Horrendous split ends... help! (Pics)

[MoanaofMotunui]

Since the end of December the ends of my hair have started splitting. I had my hair cut at the end of January which didn't help much and my hair is getting continuously worse. I'm terrified of getting it cut again as, to cut all the split ends off, I'll be left with an incredibly short bob, which I'm worried will carry on splitting. I straighten my hair (and use a lot of heat defence) to tame it, but brushing it causes so much of the ends to break off. I'm just so worried that I'm going to end up with all my hair falling out. Can anyone give me any advice on how to fix this? 😭

Looks like it needs an intensive conditioner. What do you use on it?

How often are you straightening it? The fructis 3 in 1 fruit masks are great, use as a mask, leave in and conditioner
Long term I would look at stopping straightening, is it naturally curly?
Co wash - as I am Co wash is fab. Nothing drying or stripping. Put a silk/satin pillowcase on or even a cheap satin nightie over your pillow!
Don't towel dry it, blot with a t shirt

I use VO5 shampoo and conditioner daily. I use a deep conditioning hair mask on it weekly. I run straighteners through it on weekdays as I can't leave the house with unpresentable hair 😩

Don't brush your hair. Comb it very gently with a wide-tooth comb instead.
Check that your diet is ok - protein, minerals, good oils etc.
Don't use straighteners or hairdryer, and wash is as infrequently as you can get away with..

Do you swim a lot? If so are you sure it is not a chlorine build up? DD's hair looked a bit similar and then she started using a deep cleansing/swim shampoo and it has sorted it out.

You have basically burnt the end of your hair. The only way to sort it out is cut until they have gone. Either by a drastic cut or every 4 weeks. Ditch your brand of straightener and gets some with a variable heat setting and use on the lowest possible, try not to use daily.

I think you will need to stop straightening your hair - the ends are probably singed and brittle, which is why they are snapping off.

I know it's horrible leaving with unpresentable/wet hair. Try washing your hair at night, covering the ends in hair oil, and making it into a plait to try naturally overnight, which can then be turned into a bun in the morning ifyswim.

Basically - wash your hair as little as possible (up dos and dry shampoo will help), and do not use heat. Worth taking a small pair of nail scissors to every strand and cutting the worst split ends out so the damage doesn't split further up the hair.

Leave your hair saturated in coconut oil overnight on weekends if you can. Hope this helps! Have had peroxide bleach blonde hair for years so I know how annoying damage can be!

My hair went like this and it got shorter and shorter. The only fix was to tie it back and not straighten it for months.

There are so many hairstyles which look really presentable and can be slept in for days without moving.
Take a look on youtube for some styles which mean you can keep it oiled up and wash it less, without using any heat.

You need to get rid of the damage. Cutting it is the only way.

Maybe too much protein? Check the ingredients of your shampoo/conditioner. If it is you need to ditch protein containing products and focus on intense moisturiser (oils, banana, aloe Vera) and stop straightening for a while.

You are probably going to need to chop though. The damaged hair won't repair and will keep travelling up.

Get it cut!

Then stop straightening & protein rinse your hair or better still coconut oil

Get it cut and buy a babyliss big hair.

You need Pureology hydrate shampoo and conditioner, its in purple bottles, buy online-or cheaper is the loreal sulphate free golden shampoo and conditioner squeezy bottles, these are deeply hydrating. A good cut because the ends are not going unsplit themselves. I would then use heat defence- a spray that you can put all over before blowdrying. And a light oil or frizzease by John freida, the original serum, that you put through wet hair. Then blowdry smooth with a roll brush, hairdryer pointing downwards and follow with straighteners. I straighten my hair every 3 days and it is in very good condition, so as long as you use heat defence religiously it's actually better to dry your hair than to leave it wet- as this would damage the hair cuticle if you were to sleep against a pillow for example. I also recommend no bleach- it looks like you lightened the ends of your hair with a lighter dye? Try only use mid to deep brunette colours as these are healthier for the hair and reflect shine better.

I don't think it can be fixed @MoanaofMotunui I think it needs taking up to start with.

Are you blow drying and straightening? Could you let it dry naturally and only straighten it? What about if you do little plaits at night let it air dry and wear it wavy?

Also when you straighten your hair, only use the heat up to 180c as anything beyond is very bad for the hair and far too hot. And make sure to section the hair properly, and brush out tangles thoroughly- if you rush the straighteners through tangled hair this basically burns the knots into your hair and creates more damage.

Your hair is burnt not just dried out. You can't fix the problem permanently with any sort of mask/conditioner but you can improve it from wash to wash (as in, effects of a good conditioner will last for 1-2 washes only).

Without a doubt the damage will continue on and on as long as you use your hairdryer and straightener. I would stop using both - leave your hair to dry naturally except for once in a blue moon emergency drying You can't use the straightener again basically except for maybe special occasion and even then only on the lowest setting possible. Nicky Clarke do a straightener that starts at the lowest of 130 degrees which I find just about gets the kinks out of my fine straightish-ish hair. 150 degrees does a better job but I won't go higher than that. (it goes up to 280 or something on highest setting).

Condition your hair every time, don't dry it, don't straighten it and don't dye it (or use the gentlest semi permanent you can find if you must dye it).

If you don't take action then the hair is going to get shorter and shorter, even if you don't cut it. It's on its last legs and basically you need to conserve the hair you have left as the damage goes quite a way back up so if you want any length then I really would start by no heat treatment. Can you tie your hair back (gently) for daytime? There are so many clips, soft hair ties etc. Also if you do tie it up, don't tie it tightly or you'll cause mechanical breakage where basically the hair will break where it's tied up, usually the top layers.

I've been where you are and you really need to take care, I know not drying or straightening sounds scary but you get used to it and it's better having some hair than no hair!

oh and also the heat defence is possibly adding to the problem.
If you spray a heat defence on and then straighten immediately, if your hair is still damp from the heat defence it will literally fry your hair. Wet hair and straighteners are a match made in hair hell!

You need to mist on the heat defence and then wait 5 mins or until you are sure it's evaporated and your hair isn't damp. But as previously posted I would avoid the straightener altogether from now on.

The hair is very,very damaged and brittle OP. I think you will need to at least generously trim it. I would switch to 'co-washing' or at a minimum low sulphate shampoos, and introduce good quality hair oil asap, as a treatment- argan or Macadamia, even olive oil will help (the proper stuff, not a high street brand with a dash of it in and a load of silicone to pad it out) and get into the habit of applying regularly.

Reduce brushing, get a wet brush or a tangle teezer for brushing and always hold the ends in your hand and brush gently, never just stick a brush in at the top and go through the lengths- it will break more hair. Always wait for the hair to be 80% dry before you start blow drying to reduce the assault on your hair.

Is your hair very curly naturally OP? Could you ditch the straightening?

I'd consider consulting a good hairdresser as well re: a treatment that suits your needs and how to get your hair how you want it longer term.

It looks like you have wavy/curly hair. I'd agree with PP, you need to ditch the straightening entirely and embrace the Curly Girl method. There are good forums, especially on Facebook, devoted to this. Moisture and embracing your natural hair texture instead of fighting it would transform your hair.

Agree with all PP saying cut off the damage and skip the straighteners.

Can you also stop washing your hair daily? Mine's curly and when I got unti the habit of washing daily the condition of it got worse and worse. As it got drier it produced more grease so I felt like I had to wash it more. Vicious circle! You do have to suck up a few days at a time of feeling like it needs a wash at first but it's worth it in the long run.

@MoanaofMotunui You need one of these!

Philip Kinsley elasticizer and stop straightening it.

This may seem a bit drastic, but in all honesty your hair is very damage and there is no way to repair it. Chopping it very short (pixie cut short) and grow it out again is the only solution. Oils and hair masks are good yes but cannot do anything much if your hair is not in good condition. It will keep splitting and breaking if you don't cut it off. Take biotin and another multi vitamin. Then stop using heat as heat is very damaging to hair. You are basically frying your hair. There are many ways to look good without using heat. Then avoid sulphate shampoo etc.