Thinning Issues

[Larke]

So...this probably doesn't entirely deserve its own thread, but I would like to get some feedback on my situation specifically. Thanks in advance for reading.

I generally have thin and very baby-fine hair. Through much time and much help from this wonderful forum, I got my hair from shoulder-length and chlorine-damaged to TBL and relatively healthy. I am thrilled with this progress. However, now that I have reached my goal length, I am realising that it's not quite what I had been hoping for. Specifically, my length is there, but the thickness is abysmal. I have a rather extreme taper. I probably lose about half of my thickness somewhere between shoulder length and bra strap length, and the last 7ish inches in my braid are less than a finger-width across.

I have tried microtrimming for a year and a half.

I have tried S&D to get rid of split ends.

I have tried being silicone free (which is what I normally do), but I have also tried silicones in case that would make my hair tear less during brushing.

I have tried brushing often to avoid tangles, I have tried brushing less often to avoid any mechanical damage.

I have tried wearing buns, braids, and even just carefully down, hoping to find a way to avoid mechanical damage.

I have tried sleeping with a silk headscarf, again, to avoid mechanical damage.

I have tried washing my hair often (every three days) to have a clean, healthy scalp to facilitate growth, and I have tried washing once a week to avoid drying hair out.

I have tried using hair masks of many sorts.

I have tried supplements, vitamins, etc.

Did I leave anything out...?

There is clearly something that is not working, but I am rather at my wits end trying to figure out what it is. I've been seriously thinking about a big cut to get back to a decent thickness, but even that probably won't solve anything because whenever I start growing hair back, the same issue would likely return. Anyway, I would have to cut it all the way to BSL probably to get back to good thickness, and that's more extreme than I want to do right now.

I know I get mechanical damage from brushing my hair, despite finger-detangling and using a tangle teaser to minimize it. I still come away with a hairbrush full of hair, and not all of it is shed hairs. My hair needs to be brushed to avoid dreading, though, so I'm not sure what to do to minimize that. Washing my hair always creates a lot of tangles, even if I brush beforehand, and I think that might be one potential source of problems. But I can't not wash my hair... And yes, I have tried detangling leave-ins, but they all weigh my hair down or don't help avoid tangles. I think I could probably do more with masks, though, especially during times when I don't wash my hair as often. I had high hoped for regular trimming, as that seems to be a common solution, but the rest of my hair just never up catches up to the maintained hemline. I am sure I have split ends between the nape of my neck and BSL, but I have a hard time reaching those. Otherwise, I think I follow the recommended practices pretty well, so this is becoming quite frustrating.

Thanks for letting me vent, and I am grateful for any recommendations.



(Photo is from about 6 months ago, taper has gotten worse since.)

[TatsuOni]

Have you tried a wide toothed comb in wood or horn instead of a brush? I and many more find it a lot more gentle than brushing the hair.

You could also try to find a better conditioner for your hair if your hair tangles that badly in the shower. I like NightBloomings conditioner bar. Do you shampoo all of your hair? You might get away with just shampooing your scalp at least some washes.

[Larke]

Thanks for the ideas!

Yep, tried a wide-toothed comb. It didn't really work for me, it didn't detangle too well.

I shampoo just the scalp, conditioner the rest. I've tried a lot of different conditioners, but can keep looking for one that will help avoid some of the tangles.

[Obsidian]

When you wash your hair, do you gather it all up into a big pile then scrub it? That could cause excessive tangles if you do.

[TatsuOni]

I feel you on the conditioner problem. I was 20 the first time I found a conditioner that actually worked for me and it wasn't that me or my parents hadn't tried a lot during my life before that.

Have you tried a medium toothed comb?

[embee]

Much sympathy. It's hard with fine thin hair. You have a choice: Thin fine short hair or Thin fine long hair. May as well enjoy what you have.

IMHO long is more fun than short, not to mention cheaper (no salon visits). I don't even want to talk about the skinny braid problem. Gave up on braids, no good way to tie them off, a big lump of elastic on the end.... ugh. Appreciate the taper which make buns much easier... ends tuck in nicely.

[lapushka]

So...this probably doesn't entirely deserve its own thread, but I would like to get some feedback on my situation specifically. Thanks in advance for reading.

I generally have thin and very baby-fine hair. Through much time and much help from this wonderful forum, I got my hair from shoulder-length and chlorine-damaged to TBL and relatively healthy. I am thrilled with this progress. However, now that I have reached my goal length, I am realising that it's not quite what I had been hoping for. Specifically, my length is there, but the thickness is abysmal. I have a rather extreme taper. I probably lose about half of my thickness somewhere between shoulder length and bra strap length, and the last 7ish inches in my braid are less than a finger-width across.

I have tried microtrimming for a year and a half.

I have tried S&D to get rid of split ends.

I have tried being silicone free (which is what I normally do), but I have also tried silicones in case that would make my hair tear less during brushing.

I have tried brushing often to avoid tangles, I have tried brushing less often to avoid any mechanical damage.

I have tried wearing buns, braids, and even just carefully down, hoping to find a way to avoid mechanical damage.

I have tried sleeping with a silk headscarf, again, to avoid mechanical damage.

I have tried washing my hair often (every three days) to have a clean, healthy scalp to facilitate growth, and I have tried washing once a week to avoid drying hair out.

I have tried using hair masks of many sorts.

I have tried supplements, vitamins, etc.

Did I leave anything out...?

There is clearly something that is not working, but I am rather at my wits end trying to figure out what it is. I've been seriously thinking about a big cut to get back to a decent thickness, but even that probably won't solve anything because whenever I start growing hair back, the same issue would likely return. Anyway, I would have to cut it all the way to BSL probably to get back to good thickness, and that's more extreme than I want to do right now.

I know I get mechanical damage from brushing my hair, despite finger-detangling and using a tangle teaser to minimize it. I still come away with a hairbrush full of hair, and not all of it is shed hairs. My hair needs to be brushed to avoid dreading, though, so I'm not sure what to do to minimize that. Washing my hair always creates a lot of tangles, even if I brush beforehand, and I think that might be one potential source of problems. But I can't not wash my hair... And yes, I have tried detangling leave-ins, but they all weigh my hair down or don't help avoid tangles. I think I could probably do more with masks, though, especially during times when I don't wash my hair as often. I had high hoped for regular trimming, as that seems to be a common solution, but the rest of my hair just never up catches up to the maintained hemline. I am sure I have split ends between the nape of my neck and BSL, but I have a hard time reaching those. Otherwise, I think I follow the recommended practices pretty well, so this is becoming quite frustrating.

Thanks for letting me vent, and I am grateful for any recommendations.



(Photo is from about 6 months ago, taper has gotten worse since.)

What I see on the picture, is absolutely normal taper. Even great taper (not bad at all, and thicker than expected for that thickness). Maybe it's a case of not realizing what long hair does? Because this is totally fine, girlfriend!

[Bri-Chan]

I agree that the taper looks normal.
My hair do tangle a lot, too, and I find nothing works better than tangle teezers brushes.

[mary_whitney]

Yeah, i think your taper looks nice and normal! I don't have any particular advice - just solidarity. My hair never got as long as yours but I had a baby last year and lost maybe 1/4 of my thickness during the postpartum period. I'm just now getting back into hair care and trying to salvage what I've got left. I ended up cutting to a little above BSL and have been careful with my ends. For me, three-strand braids cause a lot of shed (especially if I try to do any kind of french/dutch braiding) so I've switched to alternating between rope braids, buns with a claw clip, or just wearing it loose. Also been trying that rosemary scalp oil that's trendy right now - it's too early to say if it's really helping but I do think heavy oilings at least once a week is helping to decrease friction and make my new baby hairs lay smoother.

[tuanyiji]

That is a very pretty braid, it’s neat and tidy, and oh so shiny! And I love the color!
The taper looks very normal to me. I haven’t trimmed my hair in 3-4 years, the last time was my mom gave me a blunt cut around BSL.
I did everything I could to avoid mechanical damage, like my signature says, Fingercomb/Bun/Water-only No-Trim/Elastic/Heat.
Sleep inside a silk bonnet and on top of a silk pillowcase, keep my hair in a protective style 99% of the time...
Despite the extra miles I went, now from my waist down, it’s still a long ass fairytale, which means by the end of my braid, there are like literally 3-5 racers down there and it’s hilarious sometimes.
The longer the braid, visually it looks even thinner/slimmer, here’s my Amish braids, I don’t find any split ends in the fairytail, so I’m good for many more months. I am enjoying my ABC Hairstyle Challenge in which I explore new styles every day and I’ve never been this productive.

From what I see, you’ve already tried your best to improve your hair health, you’ve done way more than most people can. So kudos to you!
Sometimes we also need to take genetics into account, think of your parents and grandparents, or back when you were younger and carefree and at the peak of your health, how was the thickness of your hair? We really can’t grow the amount of hair that isn’t coded in our genes, I’ve already given up the hope to have a 6-inch circumference pony and a full round scalp (I am a twin and the back of my head is very flat and asymmetric from birth), that’s just unrealistic.
Find a new hair goal, pancake your braid, try paranda, or cassia (I won’t recommend henna because it’s too permanent and a big commitment) or even a new hobby, and if you can’t be always hair happy, you can always try benign negligence.