HAIR BREAKING/SHEDDING???????

I have a dilemma, I have been twisting my hair for the past couple of weeks, 2 weeks at a time and when I take out my twists and shampoo, my hair shedding alot and breaking at the ends. UGH!!! I have not used protein in my hair for awhile because I noticed my hair would be very dry at times. I have debated cutting my hair and starting all over again. Any suggestions because I am in need of help badly!!! Should start adding protein treatments to my hair again? Please help me!

Before you panic...

You haven't manipulated your hair for two weeks at time while your hair is twisted up. You are going to shed. Also, it's likely that the summer is your season that you experience the most shedding in your hair growth cycle. If you see a white bulb at the roots of your shedded strands, then it's not breakage.

Do you see white bulbs on the shed hairs? Do you moisturize your twists? If so, what are you using and how often? A protein treatment may not hurt, but shedding is perfectly normal.

@curlsgalore, I do moisturize my twists and have been using loreal's sulfate free shampoo & conditioner, and I just tried the jessicurl's DT. I am still trying to find a good regimen to use. I do see white bulbs on the ends but other parts I don't and some of the hair ends are even split.

How are you moisturizing your twists? I smoosh oil in mine every other day when I know that I am going to be wearing them for a while. I moisturize then ends every night with whatever oil of choice I am using that day. Then I put on my scarf as usual. My hair was breaking until I started to moisturize my protective styles.

Does your hair feel rough to the touch or super dry? Perhaps, you need a good deep conditioning session. What is your regi now?

CurlsGalore wrote:Does your hair feel rough to the touch or super dry? Perhaps, you need a good deep conditioning session. What is your regi now?

What is your reggie? What do you use for your twist and braidouts?

I kind of have the same problem, but only shedding it appears to be. When I have a detangling session after three days there seems to be so much hair coming out. Best believe I moisturize a lot. I know we are suppose to loose at least 100 strands a hair a day, I guess mine is making up for all those non-detangling days. Is this normal???? [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

@curlsgalore and 4evernatural, I moisturize my twists with qhemet alma and olive cream, and seal with shea butter, and have been using loreal's sulfate free shampoo
& conditioner, and I just tried the jessicurl's DT. I am still
trying to find a good regimen to use. My hair does feel dry at times too.

4EverNatural wrote:

CurlsGalore wrote:Does your hair feel rough to the touch or super dry? Perhaps, you need a good deep conditioning session. What is your regi now?

What is your reggie? What do you use for your twist and braidouts?

I just use shea butter to twist and braid my hair. I use it on top of my leave in on damp hair.

marry25 wrote:@curlsgalore and 4evernatural, I moisturize my twists with qhemet alma and olive cream, and seal with shea butter, and have been using loreal's sulfate free shampoo
& conditioner, and I just tried the jessicurl's DT. I am still
trying to find a good regimen to use. My hair does feel dry at times too.

Have you tried protein treatment? Your hair may just need a little repair. I'm not well-versed on protein products. I'm sure someone will chime in with their thoughts. I use henna as a form of protein treatment. It combats shedding and conditions the hair very well; and I'll be doing it every six weeks.

I am transitioning and I am experiencing breakage and shedding..... its been 5mths since my last relaxer. I have breakage where the new growth and relax hair meets. I have a few spots where my hair is short. I prepoo with Honey, Evoo and coconut oil and alittle JBCO every two weeks. I do avocado deep treatments every other week. I co wash once a week and shampoo once a week. i use cantu leave in conditioners and Jbco to oil my scalp. I use shea butter as well. I detangle my hair but my hair is still snapping off.... What am I doing wrong?????? my hair is very soft when wet and when its dry. Please help!!!!!! [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]

livingboldlyphw-- maybe you need some more protein in your regimen? When I transitioned I wasn't concerned about holding on to my relaxed ends so I can't really give you any advice from personal experience. You may want to post in the 'Transitioning' section of this forum, those ladies may be able to offer you more advice.

mary25- I used to think that I was really protein sensitive because my hair never felt any better when I used products with protein in it (like Giovanni Direct Moisture). It turns out that using heat made all the difference. I don't know if I can handle a LOT of protein, but so far my hair is in much better shape, and feels softer.

Also, I would suggest using some sort of spritz in your hair when it gets dry instead of just using oils-- water is the best form of moisture for your hair. Use a conditioner that you really like, and add some water for a basic version (to 'spice it up' you can add a little glycerin, aloe vera juice, oils that your hair likes, etc etc) and moisten your hair when you feel that its dry. Make sure to seal in that moisture with an oil or shea butter.

How often do you deep condition your hair? I have fine hair that is very dry, and I make sure to deep condition at least once a week. I've found my hair has been doing and feeling a lot better with these simple changes in my routine.

Thanks, CurlyDee, After researching last night I concluded that my hair need a balance of Moisture and Protein, so I am going to do a Aphogee treatment once a month to see if that will help, but I hear that some breakage is completely normal. I just thought that doing an avocado treatment every two weeks would be enough protein and stop the breakage but I guess I have too much moisture and not enough protein so I am adding Aphogee and getting a newer detangler comb. I think I might have been a little too rough with my hair too when I am detangling my hair.....

As you can tell, I am not ready to do the BC..... Maybe in the 9th or 10th month I will explore that idea but not right now. Although I love my new growth and I love the feel of my natural hair I am just not ready for the BC. Right now I rock twist out just about every day and updos when I am just too tired to do anything else but my hair has never got this uch attention!!!! LOL.....Loving the process!!!! I wish I started sooner.....

living boldly: are you saying that your hair is soaking wet, in need of detangling, twice a week? that is what it sounds like, with a co wash once a week, and a shampoo once a week. I think you will have less breakage if you get it soaking wet less often, no more than once a week.

your hair won't break as much if it is not touched as much. also, try braiding your own natural hair, without extensions, and wearing braids for a week or two or three, so you are not touching it too much every day. you can wash the braids. for a gentler style, you can wear two strand twists. at this stage, you will need to roll the twists on rollers to help the relaxed hair 'set' in teh twist without unraveling. I never tried this on long transitioning hair; i did a lot of buns . but it is working on my short transitioning hair.

I DC my hair on Sunday, wash it with shampoo, Detangle it with Cheap condish, wash it out and put a leave in condish it, oil my scalp with JBCO and shea butter my hair, twist it and sit under the dryer until it dries. I finger comb my hair Monday and Tuesday but on Wednesday I co wash my hair and start the process over again.... Thursday and friday my hair is either in a twist out or bun...

I live on twist out... i think it was the pulling during the detangling process and finger combing my hair....My nails are natural long so finger combing might not be a good idea.
So I am going to tweak a few things and see what happens.... I already purchased a new detangling comb and brush. The brush is for detangling hair. We will see...My hair is so soft now its hard to hold the twist out.....So I am going to do a protein DC this sunday and try to alternate between the two....

@livingbodlyphw

I recently bc'd as well (6-2010) and I quickly learned a few things (through trial and error of course =). I noticed that pooing made my hair extra dry no matter the poo! So I co-wash only and have just switched to herbel esscense brand (hello hydration, very thirsty hair indeed). Also I "thought" sm was going to be the product for me, wrong...my hair would look ashey and be straw like to the touch *ouch* I had a lot of shedding too and was worried. So all I do/use now are: co-wash, old t-shirts to dry my hair (helps retain moisture), shine curl activator mixed with africa's best hair and body oil. Oh and I don't do a lot of combing/brushing my hair unless its saturated with conditioner. Plus I use a silk wrap/bonnette at night.

You may notice that the longer/thicker your hair gets the more moisture it will crave, at least that's how it been for me.

Hope this helps....happy growing!

Here is a great article on moisture vs protein

Click here!!

Thanks Everyone, I love the support and encouragement......Thanks a Bunch...... [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.]