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Whenever I brush my hair I notice later that I find short pieces of hair that arent as long as the rest and dont seem to have a root. Im guessing that they are pieces that are ripped when I comb through. My hair is damn near impossible to comb through without hitting a snag. Even with detangler and when its wet. Any ideas on what I should do?
When it's wet and saturated with conditioner (in the shower) try brushing it out with a flat paddle brush with widely spaced teeth. Start all the way at the ends and very gradually work your way up toward your scalp. Alternatively, you can use a special detangler comb. After you get out of the shower, brush it all out by holding your head upside down. When done, put it into a braid or a bun. Keeping it this way will prevent new knots from forming.
The simple solution for this isn't exactly the convenient, popular one, sorry to say. The strands that you are finding are the result of hair that is being damaged and broken due to rough handling while brushing. Of course this is troubling, but it's not hard to remedy.
What's needed is a much more gentle approach to detangling. When dealing with snags and tangles, stop when you reach each one and slowly, carefully work through it, gently picking at it with the end of a comb, or even using your fingers. The strands tear because you're forcing them to separate, rather than undoing the tangle first, then realigning them to fall alongside each other (combing). Like any knot in a rope, hair knots need to be de-knotted, i.e. detangled.
This requires setting aside a few more minutes for hair care every time you comb your hair than previously was alotted, but it is worth it, because the result of doing this for several years is a healthy head of thick, long hair, not thin hair that is caused by repeatedly being ripped and torn, which only causes a lot of split ends, and which also can't reach its full length potential either.
For myself, I do not use brushes at all, but only combs because by design, combs don't just gloss over knots, but force me to stop, which is a good thing for preserving my hair.
Also, it is well known that brushing while the hair is wet is a huge no-no. Wet hair, while naturally more flexible and stretchable up to 20% for some hair types, is stretched far too much when a brush is applied to it for post-wash detangling. This results in spring/coil-like strands of hair that can never return to their original shape. Once overstretched, only a lot of time to grow these strands longer will minimize this proboem, but simply because these strands are heavier and tend to blend with the rest by default. They still can't regain what's lost.
Good luck,
JE
My chest just tightned up when I read that, don't worry, I wasn't having a heart attack:). I have always brushed my hair after washing and conditioning. You said it's a huge no no. I don't brush it hard, I just slowly glide the brush through the hair to style the hair to fall in the direction I want it, forward. My bangs look horrible most of the time, in between the parting, there's lots of hair strands with kinks in them. I have naturally wavy, sometimes curly and sometimes straight hair. There are also a few strands that reach the middle of my nose, instead of my lips. Am I doing my hair serious damage? If so, if I started using a wide toothed comb, can I comb my hair when it's wet then? Will the damage repair itself, and is there anything I can do to help my hair along its way? I will stop brushing my hair from this day forward.
Thanks,
Chris.
I am of the opinion that the dangers of brushing are greatly overrated. You need to treat your hair gently, true, but it is possible to do at least as much damage with a comb as with a brush. Back when my hair was almost knee-length, I brushed exclusively, and it was certainly still growing when I cut it.
No heart attacks, please! :-)
There are many factors at play here, such as hair texture (Fine, Medium, Coarse), actual length, and type (Straight, Wavy, Curly), being some of those factors. For instance, those with coarse hair can "get away with" being rougher on their hair than those with fine hair, simply because coarse hair strands are wider and therefore tougher and more resilient. Fine hair is simply more delicate. The strands are thinner, sometimes nearly invisible and transparent, so they can break easily, and you have to be more patient, slow, and careful about combing.
Seeing your photo, with your hair still on the short side, I can't imagine your wet brushing has caused much damage to it so far. Stretching becomes more of a problem the longer your hair grows, becase the tangles come increasingly more and more. It's a consideration for when hair gets longer than shoulder blade length. I have a few stretched strands of hair on my head that I've had since a small lock got damaged due to a watercraft adventure I went on 6 years ago, when the lock was stretched and torn, leaving about only 4 inches of hair at that little spot. Now, those strands are simply longer by 2-3 feet, but suddenly have spiral curls for the ending 4 inches due to that long ago event. Otherwise, my hair is naturally totally stick straight.
Combs don't just glide over hair the way brushes do when you use them, even if just lightly. Combs dig thru and stop when you reach a tangle. You're left with either consciously ripping thru the snarl or stopping combing to finger-thru the tangle, or pick it carefully with the end tines of the comb. So in this way, combs force you to be more aware during detangling than brushes do. Most of the people I know with long hair use combs for detangling for this reason, which basically comes down to increased accuracy and care. The very few who use brushes use them after thorough detangling with a comb for a final "finishing" effect.
Also, from the writings I've read posted by those with wavy/curly hair, especially those with curly hair, they tend to dislike brushing entirely. Apparently it creates fuzz and frizz, besides a lot of breakage, so the recommendation is to comb only. Some comb only when wet, but never when dry, so as to keep frizz minimized.
So to answer your question about detangling when wet, yes, you can, but as always, be gentle and careful. It takes a little more time, but it's worth it. On the other hand, some folks don't comb at all until their hair is dry or nearly dry. My husband is one such person, but for myself, I can't imagine doing that!
As your hair continues to grow, and as it reaches longer lengths where you want to even out the ends (assuming that this is your goal), you will wind up trimming off those layers that you presently are growing out that annoy you by falling into your face. They probably are uneven due to how your hair formerly was cut short, not due to brushing.
Also, remember that even long hair is full of uneven lengths. NO ONE'S hair ever consists of every single, last strand at exactly the same length or even at the bottom ends. That just doesn't happen except on brand-new wigs. On real heads of hair, while the overall effect is hair of one length, in reality, there are tons of individual strands that aren't full length, and this is perfectly normal and okay!
Don't worry; I doubt you've done any damage so far,
JE :-)
Thank you very much indeed, for the patience in replying to my post, and the good advince you have given. You always give the best replies, that's why I like to ask you the questions, rather than anyone else.
Thanks again!
