What happens if you sleep with a ponytail

Quite the opposite actually. The truth is, you should never sleep with your hair in a ponytail as it can cause serious damage and breakage.

Speaking to Allu re , Francesca J. Fusco, a New York City-based dermatologist specializing in hair loss said, "If someone wore their hair tightly pulled back every night for years, traction alopecia could could occur along the hairline. While the term alopecia refers to hair loss, Healthline reports that traction alopecia occurs when a person loses hair due to the hair being repeatedly pulled.

Pulling your hair back every night to sleep may lead to traction alopecia in the long run. Fortunately, If you notice symptoms of alopecia , it can be easily reversed by immediately stopping sleeping with your hair up.

If you let it go, the hair loss has the potential to be permanent. Putting your hair into a bun, wearing tight headbands, and tight braids all have the potential to damage your hair. Basically, if it hurts your head, it's probably harming your hair and you should loosen up your hairstyle a bit to prevent damage.

If you hate the feeling of your hair in your face when you're sleeping, there are ways you can keep it back without breakage. Fusco, a New York City-based dermatologist who specializes in hair loss, explained to Allure. Traction alopecia is a type of hair loss caused by constant pulling. If you regularly go to sleep with your hair in a ponytail, it's likely this pulling occurs to the same hairs, and according to the British Association of Dermatologists , this has the potential to lead to the development of bald patches.

Hairstyles that most commonly cause traction alopecia are tight ponytails, tight buns, tight braids, and weaves or hair extensions — basically, any style that puts pressure on the root of the hair.

Not only will the silk scrunchie prevent friction and subsequent breakage from affecting your strands, but it also likely won't create ridges in your hair after it's removed. Just as our mothers chided us for the bad habit when we were young, hairstylists scold us for still doing it in our adult years.

If you must go to bed without letting your hair fully dry, Cunha recommends putting in a super hydrating hair mask or conditioner before heading to sleep. If your bedroom is typically dry, or if you have a heater on, your hair might suffer from the dry air. Try investing in a humidifier to keep your locks from getting dried out and to prevent other beauty woes like chapped lips and flaky skin. Next up: Learn how to get that perfectly tousled "bedhead" look. Thank you [email] for signing up. Please enter a valid email address.

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Hair Haircare. By Dacy Knight. Dacy Knight. Dacy was an editor at Byrdie for a year and a half and is now a contributor to Byrdie.