Detangling is a crucial part of all hair care. Detangling is simply using a hair-care tool to comb or brush through your hair. This helps to remove tangles and shed hairs that can cause matting, knots, and ultimately, breakage. Detangling can also help with washing the hair, styling the hair, and distributing products throughout the hair. Many naturals have hair growth goals, but are struggling with retaining length. Learning to properly detangle natural hair will ensure that you are not just breaking it off. It will also help with overall healthy hair care, as improper detangling can result in split ends and damaged cuticles. Here are some tips on detangling your hair without ripping it out! Wet and Condition Your Hair Try wetting your hair thoroughly, then applying a generous amount of a slippery conditioner to your hair. When the hair is damp and lots of conditioner is applied, it is in a very ideal state for detangling. The water and conditioner provide lubrication and slip to the hair, which will make it super easy to detangle. Much like car parts need lubrication to move smoothly, your hair needs lubrication in order for your comb or brush to glide through. The more slippery your hair is, the more easily your comb or brush will go through it. Wet hair with lots of slippery conditioner in it can make for easy, breezy detangling. Just be sure to be very gentle with your hair, as wet hair is very weak and can break easily. Detangle in sections After my hair is nice and lubricated, I like to separate it into about 6-8 sections. Detangling your hair in sections can make life so much easier. Focusing on one section at a time is much less stressful than trying to detangle your whole head at once, and it ensures that you’re getting all of the parts of your hair. Detangling in sections also enables you to separate the hair you’ve already detangled from the hair that still needs to be detangled. You can use plastic hair clamps or duck bill clips to secure your sections, and make even smaller sections if needed. It is always a good idea to twist or braid the section after you are finished detangling it, to prevent it from tangling up again!
