10 Simple Ways You Can Repair the Look of Hair Damage and Reduce Breakage

There are a number of factors that contribute to hair damage, from the sun and environmental pollutants to chemical hair treatments and aggressive styling methods. Once the damage starts to occur, you’ll likely know about it pretty quickly. Your once smooth and silky strands will turn brittle, dull, and frizzy, with split ends and flyaways becoming the norm.

Fortunately, it doesn’t need to be this way forever. Read on as HerStyler shares 10 things that you can do to repair the look of hair damage and give your locks a stronger and healthier finish.

1. Go Gentle With Your Shampoo

Did you know that your shampoo could be playing a part in the hair damage you’re experiencing? 

Although shampooing your hair may be a necessity, using a shampoo that’s too powerful not only removes dirt, but will also strip away the protective coating that sits on the outermost layer of each strand. This causes direct damage while also leaving the hair more susceptible to environmental damage. 

This is why, if you suspect hair damage, your first step should be to switch to a gentle shampoo. One of our favorites is the HerStyler Sleek Hair Shampoo, which you’ll find in our Essential Hair Care Set. It’s infused with argan oil, which will help to hydrate and moisturize damaged strands. Your hair will feel so much softer after using it!

2. Use a Conditioner That’s Suitable For Damaged Hair

If your hair is damaged, a good conditioner is essential. Find the right formula and not only will you be able to immediately have your hair looking softer, healthier, and more elastic, but you’ll also leave it feeling stronger. This, in turn, will reduce the appearance of breakages and split ends.

How do you find a conditioner that’s good for dealing with hair damage?

Look for products containing ingredients that have been proven to do just that. Argan oil is one great example. Research confirms that the ingredient is capable of protecting the hair from the appearance of oxidative damage. Biotin is another superstar that’s revered for leaving the hair feeling thicker and more resilient while vitamin E moisturizes strands and gives the hair a healthy-looking sheen.

You’ll find all three of those ingredients in the HerStyler Argan Oil & Biotin Conditioner. It’s a decadent formula that also contains aloe vera leaf juice for its hydrating properties, ensuring that it leaves your hair looking better than ever!

3. Use Lukewarm Water When Washing Your Hair

Now that you know how to pick the right shampoo and conditioner for damaged hair, let’s talk about actually using those products. For many, languishing under a steaming hot shower is their idea of pure bliss. Unfortunately, your hair doesn’t feel the same way…

Hot water melts the protective coating that surrounds each strand of hair. The longer your hair is exposed to hot temperatures, the drier it will be and the more damage it will experience. 

The good news is that there’s a simple solution; turning the temperature down to lukewarm. It may not feel quite as satisfying but the only way to see success when it comes to your attempts to repair the look of hair damage is to ensure that you’re not continuing to damage your strands at the same time. Unfortunately, this makes it vital to avoid hot water!

4. Pamper Your Strands With a Hydrating Hair Serum

Hair damage usually causes the hair to turn dry and dehydrated. This is down to the loss of the hair’s natural protective coating. This interferes with moisture retention, leaving strands parched. Due to the lack of moisture, the hair then becomes even more prone to damage. It’s a vicious cycle that can only be broken by ensuring that your hair receives the hydration that it needs.

While a good conditioner will help with this, it’s unlikely to be enough, especially if your hair damage is quite severe. However, adding a hydrating hair serum to your hair care routine can really help. 

We’ve already talked about how beneficial biotin can be in a conditioner. Using a hair serum that also contains the ingredient, such as the VitaOil Biotin Hair Serum, will double up on its effects. Thanks to argan oil and aloe vera leaf juice, this formula is beautifully hydrating too.

Marula oil is another amazing hydrating ingredient, one that can help with the appearance of hair damage too. You’ll find it in our Marula Hair Nourishing Serum, along with vitamin E and aloe vera. 

Whichever serum you choose, apply it while your hair is still damp. This is when your hair is most permeable, enabling it to absorb more of the product.

5. Don’t Over-brush Your Hair

Ever been told that you should brush your hair with 100 strokes each day? 

If you’ve been following that advice, it’s time to stop. It’s very unlikely that your hair actually needs to be brushed 100 times – doing so could end up damaging your locks.

How? It all comes down to the friction created when you brush your hair. Too much of this weakens the outer layer of the hair, causing it to snap and break off. 

Although your hair needs to be brushed regularly, don’t overdo it. Brush it enough to remove any tangles or knots and then leave it at that.

6. Take it Slow When Detangling

Once your hair begins to experience the signs of damage, tangles and knots start to become more common. The hair loses its ‘slip’, meaning that rather than gliding over each other, hairs end up knotting together. 

The more tangled your hair is, the more damage it will undergo. This is why detangling is so important. At the same time, detangling in the wrong way could make things worse by causing your knotted strands to break instead of simply unraveling. 

So, when it comes to detangling, take it slow. Start with your fingers since they’ll be more sensitive to any knots that they encounter. Then, work your way through your locks with a wide-toothed comb or a dedicated detangling brush. Begin at the bottom, detangling the lowest section of your hair, before gradually moving your way up. This saves you from tugging at your roots, which would once again only lead to breakages and damage.

7. Make Heat-Free Hairstyles Your Go-to

Although there are ways to heat style your mane without causing too much hair damage, this can be tricky. This is why it can be useful to find a few heat-free hairstyles that you can turn to whenever you need a new ‘do.

There are plenty out there to choose from – it all depends on your hair type and length. Those with long hair tend to have the most options. Buns are always a great choice, whether you go low and messy, high and neat, or double up with space buns. Braids can also be a game-changer, especially if you’re having a bad hair day. They’ll wrap your hair away neatly, with many braid styles also being great at shielding against environmental damage.

Braids can be created in short hair too. Skinny mini braids add texture to the hair without requiring much length while a small French braid traveling along your hairline could completely transform your look without the use of heat.

8. Always Protect Your Hair Before Heat Styling

What happens if you need to heat style your hair? 

Your priority should be to protect your locks from further damage. This makes a heat protectant absolutely essential.

A heat protectant is a product that’s applied to the hair before heat styling. They take many forms, from creams to sprays to serums. Whichever you choose, coating your strands with a heat protectant means that the brunt of the heat from your heated styling tools is received by the heat protectant, rather than burning your strands themselves. Your hair will still be getting enough heat for you to create your intended style, yet without the associated damage.

Again, just like when using a hair serum, apply your heat protectant to damp hair. Then, make sure that your hair has completely dried before you reach for your heated styling tools. Using those tools on hair that’s even slightly damp will only make your hair damage so much worse!

9. Be Smart When Heat Styling

In addition to ensuring that you’ve prepped your hair for heat styling, being smart about the heated styling tools that you use can also help to prevent the appearance of damage and breakages. 

For example, some heated styling tools, such as the HerStyler Colorful Seasons straighteners, come with an adjustable temperature dial. With this, you can choose exactly how much heat your hair is subjected to. If you have fine or thin hair, you can turn the temperature down, saving your locks from excessive heat exposure. 

There are also many heated styling tools out there with other features designed to prevent the look of heat damage. Our Forever Black flat iron, for example, comes with negative ion technology. This helps to smooth away the look of frizz, giving the hair a shinier finish.

10. Cut the Hair Damage Away

When it comes to split ends and hairs that have physically broken in some way, there isn’t, unfortunately, a way to fix those strands. Instead, the only way to get your hair looking healthy again is to cut away that damage so that your locks are able to better recover.

The right haircut can take things further, leaving your hair looking much fuller and more voluminous than it really is. From a choppy chin-length bob to longer, wavy layers, certain cuts will give your hair texture and movement in a way that detracts from any areas that need some extra time to grow back.

Summary

Nobody wants to be sporting hair that looks damaged and unhealthy. However, it’s also important to keep in mind that the appearance of hair damage isn’t something that you’ll be able to repair overnight. Instead, it requires dedication and commitment to the tips that we’ve shared above. Follow them diligently and you’ll soon be able to get your mane back into a state that you can truly be proud of!

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