Can wavy hair turn straight?

Your hair used to be wavy.

Now, the waves seem to be disappearing.

Maybe your hair is straighter at the roots, your once-defined S-shapes have become much looser, or your usual wavy hair routine suddenly isn't producing the results it used to.

So, can wavy hair actually turn straight?

Yes.

Your natural hair texture can change throughout your life, and wavy hair can become straighter. However, there are also plenty of temporary reasons your waves might look straighter – from product build-up and excess moisture to damage and simply having longer, heavier hair.

Before assuming your wave pattern has permanently changed, it's worth figuring out what's actually going on.

Yes, naturally wavy hair can become straighter over time.

The shape and behaviour of your hair is influenced by your hair follicles, genetics, hormones, age and overall health. These factors aren't necessarily fixed throughout your entire life.

That's why someone can have straight hair as a child and develop waves later, or have noticeably wavy hair for years before their pattern starts becoming looser.

Major hormonal and physical changes can coincide with changes to hair growth and texture. Hair can also grow back with a different texture following some medical treatments; for example, Cancer Research UK notes that after chemotherapy, regrown hair may be curlier or straighter than it was previously. Read Anna’s story to hear how she felt when her hair grew back wavy after chemotherapy!

But there's an important distinction:

Your hair becoming permanently straighter isn't the same as your existing waves temporarily losing definition.

And the second scenario is often much easier to fix.

If you've noticed a change, start by asking when it happened.

A gradual change over several years is very different from your waves suddenly disappearing over a couple of wash days.

Here are some of the most common explanations.

Hormones can influence your hair throughout different stages of life.

Changes can happen around:

• Puberty
• Pregnancy and the postpartum period
• Perimenopause
• Menopause
• Other significant hormonal changes

Hormonal changes are known to affect hair growth, density and condition. For example, declining oestrogen during menopause can contribute to hair becoming thinner and drier.

That can mean the hair you have at 40 or 50 doesn't necessarily behave exactly like the hair you had at 20.

In fact, we've met plenty of women in the Merwave community who discovered their waves only after having children or later in adulthood.

Texture isn't always set for life.

Before assuming your actual hair type has changed, look at your haircut.

Have you grown your hair significantly longer?

The longer your hair becomes, the more weight you're adding to your wave pattern.

For some wavies, that additional weight can stretch out the natural S-shape, particularly around the roots.

You might notice:

• Straighter roots
• Waves only appearing towards the ends
• Less overall volume
• Your pattern becoming more obvious after a haircut
• Shorter layers looking considerably wavier than longer sections

Your hair hasn't necessarily "turned straight".

Your waves may simply be getting stretched out by their own weight.

A haircut or some well-positioned layers can sometimes make a surprising difference.

If your waves disappeared practically overnight, this is one of the first things we'd investigate.

Every product you use has the potential to leave some residue behind.

Over time, styling creams, gels, oils, dry shampoo and conditioning products can combine with your scalp's natural oils and environmental dirt.

Eventually, your strands can become coated.

For wavy hair, which is particularly sensitive to weight, that build-up can pull down the pattern and make naturally wavy hair appear much straighter.

Signs build-up is flattening your waves:

• Your hair feels heavy or coated
• Your roots become greasy quickly
• You've lost volume
• Waves don't last as long as they used to
• Your usual styling products suddenly don't seem to work
• Your hair looks dull despite feeling conditioned

If that sounds familiar, your hair may simply need clarifying.

Use a Clarifying Shampoo to properly remove stubborn build-up, then see what happens to your pattern over your next few wash days.

You might discover your waves never went anywhere.

This is particularly common if you've recently changed your routine.

Wavy hair generally needs a different balance from tighter curls.

Rich curl creams, thick butters and heavy oils can be fantastic for some curl types but overwhelm looser wave patterns.

If you've recently introduced a new product and your waves have suddenly become flatter, try removing it for a few washes.

Pay particular attention if you're experiencing flat roots alongside greasy or overly soft lengths.

Sometimes the difference between flat and beautifully defined waves is simply less product.

Yes, you can overdo the moisture.

If you've become very enthusiastic about deep conditioning, leave-ins, moisturising creams and oils, your hair can become extremely soft but lack the structure it needs to hold its shape.

Instead of dry and rough, it may feel:

• Very soft
• Limp
• Overly stretchy
• Almost mushy when wet
• Unable to maintain definition

The waves may appear when you first scrunch your hair but gradually fall out as it dries.

If this sounds familiar, take a break from intensive moisturising treatments, simplify your routine and consider whether your hair needs some protein.

Again, your hair hasn't necessarily become naturally straight.

It's struggling to hold its wave.

Here's where things become slightly more complicated.

Heat and chemical damage can alter the way your existing hair behaves.

Repeatedly straightening, bleaching, colouring or chemically treating hair can damage its internal structure and outer cuticle.

Eventually, damaged waves can:

• Lose elasticity
• Struggle to spring back
• Become frizzy
• Break more easily
• Lose definition
• Appear straighter in damaged sections

You might even notice that your roots are wavy while your ends are almost completely straight.

That's a useful clue.

New growth showing your normal pattern while older lengths look straight suggests that damage may be affecting your existing strands rather than your natural hair type changing.

Damaged hair can't simply be returned to its untouched state, but reducing further damage, looking after the new growth and supporting weakened strands can make a big difference as it grows.

Sometimes there isn't a product or styling technique to blame.

Your hair can simply change.

Age, hormones, genetics, health and certain medical treatments can all influence the hair that grows from your follicles.

So if you've experienced a gradual change in texture over a longer period, particularly alongside a major life or hormonal change, it's possible that your natural pattern really is changing.

Absolutely.

Hair texture changes can work in both directions.

Someone who had straight hair throughout childhood can develop waves later in life.

It's actually something we've heard repeatedly through The Awakening, our campaign sharing the stories of women who spent years believing they had straight, frizzy or "difficult" hair before discovering their natural waves.

For some, their hair had always been wavy, and they simply didn't know how to care for it.

For others, their texture became noticeably wavier following pregnancy or as they got older.

And for some, their hair changed following medical treatment.

Hair is much less static than we sometimes assume.

If your wavy hair suddenly seems straight, don't immediately assume you've lost your natural texture.

Start with the simple explanations.

Clarify. Reduce heavy products. Check whether you're overdoing moisture. Look at your damage. Consider your haircut. Then see what your hair naturally does.

If those changes bring your definition back, your waves were probably being hidden rather than disappearing.

And if your texture really has changed?

That's OK too.

Hair can evolve throughout our lives. The goal isn't to force it back into the pattern it used to have. It's to understand where your hair’s at now, and to give it what it needs.