Breakage! Breakage! Breakage! We all hate it because it has us losing length we have been trying to retain and makes our hair feel like it isn’t growing.
Hello AfroQueens, hope your hair is growing and skin glowing. Welcome to my blog and be sure to keep it here for everything hair care. To my loyal ones & day ones welcome back.
Feel like your hair has been the same length forever, I’ve an Ebook that will help you grow your hair healthier, longer and thicker. Grab your copy here… Also, check out all the Ebooks,guides and journals that will go a long way in your hair care journey here.
Our hair is always growing only that the growth rate differs from person to person. You don’t notice growth because your hair is breaking a lot or shrinkage makes you feel so. For shrinkage, stretch your hair for length check.
“Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links. This means that, at zero cost to you, I will earn an affiliate commission if you click through the link and finalize a purchase.”
Breakage is inevitable, no matter how well you handle your hair, breakage will always happen. The problem is experiencing excess breakage. You should also know that not all hair on your brushes and comb is breakage, some of it is shed hair.
Related post; Shed hair or Natural Hair Breakage? Know the difference
What do I mean by shed hair? Your hair falls off at the end of its cycle. Read more about the science of natural hair here. How do you tell whether it’s breakage or shed hair? Shed hair has a white bulb at the roots and it’s the same length as your hair while breakage happens at any point of your strands thus the strands are shorter unlike shed hair.
Table of Contents
What causes breakage? Over Manipulation/ styling, skipping trims when necessary, chemical & heat damage, not moisturizing properly and regularly, read about breakage here.
Top ways to stop Natural Hair Breakage
Moisturize
Always moisturize before combing, brushing or styling your hair, moisturized hair is not only easy to style and looks good but also less likely to break. Aim to moisturize properly and retain moisture.
7 Things you must know before moisturizing your natural hair.
How to keep Type 4 Natural Hair Moisturized for Longer
Mosara Products Review; The ultimate moisturizing hair products.
Top 10 ways to moisturize Natural Hair.
Deep condition .
Deep conditioning improves elasticity, repairs damage and strengthens the hair meaning less breakage. Deep condition with a moisturizing deep conditioner after cleansing & use protein treatments when necessary or monthly to maintain the moisture -protein balance.
Why deep conditioning your Type 4 Natural Hair is Essential for growth of healthy hair.
Moisturizing Deep Conditioners for Type 4 Dry Natural hair.
Why protein treatment is essential for Healthy Type 4 Natural Hair.
Detangle gently.
Never rush through detangling, detangle your hair when dry, just comb your tangles without a detangler or conditioner with a great slip and avoid snapping off the tangles.
Everything Tangles and how to properly detangle Type 4 Natural Hair.
24 Best Detanglers for Tangled 4C Natural Hair
Use a detangler with a good slip that will melt the tangles, you can use your fingers first before running a wide tooth comb or detangling brush if your hair is a tangled mess. Snapping off tangles and detangling dry hair will break and weaken your hair & cause strain on your scalp.
Let the damaged and split ends go/ Trim when necessary.
No, you are not losing your length by trimming off those split ends, you’re letting go of a few inches that will eventually cost you more length. I dust my ends every few weeks and trim like once or twice a year.
Trimming Natural Hair; Top 3 signs you need a trim.
Did you know your hair tangles more if you have damaged & split ends, your styles look rugged and lack volume? No? Now you know.
Avoid heat damage.
Heat is okay until you expose your hair to too much that damages your cuticle, weakens & damages your strands. Personally, I rarely use heat, I would go years without using heat on my hair because the heat damage scare is real.
Use heat cautiously and at medium temperature, use a heat Protectants too damaged hair never looks good on anyone, it’s prone to breakage and will cost you length because the damaged parts must go eventually.
Avoid over manipulation.
Aggressively and constantly brushing, combing and styling your hair weakens your strands leading to breakage. Wear low manipulation styles and protective styles to retain length.
5 Steps to prep your Natural hair for Protective Style
Top 5 reasons why protective styles are breaking your hair.
Protect your hair when sleeping.
Use silk/satin bonnet and scarf to protect your hair when sleeping because the fabric doesn’t absorb moisture from your hair and is gentle on your strands unlike the cotton fabric that absorbs moisture from your strands and the friction between the hair and fabric as you toss and turn can cause your hair to break.
Other ways to minimize breakage;
- Protect your ends by tucking them.
- Work in sections when detangling, moisturizing and/or when applying products.
- Eat healthy and stay hydrated.
- Don’t aggressively rub a towel on your hair, rather wrap it on your hair and let it absorb the water or pat it on your hair.
- Pre-poo before cleansing if your hair feels brittle and dry.
Thank you for reading, share with everyone and support my blog here.
How do you minimize breakage and ensure your hair is healthy?
Have you grabbed your How to grow your hair long guide ? Not yet? What are you waiting for sis?
Such excellent tips! Thank you for this wonderful article!
Thank you too for reading💜💜💜