If you're anything like me, your hair knots up real bad. Over the years, though, I've picked up some tricks which have gotten me to a place where I feel proud of my hair. So, just in time for dry hair season, here are five ways to treat your hair:
1. Consume more biotin
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Also known as vitamin B-7, this nutrient has worked wonders for not only hair strengthening, but also helped grow out my nails after a nervous day of biting them down. Either supplements advertising "nail and hair strengthening properties" or foods like egg yolks, sweet potatoes, or nuts and seeds are a necessary contribution to your diet if you want healthier hair.
2. Comb your hair, rather than brush it
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Often, we just want to get ready in the morning without spending an hour struggling with knots, so we go for the brush. It's quick, even though it hurts, so we get in the habit— but it's time to break it (no pun intended). Using a comb, which is more flimsy than a brush, allows space for your strands of hair to lightly pull apart rather than break, as with a brush which pulls on a larger number of tangles and pulls at hair.
I learned this trick from my hairdresser who I have known since high school. When I first started getting my bangs trimmed by her, I remember her saying, "I haven't brushed my hair in years," and making me laugh.
3. Do hair in a room full of steam
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Every morning I take a shower, and as I brush my in the steam before jumping in— with all its matted knots and frizzy flyaways— the knots slip out.
To anyone who has found brushing their hair difficult, frustrating and uncomfortable— especially on those mornings where the worst knots seem almost out of reach behind your head— this sounds impossible. How it works, is that the water droplets of the steam loosen, soften and create space between hair follicles thus loosening the knots.
4. Use conditioner even when you don’t use shampoo
Now, your instinct is probably that this will make your hair greasy, but that's not so for everyone. Everyone's hair works differently, but generally taking a shower without conditioner— even if you don't shampoo— will dry it out. So, using conditioner is a must to you want it to be softer and less brittle.
5. Use a detangling spray after you shower
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If you've ever gone to the hairdresser, chances are you've walked head-first into a wall of fancy hair-product spray bottles at its entrance. Usually, they're for sale, and if you're anything like me, you've thought them over-expensive and basically unnecessary. On those shelves, however, are often detangler sprays which you can spray in your hair after your shower. For me especially, my hair tangles up in the shower and I'm left with yet another delicate, matted mess behind my head. That's where the detangler product comes in— its to be sprayed on wet hair and strengthens, smooths and, most importantly, loosens knots! For me, I use the "It's a 10 Miracle Leave-in Conditioner Product" (the basic one) because my hairdresser recommended it to me in Highschool, but generally any leave-in detangler will do!
Using any one of these methods over time will surely put your hair in a better state than it was in before. But really, acknowledging you have a problem and then doing research to fix it is really half the battle since your attitude is in the right place