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Well, ever since somebody posted that article about common mistakes with long hair I´ve been a bit concerned about my hair. I have a lot of short hairs that I though was "baby hairs", which according to that article is in fact broken hairs.
I have very thin and straight hair and I have been very careful with it since I started growing a year ago. The hairbrush I use looks similar to this one, with balls on the tips:
http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/I/212YWXN4ADL.jpg
The comb I use after shower is just a regular one.
This thing is, when I comb, I hardly even have time to react before the tangle is gone! Earlier I thought that it was no problems if they go away so easily. But with all these broken hairs, I guess the tangles just break almost instantly. Even though I try to be careful!
I also have the worst bedhair you can imagine so I have to brush my hair in the morning for it to be at least somewhat okay.
I´m grateful for any help!
/Erik
Hi Erik,
I'm sorry to hear about your latest hair problems. Try not to be too worried about the short hairs, there will always be a mix of short hairs and long ones due to growth cycles, and new ones are always coming in to replace the old ones.
I was wondering if you have tried finger combing rather than using a brush or comb. In general, finger coming is the easiest on hair, followed by combing, and brushing should only be used if it is felt you could do that without damage. Fine hair is very fragile, so the less harsh the combing/brushing you can do, the better. Also, if you use a comb, be sure it has widely spaced tines. If the tines are too close together, they can catch the hair betweeen them, causing breakage.
Hope this helps,
David
I try to untangle first with fingers, then a wide tooth comb, and I never use a brush, only that comb. Simular to this one.
Bruce
The one I use..
Well, recently I started fingercombing first to try to get rid of all tangles before I brush. However, there are always a few tangles that gets by the fingercombing. Also, the hair looks very messy if I only fingercomb. So I need some brushing too.
Should I buy a different brush that is friendlier to hair like mine?
How do you comb? Start at the roots and drag the comb/your fingers to the ends? Or do you start at the ends, and work on each tangle separately? Also, you shouldn't be doing this while your hair is wet, that's when hairs are the most fragile.
Much of having long hair is a result along the way of what works best for yourself which is achieved by experiments. Perhaps give this a try:
1. Fingercomb all 1st.
2. Next, using a very "wide toothed" comb start at the bottom and gradually work your way upwards.
3. Finish off with the brush which helps to impart a nice shine to the hair.
Hope this might work out for you.
Hi Erik
I have fine hair as well and the same situation with breakage and there isn't a whole lot you can do. It's the genes we have that give us our hair so we do the best with what we have. I wash my hair almost daily and condition heavily and that seems to help me
minimize the breakage but it still happens.
Don't know what to tell you about the bedhair it was bad for me when I was in the awkward stage but I just suffered with it. When my hair got longer it got better. Conditioner will help the tangles unless you prefer your hairs natural oil then don't wash as often as for myself I hated the greassy look besides I thought my hair brushed out better after I conditioned it.
Kevin
Hello Eric !
A thing you can easily do is watching your hairbrush after you use it. Watch your strands in the brush and see if they're broken or if there is a little follicle...
Bye
Vivien
Erik,
Great little trick I have learned to keep my hair from breaking while combing. After I condition (I only shampoo maybe once a week) then I finger comb with the conditioner left in my hair. Then rinse. I have spritz products that release tangles, I spray it on a wide tooth comb and comb through my hair starting at the tips and working my way up to the roots. Sometimes I even add extra condition to my comb while still in the shower to comb through my hair. Works like a charm! And this from the girl who wakes up every morning to knots resembling dreads. There are mornings I look in the mirror and say "hmmm, not so bad I might not even brush/comb it today" and then I am on my way. Hope this helps.
I have fine hair too. I think what other people don't get is that fine hair looks pretty awful without using a fine tooth comb pretty frequently, i.e. several times a day. However, I use a comb with a coarse end and a fine end I comb "from the bottom up" first with the coarse end and then the fine end. I still end up with breakage, but it helps.
I also think that as it gets longer you need to be concerned about what your hair comes into contact with, i.e. backs of chairs, etc.
I think that when I put my hair in a braid I get less breakage, but I normally prefer having my hair loose, so that's a tradeoff. I'm not sure yours is long enough yet to do that anyway.
I understand what you mean by "not all hairs are detangled after fingercombing". That's why what I do is first I fingercomb until I have no tangles and then I start brushing carefully at the beginning and then more freely until it gets really easy.
The plastic brush is a bit harsh on hair but if there's nothing else you can find .Try searching for a boar bristle brush, it's supposed to be the best though I haven't tried it or a wooden brush which is pretty good too.