QuoteReplyTopic: Hair Exensions Breaking Hair!!!! Posted: March 11 2008 at 10:44am
Help please!! I have had extensions for approximately 8 years. I went into them because of a bad hair cut and I wanted my hair back. I can't get out of them. Each time we take them out, we find that my hair has gotten shorter.
I have curly hair and hate it so I straighten it out with a blow dryer and round brush. It's chemically treated so that adds damage too.
I have GreatLengths extensions in. My first thought of why my hair is shorter each time is that when the hairdresser puts the extensions in and goes to blend them in with my short hair, she cuts my own hair even shorter with the layering. I'm thinking it's either that or something is wrong with my own hair. I re-do the extensions every 8 - 10 weeks because I can't handle when they just hang and get stringy looking.
I can't just take them out and have short hair.... I really freak out when I see how short it is and just can't endure short hair for as long as it takes to grow out. I can't handle how dry and gross my hair has been looking lately. I've tried probably every product out there to "repair" (which I know there is no such thing) and to condition.
Has anyone else gone through this and if so, what can I do to get my hair to grow and be soft?
Thanks in advance for your help!!!
malibu
Members Profile
Send Private Message
Find Members Posts
Add to Buddy List
Senior Member
Joined: February 17 2006
Status: Offline
Points: 1531
Hey there, welcome! Here's what I did since my hair is curly and I've been straightening it for years... I let the Yuko grow out and gave into my curls. Believe it or not, I'm really enjoying my hair!! I've been hiding these curls like it's taboo.
I went with the sew in method. It's been great for me. Some people really like it and some don't. I think it has to do with how it's installed but there could be other variables. I got curly hair to match my curl and there it was!! I love it. I get out of the shower and put curl keeper on and let it air dry. I've never been able to air dry my hair but the curl keeper is great. Ms. Honey recently told me about IC gel. That will be my next purchase. Here's a video on the curl keeper: http://curlkeeper.com/How-To-Styling-Video.htm
Since I've been leaving my hair alone, no heat or color, it's been growing!! I used to have a lot of split ends and breakage but it's not doing that anymore.
I
have curly hair and hate it so I straighten it out with a blow dryer and round
brush.It's chemically treated so that
adds damage too.
clsyldy715 wrote:
I'm
thinking it's either that or something is wrong with my own hair.
clsyldy715 wrote:
I've
tried probably every product out there to "repair" (which I know
there is no such thing) and to condition.
Has anyone else
gone through this and if so, what can I do to get my hair to grow and be soft?
Thanks in advance
for your help!!!
These three
things you said stood out for me.. I think much of your damage is not from the
extensions themselves but from the styling techniques you are using on your
natural hair.. Blowdrying & chemical straightening can be damaging to your
hair. Either one of these styling techniques could be a factor in how your hair
will behave. However, the combination of the two can be potentially deadly to
your hair.. If you are for example blow drying your chemically straightened
hair more than 2 times per week, you are killing your own hair, and could be causing
the damage you see. If you add permanent color to the mix, well..
I don’t know
which kind of chemical straightening you are doing, but some are more damaging
and drying to the hair than others. The bottomline is you should really step
back and re-evaluate your haircare routines.. I also wonder what your stylist
says and/or is doing to help your hair recover and get back to a healthy state.
You say your hair
is naturally curly and you hate it.. What if you had curly extensions?? Would
you like your curly locks more if you had longer curly hair for example?? What
about looking at a chemical straightening method that not as harsh, or laying
off the blow dryer. Right now it sounds as if you have sacrificed the health of
your hair so that you can achieve the look you desire.. I think you need to
look at your routines, and find a way to have healthy hair AND a style you
love.. This might mean giving some consideration to a new style..
Check out the 5th So Cal offline luncheon?? For more info: divahairtalk.overthehillweb.com/lunch.html
Links to my fav vendors & hair albums + Weave 101 information: divahairtalk.overthehillweb.com
Thank you for your reply. I don't chemically straighten my hair... it's just highlighted every six weeks with bleach and color. My natural color is light brown and I add 2 different blonds to it so it's mostly blond.
I know I need to lay off of the blow dryer and the curling irons. I did away with the straightener after I noticed that was completely frying my hair!!
Is there anything you can recommend to make my hair at least softer and more manageable until I get my new extensions... I think I will try the curly ones and see how that goes. I just have to have my bangs and top of my hair straight or I hate it.
Thanks again!!
malibu
Members Profile
Send Private Message
Find Members Posts
Add to Buddy List
Senior Member
Joined: February 17 2006
Status: Offline
Points: 1531
Thank you for your reply. I don't chemically straighten my hair... it's just highlighted every six weeks with bleach and color. My natural color is light brown and I add 2 different blonds to it so it's mostly blond.
I know I need to lay off of the blow dryer and the curling irons. I did away with the straightener after I noticed that was completely frying my hair!!
Is there anything you can recommend to make my hair at least softer and more manageable until I get my new extensions... I think I will try the curly ones and see how that goes. I just have to have my bangs and top of my hair straight or I hate it.
Thanks again!!
Are you coloring your own hair or are you having it professionally colored?? Bleach is VERY hard on the hair, and could lead to the dryness your are seeing.. I would STRONGLY suggest that if you are NOT having your hair professionally colored, that you seek out the help of a professional stylist for your coloring needs to minimize the damage being done to your hair.
The hot hair appliances are not helping for sure.. I would suggest laying off of all the heated appliances, and look for a style instead that flatters you and works WITH your curls.. With the right style, you may find that you can still love your hair while laying off the heat..
Check out the 5th So Cal offline luncheon?? For more info: divahairtalk.overthehillweb.com/lunch.html
Links to my fav vendors & hair albums + Weave 101 information: divahairtalk.overthehillweb.com
Athena
Members Profile
Send Private Message
Find Members Posts
Add to Buddy List
Newbie
Joined: February 15 2008
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 31
Same damage happened to me. My hair is fine and straight. I was getting the bleaching and toning done by a stylist, but did not really need the bleaching because my hair is naturally light. GUESS WHAT! At a party, after my stylist had a few drinks, she said, "Your hair is soooo damaged! Next time you come we will really have to deep condition it!" Can you imagine my own stylist telling me this? She was the one who damaged my hair. Needless to say, I have not been back to her.
sherrie215
Members Profile
Send Private Message
Find Members Posts
Add to Buddy List
Super Elite Member
Joined: December 21 2004
Status: Offline
Points: 4424
I used to highlight and color my hair too. And I never seen any growth, in fact it was very slowly over time getting shorter and thinner. The problem was that my hair was brittle and breaking off. About 2 years ago I quit highlighting and just color my roots now. I am not as blonde as I used to be, but I have alot more hair now than I have had for years.
I still do alot of things to my hair that arent good, like the hot tools etc....I am sure if I could cut those things out I would see much more hair growth and better condition.
At a party, after my stylist had a few drinks, she said, "Your hair is soooo damaged! Next time you come we will really have to deep condition it!" Can you imagine my own stylist telling me this? She was the one who damaged my hair. Needless to say, I have not been back to her.
Oh that's really crappy!! I've had many stylists say my hair was damaged and it literally ruins my day. I also have fine hair so it's prone to damage.
I think letting it be is the best thing. Try to find curly hair and go for it. There's a learning curve but you'll figure out the best way to do your hair w/o a lot of heat.
you might want to also consider only styling it when you go out and wearing your hair in a ponytail with it's natural curl/wave. Also, sometimes I use clipins between extension appts to give my hair a break and only wear the clipins when I go out but at home, I let my hair be and use that break to use oils/ deep conditioners/etc which you cannot really use when you have hair extensions as it will damage the bond or cause the extension to slide out (depending on the strand by strand method you selected).
I stopped highlighting my hair and found my texture improved tremendously. My sister had tremendous breakage from over-highlighting (she doesn't wear extensions) and had to stop. her stylist took her back to her dark roots and worked on conditioning the hair....its been six months and her hair has stopped breaking off and is looking healthier. I would agree with Diva vocals, that it probably isn't your extensions causing the breakage but the bleaching coupled with the styling tools. Also if it was only the extensions, you would still see healthy and longer (growth) hair to the sections of your hair where there were no extensions attached. So if your breakage and shorter length is overall, its probably the tools and bleach.
fakeizme
Members Profile
Send Private Message
Find Members Posts
Add to Buddy List
Member
Joined: February 28 2008
Location: Canada
Status: Offline
Points: 683
Wow...I think everyone has given you some great advice! Very smart knowledgable women here. Malibu: your hair is gorgeous!!!
OK...so what I will say is this...get yourself some good protein treatments. For eg. Aphogee Treatment for Damaged Hair,Nexxus Emergencee, Sebastian Penetraitt or Grund Reconstructor. These are all awesome and have helped me get my hair back into shape.
I think the styling of your hair mixed with the method of extensions you have (GL) is what's damaging your hair. I also colour/bleach my hair, but the condition has still improved with treatments. Once I changed from highlighting to all over bleaching (roots monthly), my hair started to retain length. You CAN colour/highlight and have long healthy hair, BUT you really have to baby it.
Start doing the treatments every week and follow up with a deep moisturizing conditioner. YOu will notice a difference --- just stay away from your bonds. Really hope things improve for you!
Thanks so much for your advice! I think I will try curly extensions next time and get some curl keeper. I just don't think that I can go back to my natural color of light brown. Maybe I will just have my hd use color only and no bleach. That should help a l ittle. Your hair looks gorgeous!
Thanks again!
sexibeach
Members Profile
Send Private Message
Find Members Posts
Add to Buddy List
Senior Member
Joined: March 15 2006
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 1569
^^^^^True Sexi, true. I wonder if it's the weight of the GL on the natural hair? Or perhaps it's the removal method being used and hairdressers in a rush. I sometimes think why bother with such an expensive method when there's a huge risk of hair damage?
I also REALLY have to question why the stylist is not actively working to minimize hair damage and why she's not correcting the damage that's already been done. Yet she is continuing to install extensions over damaged hair..
Check out the 5th So Cal offline luncheon?? For more info: divahairtalk.overthehillweb.com/lunch.html
Links to my fav vendors & hair albums + Weave 101 information: divahairtalk.overthehillweb.com
sexibeach
Members Profile
Send Private Message
Find Members Posts
Add to Buddy List
Senior Member
Joined: March 15 2006
Location: United States
Status: Offline
Points: 1569
I also REALLY have to question why the stylist is not actively working to minimize hair damage and why she's not correcting the damage that's already been done. Yet she is continuing to install extensions over damaged hair..
good point b/c it ain't cheap, they need to find a better way of removal, and that's what i heard its the removal that's causing the damage..
Honestly I think more of her damage is coming from the excessive use of bleach and heated applicances.. Even if you took GreatLengths out of the equation, I think she would still suffer from unhealthy hair..
Check out the 5th So Cal offline luncheon?? For more info: divahairtalk.overthehillweb.com/lunch.html
Links to my fav vendors & hair albums + Weave 101 information: divahairtalk.overthehillweb.com
malibu
Members Profile
Send Private Message
Find Members Posts
Add to Buddy List
Senior Member
Joined: February 17 2006
Status: Offline
Points: 1531
^^^^^True Sexi, true. I wonder if it's the weight of the GL on the natural hair? Or perhaps it's the removal method being used and hairdressers in a rush. I sometimes think why bother with such an expensive method when there's a huge risk of hair damage?
When I first started learning about extensions, the stylists I have spoken with about GL made me feel like GL was the safest method.
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot create polls in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum