Cutting off damaged ends

[mamaore]

Today I decided to be brave I flat ironed my hair - first time in a very long time to see the kind of damage I'm dealing with. It ain't pretty I tell ya. So far I have probably trimmed between 2-2.5 inches over the last few months, but I still have a lot to trim. I decided a cut may be in order.

Results of my flatiron below. OT This is the first flat iron results that I really like. My hair is soft and touchable. - Thanks to the thread about deep moisture and minimal products.

I know I have to cut back to shoulder length especially below the crown cos the damage there is crazy. My sides and crown to the front seem very good although those need an inch trim.

So my question is how do I cut without making it worse. I could do a blunt cut, but I'd prefer to keep the natural U /V shape. Any thoughts? Does anyone have a favourite youtube video on cutting damage away.

I wish I knew for sure what caused this damage but I really do not know. The left side of my hair is just notorious! has always been! My guess is not trimming at all for about 2 years; Using Affirm (bad bad relaxer) never again.

 

[Angelinhell]

Nice hair! I think you should just snip the bad ends away. I totally understand what you went through with affirm relaxer, I would never touch that one again, it thinned out my hair over time.



View attachment 155029

 

[afroette]

I would blunt cut it a few inches evenly, or just cut off the damaged part from each end not worrying about it being even. Actually, as I am attached to my hair-damaged or not, I'd probably go with the later approach.

 

[Evolving78]

i would cut it blunt evenly to shoulder length.

 

[niqu92]

yeah stay away from affirm its horrible ive had reaally bad experiences with it
if i were you id use design essentials or mizani those two are good
and not trimming your hair for 2years O__O nuuh uuh noo bueno i know some ppl on here claim they havnt trimmed in years and they still happen to have nice long thick flawless hair but not everybody is the same. if i dont trim my hair at least every 4months then my hair takes a turn for the worse.
i know the thought of trimming isnt appealing because you feel as if your loosing hair but trust me if you want healthy hair and flawless ends then you need to trim.

if i were you i would do a blunt SL cut so you can start with nice fresh ends and eventually your hair will grow into its natural shape. you should get the cut ASAP because the sooner you do the sooner your hair will turn around.

 

[Pierrot]

A bold U-shape cut to shoulder-length? You mentioned not trimming in a while, if you discover you have split-induced damage fortifying your hemline could help a lot. Sorry no YT vid suggestions. I haven't relaxed in years but I've heard rumblings about Affirm as well....

*hugs* I recently cut off a lot of damage

 

[Aireen]

I would cut it in a U shape to take off the majority of thin ends. A blunt cut would take off too much if your concern is keeping your length. Along the red line would be a good start and just even it up as you go. Don't hack it off, take the time to cut bit by bit to observe how much needs to be taken off as you go. I don't like cutting myself, so I would suggest having someone you trust cut it for you and describe exactly what you want and what your concerns are. Taking this picture with you would help too so the person cutting has a visual and is able to apply it accurately to keep you content with how your hair looks. To maintain, I would do light searching and destroying during the times you don't want to cut to elevate damage.

 

[mamaore]

Thanks ladies for all the support. I'm enlisting DH's help to cut sometime this week. I'll post pictures afterwards.

I hope I overcome this setback soon.

 

[claud-uk]

Hi mamaore

If you're going for the overall health/appearance of your hair I'd go for a full SL cut (blunt or U, down to your personal preference) but I think that for now, to keep you motivated and at least minimize the uneveness and reduce further breakage, I would do something like below:



Find something that you can use to strengthen your ends, moisturize and seal them with Shea butter and leave them alone from one week to the next to give them a break from manipulation. Then maybe do another same-shaped trim in 4 weeks but take only 1/4", and then trim another 1/4" four weeks after, all the time keeping your ends sealed and locked away. This should ensure you retain at least half your monthly growth and maybe after 3 months your hair should be growing out and close to your pre-trims length, only with a nice fuller healthier hemline. This worked for me during Feb/Mar/April, and my hair was in a much poorer state than yours - see my avatar pic, you could see all the way to Narnia thru those ends and all the way up to my ears

 

[I Am So Blessed]

Yay!!! im excited for you! You can do it!!! A good three inches will due. Your not going to miss the length because the length is not there anyway when its broken off like that.
Goodbye broken hair, welcome back hair.

 

[Poohbear]

Are you sure it's damage (splits, worn and torn ends) or is it just uneven hair lengths?

 

[virtuenow]

W/o reading other responses: the left back side of my hair used to always break off when I was relaxed. Do you start your relaxers there (or styling)? I tried doing different things but nothing worked.

 

[Honey Bee]

mamaore, I'm in the same place you are. It's my nape/crown area, though. In the last two months I've cut at least 3 inches. Every time I get to APL, it's the same thing in the same area. I'm getting tired of the "journey", tbh.

 

[mamaore]

You ladies are so helpful. Thanks a lot.

Hi @mamaore

If you're going for the overall health/appearance of your hair I'd go for a full SL cut (blunt or U, down to your personal preference) but I think that for now, to keep you motivated and at least minimize the uneveness and reduce further breakage, I would do something like below:

View attachment 155269

Find something that you can use to strengthen your ends, moisturize and seal them with Shea butter and leave them alone from one week to the next to give them a break from manipulation. Then maybe do another same-shaped trim in 4 weeks but take only 1/4", and then trim another 1/4" four weeks after, all the time keeping your ends sealed and locked away. This should ensure you retain at least half your monthly growth and maybe after 3 months your hair should be growing out and close to your pre-trims length, only with a nice fuller healthier hemline. This worked for me during Feb/Mar/April, and my hair was in a much poorer state than yours - see my avatar pic, you could see all the way to Narnia thru those ends and all the way up to my ears

@claud-uk, thats the problem. I never wear my hair down. I mean never. Its always in a bun. Except for the last few weeks that I tried ponytail rollerset. I'm tired of seeing breakage everywhere - mid strand breakage.

Yay!!! im excited for you! You can do it!!! A good three inches will due. Your not going to miss the length because the length is not there anyway when its broken off like that.
Goodbye broken hair, welcome back hair.

Thanks a lot

Are you sure it's damage (splits, worn and torn ends) or is it just uneven hair lengths?

Oh yeah @Poohbear its damage alright. See the second picture in OP. The left side broke off fiercely. I have babied it for the last 3 months and I dont see any improvement really.

W/o reading other responses: the left back side of my hair used to always break off when I was relaxed. Do you start your relaxers there (or styling)? I tried doing different things but nothing worked.

I start my relaxers at the back that may be the culprit. I also notice that the hair at my crown and closer to my edges can take abuse. They have retained the most length. I will start my relaxers from there going forward. Maybe I also need to switch from Super back to Regular. My last two relaxers were with Profectiv Super.
Also another interesting thing is that my left side has a difference texture than the right side and crown area. When I was natural, I saw that the crown and right side had mix of 4a, 2 and 4b, but the left side and the back was 4zzzz. The back of my head is also thinner in density.

 

[lilpooky]

I start my relaxers at the back that may be the culprit. I also notice that the hair at my crown and closer to my edges can take abuse. They have retained the most length. I will start my relaxers from there going forward. Maybe I also need to switch from Super back to Regular. My last two relaxers were with Profectiv Super.
Also another interesting thing is that my left side has a difference texture than the right side and crown area. When I was natural, I saw that the crown and right side had mix of 4a, 2 and 4b, but the left side and the back was 4zzzz. The back of my head is also thinner in density.

Please do. Only relax with regular. Super relaxers will cause your hair to break off and can lead to extreme damage. I know from past experience.

 

[mamaore]

Update:

DH just helped me cut. I cut off about 1 inch in the longest place. I still have thin ends, but its not as obvious as before. I will do 1/4 trims every 4-6 weeks to remove the rest of the damage. DH doesnt want to cut more... He says he is invested in the length.
Thanks for your advice.

 

[Honey Bee]

mamaore, I had the same convo with SO. I snuck and cut off another inch today. I'ma wear it curly for a while, I bet he wont even notice.

 

[claud-uk]

mamaore - please stop the bunning asap!!! A PS is meant to keep your hair while safe from harm and bunning is not for everyone and could well be the reason for your "mid" strand damage. I had my hair in a pony for about 20 years and it was ALWAYS breaking halfway up the strands, they were stressed broken split and frizzy from halfway down the strand to the tips. I don't know what your daily schedule is but what about twists/outs or braids/outs? A french braid, or banana clip? Ladies, we need some help here with some PS's please!

 

[claud-uk]

Ooh, I just saw your pics, it looks much better already! lilpooky is right about the relaxers too, and you could also try using some kind of porosity control product to ensure a more even relaxer result like this http://www.pakcosmetics.com/brand/l...lk-porequal-porosity-equalizer-treatment.html

I'm gonna check in with you regularly, we're gonna get you through this, it's nice you have DH's support, keep reminding him of the "good times" (cough cough) to come in the months ahead, you get me?!

Just came across this which might help too, hope it's ok to post: http://www.justgrowalready.com/2011/02/be-mindful-of-your-protective-style-ty.html

 

[mamaore]

@claud-uk Bunning is my go to style cos I am style challenged. Thanks for the links. I already do the tip sthere.. Only ouchless bands, not in the same spot, not to tightly, etc. My bun could be suspect.

I tried a braidout last week - it looked okay but the wind messed it up so back it was ridiculous. My hair was flying and did not look tame for my office I work in a conservative organization.

I tried rollersetting, but I loose too much hair while wet combing and the rollers didnt stay on - epic fail And frankly speaking I hate hair on my neck especially when its hot and humid.

My hair is low poo so no porosity control for me.

DH is soo sweet - he obviously wants me to have long hair!

 

[Evolving78]

leave that ouchless bands alone. get some spin pins or good day hair pins. spin pins come in small and large. they are great for bunning. just grab your hair like you are about to put it in a pony, start to twist the pony around until it starts to coil, wrap the hair in a circular motions forming a bun. take the spin pin and spin the pin at the bottom of the bun on the right and take a pin and spin it downward at the top on the left side. your ends will thank you for it!

 

[Lilmama1011]

Update:

DH just helped me cut. I cut off about 1 inch in the longest place. I still have thin ends, but its not as obvious as before. I will do 1/4 trims every 4-6 weeks to remove the rest of the damage. DH doesnt want to cut more... He says he is invested in the length.
Thanks for your advice.

Much better