My hair has been one of my biggest "beauty battles". I've cut it, dyed it, and completely fried it more than a few times. But over the last two years have been different, and I've noticed a real change in the overall look and healthy of my hair. It grows faster now, it looks shinier, and it is stronger.
My wake-up call came after a horrendous dye job three years ago. It was near summertime and I wanted my hair to be brightened up a bit. I went in to get sun kissed highlights through my [then] chestnut brown hair, and somehow I walked our platinum blonde. I had to cut three inches of hair off on the spot, and even then it still looked like straw. A few days later I washed my hair and my hair felt like dry knotted gum. The back of my hair was particularly bad, and when I brushed my hair I noticed much more of it was coming out.
To say this was a nightmare would be an understatement. I was terrified that I had permanently ruined my hair. After this I realized that I didn't want to keep going through these "oh no" moments with my hair, and so right then and there I started to make changes. If you're struggling with damaged hair than be sure to click through and read more!
1. Goodbye Heat.
The first big change was saying goodbye to heat. I used to style my hair regularly, and now I only use my straightener to fit the front of my hair. I use heat-less hair techniques to add curl to my hair, and braid my hair each night to maintain a pretty (and effortless) wave.
2. Braid It.
Like I just mentioned above, I now braid my hair everynight before heading off to bed. I first put a little serum on my ends, then tie it up in a braid so that it doesn't rub against the pillow all night (it causes breakage)
3. Oils + Serums
Warning -this may sound like a lot, but I now use serum + oils on my hair once I'm out of the shower, when I first wake up in the morning, and right before going to bed. Yes, this means somethings three times in a single day. My hair is really dry naturally, and really dry hair breaks. To avoid breakage I have had to accept that I need to be consistent with hair serums + oils. I have been using Macadamia Natural Oil, Moroccan Oil, and Coconut oil on my hair to keep it at it's best.
4. Regular Trims + Dusting
I hated going in for hair trims because every time I'd go in asking for one inch to be cut, and I'd end up having it cut up to my ears. Finally, I've found a hairdresser who really listens to me, she knows I am trying to grow my hair out so rather than cutting whatever she feels is best, she goes with what I ask. To keep my hair salon visits to a minimum, I also dust my hair once a month. Dusting just means cutting a teeny tiny bit of hair off your ends yourself using hair-dresser quality scissors. You take off the tiniest amount, but you're likely snipping off the beginnings of split ends. I purchased my scissors at Sally Beauty.
5. No Sudds Shampoo
I only just recently started using a "no sudds" shampoo, and so far I really have liked it. Wen Almost Mint cleansing shampoo has been great for my hair, and I love the tingy mint sensation it leaves on my scalp. I always feel like that tingy sensation is increasing the blood flow to my hair and therefore increasing the growth - whether that's true or not though is something I don't know!
6. A Health Reassessment
About a year ago I really had to take a look at my health. I wasn't feeling great, and it was obvious. People close to me could tell that I wasn't quite myself, and so I booked an appointment with my doctor. We found out the my thyroid had decided to slow down again and we had to up my Synthroid dosage. If you're not feeling well, listen to your body and go to the doctor to be assessed.
7. Silk Pillowcase
Your head rests on your pillowcase all night, so if you have a scratchy pillow case than chances are it's scratching against your hair. It can be really damaging for your hair - especially if you already have naturally dry or brittle hair like I do. A silk pillowcase can help keep your hair healthy during your hours of rest.
8. Regular Deep Conditioning Treatments + Scalp Massages
I've always loved deep conditioning treatments + scalp massages, but now I keep them consistent. I try to massage my scalp every single day for approx. 5 minutes, and I do a deep conditioning treatment once weekly. I switch between using my favourite deep conditioning products (like macadamia natural oil deep repair masque & Hello Hair oil treatment ) or my DIY mint coconut oil treatment.
9. Ombre:
Four months ago I took the plunge to go ombre. I went in to my hair stylist and asked if she could match my root colour and drag it out so that it would fade naturally into my blonde hair. I used to dye my hair every 6-8 weeks, and now my hair has gotten a healthy 4 month break which has made it so much healthier (and I've even noticed that there's a lot less breakage!)
10. Goodbye Regularly Dying Hair:
Now that I am not regularly dying my hair, it's feel a lot healthier and looking a lot better. Dying my roots every 6-8 weeks didn't damage the ends of my hair, but I always felt like it slowed down my hairs growth. And when I did do an overall "colour refresh" I'd almost instantly need to go and chop an inch off. Finally now that my hair has gotten a break from hair dye it's growing long + strong!
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