How you can Detangle Extraordinarily Matted Hair at Residence
Few individuals can escape the horrors of knotted hair—the infants, the balding, and the buzz-cutters are just about the one ones secure. For the remainder of us, knots are an unlucky a part of life.
Whereas a very good detangler and hair brushing can often repair your on a regular basis tangles, generally these knots and tangles tackle a lifetime of their very own. In these conditions, we’re confronted with the improve nobody requested for: What have been as soon as easy knots and tangles develop into deeply intertwined, lumped collectively mats. And matted hair is not any joke.
Whereas your first thought is likely to be to seize the scissors, struggle that intuition. With the correct instruments and temperament, it’s potential to do away with mats from your individual dwelling. Learn on for recommendation from hair well being professional Shab Reslan and trichologist Bridgette Hill on eradicating mats and how you can keep away from matted hair altogether.
What Causes Extraordinarily Matted Hair?
Matted hair is a mixture of connected and shed strands that twist collectively to type clumps—assume conventional knots and tangles, however worse. Whereas on a regular basis knots could be eliminated pretty simply, mats are powerful, if not altogether not possible, to take away with a brush or comb alone.
Hill describes matted hair as “hair fibers that develop into intertwined round one another in a decent interlocking sample that develop into fused collectively, making a cluster or clusters of an unorganized mass of hair fibers.” And whereas these with drier or textured hair sorts, like curls and coils, are actually extra vulnerable to matted hair, it could actually occur to anybody.
The primary explanation for hair matting, in accordance with Reslan, is product buildup on the hair shaft from styling merchandise, improperly shampooed hair, conditioner or hair masks left in for too lengthy, and the like. Over time, that buildup finally makes hair so uninteresting and coated that strands simply tangle collectively because of the ensuing friction.
Hair may develop into matted from an absence of hair brushing, combing, and different detangling strategies, Hill mentions. When tangled, hair fibers lack moisture and may develop into intertwined, finally resulting in mats. Different causes embody improper use of hair equipment or hair ties, lengthy stints with out trims, and failure to guard hair in a single day.
How you can Detangle Extraordinarily Matted Hair
Right here’s the excellent news: Slicing matted hair is absolutely the final resort. That being mentioned, Hill warns that the important thing to detangling excessive mats is having endurance—and being ready with the correct instruments. As for the instruments, she suggests the next:
- Broad-tooth comb
- Detangling brush
- Pin-curl or rat-tail comb
- Detangling primer (her decide: Oribe’s Run Via Detangling Primer, $37)
- Detangling spray (her decide: R&C’s Pinstripe Intense Detangling Spray, $26)
- Hair oil (her decide: Karite’s Nutri-Nourishing Oil Therapy, $40)
- Moisturizing conditioner or therapy
- Invisibobble’s Traceless Waver Hair Pins ($4)
When you’ve rounded up your instruments, you’re prepared to start the method.
- Saturate your entire matted clump with detangler spray, utilizing your fingers to essentially disperse the product all through the mass of hair.
- Utilizing your fingers, attempt to gently loosen up the hair fibers—be sure the hair is totally coated with the detangler spray.
- Apply oil to the hair mass for some extra lubrication and slip. It will will let you safely comb by means of the hair as you attempt to separate the hair fibers from each other. Use the wide-tooth comb for this step.
- Isolate any free-hanging hair strands. Work a detangling brush from the underside of the hair, shifting slowly and punctiliously up towards the matted space.
- Alternate between the detangling brush, broad tooth comb, and rat-tail comb as wanted based mostly on their effectiveness in loosening the tangles within the matted space. For tightly intertwined areas, use the top of an Invisibobble Waver to isolate hairs from the mass.
- As hair turns into remoted from the mass, use the wide-tooth comb to take away any free hairs within the mat. Add conditioner to these ends for further moisture and safety. Proceed with the above steps till the mat is totally eliminated.
In excessive instances, Hill suggests starting with the oil and saturating the matted clump utilizing your fingers. Start in the course of the mat and try to loosen and widen the mat to seek out some free ends of hair to work with. Hill says utilizing the tail of a pin-curl comb is very useful on this case, as it’s going to create area to work by means of the mat. Then proceed with the steps as said earlier than.
Remember that it’s pretty regular to see some hair shedding throughout the detangling course of since mats encompass hairs you’ve already shed.
When to Minimize Your Hair
For those who’re unable to get a comb (and even the tail of a comb) into the mat, reducing is sadly your solely possibility. Alternatively, if you end up tugging on hair fibers and creating an excessive amount of stress, it additionally is likely to be time to get out the scissors.
If it’s been weeks or months because you final combed your hair (we don’t decide), reducing may additionally be your only option since it’s going to seemingly take many hours to completely detangle mats—and even then, outcomes aren’t assured.
How you can Keep away from Extraordinarily Matted Hair
Congratulations: You’ve efficiently de-matted your hair. Now you need to keep away from future mats. The important thing right here, in accordance with Hill, is working towards correct scalp and hair care, utilizing equipment designed to forestall tangles and snags, maintaining the ends of hair hydrated with a lightweight serum or leave-in therapy a number of instances per week, and scheduling common haircuts. For lengthy hair, or hair vulnerable to knotting, take into account defending your strands at evening with a silk pillowcase, scarf, or bonnet.
Be aware of hairsprays and backcombing, each of which encourage tangling and matting of hair fibers. And, in fact, be sure to detangle hair totally after each wash.
The Last Takeaway
Matted hair is an absolute ache to cope with, even with the correct instruments and strategies. In an excellent world, we’d keep away from matted hair altogether, however we all know this isn’t the case. Life occurs, mats occur.
Fortunately, the correct instruments and strategies—and an entire lot of endurance—can probably prevent from a significant chop. So discover your inside peace, seize a fantastic comb, and get to de-matting.
