Do you know hair can get damaged easily, but it takes somewhat longer time to repair it? Sun exposure, dying, bleaching, straightening, perming, and heat stress from curling irons and blow dryers can damage your hair over time. These processes dry out your hair, make it porous, brittle, dry, frizzy, dull and leave it prone to breakage and split ends. Those having fine hair are more likely to get their hair damaged.
How To Repair Damaged Hair Fast
The good news is that there are some very effective damaged hair natural treatments that you can start using immediately to make your hair look better right away, as you apply home remedies for damaged hair to restore your hair health over time.
Learn here how to immediately stop further damaging of your hair, use products that will work effectively for repairing damaged hair and habits that will maintain your hair healthy in the long term.
Immediately Save Your Hair From Further Damaging
1.Get A Trim: This is required immediately, in case your hair has a straw-like texture with split ends. Be careful about this, as hair stylists are the reason for most hair damage. Make it sure that hair scissors used are in good condition. Cutting your hair will save you immediately from further hair damaging.
(i) To confirm your hair stylist is using perfectly sharp scissors, try them to cut into a wet tissue. Examine the cut and if you observe torn tissues then the scissors are not the right one and that is signal for you to change your hair stylist.
(ii) Hair is more likely to get damaged at the ends, as tips of the hair easily affected by heat and other sources of hair damage. So, cut off your hair from the ends, as much as is needed.
(iii) Tell the stylist not to use any styling products or hair dryer on your hair, as this would cause further damaging of your already unhealthy hair.
2. Stop Using Heat On Your Hair For Some Time: Now that your hair is freshly cut, make it sure to handle it very gently till its health is restored. Using heat on your hair would be like taking a step backward, every time you apply it. This may be difficult to follow for those who use hair dryers and other heat styling tools to craft their hair-looks every day, so here are few tricks for them.
(i) Start air-drying your hair, and let your hair exist in its most natural state to allow your hair the fair chance to heal.
(ii) If you feel you must straighten or curl your hair or use some heat styling tools, either use a gentler method, such as rollers or hair wrapping or use heat styling tools on a low setting, and save it for special occasions.
(iii) Since your hair will take some time to be fully restored, it might not look the way you like it to till then. You might be tempted to iron out your frizzy curls or enliven your dry, limp tresses, but it’s worth it to hold out until your damaged hair health is restored completely. If you remain patient for some time, you will be rewarded with healthy hair soon.
3. Stop Dying Or Otherwise Using Harsh Hair Treatments: The practice of bleaching your hair color and then applying chemicals to dye it another color is highly damaging. Bleaching or dying your hair that’s already in unhealthy state can really cause hair breakage, hair loss and bald patches. So is the case with many other popular hair treatments, as they strip your hair off its natural oils and damage the hair shaft. When you are trying to treat your damaged hair, it will be very difficult to do so unless you stop all such treatments and allow your hair to come back to its natural state.
(i) Keep away from chemical procedures like permanent curling or straightening, as they too cause a lot of damage to your hair.
(ii) If you must dye your hair, go for a natural dye, like henna or tea. Both of them will not damage your hair, but help to restore it to its natural health.
(iii) Deep conditioning treatments offered by many salons that claim to restore your hair’s moisture use chemicals, so they will not do any good to your hair. You need to keep an eye over what goes on your head, so stay away from such salons, and instead use deep hair conditioning that you can do yourself at home. Read here for such an effective deep conditioning home treatment – How To Deep Condition Your Hair At Home.
Start Using Healthy Hair Products For Damaged Hair Treatment
1. Opt For Harsh Chemicals Free Hair Products: Use either natural or sulfate and other harsh chemicals free hair products, including shampoos, conditioners and styling products. Switch over to all-natural shampoos, conditioners and other hair products made with natural oils and herbs that will nourish and repair your hair. Chemicals laden hair products cleanse and style your hair harshly and weigh it down with unnecessary chemicals. Look out for natural products that restore moisture to dry, damaged hair.
(i) Avoid shampoos and conditioners made with sulfates and sodium laurel. These are harsh cleansers that though clean your hair, but also strip it of natural protective oils and are too hard for damaged hair.
(ii) Use hair products that are silicon-free. Silicons are added to conditioners, as they render hair look smooth and shiny after few applications, but in long term they build up in your hair and make it look dull and weighed down over time.
(iii) When you start using natural shampoo and conditioner, your hair may look a bit oily, as your body has become used to overproducing natural oils needed to keep healthy hair. Wait for few weeks and your body will start producing again the right amount of oil.
(iv) Most of the hair styling products, including sprays, gels, and mousses available in the drug stores contain harsh chemicals that can damage your hair over time. Steer clear of these, and instead shop at a health food stores for the products made with ingredients that are safe for your hair.
2. Treat Your Damaged Hair With Oil: I am a great fan of oil treatments to instill hair with shine and moisture. You can use olive oil and other natural oils to infuse moisture back into your hair. Just massage the oil into your hair, allow it to sit for about 30 minutes, and then rinse it off with lukewarm water.
Another effective trick is to condition your hair with hot oil treatment. You can do it right in your home. Warm up 1/2 cup of olive oil (do not boil it), and then massage it into your hair. Cover your tresses with shower cap or plastic wrap and then apply heat by wrapping everything with a hot towel (fresh from the dryer). Do this home remedy for 45 minutes. After heating, let your hair come back to room temperature, and then shampoo and rinse your hair well as usual. You can do this treatment 1 to 3 times a month depending upon on the extent of hair damage and how dry your hair is. As too much of oil can make your hair look greasy, take care to not over-do it.
Long Term Hair Maintenance Tips
1. Don’t Wash Your Hair Too Often: Washing your hair every day or too often strips your hair of natural oil before it gets chance to travel down the length of your hair and provide shield to keep your hair.
(i) Washing your hair 2 or 3 times a week (or every alternate day, if it’s super oily) will help your hair stay healthy and shiny.
(ii) If you feel your hair roots looking greasy on the days in between washings, use dry shampoo or a little baking soda and sprinkle it onto the greasy area, allow it to sit for few minutes, and then comb it off. You can make your own dry shampoo at home by simply mixing 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and 1/2 tablespoon of baking soda.
(iii) Don’t Wash Your Hair With Hot Water: Wash your hair with lukewarm or cool water to keep the hair shafts flat, and imparting a shiny, glossy look to your hair. Avoid using hot water to wash your hair, as it can damage it in the long term.
2. Deep Condition Your Hair Once A Week: Deep conditioning treatments are meant for damaged hair repair and are devised to penetrate your hair to keep them hydrated all week long. Apply about a tablespoon or so of a good deep conditioner onto your hair; comb it through from the roots till the hair ends. Stack up your hair on your head top, fasten it with a clip and cover it with a shower cap, and then shampoo your hair as usual.
(i) Instead of buying a deep conditioning treatment from a store, you can use a natural product, such as olive oil, almond oil or coconut oil.
Home Remedies For Damaged Hair
1. Repairing Damaged Hair With Avocado And Egg: Remove pit from a ripe avocado, mash it and blend it with an egg. Apply this hair pack onto a little damp hair. Avocados are packed with vitamins, vital fatty acids, and minerals that will help recover luster to your hair. Let it on for at least 20 minutes, then shampoo and rinse as usual. Repeat this natural remedy once a week for damaged hair and once a month for healthy hair.
2. Apple Cider Vinegar Mask: This home remedy is an effective way to repair damaged hair and infuse life back into the limp and dull hair. Mix 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and 3 egg whites, then apply the mix onto your hair. Cover your hair with plastic wrap or a shower cap for about 30 minutes, then shampoo and rinse as usual.
3. Rinse With Tea: After your regular shampooing, give a final rinse to your hair using a quart of warm, unsweetened tea (freshly brewed or instant) to infuse dry hair with a natural shine. Tea can naturally liven up hair color, so take care to use a kind of tea that works well with your hair color. Brunettes should choose black tea to augment shine and enrich their hair color. Blondes should go for chamomile tea, as black tea can darken their tresses.
4. Shampoo And Egg: Blend one egg with a small amount of your favorite shampoo, and then apply onto your damaged hair for few minutes and finally rinse thoroughly. This home treatment helps to boost up protein in your severely damaged hair.
5. Treat Damaged Hair With Botanical Oil: These oils you can get from health food stores. Examples are olive, jojoba, coconut, sweet almond oils, are all ideal tonics for dry, heat or chemicals damaged hair. Coconut oil works well on thick and heavy hair. Moisten your hair a bit and apply small amount of botanical oil until your hair is fully covered. Wrap your hair with a shower cap and warm towel for about 30 minutes, and then shampoo and rinse your hair as usual.
Natural Beauty Tips:
(i) In case you really require to blow dry your hair, do it at the lowest setting. If your dryer has a cool blast setting, use that instead.
(ii) To protect your hair from the sun exposure and air pollution, wear hats and use scarves.
(iii) Don’t rub your hair after you get it wet, instead wrap up your wet hair in a cotton towel, and allow the cotton to absorb the moisture for some time. This will save your hair from further split ends.
Useful Related Posts:
Best Homemade Hair Conditioners
Best Natural Mask For Dry Hair
How To Use Apple Cider Vinegar For Hair
Hair oil has been great for my damaged hair 🙂
Years of using hot combs, straighteners, etc as well as chemical relaxers – my hair was damaged and just looked dull. I stopped getting hair compliments I used to get. A friend recommended I try Shielo products, and the combination of the Shielo Smoothing shampoo/conditioner and the Shielo Restore Mist has helped bring it back to life. They have some special oils in them that my hair really responded to – and I LOVE how my hair looks and feels now. I can definitely see a change since using them. AND I am getting compliments again!
My hair has always been my pride and joy. I figured since it is pretty damn healthy, it could deal with some bleach damage. And I figured the master stylist who did all the color-corrections would know how much would be too much. I was wrong, and now I want to burst into tears every time I look at my hair or touch it. I just don’t know what to do. my hair has also NEVER been shorter than this and it breaks and falls out. What should i do to regrow hair?
@ Rebecca:
Use these remedies:
(i) https://naturalbeautytips.co/how-to-make-your-hair-grow-faster-and-longer/
(ii) https://naturalbeautytips.co/how-to-get-thicker-hair-naturally/
I regrew my hair and you can too. -I’ve been bleaching my hair on and off since forever. My hair wouldn’t grow any longer it would just snap off. I’ve dreamed about having thick, long hair. And when I say dreamed, I mean it quite literally. So i decided to do something about it. My friend suggested Biotin when we were talking about my hair loss.
I’ve tried like 4 different brands until i found that the best one for me. Now i’m 26 and I’ve been taking Biotin every day for years. My hair and nails grow SO much quicker. Hair has increased in the rate and are so long now.
Also my energy levels are high. I remember that at the beginning i did heavy cardio and interval training which helped me lose weight fast but i did not realize how biotin played a part in my weight loss until AFTER i stopped working out. I continue to take biotin every day and now that I am no longer on my diet i eat whatever i want and i don’t gain weight. It appears the biotin may be keeping my metabolism to the level it was at during my training. So i highly recommend it to you.
Can you suggest any natural shampoo and conditioner. All the brands I see at the supermarket have these harmful chemicals.
@ Shalin:
Nattural Shampoo: Try 50:50 mixture of apple cider vinegar and water to use use as a rinse for getting hair cleaner and increase shine.
Natural Conditioner:
(i) https://naturalbeautytips.co/homemade-deep-conditioner-recipes/
(ii) https://naturalbeautytips.co/best-homemade-hair-conditioner-recipe/
I have dyed and bleached my hair to a pulp over the years and I am trying to regain my natural healthy hair. As it has taken years of abuse I realise this will not happen over night. The Pureology Conditioner does work a bit, but the Somaluxe Argan Oil is what made my hair looks like I am 20 years old again! I massaged it into my scalp and hair and have left overnight and washed out in the morning, my pillow wasn’t stained or greasy looking so thats a relief.
You can feel the difference, my hair doesn’t feel as coarse and dried out. I blowdried it and it felt great, shiny and looked healthy and sleek. I do recommend the Somaluxe Argan Oil as a deep conditioning treatment once or twice a week to anyone who has dyed hair. The bottle isn’t very big but you don’t really need a lot, I would estimate this to last me atleast 3 months
I dye my hair almost white and that left it so damaged. I tried Loreal, but the Shielo Intensive Hair Mask fixed the damage, and actually made it look better than before! I use the Shielo Mask more often the recommended because this mask has kept my hair in a lovely condition. My hair dresser was so shocked in how good my hair was and now recommends to all her clients.
I have struggled with my hair for a long time now. I am quickly approaching my 40s and I have bad hair quality. Recently, I have also noticed that my hair has stopped growing as it used to. A few years ago I went to the salon on a monthly basis. Now, it takes me almost two months before I even need to cut my hair! I am desperate and I really need help right now. Hair is one of the most important parts of a woman and I don’t want to give up on this one. I went to the doctors but they didn’t found anything wrong with me. The exams I took showed that I am healthy and there’s no reason for this to even happen to me. Please, I really need hair advice urgently!!!!!!!!!!!!
@ Nancy:
Use these remedies: https://naturalbeautytips.co/how-to-make-your-hair-grow-faster-and-longer/
Hi, I got smoothing done in Jan 17. But due to access chemical on my scalp my hair from the root got burnt. Finally growth has started but now the more new hair are growing and the breakage from the burnt side has started happening. I can feel and see some portions of my hair are small and some are big. I can’t get the hair cut done even becz the growth has just begun. If i have to get the hair cut done then have get bald. Can’t think of hair cut because of this. Pls suggest some home remedies.
Here are two home remedies for you:
(i) A mixture of whole eggs and coconut oil can help to soothe and repair burnt and extremely dry hair. To make and use this mixture, combine 1 whole egg with 5 tbsp. coconut oil in a small container and whisk thoroughly to combine. Massage the mixture onto the roots of the hair and along the hair follicles, making sure to get the mixture from the root to the tip. Leave the mixture in your hair for 30 minutes before rinsing with lukewarm water and washing with a moisturizing shampoo and conditioner. This treatment can be used once per day as long as no skin or scalp irritation occurs.
(ii) Combine 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar with 2 tablespoons olive oil and 3 egg whites, then rub the mix into your hair. Keep your hair covered for about a half hour using plastic wrap or a shower cap, then shampoo and rinse.
Great article,
Thanks for sharing such a great article about how to repair damaged hair at home. This article shares the home remedies that are easily available in the market for the hair treatment. I am also running a website called Miemani which is the best hair repair salon in East London. It offers stylish hair cut and hair coloring with the latest technique.
Thanks for sharing the information, I was looking for broken hair care tips, and I think this website gives good information. Nice website 🙂