I’ve been on this natural hair journey for a while now, 11 years to be exact, and I can admit that growing and taking care of natural hair is not always easy. In my early years, one pesky problem I dealt with a lot were single strand knots (SSK), and if your newly natural, I hope you find this post helpful and it encourages you on your journey.
What are Single Strand knots?
Single strand knots occur when coily or curly hair wraps around itself and forms a knot within one strand of hair. They are commonly referred to as ‘fairy knots’ because they’re so impossibly small, that only a fairy could’ve tied them! Single strand knots are visible to the naked eye and you can feel them as you run your fingers down a single strand of hair.
Personally, I find them to be extremely annoying and frustrating. So how does one go about getting rid of single strand knots? Well, the consensus is that single strand knots come with the natural hair territory and that you just have to learn to live with them but actually that’s not true. I was able to effectively get rid of my single strand knots and keep them away with the five tips below.
5 Ways to Get Rid of Single Strand Knots and keep them at Bay
1. Make sure to properly remove shed hairs
2. Wash and condition hair in sections
3. Keep your hair stretched ( an elongated strand is less likely to curl upon itself, creating a knot).
4. Wear your hair in protective styles
5. Trim ends regularly (I like to trim 2-3 times a year)
Do you have single strand knots? How do you deal with yours?