How do I repair and strengthen my damaged hair?

I have been straightening and blow drying my hair since first grade (yes I know..blame my mother lol). My hair is barely below my shoulders but it is so brittle and damaged that I need some help finding products to repair it. Thanks!How do I repair and strengthen my damaged hair?
Lackluster locks can result from overprocessing (too much coloring, straightening or even just too-frequent blow-drying) or environmental factors, such as a change of season or dry indoor heat. Walter Claudio, owner of the Walter Claudio SalonSpa in Santa Barbara, Calif., offers these tips to get your hair back in shape:





* Get a trim. Ask your stylist to cut off 1-2 inches (then make it a habit to have damaged ends snipped every six weeks).


Give yourself a mask. Once or twice a week, treat hair to a mask or deep conditioner. Massage the product into damp hair, paying special attention to the ends. Then wrap hair in a warm, damp towel (the heat helps the hydrating ingredients penetrate), and leave on for 10-15 minutes before rinsing.





* Protect locks from heat styling. ';Hair is weakest when it's wet,'; Claudio explains. Before blow-drying, apply a leave-in conditioner (to detangle and protect against the heat). Try Paul Mitchell Seal and Shine ($6.25; 800-321-5767 for store locations) or ThermaSilk Detangler/Leave-in Conditioner ($4; at drugstores).





serious conditioners





A regular deep conditioning treatment can add vibrance to your hair. Some of our favorites:





For extra-dry hair Aveda Sap Moss Nourishing Concentrate ($18; aveda.com) is a pre-shampoo treatment with Icelandic moss, wheat protein and certified organic honey. For color-treated hair Phyto Phytocitrus Vital Radiance Mask ($32; 800-55-PHYTO) uses botanical butters and grapefruit extract to seal in color and hydrate hair.





For curly hair John Frieda Frizz-Ease Miraculous Recovery Deep Conditioning Treatment ($7; at drugstores) smoothes the hair's cuticle with wheat germ proteins and wheat amino acids.





For fine/thin hair Lancome Force Densite Extra Density Replenishing Mask ($28.50; How do I repair and strengthen my damaged hair?
Yes, you have over-done your hair. The intense heat has permanently damaged the structure of the hair inside the shaft, and it is almost impossible to repair that. You really need to be more careful how you use the tools -- you MUST follow the directions and all the precautions they list.





If your hair is that damaged, have you thought about stopping the straightener? That is the first thing.





Yes, all those things suggested by eggruler is correct. Anything you do certainly can help; it won't make it worse. I would suggest using quality products, like Redken, Focus21, Paul Mitchell, Matrix, etc. You want to use something that will rebuild the protein structure, and you will want to restore moisture in the hair. You do not want to use waxes and oils like most other 'conditioners' have!





In the meantime, stop using those heat implements. You will just have to let your hair grow so that you can cut off all those damaged parts. And don't do it again.
I have damaged hair too, and joico k pak has worked wonders for my hair. It has ingredients in it that's made up of the same stuff your hair is made up of so it ';fills in the pot holes'; so the speak.





Invest in a good leave in conditioner. Sebastian Potion 9 is my favorite out of all the other ones I've tried and smells pretty good too. :]





If you keep straightening your hair, some kind of heat protectant spray will help prevent damage from blow drying and flat ironing.





Try doing treatments on your hair. You can use regular conditioner and leave it in for about an hour or so. Nioxin, It's a 10, joico, Sebastian, and Giovani are all really good. :D
Wow that sucks. Straightening and blow drying it is really bad for it. It damages it big time. The first thing I would do is stop doing those. Then I'd consult a specialized doctor. But if you don't have much time for that, I suggest using damage repair products. The products you can trust like head %26amp; shoulders or pantene.
Make sure you're using a high quality straightener. Low quality flat irons can seriously damage your hair. You also have to use them slowly and carefully so you don't rip your hair out...





Get haircuts now and then.





I usually use Pantene hair products.. they keep my hair looking healthy and shiny.
The only way to fix hair that's THAT damaged is with scissors. You can make hair feel, and behave a little better with conditioners, but it's only a temporary fix. Find a cute, short haircut in a magazine, show it to your stylist, and get used to a new you.
most places especially sally's had good products that can help theres a oil treatment called proclaim its makes ur hair look shiny and there are sprays that you can use on ur hair to stop from further damaging your hair.
Trim your hair. Stop blow drying it! It damages your hair! Find something like serum that you can put on your hair on the ends. EX: Paul Mitchel stuff for frizzy hair... It actually works for damaged hair as well!
Shampoo.
just stop doing that and put shampoo on the ends or shave ur head :-)