Shampoo: Head and Shoulders anti-dandruff shampoo (I've been using this for years)
Conditioner: Garnier Fructis Goodbye Damage conditioner (been using this since October)
Air drying, and if I do use the hairdryer it's on low heat, low intensity and only the scalp.
I oil daily and post-shower with coconut and jojoba (since January)

My own thoughts are:

Protein overload? There is protein in my conditioner, and I've had no issue in the time I've used it, but could my hair have finally had enough and overloaded?
Product buildup? My conditioner also has some cones, like amodimethicone, but I figured the sulfates in my shampoo should prevent buildup? (I squeeze it in just a little bit down the ends just to be safe regarding buildup)
Changes in the weather. It's getting warmer, and it's raining less. I'm also experiencing increased severity in dandruff in roughly the same timeframe, to such extreme that even my forehead and eyebrows create dandruff I've never had this issue before, and can't point to any other explanation than the weather.

**Miss Thyme** · April 5th, 2020, 01:18 PM

An addition: I've noticed that my hair seems to get kinks easier too, even just from having it in a lazy wrap bun. From what I gather, this points to protein damage, right?
I also want to note that I have tentatively skipped conditioning during my last wash, in case the sinner is protein or product buildup.

**Ylva** · April 5th, 2020, 01:56 PM

It could certainly be protein overload!

Also, have you washed in different water? Hard water could cause something like that as well. You get rid of mineral buildup with a chelating shampoo (containing an EDTA).

**Miss Thyme** · April 5th, 2020, 02:06 PM

Water around here is certainly hard. I'm a bit hesitant about using other shampoos, as my dandruff usually rears its ugly face after one or two washes without my usual and right now even that doesn't seem to be quite enough. Do you happen to know of any good chelating shampoos that are also anti-dandruff? Alternatively, would an ACV rinse do the trick?

**Ylva** · April 5th, 2020, 02:08 PM

Originally Posted by Miss Thyme

Water around here is certainly hard. I'm a bit hesitant about using other shampoos, as my dandruff usually rears its ugly face after one or two washes without my usual and right now even that doesn't seem to be quite enough. Do you happen to know of any good chelating shampoos that are also anti-dandruff? Alternatively, would an ACV rinse do the trick?

Unfortunately, I'm not a hard water expert by any means since I only ever deal with relatively soft water, so I can't recommend anything. ACV I hear is pretty good at preventing hard water buildup but probably won't help in getting rid of it.

Would it be possible for you to just wash your hair with the chelating shampoo but use your usual one on your scalp?

**Miss Thyme** · April 5th, 2020, 02:18 PM

Oh, I just remembered one more "clue" that I definitely intended to put in the original post. I don't know if this is a normal way for splits to occur, but I'll occasionally find a strand that has split into two only to then turn back into one further out, so it's not so much a split end as a split middle. Could this point to anything in particular, or is it just a thing that happens to worn out hair?

Originally Posted by Ylva

Unfortunately, I'm not a hard water expert by any means since I only ever deal with relatively soft water, so I can't recommend anything. ACV I hear is pretty good at preventing hard water buildup but probably won't help in getting rid of it.

Would it be possible for you to just wash your hair with the chelating shampoo but use your usual one on your scalp?

That's a good idea, actually. I'll find a chelating shampoo and try that

**AutobotsAttack** · April 5th, 2020, 05:11 PM

How long is your hair?

**Miss Thyme** · April 5th, 2020, 05:52 PM

It is just below TBL.

**Bat** · April 5th, 2020, 10:39 PM

I needed to see this, I had noticed my hair is getting lots of dandruff and its since I moved house, so the water here must be harder than my previous home O_O a revelation! I'll have to look into water filters for showers,

**AutobotsAttack** · April 5th, 2020, 10:47 PM

Originally Posted by Miss Thyme

It is just below TBL.

I don’t think hard water or your conditioner has much to do with it. The longer your hair gets the more you actively need to be doing moisture treatments. Ends becoming velcro-like is completely normal since they’re quite old with your hair now being TBL. For your split end situation, again, I’d recommend doing more deep treatments.