Honestly, UltraSwim is terrible for your hair. It made my fine hair worse—sticky and dry and damaged—and my stylist was horrified when I told her I’d been using it. See if eliminating that helps the texture.

Wet her hair with tap water before swimming and comb in a little conditioner. That will help keep it from absorbing chlorine, and you can wash and condition with regular products afterward.

And if she can wear a swim cap, even better. If she balks, try a cute one designed for kids. My DD had one at that age that looked like a fish.

Cut it short and it'll curl more too.

I use gentle adult products on my 3 year old. Only shampoo once a week (but she doesn't swim) condition with a light leave in conditioner. Comb through with a wide comb.
Detangler every morning with a comb (I have a sandalwood one which also imports some of those oils). Never brush.

My 7.5 yo highly recommends the Wet Brush. We use it daily and bathe with lots of conditioner every other day.
https://www.wetbrush.com

Anonymous wrote:My daughters hair (age 4) is a nightmare. It is shoulder length and covered in tangles every night. There are so many tears shed over brushing that I just want to chop it all off! An anyone offer some suggestions? Here is a bit more detail:

1. She swims a few times a week and we use ultra swim to wash out the chlorine
2. We condition her hair a few times a week between washing to make it easier to brush
3. It always feels sticky - we use a detangler and I can’t figure out if this is making things worse
4. Her hair has some natural curls/waves, she likes to wear it down
5. We braid it before bed so it is easier to fix in the morning
6. We use a wet brush

The biggest issue a the amount of tangles and stickiness of her hair. Please help!

How often are you washing her hair vs washing + conditioning vs just conditioning?

My 6 year old DD has wavy hair halfway down her back. Until she was at an age where she didn't fight hair clips and ponytails/braids, and kept them in all day, she had short hair with bangs. I hate that look in general, but I understand now why people do it. Now that she's older and wants to keep long hair, we wash it with a 2 in 1 every other day and brush it every day AM and PM. We use It's a 10 Light after washing and it helps a lot with detangling. I also don't let her wear down to school but she can do whatever she wants after or on weekends.

I mean, quite frankly, you are the adult here, if you want her to wear it up, make her wear it up. If she won't do that, cut it short.

No. 1. Cut it short.

No. 2. Use a lot of conditioner

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My daughters hair (age 4) is a nightmare. It is shoulder length and covered in tangles every night. There are so many tears shed over brushing that I just want to chop it all off! An anyone offer some suggestions? Here is a bit more detail:

1. She swims a few times a week and we use ultra swim to wash out the chlorine
2. We condition her hair a few times a week between washing to make it easier to brush
3. It always feels sticky - we use a detangler and I can’t figure out if this is making things worse
4. Her hair has some natural curls/waves, she likes to wear it down
5. We braid it before bed so it is easier to fix in the morning
6. We use a wet brush

The biggest issue a the amount of tangles and stickiness of her hair. Please help!

If I were you I would get a cute bob for the summer. When my dd had tangles it was so much easier and make life a lot better. She has her whole life for long hair. I actually think cutting it makes it healthier.

+1 I have 3 & 6 yo DDs and this is the only way to stay sane

Agree with lots of above recommendations but also silk pillowcases have helped so much. And this year she got a winter hat that was lined with silk. After the first snow in the regular wool hats her hair was practically dreadlocked.

conditioner every time you wash. go to your local indian grocery store and get some coconut oil for hair. put it is her hair for a few hours.

My daughter gets terrible tangles. The game changer for me was not just spraying detangler on her hair, but on the hairbrush as well, repeatedly, as I move from section to section. The detangler spray can’t really penetrate the knots, so spraying the brush first helps get the detangler deeper into the knotted hair.

Her hair is more wavy than curly. Curious why people favor a comb over a wet brush, that’s the first time I’ve heard that

The Knot Genie brush solved this problem for us.

DOes she have curly hair ? If so just let it be. Curly hair should not be brushed as frequently.

Do

NOT

Brush

Ever!

Only use a comb. Only comb when hair is wet. Start at the tips/bottom and work your way up to the roots. I find hair products tend to leave a sticky residue so I only use a little coconut oil. If you put some in the hair when it’s wet, it’ll make the process even easier. The one thing you should continue doing is a braid at bedtime.

Don’t brush when dry!

Either cut it short or have her wear a swim hat or both.