How To Care For Your High Density Natural Hair

@jamiefrombklyn

High density hair is beautiful to look at, but anyone who has it will tell you it can be a real challenge  to manage. Everything from washing, to detangling, to styling can be a multiple day endeavour. The sore arms and broken combs can make the look of high density hair not even feel worth it. That is, until you learn to manage it better. Here are a few tips and tricks you can employ to make managing your high density natural hair a little easier. 

Note The Thickness Of Your Strands

Most of the time, when someone says “My hair is thick” they’re referring to the density of their strands. But the thickness of your actual strands and the density of your hair can be on completely different sides of the spectrum. You can have high density hair but fine strands, or high density hair with thick strands. You’ll need to know this because it will influence how you should craft your hair care routine. Fine strands need a gentler hand than thick strands. Just look at the thickness of your shed hair. If it's thick and coarse, you have thick strands. If it’s slimmer and smooth, you have fine strands. 

Prepare To Use A Little More Product

All of us have read the side of our conditioner, instructing us to use a “dime sized amount of product”, and chuckled to ourselves. No way a dime sized amount is gonna do it. Well, if you have high density hair, you might be running through your products a little faster than others. This is just an unfortunate fact of life for those of us with high density hair. It’ll take more product to saturate each strand. So set aside a little money for enough of your favorite products. 

Work In Small Sections

If you’ve been unfortunate enough to have tried combing through your high density hair in large sections, you know that is a tear inducing mistake. Because there are so many strands, they can form knots very easily, and those knots can be extremely stubborn. The best way to avoid crying during your detangling session is to work in small sections. It may seem time consuming, but your scalp and arms will thank you. 

Keep It Stretched

@nielascurls

Particularly if you have high density hair with fine strands, letting your hair shrink fully can spell disaster for your hair. The strands will coil into one another, forming knots you’ll likely have to cut out. To avoid this, you should keep your hair in stretched styles like twist outs or braid outs. You can also opt for braids, twists, and buns. 

Be Patient

More than anything, you’re gonna need patience when caring for your high density natural hair. Raking through it will only cause you pain and damage the health of your hair. The more gentle you are with your hair, the more it will flourish. 

What are some things you do to care for your high density natural hair? Share in the comments.