Help? hair getting shorter from extensive breakage and split ends. Desperate...

[pocahonta_s]

I think I may have found what part of the problem is! The reason I wrote this post was because I was finding an abnormal increase in damage... And after careful consideration of what I had changed/done in the past couple of weeks, I realised that what had crept its way back into my routinewas... my hairbrush!

I lost my brush while moving houses 2 months ago and I found it recently, and sort of started using it on and off to smooth my hair after roller sets. Maybe not so smart.

[Nanni]

That may be the reason. I would suggest investing in a wide tooth comb. NO BACKCOMBING!! and no combing wet hair.

But still, if the dammage is done you should do some s&d and regular trims.
Good luck growing!!

[longhairedfairy]

I think I may have found what part of the problem is! The reason I wrote this post was because I was finding an abnormal increase in damage... And after careful consideration of what I had changed/done in the past couple of weeks, I realised that what had crept its way back into my routinewas... my hairbrush!

I lost my brush while moving houses 2 months ago and I found it recently, and sort of started using it on and off to smooth my hair after roller sets. Maybe not so smart.

Yes, if your hair has been processed a lot then a brush may be way too harsh.

[pocahonta_s]

Hello again... I have stopped using my brush and after an intensive S&D session, and a henna application, it seems like a miracle... I looked very carefully today and i only found one measly split end.

It is weird how an apparently small thing (like a few brush strokes every morning) can make such a big difference in so little time.

Longhairedfairy: I think that is what it was. My hair is obviously so fragile that the brushing was just too much. I know that it will take a long time to grow out the damage properly, but if my hair doesnt constantly break or split while I am doing my best to treat it better, I am happy!

Roseate: I read Nightshade's articles. They are great! And very helpful.

DragonLady and Emichiee: I am going to do just that - micro trims every few weeks and hopefuly in time the damage will be gone.

Nat242: I am going to try misting! This will work great for braidouts, although i will still have to find another solutions for when i wear my hair straight (after a roller set), as misting = frizz for me.

Thanks again everyone for your very helpful answers!

[kdaniels8811]

Henna is a great deal of help repairing damaged hair. Another thing you may consider is catnip tea. There is a great article on it by Ktani. My hair used to not grow due to breakage - just like yours! A combination of henna, catnip tea, SMT's, gentle handling, no shampoo, etc. all have made a huge difference. The catnip tea soak is one treatment I swear by.

[spidermom]

I think it would be best for you to get on a regular trimming schedule and keep at it until the ends improve. If you don't have a stylist you can trust, ask around, do it yourself, or have a friend do it. Growth will be so much faster without those bad ends. (oops; I see the issue has been dealt with, should have read all the posts before I commented)

[pocahonta_s]

Ha ha no worries spidermom. All advice is good to hear anyway.

kdaniels8811: I wonder about the catnip rinse (I finally found some yesterday in a dodgy little store, yay!). I did read Ktani’s article and posts but I am still not sure about the minimum amount of time to leave it on. Will it have any effect if I use it like an ACV rinse? For the ACV I dilute it in a bucket and sort of swish my hair in it for a little while, then pour the whole thing over my head and rinse with cool water (don’t even know if I am doing that right, now that I think of it?).

It would just be highly inconvenient to have to walk around for an hour with a plastic cap over soaking wet hair and catnip tea collecting into the plastic cap – my housemates already reckon I am crazy, I sort of don’t want to make it worse! (But if I must, all in the cult of long healthy hair, I will…)