How do you properly comb wet hair?

[NicBenny]

I apologize in advance if this has been previously addressed; however I did not find what I wanted to know when I performed a search.

At any rate, I am new to taking care of my own hair. I have been salon dependent for many many many years. Now, that I've made the decision to transition, I want to learn and get to know my own hair.

With that said, before two months ago, I hadn't washed my own hair in like 8 years because I frequent the salon. Anyway, I have the type of hair that must be combed through after the DC has set because it is usually a tangled mess after shampooing.

I was chatting with my cousin yesterday and we were discussing hair care. She told me that I was combing my hair out incorrectly when it's wet. She said that I should start combing out the ends first then work my way up to the roots and that combing from root to tip will pull my hair out. Do ya'll agree? I comb from the roots sometimes and other times from the tip, depending on the section. The washer at my salon sometimes comb from the roots. Btw, I always use a wide-tooth comb.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks much.

 

[bambieg]

You will pull out more hair if you comb from root to tip. I start at the tip and work my way up.

 

[glamazon386]

Start from the ends and work your way up with a wide toothed comb. Then follow up with a small comb.

 

[Whimsy]

I definitely go ends to root.

going root to ends will mash and pack tangles together causing more stress and pulling out more hair than necessary.

and i only use a wide tooth comb. I don't mess with small tooth combs at all.

also go in sections so you don't go crazy.

Kudos to you for taking care of your own hair. go girl

 

[nikolite]

Yep, your cousin is right. I'll add that you should comb hair while damp, not wet--the hair's much more fragile in that state--and only after it is coated with a product that gives slippage like conditioner, a leave-in, or oils. I find it helps immensely for me to detangle my hair before I shampoo and DC.

Are you natural or relaxed?

 

[NicBenny]

Yep, your cousin is right. I'll add that you should comb hair while damp, not wet--the hair's much more fragile in that state--and only after it is coated with a product that gives slippage like conditioner, a leave-in, or oils. I find it helps immensely for me to detangle my hair before I shampoo and DC.

Are you natural or relaxed?

I am transitioning from relaxed to natural, I am very much in the early stages of transitioning. My last relaxer was in March 2010. I've been relaxed for 10 years and my hair texture has changed dramatically. I can post pics of before (w.out relaxer) and after relaxer pics so you can get a sense of how my hair is when wet or semi-wet.

I use conditioner + water to help me comb my hair out.

 

[NicBenny]

I can't tell if my natural pic posted, but it is the curly pic with the ponytail.

The other pics was taken last month, that's my relaxed (though transitioning) hair wet.

 

[NIN4eva]

Relaxed: I don't comb my hair wet at all. I detangle with a spray on detangler and get the sheds out before I wash. Once dry, I can detangle without the detangler and set on rollers.

Natural: I combed wet from tip to root.

Either way, always from tip to root.

 

[cocosweet]

From tip to root while wet or damp. Lose a lot less hair this way. Sometimes it helps if I use my comb like a pick on my ends and then start combing.

 

[Harina]

Is detangling before shampoo and dc absolutely the best way to go? Does anyone do it after? Gosh, Ihope that wasn't a stupid question.

 

[Nonie]

Is detangling before shampoo and dc absolutely the best way to go? Does anyone do it after? Gosh, Ihope that wasn't a stupid question.

I would insist that yes, it's better to detangle before you shampoo. Getting hair wet when it's tangled up is just a recipe for disaster IMO. When I have had tangled hair (like that one time I was too lazy to retwist a twistout or braid the hair and went to sleep with it loose, and woke up to a tangled mess), I added conditioner to my dry hair and finger detangled it--a tip I learned from Happily Me. And then, only when my hair was fully detangled, did I put it into plaits and shampoo it.

 

[Yoshi3329]

Detangle with conditioner and a wide tooth comb on DAMP hair. From tip to root, always in sections.

 

[KinkyGenius]

Relaxed: I don't comb my hair wet at all. I detangle with a spray on detangler and get the sheds out before I wash. Once dry, I can detangle without the detangler and set on rollers.

Natural: I combed wet from tip to root.

Either way, always from tip to root.

@ bolded: Exactly. I'm relaxed and in the early stages of my HHJ I was mimicing what I seen on the boards: detangling under the shower head with a cheap conditioner in my hair. I loss googlobs of hair. I now detangle in front of the mirror in sections on 50% damp hair and I do a light detangling session on dry hair before washing as well to get the shed hair out.

 

[NicBenny]

At first I felt silly for asking this question, but I'm glad I did. Since I was a little girl, my hair would get combed out while wet with conditioner because it was easier to comb that way.

I always wondered why I lost so much hair while combing while wet, now I know why. I will definitely comb it when damp and see how that works.

Thanks ladies.

 

[frizzy]

In addition to what's been said, get yourself a seamless comb. Regular combs can cut and shred your hair strands giving you frizzy and damaged hair.

I'm notorious for wet combing. I'm trying to do better.