Bad Bed Head

Updated on October 06, 2010
M.C. asks from West Orange, NJ
17 answers

hello moms! my 2 yr old daughter has thin, mostly straight hair, not very long yet (we're still waiting for it to grow). Every morning when she wakes up, the back of her head is a total mess of matted, knotted hair. Is there anything I can do to help prevent it? She sleeps on both sides and on her back, and she's still in a crib with no pillow. She gets a shower every other night and I use Finesse conditioner on her (works great for my thick, curly hair so I figured it would help her too). I have no idea what to do. Also, since her hair is so fine, all of her barrettes are always sliding off. I have yet to find something to hold her hair back that will actually stay put. Any suggestions? (other than giving her bangs, which I don't want to do) Thanks so much!

What can I do next?

  • Add yourAnswer own comment
  • Ask your own question Add Question
  • Join the Mamapedia community Mamapedia
  • as inappropriate
  • this with your friends

Featured Answers

B.C.

answers from Dallas on

Nothing but a good detangler is going to help right now. Maybe some of those teeny rubberband-type hair ties from Claires but that's not going to be comfy to sleep in.

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

K.O.

answers from Columbus on

I had some infant hair bows that were pretty good at staying in if she let them. I found them in Walmart's infant section. Solid different color bows, a set of 6-8. Loved them. She won't keep anything in her hair now unless we are going somewhere that is more interesting/fun so she forgets about them. LOL.

1 mom found this helpful

More Answers

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

S.H.

answers from Honolulu on

My daughter had that problem as a baby... because her hair is fine... and after she wakes up... it got tangled/matted and total bed head in the rear of her head.

What I recommend and works & that I did and still do with my Daughter is:
1) Use a satin pillow case.
2) Use a leave in hair cream/conditioner. I like the Garnier Fructis brand... it is real good.
Or, use a hair serum/shiner... this makes the hair glossy and 'silky'.. thereby lessening the friction of the hair and making it less tangled/matted.
3) ALWAYS brush her hair before bed... and put it in a lose pony tail with a covered elastic. (sorry, when her hair gets longer to do so).
4). Use a "Detangling hair-brush". We have this one from Sephora:
http://www.sephora.com/browse/product.jhtml?id=P241318&am... THIS brush... is TOTALLY worth the price, and works. Without causing pain/pulling to the hair and your child's head while brushing.
5) Trim hair regularly... because... split-ends causes MORE tangles/dry hair ends/matted up hair.
6) Do not wash her hair every night... it will make the hair (especially FINE hair), more dry.... and more prone to tangles. Dry fine hair... tangles more... especially if it has split-ends. Short or long hair, can get split ends.

6) Instead of hair barrettes, use covered hair elastics

These things works for my daughter who has fine hair... and now at her age of 7... she CAN have longer hair and it is nice and healthy although she has 'thin' hair... it is lots of hair.

All the best,
Susan

3 moms found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

P.R.

answers from New York on

Buildup from your conditioner may be the problem. Check the ingredients - dimethicone, a type of silicone added to these to make adult hair glossy, can dull hair over time and make it difficult to manage. For you, use a clarifying shampoo like Suave's or Neutrogena's to remove the buildup.

For your child, try the following:
* Johnson & Johnsons Body Wash, which is milder than the shampoo.
* Aveeno Baby Essential Moisture Shampoo, which conditions fine hair and rinses out easily.
* Once a month, massage Gentle Naturals Cradle Cap Treatment, found in drugstores or amazon. It removes any buildup on the scalp and helps growing hair.

2 moms found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

J.P.

answers from Buffalo on

Hi! Both my girls had the same problem. I use Suave detangler spray. It works great! I still use it on them every morning. It doesn't hurt when I comb/brush and it leaves their hair smooth. (It's in a green bottle w/an octopus on it. Shampoo aisle, w/the rest of the Suave for kids stuff.) As for holding the hair, I found (at Wal-Mart) little rubber bands. They come in several different colors in a holder that looks like a vitamin holder. (Like the ones w/the days of the week on them.) In the baby section, w/the barrettes, etc. They were the only things that held for me. After I put that in, I can then add a barrette or other cute thing w/it. Hope that helps!

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

B.C.

answers from Joplin on

Buy a spray detangler or make some up if you do not have any, a dab of conditioner and some water in a spray bottle works. We are partial to the Johnson and Johnson brand as it smells very good, although we have even grabbed the dollar store brand and while I do not care for the scent, it does work. I have used this on my daughters hair since she was itty bitty as she has always been prone to tangles ( do not put her to bed with wet hair) and my daughter is very tender headed so combing hair out was a nightmare ( use a comb, do not try and use a brush on snarls) start at the bottom of the hair and work your way up to get tangles out. The poster who said you are washing her hair to often is completely spot on...when you wash your hair too frequently you are removing the good essential oils that the hair needs to be healthy. In the summer I understand the need to wash more often ( sweaty head ) but in the winter I only wash my daughters hair once, maybe twice a week.

As for her hair, we make a lot of our barrettes, we use the alligator style clips then cover with ribbon, you can add something to the inside of the barrette so that they do not slide, it is kind of a foamy material...a lot of people that make bows use it for younger ones bows, you can usually find them pre made at craft shows or baby boutiques.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

G.B.

answers from Tulsa on

I get those plastic bands from Wal-Mart and make the little sections of hair, like tiny pony tails on the side, with that then put the barrette just above it, they stay in and never slide out. Use the Suave De-tangling spray in the mornings to dampen her hair and then just brush it down and style it like normal. Otherwise rinse her off in the shower each morning and get the hair wet and start fresh.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

M.D.

answers from New York on

Hey M.,

My daughter is 2 1/2. she had really long hair until recently. Then we cut it to a bob. She would wake up every morning . looking like she got caught in a wind storm. Even now with the short hair it still happens. I would recommend the Johnson and Johnson no more tangle and spray it on her hair, if you don't want to spray it in her hair directly , when my daughter was younger used to spray into my hands and work it into her hair. Either way it works. I brush my daughters hair every morning with the no more tangles and I use a comb , not a brush. It's part of our routine in the morning! Hope this helps!

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

R.R.

answers from New York on

My daughter's hair is the same way. I too use Johnson & Johnson's No More Tangles. No More Tangles on baby fine hair is a 40 year old tradition in my family.

I recently found some Scrunci brand clips at Rite Aid that will stay in my daughter's hair (if she doesn't pull them out). They are specially made for little girls. One pack was of very mini claw clips with little flowers on them. The other was dragon fly barrettes.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

N.D.

answers from New York on

Unless she gets food in her hair there is no need to wash it more than once a week. You are washing out the natural oils and it is dried out. If she only takes showers get a shower cap for her head.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

A.Z.

answers from Portland on

My daughter went through that. Her hair was so bad it would actually break in the back. I found that trimming it frequently to keep the breaks to a minimum helped along with the use of a spray on, leave in conditioner. We use the one by Kiss My Face Kids as it's all natural without chemicals.

I would also use the infant barretts and rubberbands. The tiny ones for babies. Suddenly around three, her hair started coming in thicker and once all the weak, broken hair was trimmed away, her hair grew in thick and beautiful and is long and can hold many children's barretts. She still has fine hair that is straight, so some still come out easily. But she has a ton of hair, so finding the right ones helped us a lot. I also love little clips instead of barretts for ease too!

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

R.J.

answers from Seattle on

My sons did this as well. Baby-dreads.

Huzzah for No More Tangles.

A.G.

answers from Houston on

awwww my daughter has that my hubbie calls it "mad scientist hair", ive noticed that a little conditioner and water in a spray bottle and a soft brush help it a bit.

L.P.

answers from Pittsburgh on

A friend's daughter had the opposite problem, she had super thick, long hair as a really little girl. She had more hair at age 2 than I have now. Sigh. Anyhow, her hair would be a complete monstrous mess in the mornings, so her mother french braided her hair every night before bed. Then when she'd wake up, she'd just unbraid, and no mess! Just some nice waves.

Anyhow, I know you said your daughter's hair is fine and short still, but even relatively short hair can be french braided - if not in one braid down the middle, then 2 on the sides. Not sure if you know how to french braid, but if you do, it's worth a try. It keeps all the hair secured within the braid, which can help with the matting and breakage. The only downside, is that with fine hair, she will have waves when you take the braids out, but that may be really cute! And I'm sure it would be better than matted, tangled knots!

I know you said she doesn't use a pillow yet, but a satin pillowcase will also help a lot. Maybe you could just lay the pillowcase under her head, without the pillow?

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

J.H.

answers from Houston on

We use the detangling spray in the morning (or you can make your own with a few drops of conditioner in a spray bottle and fill the rest of the way with water). My dd still has a difficult time wearing barrettes (6 yrs old) because they will not stay in her hair. When she was younger, I put her hair in pony tails and/or used the bows with salon clips. Now we can do pony tails and regular bows (only with the pony tails), but she usually prefers headbands. It is frustrating and even now, I can fix her hair and it will last about 5 minutes! My sister's hair was the same way (even now only clips and elastic bands will stay in her hair).

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

E.C.

answers from New York on

It's normal - they move their head back and forth. Just get the 'No more tangles' spray and spritz it in and comb through.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

C.O.

answers from New York on

use a satin sheet. that prevents tangles. or just use a water bottle and brush in am.

For Updates and Special Promotions
Follow Us

Related Questions