Three things to do after a trim to prevent new split ends

healthy ends
This whole micro trimming thing has really got me thinking.  Since I'll slowly be eliminating a decent amount of length, I want to make sure the process is as effective as possible. What I want most is to protect the hair after each trim to ensure that retention is at its highest.

For a while now, I've had a nagging question about whether I should take additional actions right after trimming to prevent new split ends from forming.  Last week I picked up one of those mini sewing kits.  I had quite a difficult time threading the needle so I tried trimming off the end of the thread to make it easier.  But each time I cut a bit off, the end of the thread began to split. When I trimmed off the split, the same thing happened again.



Then I wondered if this was happening to my hair without my knowledge every time I trimmed. Next, I reflected on what I could do to avoid that dreaded outcome from taking place.  


My very first thought was how glad I was to have found Nexxus' ProMend products.  If you recall, they have the ability to actually bind split ends together, preventing them from moving up the shaft.  That would be a perfect post
 trim treatment.


If I want to take things to next level, I could cauterize my ends using an actual flame.  After first learning about this technique of permanently sealing the ends, I became super curious.  Curious enough to try a couple of times. No. My hair didn't burst into a huge ball of flames, like I first thought it would. My assessment is that the technique is effective in preventing splits from moving up the shaft.  So, if I wanted to use an extreme method of split end prevention, this would be it.



One last thing that I MUST do to protect my ends is practice heavy sealing.  Keeping the ends highly lubricated is the secret to retention.  This fall and winter I'm going to step it up and reach for thicker oil for my ends.  Maybe shea butter, castor oil, or vitamin E.  Whichever the case, I'm sure my  newly trimmed ends will love it. Basically, I will be babying my ends before, during, and after each trim to make sure that everything stays on track.   And I vow to stick to this routine even if I know that I'll be trimming them off anyway.  This is so I can maintain the habit even as I slow down the frequency of my trims.

The end goal is retention, retention, retention.  I see this whole micro-trimming thing as a serious weapon in this war on breakage.  Especially if you aren't big on protective styling like me. 




6 comments

  1. Ends that fray immediately after trimming need sharper scissors, this would apply to hair and thread. Dull scissors have microscopic jagged edges which can snag a perfectly a health end while trimming, the snag in turn causes a split. I personally need to invest in a much higher quality pair of hair shears in the near future.

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  2. Sounds like a good plan. I'm on board with the heavy sealing.

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  3. I was just thinking that I should make it my business to start sealing my ends with a butter. Right now I use my oil mix of EVOO, EVCO, JBCO

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  4. Great tips! Since the days have become cooler, I am using JBCO to seal my ends and I can see a difference already. And it doesn't weigh my hair down like I thought it would.

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  5. Your hair looks great!

    I believe that if hair split immediately when it is cut it is not in good shape. But you must also remember that you can't compare hair to thread. Thread is done but processing material in different ways and it is in a very unnatural form. Hair grows in strands, cotton grows in flowers, silk doesn't grow at all it is made buy the silk worm. I believe it is all about the quality and state of the hair. My cacausian friend cuts her hair every second month, it is always blunt and shiny. My hair doesn't shine unless I have oil or something else in it.

    Hair is very strong when it is unmsnipulated if it has grown out of a healthy body.

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  6. My ends don't split much, but get dry and raggedy. Guess I have to treat them intensely. I protect them a lot too. Seems like I can't keep my roots or ends moisturized. I'm so frustrated!

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