my hair is very very thin and very very straight. i've never had to comb it, and it doesn't tangle at all. i was wondering if it'd be easier to start my dreads if i used one of those perm things to curl it first, because curly hair tangles better. also, what would happen if i braided the section of hair i was dreading and tried to backcomb the braid?
if you braid it, un-braid it before you back comb it because from what I have hear the back-combing a braid doesn't work very well. also, id say skip perming your hair. my hair was super strait as well, though it was fairly fried from bleaching and dying it a lot. but my healthy hair by the roots is actually dreading better so i don't think it had much to do with the bleaching /dying. i also second the don't use wax. though you could braid or crimp it before back-combing to give your hair a bit more texture to work with good luck!
i fried my hair just a little bit with a straightener before i dreaded mine, it wasnt like damaged beyond fixing but after i did it, id have to untangle it every 10 minutes. im sure a perm couldnt hurt terribly bad, buuut whatever you do, goodluck
i wouldn't necessarily recommend a perm. i think you could achieve dreadlocks without the expense and damage to your hair. i have very fine hair as well, and mine is knotting up like crazy, and all i did was backcomb once and let it go. wear lots of wool hats!
