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Is your hair prone to hair breakage? If so, don't despair! There are things you can do like taking care when wearing your hair to bed. Hair care is a 24-hour process, so learn what you can do to care for your hair outside the shower. In this post, we'll discuss the causes of hair breakage and what you can do to minimize it. Find out how to help your damaged hair can heal so you can get the longer, fuller hair you deserve.
In This Article:
Common Causes of Hair Breakage
If you're dealing with split ends and hair breakage, you could have dry hair or need to reexamine your hair care routines. Remember that the curlier your hair is, the more moisture it needs. Using a silk pillowcase will help your hair retain more moisture since the pillowcase won't absorb excess water as well as cotton or other materials.
For people who wear tight styles, treat hair with harsh chemicals, or use hot tools like a curling iron—keep in mind these can cause hair damage and hair breakage.
So can brushing while you have wet hair. Reducing the tension of your ponytail and giving heat styling a break may help your hair recover. Waiting for your hair to dry before blow drying can also help give you healthy-looking hair.
Does hair breakage come from too much protein?
There are many causes of hair breakage, but one reason your hair could be snapping off is due to a build up of protein from products. If you think you may be experiencing an accumulation of protein from the products you use, you can add a clarifying shampoo to your hair care regimen. Don't overuse clarifying shampoo, as it is harsh and can dry out your hair. Learn to keep your hair hydrated.
Ensure your hair is getting enough moisture by using hair breakage treatments like masks or deep conditioners. Include a hair serum in your daily routine if your hair is especially dry.
Stopping Breakage With Silk Pillowcases
Friction is the enemy of healthy hair. At night, you're already putting pressure on your hair when you lay your head on your pillow and as you toss and turn at night. But add additional friction with cotton or polyester fibers and you may soon find split-ends and hair breakage if you have dry hair and sleep on one of these types of fabrics.
Stopping hair breakage during beauty sleep
A silk pillowcase is an excellent way to prevent future breakage. According to experts, silk pillowcases:
- Reduce friction, helping your hair shafts slide freely at night
- Help your hair retain moisture from your head's natural oils and products
The great thing about silk pillowcases is that they work for anyone. Whether your hair texture is curly, wavy, straight, thin or thick, a silk pillowcase can help keep your hair strong.
However, as any celebrity hairstylist will advise, make sure you get your hair cut regularly to ensure your ends stay healthy. Split ends lead to hair breakage! And definitely avoid tight hairstyles that add unnecessary stretching to your strands.
If you do happen to have fine or thin hair types, silk pillowcases are even more important for your hair fibers. Sleeping on a silk pillowcases is like a nightly hair breakage treatment that reduces tension, frizz, damage, and drying. This helps stimulate the hair cycle so your hair grows full and healthy.
What Makes Silk So Effective for Hair?
Silk is a unique fabric. Unlike cotton, polyester, and other kinds of fibers, silk is nearly friction-free.
Think about cotton, and you can imagine the somewhat rough texture it has. That texture, even with a sateen weave, may tug or pull on your hair. As a result, your hair could snap off while you're sleeping at night.
Silk's special protein
Silk is made up of around 25% sericin protein, which acts a little like glue. As a result, each of the fibroin filaments stick together, creating a texture that is extremely smooth and luxurious.
Beneficially, silk also wears well, which means that it's strong despite the fact that it feels so soft and thin. With a smooth surface, it resists odors and soils, is wrinkle resistant, and dries quickly. For your hair, that means each strand is less likely to get caught up in the fabric and is more likely to retain its own moisture.
Do Silk Pillowcases for Hair Loss Work?
There is a big difference between hair breakage and hair loss, which is something to keep in mind. If you're not growing new hair from your hair follicles, that's considered hair loss, and a pillowcase is not going to make a difference.
However, if you're seeing healthy hair growth during your growth cycle, are eating a balanced diet, and but are still experiencing breakage, that's different from hair loss.
If you're experiencing hair breakage rather than hair loss, a silk pillowcase will help you to avoid broken hair in the future. This is because silk creates much less friction than cotton, allowing hair to glide smoothly over the surface of your pillow as you sleep.
Silk pillowcases are, in fact, one of the best hair breakage treatments out there!
When it's time to see a wellness professional
If you're losing your hair rather than experiencing hair breakage, you may be better off speaking with a healthcare professional. There are health conditions that can cause you to experience hair breakage or loss, such as thyroid disorders or deficiencies of certain nutrients.
If a silk pillowcase doesn't help, a healthcare professional may be able to find the cause and assist you with medication and ensure your body has all the nutrients it needs.
How to Prevent Hair Breakage When Sleeping with Long Hair
No matter whether you have straight strands or bouncy curls, no one likes to fall asleep waking up to a tangled mess and damaged strands. Or what about waking up to that pricey blow out all demolished? Anyone with long locks knows waking up to an unmanageable mess is an absolute nightmare.
Long hair? You should care
Those of us with extensions, chemical treatments, or color treated locks make huge efforts to maintain healthy tresses. But did you know that you can cause damage simply by sleeping?
Many women put in the effort to protect their strands from heat style damage or split ends. So it is surprising that few know how to prevent hair breakage while they sleep.
So, how to sleep with long hair the best way?
Best Bedtime Hair Routine to Prevent Breakage
Why you should never sleep with wet hair
Sleeping with wet or damp strands overnight is not the best way to wear hair to bed to prevent hair breakage. It is something that should never be done.
Hair is at its weakest when it is wet, which causes strands to stretch and break. This especially goes for those with fine hair.
If you combine wet strands with the friction of pulling them into a high bun, hair breakage is almost guaranteed with damp hair. Using hot tools like a curling iron or flat iron on hair that's not all the way dry can also leave it vulnerable to breakage. So, how to stop hair breakage?
How to sleep with long hair safely
The best way to wear hair to bed to prevent hair breakage is by making sure it's completely dry before going to bed. It may not always possible to go to bed with totally dry hair. But do make an effort to use a blow dryer to get it at least 75% dry to avoid damaged hair. Make sure to set it to the lowest setting, as heat styling is one of the top causes of hair breakage.
Use a few drops of Argan oil or other heat protectant as a protective layer against heat styling. These products should help tame frizz too.
Not all pillowcases are created equal
Cotton pillowcases are a huge culprit of hair breakage and should be avoided. Given the choice between a silk or satin pillowcase, always choose silk. Only a silk pillow case will give you unrivaled protection when you sleep with long hair.
Avoid breakage: Use protection
One of the main causes of split ends is friction. When your strands rub against a pillowcase, it creates tiny tears in the shaft which leads to splitting. To keep your strands and ends healthy, invest in a good silk pillowcase. Silk is infinitely smoother than cotton and will minimize damage.
Using a silk pillowcase in your hair care regimen will greatly reduce friction as you sleep. It will also keep hair moisturized and lock in the essential nutrients that your follicles need to remain strong and healthy. Using a silk pillowcase will guarantee the same effect no matter your hair type. Now that's how to sleep with long hair!
Best Way to Wear Hair to Bed to Prevent Breakage
Despite what you've been told, avoid brushing before bed. This will only cause you to damage and break your strands further. Instead, use a wide toothed comb to gently detangle tangled hair before you go to sleep.
How do I stop hair breakage overnight?
The treatment for hair breakages varies between lifestyle change and therapy depending on the situation. Lifestyle methods to avoid hair breaks include: not rubbing hair tightly with a cloth (use a soft microfiber cloth).
It doesn't mean we should skip the most popular colors and hair styles to avoid damage, but give your hair some rest every time to avoid it getting too dry and damaged.
Using hair oil to prevent breakage
Applying hair oil to the hair shaft and ends adds a further layer of protection. Do this before you style your hair for bed, making sure to steer clear of your scalp unless you plan on washing your hair the next day.
Protect that scalp
If you do suffer from an itchy scalp and want to use oil on it, essential oils such as peppermint oil or tea tree oil can help. Shea butter, sweet almond oil, and coconut oil are also known to have properties to help soothe an itchy, dry scalp. Sleeping on a soft fabric silk pillowcase is also beneficial as it keeps hair and scalp hydrated.
Styling hair to prevent physical damage overnight
Whichever overnight style you choose, give your hair room to move around so you're not cutting off your blood circulation and stretching out your hair, causing breakage.
Braiding your hair, especially if you French braid, can not only protect your hair while you sleep, it can also add waves and body to straight hair when you take it out in the morning. You can leave baby hairs that don't reach out of the braid. Just make sure your braid is not too tight!
Another great way to style your hair to protect it during sleep is to gather your hair at the crown of your head, twist the length, then wrap it around itself into a loose bun. Secure it with a silk scrunchie for added protection.
Proceed with caution when it comes to pulling back your hair, even during the daytime. Don't wear it too tight. And avoid unnecessary accessories or holding products like hair spray. These weaken your hair cuticles and cause strands to fall out when combined with friction.
Silk scrunchies give your hair extra protection
Be careful with what you use to hold back your tresses. No matter your hair type, silk scrunchies will seal in those hair oils that we produce naturally that like a natural deep conditioning treatment for your scalp.
Blissy's extra-gentle scrunchie accessories prevent creasing, dents, and will never snag. Blissy makes the best silk hair scrunchies. Using a Blissy scrunchie is a hair breakage treatment in itself, since protects your strands compared to other scrunchie types and elastic bands.
Avoid clips and a tight top bun at all cost before bed. And never tie your all your hair into a sock bun. Tight hairstyles are one of the worst ways to damage your hair shaft and scalp overnight.
Say Goodnight to Damaged Hair
When you wake up in the morning, carefully free your strands. Avoid yanking or pulling as this will only serve to damage it. Use a light touch and take your time as you work the silk scrunchie free.
Once your locks are free, give it a light brush with a soft bristled brush or your fingers to smooth it out. If you're in a hurry, you can also mist your strands with a leave-in conditioner or hair serum and comb it through quickly.
Otherwise, go ahead with your normal heat styling routine, just make sure to use some sort of heat protectant to avoid breakage.
Blissy Is Here for Your Hair
Blissy pillowcases
Everyone can benefit from switching up their pillowcases and using silk instead. Our silk pillowcases are made of natural fibers and will help you reduce the tension and friction that could be causing frayed ends and breakage.
You'll be happy to know that silk pillowcases are also excellent for skin health too! You can find our Blissy silk pillowcases in standard, queen, king, youth and toddler sizes as well as a variety of colors to match your bed linens.
Blissy scrunchies
Blissy also offers three amazing scrunchie options that are perfect for holding your tresses at night. Tie hair loosely using a Blissy oversized silk scrunchie to gather your locks into a loose bun. If a low ponytail is your preference, a regular sized silk scrunchie will do. For loose braids, a couple of Blissy silk skinnies will do the trick.
Feeling more confident about how to sleep with long hair now? Get your Blissy goodies to give it a try!
