Low manipulation is key when taking care of relaxed hair. Relaxed hair is delicate; therefore, it should be handled with care. Some say combing your hair frequently is equivalent to getting a haircut! I’m not sure how true that statement is; however, I do know that frequent combing can result in unnecessary tiny hairs in your bathroom sink!
Over the years, I’ve learned to put the comb down and really use the tools God gave me—my fingers! I use my fingers for everything i.e. part my hair, detangle, and style my hair. Don’t get me wrong, I still use a comb, however I only use a wide toothcomb, which helps remove tangles and lessens the stress of tugging and pulling on my strands. Although it may be time consuming, I believe finger detangling and combing are necessary as they allow you to judge and feel the amount of tension to apply to the hair. Less tension equals less breakage. When using a comb, that direct contact is not there, so we tend to drag the comb through knots and tangles without a sense of knowing how much pressure to apply to the hair. This is a no-no!
I detangle while my hair is moist or with conditioner sitting in it. I start from the ends going upwards towards my roots working in small sections at a time. The smaller, the easier it is. Once my hair is thoroughly finger-combed, I’ll lightly rake my wide toothcomb over my hair to ensure it’s all tangle free! Try it!