Help! What am I doing wrong with my hair?

[Tootsurly]

I've been trying everything to get my hair into good condition: I use an "anti-breakage" shampoo and conditioner, dry it gently, use a leave-in moisturising product, brush it carefully with a Tangle Teezer and tease out any remaining knots before before using a normal brush to style it, but still I get broken hairs and my hair goes frizzy if it's remotely damp outside.

I see people with beautiful shiny hair with no obvious breakage or split ends. How do they do it, and what am I doing wrong?!

My hair is chin-length, not dyed or bleached, doesn't feel particularly damaged and the hairdresser always says the condition is fine. I'm blonde and the individual hairs are quite fine, I think.

My hair (also blonde and fine) broke more with a Tangle Teezer than with any other brush I've ever used. I use a Wet Brush now and it's much gentler.

How very "haironic"!

I don't think the TT is causing breakages, but I might check out a Wet Brush.

Are you brushing it when it's wet? That is supposedly very damaging.

Gently, yes. I thought that was the point of a Tangle Teezer?

Don’t brush your hair when it’s wet and let it to air dry.

Use a normal paddle brush, it'll cause less breakages. Also use a heat protection serum or spray.

I think Tangle Teezers can also be used on dry hair.

I have a shit tonne of very long hair. About 2 years ago I went for a balayage which they made a right mess of. It took a year to get it back to how it was before. It was just frizz!

I have to be very scheduled with it!

I only wash it twice a week and use redken Frizz resist shampoo & conditioner. On a Sunday and Wednesday night I put on Phillip Kingsley Elastisizer over night and wash/condition the next morning!

I use a tangle teaser brush - the one with the handle. Then I mix the elvive blow dry cream with Redken frizz resist serum, blow dry and straighten then finish it off with Color Wow pop & gloss serum!

It's a ritual but it works!

I can't let it air dry - it just ends up a frizzy, kinky mess with no body and looks awful.

I started using olaplex. No 1 and 3 once, a week, and the bonding oil, after every wash, number 7, the difference in my hair is astonishing.

Mine is the same! I tried lots of different products but now I get a keratin treatment every 3 months and it makes such a difference. It's expensive but worth every penny.

Everyone’s hair is slightly different.

Anti breakage products usually have protein in them. My hair snaps if I use protein products too regularly. some people need lots of protein in products, some people don’t. It could be that your hair doesn’t do well with protein and it’s causing breakage.

I do well with an oil treatment a week. I use hair syrup brand and they have different ones for different uses.

You should also use heat protection and maybe a silk bonnet or pillow for sleeping. I far less breakage using these.

Also what sort of brush do you blow dry it with?

I always post on these threads. When I hit peri my hair freaked out, could this be what's happening with you? I spent a year just throwing money at it trying different products. That's a privilege, but we weren't going on holidays that year. I finally found what works for me. We're all so different, but I've settled on Aveda, the range that's in the teal packaging. It's given me the hair of my youth.

Frizzy hair is usually wavy or curly hair and shouldn't be treated like straight hair.

Have a look at the curly girl method and see if it resonates. It honestly changed my hair massively for the better.

Is it cut regularly, and from a good hairdresser? A good cut can work wonders. Find someone who is good with your hair type. They should be able to advise on products and styling also

I really don't think my hair has enough natural curl for that. It's just frustratingly not quite straight.

Can you post a pic?

Can’t imagine not brushing wet hair and let it air dry first.. 😩 I have a tangle teezer too and it works well on my wet hair.

Try Kiehl’s Smoothing Oil-Infused Leave-In Concentrate, on wet hair. It’s magic.

Second this.

Tangle teezers are designed to be used on wet hair. Like a previous poster said it’s possible that the products you are using are protein based, which can make some peoples hair more brittle and prone to breakage. I’d try more moisture based products which are likely to help if the protein based isn’t.

Living proof triple bond complex is what you need! It’s amazing! No protein in it, so not a concern if you worry about too much protein, and makes hair soft and feels stronger!

Tangle teezers are awful on my wet hair. I used the hedgehog straw brush which is soooooo much better.

With regards to haircare I'd say try some kerastace products. Recommended to me by hairdressers who don't even stock that brand. A good shine spray would make all the difference too.

Yes, fairly regularly. It's not dreadful, just a bit flyaway. I don't wear a lot of make-up, so don't want to look totally ungroomed.

Follow Abbey Yung on insta - she's a trichologist and is very informative