Trichorrhexis nodosa

[morehairplease]

Hey ladies,

As many of you know, I had my natural hair texturized on Oct. 7th as a birthday present to myself. Long story short, I hate it and my hair hates me for getting it done. Lately, I have been noticing knots, minor tangles, and mid-shaft splits in my hair strands. My hair is both under and over processed in some areas. If this had been my only problem, I could have dealt with it b/c my initial plans were to stretch for 3 months and then have a corrective relaxer done by my former stylist. However, after examining some shedded strands I have noticed that they are for the most part mid shaft splits(where the hair strand appears to be two seperate thin strands instead of one healthy strand).

My length is not much shorter than my avatar pic and my question is: is it best to cut off my hair and start over or wait this out? My fear is that without knowing if each strand on my head has the mid shaft splits I am at a lost as to what exactly I should do. I was hoping that there would be an area in my hair where the trichorrhexis nodosa was but it appears to be all over. My hair type is 4b and it is extremely difficult for me to examine each strand to see if they are mid shaft splits. The hairs that I have examined to have the mid shaft splits were shed hairs. All of the shed hair that I have examined has the mid shaft splits which leads me to believe that majority of my strands do, as well.

Ladies, what would you do in this situation?

tia,
tishee

 

[poookie]

yikes! sorry this happened to you.

i suffered from a couple of mid-shaft splits a couple of touchups ago. a hardcore protein treatment helped to stop the splitting. maybe you could do a hardcore protein to stop potential splits, and not have to cut your hair.

 

[morehairplease]

yikes! sorry this happened to you.

i suffered from a couple of mid-shaft splits a couple of touchups ago. a hardcore protein treatment helped to stop the splitting. maybe you could do a hardcore protein to stop potential splits, and not have to cut your hair.

thanks poookie. I am washing my hair Sunday and will use the DT equilibrium conditioner with heat and see if that helps.

 

[*fabulosity*]

Tishee... I say wait it out! Like poookie said try a couple protein treatments or a good restructor (sp?). See how that works for about 4 weeks before you make a final decision..remember the scissors are a last resort! Good luck babe! No setbacks allowed!

 

[bellecheveux]

http://coarsehair.blogspot.com/2008/02/excessive-heat-trichorrhexis-nodosa.html

I wrote about it a while back. You can see the best solutions for the problem in the post.

 

[sareca]

That's what worked for me...
http://www.longhaircareforum.com/showpost.php?p=2204916&postcount=10

I just posted about how low manipulation contributed today.
http://www.longhaircareforum.com/showpost.php?p=6125843&postcount=416

ETA: I slowly trimmed all the damage off. It was very discouraging because it extended up the shaft even tho I couldn't see it. Everytime I trimmed new ones formed. It took awhile. Locating the source is essential.

 

[Monigirl]

Oh no!!erplexed I hate that this has happened to your hair.

If possible I would wait it out stick with your plan of doing a 3 month stretch.Try doing a few protein/reconstructor treatments. My favorite one to use it Aphogee 2 Min Keratin Reconstructor every 4 weeks. Also within the next 3 months try wearing your hair in protective hair styles only until your next corrective touch up. A few great protective styles to try are cornrows, buns, and quickweave just to name a few.

Don't cut...please hide your scissors.

 

[Kari107]

I suffered from this 2 years ago due to my constant use of permanent haircolor. I started using protien and babying my hair and it's almost gone now. I just have a small amount at the ends, which I'm working on trimming off.

 

[Menina Preta]

I co-sign with everyone who said wait it out. Trim slowly.

 

[discobiscuits]

what if you had this condition before the texturizer but the texturizer just made it more evident?

i'd wait it out if i could.

i regretted getting a texturizer too the 1st time i was all natural.


ETA:

thanks for this thread. i read some of the articles that came up in a search and it said this condition is common in afro-Caribbean or blacks....maybe this is why some blacks can't "seem" to grow long hair?

 

[Starbucks]

Hi, none of this worked for me I have been waiting and gotten at least four trims by now. Does anyone else have any ideas?

 

[prettybyrd]

Starbucks, when you got your hair trimmed did your stylist mention any solutions to you? How long is your hair? I'd hate to recommend starting over if you have long hair, but if the trims and treatments have not helped I wouldn't know what else to recommend.

 

[Starbucks]

@Starbucks, when you got your hair trimmed did your stylist mention any solutions to you? How long is your hair? I'd hate to recommend starting over if you have long hair, but if the trims and treatments have not helped I wouldn't know what else to recommend.

It will not go much past shoulder because of this, at least I thought before I was making some progress. This is after being trimmed all the way back to neck length. This is the worst thing I ever experienced with hair I think which is why it seems so odd. I thought the trimming was like starting over but it just keep splitting? I thought chemical damage was the worst thing that could happen but I never realized tools and styles could damage hair. Still not sure what to do about about styling if I ever get past this.