Detangling Dilemma

Since I got the blogging issue off my chest I guess I can now launch into what I originally wanted to blog about yesterday! :-)

I am editing a video on a tag that I just completed and one of the questions in the tag is what is the least favorite part of my hair regimen.  I answered that it was having to detangle my hair.  The favorite part of my regimen is defining my curls but the crux to that is my curls clump and get defined through the detangling process...LOL!  

The major reason detangling is becoming an issue for me is because my (thick) hair is getting longer and my easy detangling sessions have not been consistent.  Some days my detangling process is easy and other days it is not.  I don't know if my expectation is reasonable but I 'expect' that once I have my detangling process down and if I carry that process out the same way every time then detangling should be easy, breezy each and every time.   I have to admit that I don't carry my detangling process out the same way every time I cleanse my hair.  I think the reason for that is because my cleansing process is not the same every week.  

Having said all that I just wanted to share some action steps that I plan to take for my next "wash" day.  Some steps I have been implementing for some time and they seem to work so I'll keep doing those.  The biggest tweeking is going to be in how I cleanse my hair when using the sink.

My Cleansing Process -  I don't cleanse my hair the same way every week.  Some days I just give it a good rinse in the shower and then deep condition and then detangle.  Other days I cleanse my hair with product and I do that either over the kitchen sink or in the shower.  I think the "kitchen sink cleansing" is the culprit to my more challenging detangling days.  I think that cleansing my hair upside down in the sink increases the tangles/knots.  I also know that one remedy to keeping tangles at bay while having your head upside down in the sink is to keep your hair in twists.  Well, my hair is still too short for that technique because while I twist my hair prior to wetting my hair, as soon as my hair gets wet the twists come out.  I'm thinking that the next time I have to use the sink I'll put my hair is ponytail sections by just putting an ouchless band one time around each section of hair (or clips) and then I'd just have to cleanse and rinse each section separately and completely. 

Detangle with oil and conditioner(with mega slip) - After cleansing and deep conditioning my hair I apply olive oil and then my conditioner to my hair.  This has been working for me.  I find I need to go through an extra step before I begin to detangle with my fingers and that is to let that oil/conditioner combination sit on my hair to soften my hair before detangling.  Once I begin detangling I add small amounts of water to my hair to aid in giving more slip.

Take the time to detangle gently - I have areas of curls on my head that seem to be much more fragile than other areas.  While I can quickly detangle some areas of my hair I'm learning to slow down and be extra gentle with those more fragile sections.  I noticed that when I cleansed my hair I would not get much hair in the sink but when I would detangle I would end up with a bunch of hair on my hands.  I finally realized that I had been pulling my hair out because I was being too rough in my detangling.   Once I started with a more gentle detangling process I don't have as much hair breaking off or out.

Detangle with fingers -  The majority of the time I use my fingers.  I have on occasion used a wide tooth comb or a denman-style brush.  I find I'm more comfortable with my fingers because I can gauge and adjust the tension that needs to be put on hair better with my fingers than with a comb or any other tool.

So this is just a quick peek into my detangling dilemma and my proposed solution to this situation.  Being able to "talk out loud" on this post has helped me think through some techniques and hopefully give some tips that help others. 

What  techniques do you use that have worked for you in making your detangling process easier??