Question about Dead Ends

[lveurslf]

Okay so I took out my braids,washed it and blew out the roots a little bit because my hair has been braided for 4 months and the new growth was THICK and I let the rest air dry. Well, after I oiled my scalp my roomate says "you have alot of dead ends and you need to get it cut." I didn't respond but I wonder how she could she tell I had dead ends? Was it b/c my ends were frizzy? What do dead ends look like? How can you tell the difference?

 

[bimbabe]

Hi hun
Hair is waste material -so it is not "alive" outside the body. We just add stuff to the outside to make it look good. Think of it like embalming and putting on makeup on a corpse.

1. To see if you have split ends -hold your ends into the light and if you see some of the ends splitting in two/three etc you have split ends.

Damaged hair that is not splitting but breaking or thinning is sometimes extremely dry/brittle and thins out.

Becaused you airdried that may just make your hair appear to be damaged or rough (frizzy)- airdrying does not look sleek on everyone. Also because you were in braids for so much your hair may just be uneven in some areas and may need a slight trim to tame the frizzies.

Try a rollerset and wrap. I am not sure when you are relaxing next-if you plan to at all but but that would help you guage your hair's condition better than if you airdry it.

HTH

 

[BAILEYSCREAM]

Okay so I took out my braids,washed it and blew out the roots a little bit because my hair has been braided for 4 months and the new growth was THICK and I let the rest air dry. Well, after I oiled my scalp my roomate says "you have alot of dead ends and you need to get it cut." I didn't respond but I wonder how she could she tell I had dead ends? Was it b/c my ends were frizzy? What do dead ends look like? How can you tell the difference?

What the girl meant by dead ends is that the ends look frizzy and probably dry.

I had the very same problem when I took out my braids in January. I also had a lot of breakage in one particular section so I had to cut. Anyway, I suggest you get a trim to get rid of the split ends as they will only split all the way up the hair shaft making the hair look quite thin over time.

Also deep condition every week to add moisture back into your hair because having it in braids for such a long time dries out the hair.

 

[adrienne0914]

Hi hun
Hair is waste material -so it is not "alive" outside the body. We just add stuff to the outside to make it look good. Think of it like embalming and putting on makeup on a corpse.

1. To see if you have split ends -hold your ends into the light and if you see some of the ends splitting in two/three etc you have split ends.

Damaged hair that is not splitting but breaking or thinning is sometimes extremely dry/brittle and thins out.

Becaused you airdried that may just make your hair appear to be damaged or rough (frizzy)- airdrying does not look sleek on everyone. Also because you were in braids for so much your hair may just be uneven in some areas and may need a slight trim to tame the frizzies.

Try a rollerset and wrap. I am not sure when you are relaxing next-if you plan to at all but but that would help you guage your hair's condition better than if you airdry it.

HTH

EXACTLY! that whole "dead ends" comment always cracks me up. i wonder where it originated. do your own inspection of your ends. if they're split, that's really the only reason you'd need to cut, and the only part that needs to be cut is the split, not inches. ya dig?

i definitely agree that you should gauge your hair's health when it's straight vs. air dried.

great post, bimbabe!

 

[lveurslf]

Thanks. When I took the braids out before washing it, I did the inspection and trimmed the split ends that I saw. I'm gonna take every one's advice and just wait until I relax next month to see what condition my hair is in. Normally when I take my braids out it doesn't need much trimming so I guess I shouldn't be worried about it.

 

[Jewell]

Sorry, but there's no such thing as "dead ends." This is just a big false saying-the hair itself has no life, because if it did, it would hurt to cut it. The only living part is the hair follicle, found in the scalp. The hair shaft itself is dead. Your roomate probably just said that because your ends were frizzy. T

There is such a thing as dry ends and split ends. I don't know how you can tell if you need to trim, because everyone's hair is different. For me, when I used to hot curl, I knew i needed a trim if my curls fell out shortly after curling my hair. Now, I just look at the ends. If I find more individual split ends than I can cut individually (if there are way too many) then I just get a trim straight across.

Don't listen solely to people telling you that you need a trim. I had a woman at work tell me that, and I had just had my ends trimmed a month before-I haven't used heat in well over a year, so there was no reason for my ends to be split. My ends don't dry super silky because I air-dry...I guess they looked bad to her, but in all actuality, I didn't need a trim. If the ends are broken off, it probably is best to get a trim. Try to moisturize first, and pay close attention to your hair. If the ends are excessively dry or split, get a light trim to start fresh. Do it if you think so...not your roomate.

 

[JenniferMD]

Great post Bimbabe!

 

[lveurslf]

My ends don't dry super silky because I air-dry...I guess they looked bad to her, but in all actuality, I didn't need a trim. If the ends are broken off, it probably is best to get a trim. Try to moisturize first, and pay close attention to your hair. If the ends are excessively dry or split, get a light trim to start fresh. Do it if you think so...not your roomate.

That's probably what happend because I think she felt like my hair is supposed to be silky straight but it wasn't. My hair was cut before I got braids,I even put castor oil on the ends to seal it so I don't understand how I could manage to have "dead ends" when I took them out.

 

[Jewell]

That does seem odd...especially if you didn't have "dead ends" before you got the braids!