I'm new and I clearly need some serious hair help :(

[Pierre]

I don't know where to get spin pins (or hair scroos), but they're not hard to use. You twist your hair, then wind it in a spiral, then screw the pin in from the side.

I wear Flexis. They should work. Twist your hair, fold it back and forth, and put the Flexi around the middle of the bundle. Normally you'd grab some hair where it's still on the scalp, to hold the bun to the scalp, but with a baseball cap, you can't do that. If you get the right size, they hold for days.

The hair in the food may have broken off at the ponytail holder.

[spidermom]

Go to YouTube and practice some different styles. There are many to choose from. I used to wear a french twist quite often at your length.

[Isilme]

You are saying that you use a brush? I'd say get a comb instead, for most of us brushes are bad news in terms of detangling. Get a nice smooth (get the smoothest in the bunch) wooden comb from The Body Shop and be very careful with your hair. Also reduce daily wear and tear by keeping your hair up and away. If you have to use elastics change the placement and get snag free ones. Or even better, a Flexi, Ficcare or smooth hairsticks. Does your hair rub against your shoulders or back? Does it get trapped between the back of the chair and your back? Things to ponder upon.
I also noticed you have a demarcation line about midway in your hair, is it remains of old dye? If so that could contribute to the problems.
Consider getting a smooth silk or satin pillowcase if your hair is tangly in the morning.

[kittenpajamas]

You are saying that you use a brush? I'd say get a comb instead, for most of us brushes are bad news in terms of detangling. Get a nice smooth (get the smoothest in the bunch) wooden comb from The Body Shop and be very careful with your hair. Also reduce daily wear and tear by keeping your hair up and away. If you have to use elastics change the placement and get snag free ones. Or even better, a Flexi, Ficcare or smooth hairsticks. Does your hair rub against your shoulders or back? Does it get trapped between the back of the chair and your back? Things to ponder upon.
I also noticed you have a demarcation line about midway in your hair, is it remains of old dye? If so that could contribute to the problems.
Consider getting a smooth silk or satin pillowcase if your hair is tangly in the morning.

I did use only a wide toothed comb for a pretty long time, but it was made of plastic and not wood. Does that make a difference? I switched back to a brush, because it seems to give my hair a bit more of a "fluff" and makes it look like it has more body. And yes, I leave my hair down most of the time when I'm not at work...I'm starting to consider making the switch to always leaving my hair up and only taking it down for washes...I just look so silly with my hair up because it makes my face look really round...and the hair framing my face is thinner and weaker and looks really bad when oils are trapped there

The last time I dyed my hair, I was about 19 years old, I think, and I am now 23. When I was 20 years old, I got my hair cut off in kind of a bob cut to my ears. I could be wrong, but I don't think there is any dyed hair left on my head...I think my hair is just weird colors for no apparent reason lol.

[Isilme]

Alright, it may be the light It doesn't really matter what material the comb is made of, the important thing is that the comb is snag free. It should be smooth all over, no rough or sharp edges between the teeth. A wooden comb is sometimes the easiest one to get your hands on, and the cheapest too. When your hair is properly detangled you can use an equally smooth brush (I like paddle brushes) with no little plastic balls on the spikes to style your hair. Starting from the bottom and working your way up in case you missed a tangle with your comb. Many people use a boar bristle brush for this. If you don't like to wear your hair up start with a braid and research styles here on the boards, there is something for everyone. You can pull all your hair back, make a dramatic side part, a zigzag part, add decorative small braids etc.

Your individual hair strands look fine and thin, this type is generally much more susceptible to damage from wear and tear. For example, my boyfriend has midback length undyed hair that is constantly filled with splits just because he doesn't take care of it. He wears an elastic in the same place every single day, lets it rub between his back and the back of the chair, rips trough tangles when combing his hair and is in general not very careful with his hair. Dye would of course make matters worse but all these little daily things do really add up!

[Nope]

I'm not sure if this will be helpful, but do the products you use contain protein? Maybe you could be experiencing protein overload. My hair was similar to yours when I had it, (before I knew what it was) and I would get pieces breaking off just from pulling a shirt over my head. That's ultimately the reason why I chopped it all, even though I could have fixed it had I known at the time. Try switching to protein free, moisture rich products for a little bit and see if it helps at all.

[kittenpajamas]

I'm not sure if this will be helpful, but do the products you use contain protein? Maybe you could be experiencing protein overload. My hair was similar to yours when I had it, (before I knew what it was) and I would get pieces breaking off just from pulling a shirt over my head. That's ultimately the reason why I chopped it all, even though I could have fixed it had I known at the time. Try switching to protein free, moisture rich products for a little bit and see if it helps at all.

I have never considered that before, but I'm sure most of the products I have ever used have contained some sort of protein...I try to look for things that "strengthen" hair to prevent breakage. I do remember one time when I was younger my mom put an egg mask on my hair and afterwards it ended up looking worse than ever...Is there a way to undo this "protein overload?"

[eha]

just stopping all protein containing products and giving extra moisture, SMTs, co-washing even, damp bunning, overnight oiling with penetrating oils are all things that might help

[Ypena3]

I was having problems with dryness, split ends and breakage so I started using ION products with moisture, a leave in de-tangler and argon oil on the ends. Be sure you spray the leave in conditioner when your hair is wet, as well as, the oil you use on the ends then de tangle with a wide toothed comb. Let your hair dry naturally and be very careful with what kind of hair bands you are using to secure your pony. Are you taking pre-natal vitamins? The baby is taking a lot from you right now but your hair and body hair should increase due to your hormones right now. I always experienced huge amounts of hair, eyelash and nail growth during my pregnancies. Whatever you do stay away from hair dyes if you want it to grow! Let us know how it goes.

[kittenpajamas]

just stopping all protein containing products and giving extra moisture, SMTs, co-washing even, damp bunning, overnight oiling with penetrating oils are all things that might help

I just put in my first SMT...I saw that in the list of conditioners, some oils were included, so I added about a tablespoon of coconut oil and almond oil to my conditioner just to see what would happen. I'm going to try to leave it overnight. I believe I am going to have to get another hair trim...I was looking through my ends and found some that were split a fourth of the way up the shaft. I don't understand how it has gotten so bad; I think it's actually gotten worse since I started using Wen. I did check the ingredients of that and found wheat protein in it, so maybe that is my problem. Other than that, I don't see what could be bad about it since it doesn't have any detergents in it and the ingredients mostly consist of oils. I also got some rosehip seed oil; I've heard that it's really good for skin and hair. Gonna try that out as a leave in and see how it looks. I can't use coconut oil because even the tiniest amount makes my hair look oily and stringy....It's bad enough that I wear XXL t-shirts and pajama pants everyday...I don't want my hair to look greasy on top of that :/