Rat nest (Big knot) in my hair m- HELP!

You should be able to very gently comb it out. The trick is to add oil or conditioner then start combing at the very bottom of the knot. You don't even have to stick the comb fully into the mass, just glide it over gently over and over. It will take a long time, so put on a fav film and just start.

I have very thick knot prone hair when I was a kid (before the blessed intro of silicone in hair products! So bad for so many things, but oh so good for knots lol) and this was the way we dealt with it if I got a huge one.

The only conditioner I got is sillicone free! Thanks Hairdyeforum XD

Well, the silicone is preventative, it's not going to solve this 🙂 It just makes my hair more slippery and so less likely to knot up in the first place. I use silicones for this reason, but I always make sure I know the true condition of my hair 🙂

so does sillicone damage the hair?

Oils make my hair more slippery hmmm... To prevent them creating in the future I'll always comb my hair lightly before each step (i.e. mask, conditioner, hydrating treatment etc.) Would it help?

This knot is so random I've never had one... I will try and comb it through starting from the bottom. THANKS !!! x

No, silicone doesn't damage the hair. Well, it's not good if you use super hot straighteners which can melt the silicone making it permanently coat the hair. This is generally only a problem if you want to remove colour.

The reason we generally don't like it here is because it can mask damage (making the hair feel slippery and "healthy" but all it's really doing is putting a coating on it), block veggie dyes etc.

It'll more likely be from sleeping on a pillow. I don't remember what you've been doing to your hair, but damaged hair is more likely to tangle. Rolling around and moving your head around on a pillow makes it tangle. This can be prevented by using a silk pillow case, but I've not got personal experience of this because I don't like how silk feels on my face, bizarrely!

I washed my hair with my head down, I saw some darker bits hanging on the ends, that were clearly hair that has fallen out during the washing process, I didn't take them out, as always do it when my hair is dry. Then I put my Joico in it, showercap, waited half an hour, then rinsed it out, applied joico hydrator, another half an hour, then rinsed it out and BAM! Rat nest.

It's likely it started before that, you just didn't notice it. Yes, I know that it seems unlikely, but it's more likely that way than it just happening from washing alone.

I tried combing it from the bottom and.. no way. I either got a crappy brush (I tried regular flat plastic one with fairly densely packed bristles which doesn't help probably), or I don't know. I hope hairdresser I should be going to has got some magical stuff and lots of time :/

Like I say, gently gently. A hairdresser is unlikely to do anything any different. You'll pay through the nose for the time for something you're better off doing yourself because it'll be a LOT more painful with someone else doing it. Seriously!

Literally take it one tiny, tiny, TINY part at a time. It is the ONLY way. It's unfortunate that it's at the nape as that's the most painful part.

My hair knots soooo bad if I go out in the wind (or on a boat or motorcycle). Once while camping I had gone out on a speed boat with damp hair and came back with my head basically as a single giant dreadlock, it looked like a dead animal. Wound up coating my head in butter as it was all we had out  in the middle of nowhere and we spent over an hour slowly working it out. Use fingers first then use the very tip of a comb to pick out the knots. when you think you have gotten them all slowly comb through with a wide tooth comb then use a finer tooth comb.

Coat your hair in any kind of lubricant you have- silicones, oils, fats until it's practically dripping and work slowly to pull them out.

(A head full of butter attracts flies and it's hard to wash out in a cold lake by the light of a lantern. My hair was really soft the next morning though!)

Oh. My G-d.

Gurl.

You killed me! Dead animal, hahahahahahahahhaa. Had me in chuckles ! XD

I'll take your advice on board, I just received an email my coconut oil is on its way yaay! Can You imagine I basically used up 500ml of it in about 4-5 months? I need some more of this goodie! Will slather it all over the knot once I get it

How did your hair feel after you got all the knots out? Damaged? Same as before? x

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It should be fine afterwards, as long as you don't start tearing at it. Keep in mind, the longer you leave this. the worse it's going to get. Use some olive oil if that's all you have.

I sympathise. Been there a couple of times. First was when I was 18 i  backcombed my hair, solidified with spray, (we're talking 80's goth big hair here)  then didn't brush out for a couple of days. Ouch! Second was tAking my braid extensions out - the roots were nicely dreaded. Both cases involved a comb (not brush cos it tears too much), leave in conditioner, and several hours of pain. Worth it in the end though!

Good luck!

I did manage to get some bits out, but it's still thick as.. ekhm.

I should be going to a hairdresser in a week's time.

I don't think I'll continue my de-tangling sessions for now, as I just break A LOT of the hair. I need someone else to do it for me, as I can't even see my rat-nest properly...

My poor hair!! 🙁