Detangling natural hair before washing...

[Fine 4s]

Is it better for your hair?

The longer my natural hair gets the more I have to switch up how I care for it (as I'm sure you already know). I suspect I will lose less hair by detangling before I wash and DC instead of detangling in the shower with DC on with a comb or Denman (which I rarely use now). I just don't like to see that mixture of long strands and short strands in the tub, it freaks me out! I need to accept that I'll always have a handful of broken and shedded hairs every week. erplexed

Question #1
So, what spray detangler to you use to detangle dry/damp hair? Mostly likely, I'll by dampening the hair.

Question #2
Let's say I want to do an oil treatment, how will I detangle then? I wouldn't want to put oil after spraying a detangler on the strands.
Wait, I think I might have an answer. I can simply detangle on dry hair after the whole wash, DC, Roux'd (btw, I love the Roux Porosity control corrector and conditioner consistency- but how do you feel about the DMD and parabens in the product) process is done right?

Is it just a matter of detangling on DRY/DAMP hair that may be better for the hair?

 

[meecee]

Great question. I'm relaxed now, but was natural for 8 years. Once my hair got past APL I had to change things up. I would usually wear my hair in twists for 2 weeks and twist out for one week. Washing became a nightmare due to the shed hairs, so I started pre-pooing on damp hair.

I used Lekair cholesterol conditioner mixed with a few tablespoons of olive oil. I would heat the mixture a few seconds in the microwave, apply to hair, and let it sit for at least 30 min. with a plastic cap. I would detangle in at least 8-10 sections because my hair is really really thick. After detangling, put each section in a large twist and keep twists in to wash and deep condition afterwards. This is time consuming...but it made wash day so much easier. My hair health greatly improved too from the double conditioning.

 

[Fine 4s]

Great question. I'm relaxed now, but was natural for 8 years. Once my hair got past APL I had to change things up. I would usually wear my hair in twists for 2 weeks and twist out for one week. Washing became a nightmare due to the shed hairs, so I started pre-pooing on damp hair.

I used Lekair cholesterol conditioner mixed with a few tablespoons of olive oil. I would heat the mixture a few seconds in the microwave, apply to hair, and let it sit for at least 30 min. with a plastic cap. I would detangle in at least 8-10 sections because my hair is really really thick. After detangling, put each section in a large twist and keep twists in to wash and deep condition afterwards. This is time consuming...but it made wash day so much easier. My hair health greatly improved too from the double conditioning.

Thank you! I've been frustrated lately and as a result wash less .
I promised myself that I would take care of my hair as I did in previous years or at least until I reach my goal of full WSL by next summer 2010 (currently MBL)...need to revisit hair growth scalp treatments and ayurvedic powders.

Regarding cholesterol, if the Queen Helene brand is similar to Lekair, do you find this DC drying? Someone mentioned that a few stylists instructed her NOT to use this product b/c of the alcohol that can cause dryness. I haven't noticed anything unusual, most DC's IMO are just 'einh.' I haven't read the QH ingredients to know where the alcohol is and what kind of alcohol it is. What are your thoughts on using cholesterol?

I can only wash in sections PERIOD. Do you detangle before washing or after washing when the hair is not wet but at least 50-70% dry?

My pre-poo treatment this week was 4 eggs. I'd like to continue this for the next 2-3 weeks and then finish up my amla oil. After hearing your process though, I might go back to my ORS Hair mayo as a pre-poo. I don't like it much as a DC.

I just need to get to the next step...

 

[Ronnieaj]

I do detangle prior to washing, as much as I can. I slather my hair in conditioner or pre-oil treatment (I like Yes to Carrots/Cucumbers for this), and section my hair and do a finger detangle as much as I can, and then follow CAREFULLY with a wide-toothed comb to get out the shed hairs, and then braid--my hair won't hold the twists that large yet. I don't actually lose a lot of hair this way. I then cowash/tea rinse/poo/whatever I'm doing that day in braids, DC in braids. I take the braids out when I acv rinse, but that's about it. I do still tend to follow with a smaller-toothed comb after I've DC'd but before rinsing; my hair's just happier when I do that.

 

[Fine 4s]

bumping for more responses/suggestions...

 

[LaBelleLL]

Hey,
I currently wear my hair in twists and before co-washing or whatever this is what I do:

-untwist and finger detangle my hair with a detangler (currently i'm using Qhemet's Coco Detangling Ghee and I have some Mane n' Tail Detangler. I prefer Qhemet's since there are no cones, but MnT works well)

-apply pre-poo, let it sit overnight

-I co-wash and then apply my DC. I let this sit for however long.

-Right before i'm ready to wash out my DC, I detangle my hair with a Jilbere shower comb. By this time, my hair is strong and I have overall good slip so when I comb - there aren't as many tangles and not that much hair comes out.

I've detangled on dry hair and didn't like the results. I had a lot more breakages and it acutally took me longer since my hair seemed so fragile and more tangly.

HTH!

 

[meecee]

Thank you! I've been frustrated lately and as a result wash less .
I promised myself that I would take care of my hair as I did in previous years or at least until I reach my goal of full WSL by next summer 2010 (currently MBL)...need to revisit hair growth scalp treatments and ayurvedic powders.

Regarding cholesterol, if the Queen Helene brand is similar to Lekair, do you find this DC drying? Someone mentioned that a few stylists instructed her NOT to use this product b/c of the alcohol that can cause dryness. I haven't noticed anything unusual, most DC's IMO are just 'einh.' I haven't read the QH ingredients to know where the alcohol is and what kind of alcohol it is. What are your thoughts on using cholesterol?

I can only wash in sections PERIOD. Do you detangle before washing or after washing when the hair is not wet but at least 50-70% dry?

My pre-poo treatment this week was 4 eggs. I'd like to continue this for the next 2-3 weeks and then finish up my amla oil. After hearing your process though, I might go back to my ORS Hair mayo as a pre-poo. I don't like it much as a DC.

I just need to get to the next step...

I've never really used the QH conditioner before. As for the drying aspect, thats why I add the olive oil to make it extra moisturizing. I would detangle before washing and leave my hair in the twists to wash. I would also condition my hair after washing so I never any noticed any problems with dryness.

 

[msa]

I've found that oils are the best detanglers. Olive oil is especially slippery and works great on wet or damp hair. I always oil my dry hair with coconut oil and the finger detangle and section before I wash. It makes the whole process much easier.

I suggest dampening your hair and applying a liberal amount of evoo and then detangle. Then continue with your normal wash routine. Your shampoo or conditioner will be enough to remove the oil.

 

[MontegoBayBaby]

I am not natural but I find that when I detangle in the shower I lose less hair. I wash, then I just part my hair in two sections and throw on some hello hydration. Then I place each section under the shower stream and start coming through. The slip of the conditioner and the force of the shower stream just pushes the tangles through. I am currently six mths post and I find that this works better than on dry hair.