There are several reasons you might experience excessively dry hair. Black hair leans toward being dry, due to the tight curl pattern that hinders natural oils from easily making their way down the shaft. If your hair seems dryer than usual, you can work to get the moisture level back up by taking a few pampering steps. For dry (not damaged) hair, you can restore it by following some (or all) of these methods. You won't "fix" your dry hair overnight, but over time and with patience, you'll notice your hair getting softer.
1. Cut Back on Heat Styling
Blow dryers, flat irons, curling irons and hot combs can all cause dryness. Too much heat is damaging, so if you use any of these tools daily or almost daily, cut back to no more than once a week. Experiment with wet sets, wraps and air drying instead. If you can cut out all heat styling, your hair will recover much quicker. Plus, you'll explore gentler options in styling that you might not have tried before.
2. Leave the Color Alone
While hair color agrees with many women, sometimes it can dry your hair out, especially if you're using bleaches to lighten your hair. Put color on top of relaxers and dry hair is the result. Either stick to rinses, which are gentler, or avoid color altogether until your hair is healthier. And when you do return to color, stick to shades that don't vary so much from your natural hair color.
3. Wear Protective Styles
When you wear your hair out and it rubs against cotton clothing, wool hats and wool sweaters, your ends take a beating. Because dry ends often split and break, you'll experience hair loss. Wear protective styles like braids, cornrows, two-strand twists, flat twists, topknots, buns, chignons and French rolls to keep your ends protected and less prone to dryness and breakage.
4. Protect Your Hair at Night
In addition to wearing protective styles during the day, it's important to protect your hair at night while you sleep. Satin caps and silk or satin pillowcases are much gentler on your hair than cotton pillowcases or scarves. Your hair glides against silky fabrics, while clinging to cotton. Plus, cotton sucks moisture out of your hair, leading once again to, you guessed it, dryness.
5. Rinse and Conditioner Wash [co-wash]
Black hair does better if not shampooed daily. However, if you work out regularly or swim during the summer, you need to rinse perspiration, saltwater or chlorine out. After every dip in the pool or every strenuous workout, rinse your hair thoroughly and follow with a conditioner. Conditioner washes are good in between shampoos for keeping your scalp and hair clean without over-drying with too much sudsing.
6. Condition, Condition, Condition
It's very hard to over-condition black hair, especially if you wear yours natural. Regular deep conditioning can restore the moisture levels you desperately need. For excessively dry hair, deep condition once or twice per week. You don't need a hood dryer for this. You can slather on a good deep conditioner, cover it with a plastic cap and relax around the house for a couple of hours. Wrap it in a towel for additional heat to soften it.
