Attention: THESE everyday habits might be damaging your hair!

In our quest to make every day a good hair day, there are times when we might overdo some things or follow hearsay blindly and do more damage. While we all know frequent heat styling without a protectant, colouring too often and skipping haircuts are some of the bigger culprits when it comes to damaged hair, the silent killers are actually your daily habits. Many of these seem totally harmless or feel like they are working, but they might not really be. 

Fortunately undoing this damage and also just turning your bad hair day around could be just as simple as changing a few habits. I am going to list the habits below and you can check as you go down the list. Basically, if you do even 1 of these things, you need to stop. 

Shampooing the lengths of your hair

The shampoo is for your scalp and conditioner is for your ends. The more you usee the shampoo along the lengths of your hair, the more damage it does. All you need to do is wash your scalp and then when rinsing out, let the shampoo fall out through the ends. That should be enough.

Skipping conditioner

This is an important step to nourish your hair after the water and shampoo have rid your hair of its natural oils. Do not skip conditioner and serum.

Rubbing your hair with a towel

Trying to towel dry your hair rigorously might be causing a lot more breakage than you can imagine. Lightly press the excess water on your ends with a towel and then wrap your hair up with a microfiber wrap or a T-shirt. Once semi-dry, just let it down and let it air dry. 

Super hot showers

The hot water feels great but it isn’t doing your hair any favours. The hot water basically opens up the cuticles which in turn dries out the hair even more. Lukewarm water is your best bet. And if you can, your final rinse should be with cold water after the conditioner to lock in the moisture. 

Tight hairstyles

It’s hot, and we get that you don’t want your hair in your face. But tight buns or ponytails aren’t the way to go. Extremely tight ponytails put a lot of stress and tension on your hair strands and cause more breakage especially around the hairline. I can’t tell you to completely avoid tying your hair in a ponytail but go for a loose one. Or even better tie a bun and then use an old scarf around your head like a turban. That will keep your hair safe and out of your face in this heat. If you HAVE to tie a tight ponytail for some reason, then you make sure you use a ponytail friendly crease-less elastic and try and massage your scalp once you take the ponytail out. 

Bonus tip: I know you might have heard this a bit TOO much but if you can, invest in a satin or silk pillowcase. It will make a world of a difference to your hair.