Have you ever taken a really CLOSE look at your ends??

[Diya]

I'm getting really frustrated with my ends these days. My biggest problem has always been breakage because my hair tends to be very dry. I started taking control of the situation about 2 months ago (when I joined the forum ), giving my hair lots of TLC and on a macroscopic level, things look great! BUT...when I pull a section of my hair in for a closer look I STILL see bent (almost ready to snap) ends. Granted, I think it has gotten better because I don't see broken hairs all over the sink and floor anymore, but I think my protein treatments have only served to strengthen the weak hairs, not repair them completely.

My question is: Should I relax and give my hair more time to repair itself, or is 2 months long enough to expect an improvement? What could I be doing wrong? And does anyone else have this problem? Thanks in advance, ladies!

 

[Mizani_Mrs]

dont give up! U are trying, but dont give up. keep trying. U will discover something that works for you. I have the same issue with you even though for the past 2yrs i have been babying my hair...so i decided to try harder. so i bought Aveda which helped alot, i purchased a new pair of hair scissors (they are still cheap but i will replace them every 6 uses). and now i use oil on my ends and baggy just my ends maybe once or twice a week just to give it that extra TLC. So anyways, dont give up, you will find something that works for you and your lifestyle.

 

[mochamadness]

I'm getting really frustrated with my ends these days. My biggest problem has always been breakage because my hair tends to be very dry. I started taking control of the situation about 2 months ago (when I joined the forum ), giving my hair lots of TLC and on a macroscopic level, things look great! BUT...when I pull a section of my hair in for a closer look I STILL see bent (almost ready to snap) ends. Granted, I think it has gotten better because I don't see broken hairs all over the sink and floor anymore, but I think my protein treatments have only served to strengthen the weak hairs, not repair them completely.

My question is: Should I relax and give my hair more time to repair itself, or is 2 months long enough to expect an improvement? What could I be doing wrong? And does anyone else have this problem? Thanks in advance, ladies!

I would say yes, relax and keep giving your hair the care that it needs right now. You've already said that you have noticed an improvement so it can only get better from here. I know many of us suffer from the random split ends. I would say get a good pair of sharp scissors and clip off the individual damaged ends that you see when looking through your hair. This is called a S&D, I do this rather often. It helps to get rid of only the damaged ends while maintaining your length.

The protein treatments can only do so much. From my experience they are good at keeping the hair strong and they do bond to the weak areas of the strands, but the treatments can't repair split ends, the only solution is trimming then away. Try the S&D method, or a very light trim all around.

 

[Diya]

dont give up! U are trying, but dont give up. keep trying. U will discover something that works for you. I have the same issue with you even though for the past 2yrs i have been babying my hair...so i decided to try harder. so i bought Aveda which helped alot, i purchased a new pair of hair scissors (they are still cheap but i will replace them every 6 uses). and now i use oil on my ends and baggy just my ends maybe once or twice a week just to give it that extra TLC. So anyways, dont give up, you will find something that works for you and your lifestyle.

Thanks for the encouragement! I won't give up, I'm just impatient I guess...I just want that instant gratification, ya know??

 

[Diya]

I would say yes, relax and keep giving your hair the care that it needs right now. You've already said that you have noticed an improvement so it can only get better from here. I know many of us suffer from the random split ends. I would say get a good pair of sharp scissors and clip off the individual damaged ends that you see when looking through your hair. This is called a S&D, I do this rather often. It helps to get rid of only the damaged ends while maintaining your length.

The protein treatments can only do so much. From my experience they are good at keeping the hair strong and they do bond to the weak areas of the strands, but the treatments can't repair split ends, the only solution is trimming then away. Try the S&D method, or a very light trim all around.

Thx for the tips, Mocha... my only hesitation is that I have trimmed with every relaxer up until may and it only temporarily fixes my ends. I love the look and feel of freshly clipped ends, but if I seriously don't find a better way to take care of them they are bound to continue this breakage cycle. But I think I will take your advice about the S&D method (what does this stand for, btw? is it the same as dusting?). Maybe the damaged ends I'm seeing are the same ones that have been around forever that are just beyond repair.

 

[mochamadness]

Thx for the tips, Mocha... my only hesitation is that I have trimmed with every relaxer up until may and it only temporarily fixes my ends. I love the look and feel of freshly clipped ends, but if I seriously don't find a better way to take care of them they are bound to continue this breakage cycle. But I think I will take your advice about the S&D method (what does this stand for, btw? is it the same as dusting?). Maybe the damaged ends I'm seeing are the same ones that have been around forever that are just beyond repair.

It stands for search and destroy, yeah its a form of dusting. You only look for ends that are damaged or split and then you clip only those ends. I agree big trims are only a temporary fix, esp if you're not sure about cause of the breakage and splits in the first place. What has helped me is deep conditioning and finding a good moisturizer for my ends and keepiing them moisturized. Good luck, I know you'll find a happy medium!

 

[Kacie]

If the situation is getting better that's a good sign. When you develop a solid regimine you might want to trim a little. It will take more time to see a drastic improvement. The search feature isn't working for me right now, but there is a thread about how long did it take for your hair to stop breaking. If I remember correctly the consensus was a about one year.

 

[Diya]

If the situation is getting better that's a good sign. When you develop a solid regimine you might want to trim a little. It will take more time to see a drastic improvement. The search feature isn't working for me right now, but there is a thread about how long did it take for your hair to stop breaking. If I remember correctly the consensus was a about one year.

Ohh, OK. So I'm panicking prematurely... I'll relax a little and continue trying to develop a solid regimen. I've also got to get on keeping a journal, so I can keep track of what works and what doesn't. Thanks, everyone, for your advice!

 

[pistachio]

search and destroy is best for keeping the most amount or hair, but may take a while longer to do since you have to scan carefully.

 

[chickory_bee]

OMG...so why did I look at my ends a few months ago, and I saw a hair with SOOO many split ends, it looked like a rose bush twig...I trimmed (well cut coz I was so disgusted) and then started using a heavier product on my ends.

 

[Diya]

OMG...so why did I look at my ends a few months ago, and I saw a hair with SOOO many split ends, it looked like a rose bush twig...I trimmed (well cut coz I was so disgusted) and then started using a heavier product on my ends.

Oh man, chickory... I know exactly what you mean! lol, the rose bush twig is a good analogy and I see hairs like that too sometimes . But you said you started using a heavier product on your ends... which product, may I ask? And did that work out well for you?

 

[chickory_bee]

I actually got a little carried away and started a wild search. I still use Isoplus Castor Oil grease.
I had previously been using Verifen Formula's Constant Care for Ends, which although I have friends that swear by it, didn't work for me.
I switched to LR on my ends, but it wasn't doing the trick (although I love it for the length of my hair), but the castor oil stuff worked, it also helped me with the knots (just isn't cute to walk around lookin' like a grease ball).
I just ordered some End All, so I will be trying that next.