How To Protect Your Hair While Sleeping

When we think of the root causes of hair damage, our mind instantly goes to the main culprits – bleaching, excessive heat styling and even our diet, but think again. Unfortunately something we all do every night can be one of the root causes of damaged, dry, dull hair – sleeping! Yes, you heard us right – the way we sleep can have a negative effect on both the appearance and the health of our hair. We take so much pride in our hair care routines, but when it comes to sleeping, this all goes out the window! So what are you wanting for? Start your journey to healthy hair today with the help of RUSH’s specialised expertise in haircare. 

Understanding Hair Damage During Sleep

Did you know that sleeping is potentially the root cause of your damaged hair? We all love our beauty sleep, but it could be what is damaging your strands. The common causes of hair damage during sleep are the usual culprits, including friction from tossing and turning, the hair becoming tangled and snapping, and the loss of moisture absorbed by your pillowcase! Thin or fine are especially susceptible to becoming more damaged during sleep due to the hair consistency, but that doesn’t mean that those with thicker hair get off lightly. Sleeping can wreck havoc on all hair types! But don’t worry – RUSH’s expertise in flawless hair care will guide you on how to protect your hair whilst you say. Healthy hair is happy hair!

1. Choose the Right Pillowcase for Your Hair Type

It’s time to say goodbye to your old classic cotton pillowcases which are probably doing your hair more harm than good! Cotton is an absorbent fabric which means that sweat, dirt, products and much more can often become trapped in the fabric. Even cotton pillowcases with a high thread count sateen weave cotton can pull and tug at your hair shaft. 

Say hello to the latest trend which has been cropping up all over social media – silk pillowcases! These pillowcases are naturally smoother than other fabrics, which means they reduce the friction caused by any tossing and turning throughout the night. Silk pillowcases are ideal for reducing frizz and hair breakage – and an added bonus is that they look really pretty! 

2. Do a Hair Care Routine Before Bedtime

Skincare is at the top of everyone’s wellness regime – and haircare deserves a place up there too! A wide-tooth comb should be an essential in everyone’s healthy hair journey. The wider spaces between the teeth make it easier to detangle and brush the hair – without causing too much damage. A wide-tooth comb causes less friction and pulling when brushing the hair –  in comparison to a normal hairbrush – meaning the wide-tooth comb is much gentler on the hair and causes far less breakage. We’d recommend regularly deep conditioning your locks to strengthen the hair shaft at the scalp, ultimately rehydrating and nourishing the hair. If you have fine or thin hair, try deep conditioning with a light weight oil that won’t weigh down the hair. If you have thicker hair, try deep conditioning with coconut oil, which will help combat dryness, frizz, breakage and dullness.

3. Use Protective Hairstyles for Overnight

Protective hairstyles are a great way to protect your hair whilst you sleep, and could benefit your hair’s overall health! Pineappling is an easy protective hairstyle that will guarantee you wake up with flawless, tangle-free straight hair every time – saving you precious time in the morning! This technique is also great for those who have fine or frizz-prone hair, preserving strands overnight. 

Before you go to bed for the night, we’d recommend spritzing a leave-in conditioner generously over your hair, then brush through the ends. Bend forward and pull your hair into a high ponytail, securing the ponytail with a scrunchie or fabric hair tie. Only wrap the hair tie around once as you don’t want to create an indentation in the hair. 

Another technique similar to pineappling, create a bun by wrapping your hair in a circle around the centre of the ponytail, securing your loose bun with another hair tie to protect your hair overnight. This technique works best when used with other methods like sleeping with a silk pillowcase to reduce frizz and breakage.

4. Use Hair Accessories

Hair accessories are a great way to protect your hair whilst you sleep, including scrunchies, satin hair ties, or silk scarves. These will help to secure the hair and minimise the friction caused by sleep. 

However, you’ll need to be careful when using hair accessories when you sleep as they can cause tension and pull the hair at the root. Try out one of the protective hairstyles, such as pineappling or a loose bun, which we chat about in this blog! 

5. Wrap Your Hair for Protection

Wrapping your hair before you go to bed is one of the best ways to maintain your hair’s health whilst you get your beauty sleep. This hack protects your hair against friction and helps the hair to retain the moisture which would be absorbed by a cotton pillowcase. 

Wrapping your hair has a multitude of benefits, such as reducing the friction from tossing and turning in your sleep – which leaves the hair more prone to breakage and split ends. This hack works best after freshly straightening your hair, so we’d recommend straightening your hair, then using a wide tooth comb to wrap your hair around your head in a circular motion. Then cover your hair in a satin scarf or silk bonnet to secure it. 

6. Avoid Elastic Hair Ties or Tight Hairstyles 

Wearing your hair down is the best way to prevent the hair from becoming damaged, as tight hairstyles, such as ponytails, cause tension and pull the hair at the root. If you are going to wear protective hairstyles be sure to use a satin scrunchie and only tie it loosely. The constant wearing of tight hairstyles will overtime affect the structure of the hair, leaving it more prone to breakage – add sleeping into the mix where you will be tossing and turning, this will wreck absolute havoc on your hair! 

7. Dry your Hair before Going to Bed

Going to bed with wet hair is potentially one of the worst things you can do for your hair – and we’re all guilty of it sometimes! When your hair is wet, it becomes more elastic, meaning that it will become more prone to stretching and snapping, especially when you’re asleep. Wet Hair, a cotton pillowcase and tossing and turning throughout the night is a recipe for disaster. Always dry your hair before heading to bed!  

8. Keep your Room Cool at Night

You’re on holiday. You step off the plane and you’re instantly hit with the hot air and at the same time your hair instantly becomes frizzy! That same process can happen when you sleep as any form of heat can instantly zap the moisture out the air – resulting in frizzy, frazzled locks. 

Make sure that your bedroom is not too hot before you go to sleep. If your bedroom is too hot, your body will sweat overnight, which adds moisture to your hair – the main culprit for frizz. Be sure to leave your windows open if it’s too hot or change your duvet during warmer nights. 

Maintenance Tips for Hair Extensions During Sleep

Hair extensions are a completely different ballpark when it comes to sleeping. People with hair extensions often wake up with tangled hair and their extensions becoming loose, so here are a few tips and tricks to make your sleep more comfortable and protect your extensions whilst you sleep. 

• We’d recommend braiding your hair when you sleep as this will stop them from becoming tangled. Be sure not to braid them too tightly as they will cause tension on the extension, and be sure to secure them with a satin scrunchie so it doesn’t damage your hair. 
• Be sure that your extensions aren’t wet before you go to bed as it’s a recipe for disaster and they will become tangled. Make sure you thoroughly dry where the connections of your hair extensions are and don’t leave your hair to air dry. 
• A silk pillowcase or a satin bonnet could be the answer if you struggle with your extensions whilst you sleep. Naturally we toss and turn during our sleep which can damage our hair, so using a fabric that is more gentle on the hair, like a silk pillowcase or satin bonnet will relieve some pressure. And an added bonus is that they look really pretty! 
• Remove clip-in extensions before bed! As they are not securely attached to your hair, if they move around during your sleep, they will pull out your hair with them. This will put a lot of tension on the hair and scalp which will lead the hair to become more fragile – the main culprit for damaged hair.

Protecting Your Hairstyle Overnight

We spend all this time styling our hair, so how do we protect hairstyles overnight? Your locks can easily become tangled throughout the night, meaning that for some, waking up with their hair perfectly styled is only a dream! We’ve listed our top tips to protect your hairstyles overnight – flawless hair guaranteed every time!

• The key to protecting your hairstyles overnight is that preparation is key! We’d recommend starting with clean hair, as product build up and oils can contribute to your hair not staying in place.
• Use a light-hold hairspray before you go to sleep to hold your freshly styled hair in place before you go to sleep. 
• In comparison to the classic cotton pillowcases, silk is naturally smoother than other materials. Naturally, we toss and turn throughout the night, meaning your hair becomes more prone to breakage and frizz, so we’d recommend using a silk pillowcase which is gentler for your strands.
• Run a small amount of oil through your hair to preserve it’s structure.
• Make sure that your bedroom is not too hot before you go to sleep. If your bedroom is too hot, your body will sweat overnight, which adds moisture to your hair – the main culprit for frizz.
• Try a silk bonnet! This will not only keep your hair from becoming frizzy overnight, but it will also secure your hairstyle in place – a double win!

Book Your Hair Appointment Now

Ready to start your healthy hair journey? Book your hair appointment with our skilled stylists at Rush.co.uk or find a hairdresser near you to embark on a personalised healthy hair journey. Our experts are here to bring your hair dreams to life.