If you ask anyone in the natural hair community what’s the number one thing that will help keep their hair healthy, they’ll say moisture. And while this is absolutely true, there is such thing as too much of a good thing. And that term is known as hygral fatigue.

What is hygral fatigue?

In short form, hygral fatigue is when you’ve given your hair too much moisture. It is the result of the constant and excessive swelling of your hair cuticle and is often associated with hair porosity. When your hair is constantly swelling, your strands can become weaker, causing your hair to stretch beyond normal.

Although everyone’s hair is different, there are a few signs that will let you know if your hair is experiencing hygral fatigue.

Your hair keeps breaking.

Though hair breaking may be caused by a number of other things, if you’ve been over-moisturizing your hair, it may be safe to assume that hygral fatigue is the current culprit of your breakage. It’s common for us to shed around 100 hairs a day naturally, but if your hair has begun to break massively or shed uncontrollably, hygral fatigue could be the cause.

You’re experiencing dull, limp hair.

If you’re used to lively, bouncy curls and all you’ve been able to get as of late is limp and lifeless hair, hygral fatigue could be the reasoning. Your hair may even appear to be mushy, soggy, gummy or seemingly overly saturated.

There is no elasticity in your hair.

When you typically stretch out your curls, they are supposed to bounce back into their shape. If you do this and there is no “bounce back,” however, your elasticity is suffering. Likewise, if your hair fails to stretch or you notice that the stretch is less than normal when your hair is wet, this is a telltale sign that your moisture to protein ratio is not balanced. This is one of the main signs that you are suffering from hygral fatigue.