Most people believe that they know their hair best. But such a notion is oftentimes incorrect because many of the things we do to our hair are actually causing it more harm than good. Let’s take a look at the 11 deadly hair mistakes you must avoid if you want your hair to stay strong, healthy and shiny.

1. Over-relaxing the hair.

Relaxing processed hair causes damage and breakage. Keep in mind that you should only relax newly grown hair. It’s also a good idea to go to a professional hairdresser instead of going the DIY route when it comes to using protein treatments and masks to make sure you are using the right one.

2. Coloring the hair at home.

First of all, it requires a professional to know the right colors to mix to produce the color you want. Moreover, it’s possible that we may overcolor our hair when we attempt to do it at home. It’s better to invest in a professional hair color service to get the best outcome.

3. Washing the hair often.

It’s not advisable to wash the hair daily because this takes away essential oils in the hair and scalp. Wash your hair every other day at most or perhaps 3x a week.

4. Cutting your bangs yourself.

From the looks of it, cutting bangs seems easy enough but it actually takes skills and experience to pull it off. If we do it ourselves, we could end up with too short or too wide bangs which aren’t nice for adult women.

5. Using hair care products containing harsh chemicals.

Many hair care products these days contain alcohol, detergents and other chemicals that damage the hair. Make sure to check the product’s label before buying it.

6. Applying heat tools like straightening irons to wet hair.

First of all, applying tools on wet hair will not give you the results you want. You can’t curl wet hair and you can’t straighten it either. In addition, hot tools can dry out your hair if it’s wet and even burn your hair follicles. Make sure your hair is completely dry before you use any heat styling tools.

7. Towel-drying hair roughly.

Towel-drying the hair is a good practice but you have to do it gently. Towels create friction and damages the strands. It can also rid your hair of essential oils and conditioners. Be gentle when using a towel to dry your hair or better yet, use a microfiber cloth.

8. Impatiently detangling knots.

Eliminating knots can be very frustrating but you shouldn’t get carried away. Apply conditioner first and use your finger to loosen your strands. Afterwards, use a wide tooth comb to untangle the hair.

9. Applying conditioner on your whole head.

You don’t actually need to slather conditioner on your entire head. You simply need to massage the conditioner on the ends of your hair. When you put conditioner on your scalp, it leads to buildup of chemicals which could eventually damage your scalp.

10. Choosing high temperature on styling tools.

Just as it’s bad to use styling tools on wet hair, it’s just as damaging to use high temperature settings. Doing so could burn your hair strands. Make sure to use just enough heat and don’t leave the tool on the same hair strands for too long.

11. Opting for ponytails frequently.

Ponytails not only stretches the hair but the rubbery product you use can cause split ends and breakage. You should also avoid tying your hair tightly and pulling your hair back everyday.

The hair is our crowning glory. It enhances our looks and makes us more attractive just as makeup enhances our face. So, it’s very important that you take good care of your own hair. The little things that we do may seem harmless enough but if we do these things often then the damage will become more evident over time.

So, make sure that you avoid the 11 deadly hair mistakes we’ve mentioned above. Also, don’t forget to visit your hairdresser every other month so they can check the condition of your hair and provide the appropriate hair treatments.