Tips To Help You Detangle Your Hair

Tangled hair can be a pain in the ‘donkey’ and it is never fun to deal with.

It can happen when you neglect your hair for a long time like leaving in braids, weaves or cornrows for several months until it starts to lock up or even by having a poor hair care routine like sleeping without protecting your hair.

This leaves your hair severely dehydrated, weak and susceptible to breakage. At this point, the worst thing you can do to your hair is force a comb through in an attempt to unravel the tangles.

What you need to do is follow the right steps so that you can get rid of the tangles and protect your hair from damage at the same time. This is how.

Moisten your hair

This is the first step you should take at all times. Get a hair steamer or a spray bottle with warm water. Warm water works well for this step because it opens up the cuticles and loosens the coils.

Cold water will close the cuticles making it harder to detangle. Make sure that you don’t wet the hair completely. This will only make the tangles worse and lead to more damage when detangling.

Divide into sections

After step one, your hair should be softer now. You can proceed to section your hair with hair ties or with clips that secure each section.

This is important because detangling your hair all at once increases the chances of breakage. It will also make it harder to check if you’ve detangled your hair properly. Divide into at least four sections or more if necessary.

Get your detangling products

Some people like to use natural remedies like coconut oil which deeply moisturizes the hair and improves slip. You can also find great detangling sprays and creams that help.

Another favorite is conditioner, which works great. Many people swear by a combination of coconut oil and a detangling cream or conditioner. This softens and makes your hair slippery making it easier to detangle.

Find out what your hair loves and apply it generously on each section. You should also massage it in as you work your way through to loosen the coils.

If it’s seriously matted hair, let the conditioner set first by covering your hair with a shower cap for a few minutes before detangling.

* Detangle with your fingers

It’s not advisable to start detangling with a comb just yet. Begin by separating the knots in each section with your fingers because it’s less harsh on your precious strands.

There’s really no detangling tool that can beat this especially when you’re dealing with severely matted hair. While at it, exercise some patience and be gentle.

Go in with detangling tools

Of course your fingers can’t do all the work perfectly. Now is when you can get a wide toothed comb or a detangling brush to finish the process.

Comb or brush your hair from the ends to the roots to prevent breakage. Be gentle and if you can feel some tough areas, try and repeat the previous process of separating the tangles with your fingers first. As you go on, add some warm water and detangling product.