MAINTENANCE OF THE HAIR

There are a few things you can do on a regular basis to improve your hair's overall health and beauty, as well as a few things you should avoid. Here are some general guidelines:

Brush your hair with a hundred strokes: That's right, the good old fashioned way. This increases blood flow to the scalp, eliminates dead skin cells before they become infected, and distributes sebum across the hair shaft for hydration and protection. While completing some of the brushing, bend over from the waist and hang limply. Use a brush with natural bristles or another mild brush. Take your time and don't rush. It's preferable to take your time and just get 30 strokes in than to rush and risk breaking or ripping your hair out. Make it a practice to thoroughly brush your hair before washing it.

Massage your scalp first: Before grooming and brushing your hair during the day, give yourself a short scalp massage. Slip your fingers into your hair and massage your scalp in small circular strokes with just the pads of your fingertips. You can avoid breaking your hair, itching your scalp, and ruining up your style by using your finger pads. Then restyle, re-spray (if you're using it), and off you go...

Rest Day: Make it a practice to give your hair a once-week break. You don't have to wash your hair every day (unless you are a teenager, have a dirty job or work up a real sweat every day). Give your hair a day off if you're over the age of 20 and don't have any rashes or illnesses (like dandruff). Choose a day when you don't regularly go out, or a day when you only do housework and run errands. Do not use shampoo or heat to style your hair. If you're in a hurry and need to do anything, wet your hair, apply a little daily conditioner to the ends, rinse well, and draw back into a "wet look" ponytail or bun after brushing it completely to disperse the sebum. Give your hair a break from shampooing once a week and blow-drying and heat styling whenever possible.

Conditioning Treatments: Unless your hair is really fine and limp, make it a practice to apply a deep conditioning treatment once a week. Deep conditioners are different from daily conditioners, and homemade versions work just as well. Coconut oil is particularly beneficial to hair conditioning. Brush your hair, give it a mild wash, and then dry it with a towel. Wrap your head in a warm towel after applying your deep conditioner to open the hair cuticle and allow the conditioner to seep in. Allow about a half-hour to an hour. Then rinse with warm water to eliminate any remaining conditioner residue, followed by cool water to close the hair cuticle. Rinsing your hair in cool water can be painful, but it can improve the appearance of your hair dramatically. It helps to maintain hair strong by closing the hair cuticle close to the shaft, increasing gloss and manageability. Even better for shine and strength is a blend of chilly water and lemon juice (a half of a teaspoon of lemon juice in two quarts of cool water is sufficient).

Daily Conditioner: Make it a practice to use a daily conditioner on the ends of your hair every time you shampoo. This will reduce slit ends, coloring discolouration, heat styling damage, and the need for frequent trims. If you routinely blow-dry, use a curling iron, or use hot rollers, choose a product intended for thermal styling.

Haircuts: Make it a habit to get your hair trimmed when it's needed. This helps to avoid split ends and keeps the weight off your hair (which can cause breakage). For shoulder length or longer hair, once every 8 weeks is ideal, while once every 6 weeks is ideal for shorter styles.

Up-Dos: Yes, if you have long hair and want to keep it that way, you should put it up as much as possible. I'm not proposing you dress like a librarian every day, but one of the reasons women in the "old days" had such long, gorgeous hair is that they kept it up all the time. The telogen phase might be triggered by the weight of your hair. Hair stops growing and falls out, or simply breaks off, when it is burdened down and excessively long. Putting your hair up on a regular basis will help to keep the weight off your roots. When doing errands, doing housekeeping, preparing dinner, performing yard work, playing about on your computer, watching TV, and so on, you can gently pin it up with bobby pins or a banana clip. This, of course, is dependent on your hairstyle and length. This step is not only unneeded, but also difficult if you have a short hairdo. Make it a point to put your hair up and keep the weight off your scalp if you have shoulder length or longer hair and want it to be as thick and healthy looking as possible. The other benefit is that it will keep the hair out of the food.

How to Take Care of Your Hair

There is a proper technique to wash your hair, believe it or not. Handle it with care, as if it were the finest silk. You'll understand what I'm talking about if you've ever washed a pair of pricey silk hose in your washing machine.

Here are a few pointers to help you prevent causing unnecessary damage to your hair when you're washing it:

1. When washing your hair, let it hang freely, either in the shower or with your head leaning over the bath, or in a shampoo sink. NEVER – NEVER – NEVER – EVER – EVER – EVER – EVER – EVER – EVER – EVER – EVER – EVER

2. To prepare your hair for shampooing, wet it with warm (not hot) water. To minimize excessive water pressure on your hair, keep the showerhead pressure low.

3. Squeeze a small amount of shampoo into the palm of your hand.

4. In your palm, work the shampoo into a lather and apply to your scalp. Massage the shampoo into your scalp with your fingertips all over your head (not your fingernails). Lift your fingers and place them somewhere on your head to move them from one area of your head to another. Do not comb your hair with them. When your hair is wet, it is the most sensitive to damage and breaking. You can work the shampoo all the way to the ends if your hair is very unclean or oily. If your hair is extremely dry or damaged, you may want to only wash your scalp and let the shampoo take up any dirt or oil on the ends as it rinses out.

5. Thoroughly rinse hair with lukewarm water. Allow plenty of space for it to hang naturally. If it's long and needs extra help pulling out the shampoo, gently spread it out with your fingertips.

This is the moment to utilize a rinse-out conditioner if you chose to do so. Apply conditioners to the ends of your hair instead of shampooing, and if your hair is dry, gently massage the remaining conditioner into the roots with your hands. Rinse once more.

7. Gently dry using a towel. The new hair towel wraps are fantastic; they retain hair in place and aren't as heavy as a towel wrap, so your hair is less likely to break.

8. Apply a leave-in conditioner after towel-drying your hair.

9. Always use a wide-tooth comb to comb damp hair and never brush it.

10. NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, It roughens up the cuticle and makes it look dull even if it doesn't break.

11. If at all possible, air dry your hair.

You may have the rich and gorgeous locks you deserve with just a little care and attention. Treat your hair as if it were silk, and it will return the favor with gloss, body, and brilliance.