Is There Any Way to Overcome Terminal Length?

[Kelli Kat]

My terminal length is BSL. That's just not long enough for me, although obviously I have to accept it. But its been this way all my life since I was little.

I can cut it all off and start over and it only goes to BSL (I've done this numerous times, always with the same result). The last time I cut it all off and went really short was 2003. I haven't had anything but a couple of inches trimmed off since this then but still it sits at BSL.

Is there anything that can be done to get past terminal length?

[spidermom]

The only thing I know about is to take really good care of your hair and your health so that you can maximize your potential. Or go dread-lock so that the shed hairs are trapped with the new hairs. A past friend with terminal length at BSL was able to grow a thread-wrapped lock all the way to her thigh (last time I saw her).

[MusingFrog]

Terminal length is the length at which your hair will naturally fall out of your head. So, no, there isn't anyway to overcome terminal length. However, many people have fake terminal lengths because their hair will break off prematurely due to chemical or mechanical damage. If your hair only ever gets to BSL, there are two possibilities. The first is that BSL is your true terminal length; if that is the case (which I'd find unlikely), you are stuck. If it is a fake terminal length, there is something occurring at that length that is causing your hairs to weaken and break off.

That being said, if you generally wear your hair up in a bun and you think you aren't causing damage by the way your are sleeping, washing, or combing then you are probably at terminal length.

[JamieLeigh]

My husband's fake terminal length is around MBL - mid-back length, which is BSL on a guy who doesn't wear a bra, lol - because of what MusingFrog described above. He refuses to wear his hair up and freely acknowledges that his back rubs against computer chairs and sofas while his hair is trapped between, multiple times each day. What he does is grows to mid-back, has me cut it back to APL, and the cycle continues. He's happy with it that long and wears it exclusively loose.

Like I said, though, he is getting damage from wearing it loose all the time and sitting back against chairs during the daytime. It's not really something that most people think about until their attention is specifically drawn to it and even then, they might still continue to do it without realizing it. :(

[Fantak]

I agree with what the other posters said about damage. My length looked awful from BSL to TB even though it looked nice and healthy above BSL. I oiled it and was careful when brushing, no heat styling etc. the only thing i refused to do was wear it up. The thickness never grew down abd four years later it was still the same as it always was. I gave in and started wearing it up in buns all day everyday. It's been 6 months but the thickness is finally slowly moving down to waist! I'm ecstatic!!

[DinaAG]

i thought before that my terminal length is shoulder length as it always stays there and just stop growing, but then i decided no to cut it only "small trims each 6 months 1 cm when needed" and it grew! dont give up, take care of it, eat healthy food, give yourself scalp massage and i believe it will grow..

[Kelli Kat]

Thanks everyone. I didn't think there was anything that could be done, but I was hoping there might be some super secret solution. I'll be content with my BSL hair.

[MrsGuther]

I doubt BSL is really your terminal length, because the average actual terminal length is classic length. Most people reach lengths where their hair stalls for a while, or it "feels" like it won't grow any longer, but this truly is not usually the case. Perhaps you could try a few new things in your hair routine. Do you heat style at all? Are you having tangles and breakage? How frequently do you trim? If you are trimming off your hair faster or as fast as it is growing per year it will seem like it won't get past a certain length, when really you have just accidentally cut off all new growth in attempts to keep a neatly trimmed hemline. Happy growing! Don't worry, Im sure after a while you will find the solution and you will be on your way to even longer hair. Best wishes!

[Happytresses]

I was reading up on terminal length this weekend and I actually felt hopefull. Plenty of women claimed that once they stopped worrying about it and just took care of their hair they did see growth. Some slower than others but growth none the less. The longest I ever had my hair was MBL in HS. I never let it grow long again. This is the first time I have decided to let it grow and its seem like a pain staking process. However, this is the longest my hair has been in years and thanks to this website I have received so much useful information, that I can only forsee beautiful long hair.

[neko_kawaii]

While the average may be Classic, there are a range of terminal lengths starting at around shoulder and going past the floor. I have an aunt who has babied her hair for 40 years and never got as far as BSL. My grandmother kept her silver hair waist length so that her daughter had long hair to play with. Kelli Kat, do you have a friend or relative who will let you play with their long hair?

[Kelli Kat]

There is no doubt that BSL is my terminal length. In all my life, ever since I was a kid, even before I knew what terminal length was, it has never grown longer than BSL. As this point I haven't had a hair cut in 9 years. No heat products, no blow drying, although I do chemical dye it. I did trim a couple of inches off a couple of years ago and they grew back and that was it.

Unfortunately neko_kawaii, all of my friends and family have short hair.

It is what is, and I just have to accept I'll never have super awesome long hair. I can still bun it up and wear sticks and forks.

[xoxophelia]

Extensions.. :shrug:

[neko_kawaii]

Plenty of awesome things to do with BSL!

[hairhair]

Sectioned buns! I'm just BSL and these are fantastic! I split it into a top and bottom, make a cinnamon bun with the top two-thirds, English braid the bottom third and wrap and clip it around the bun!

Keep enjoying it at this length and maybe it will grow? I've also heard of castor oil stimulating the follicles -- I can't be absolutely sure of the risks/benefits, but it could be something to research.

[hanne jensen]

Are you vertically endowed? If you are, BSL may actually be quite long.

You could try dusting every 4-6 weeks. It's possible that your growth is breaking off. All my life I could never get beyond APL, but now after learning how to take care of my hair I'm at MBL. And, my hair is still growing.

[bte]

There is no doubt that BSL is my terminal length. In all my life, ever since I was a kid, even before I knew what terminal length was, it has never grown longer than BSL. As this point I haven't had a hair cut in 9 years. No heat products, no blow drying, although I do chemical dye it. I did trim a couple of inches off a couple of years ago and they grew back and that was it.

...
Well, I haven't trimmed or cut since 1994 and APL is the best I can manage. I have not taken supplements or anything of that kind. So, you have done better than me! Some of us just aren't designed to be super long, but we can enjoy what we have.

[jojo]

There is no doubt that BSL is my terminal length. In all my life, ever since I was a kid, even before I knew what terminal length was, it has never grown longer than BSL. As this point I haven't had a hair cut in 9 years. No heat products, no blow drying, although I do chemical dye it. I did trim a couple of inches off a couple of years ago and they grew back and that was it.

Unfortunately neko_kawaii, all of my friends and family have short hair.

It is what is, and I just have to accept I'll never have super awesome long hair. I can still bun it up and wear sticks and forks.

One point as a kid bsl would be much shorter on you than it is an adult. What state are your ends in? Sometimes if we have splits, they can break off as quick as they grow which would give the illussion of terminal length. If you really are at terminal, dont be too disheartened, bsl is still long and has lots of scope for different updos. Id seriously dust your ends if they need it, oil daily on the ends, put it up and forget it.

[jacqueline101]

I agree some how it doesn't seem possible. I'd try benign neglect pamper it with oiling, deep conditioning, wear it up all up differently each day not always in a bun try a braid. I'd try to look back at your care routine to see if your hair care routine has changed. Maybe the products you are using is causing your hair to reach what's considering terminal length.

[Kiwiwi]

I think maybe the last thing you should try is micro trim often. Like every 2 months. Take like half a cm off.
It might be that BSL is where you ends go "I'm outta here!" if they are never cut at all. If you keep the ends pretty fresh by trimming regularly (2 months) it might work for you.
I say this because you say you have trimmed in 9 years, that's a long time to -never- take damaged ends off. For some people it might work. For you it maybe might be the culprit. I'd say just try it, what have you got to lose?

[goldloli]

I think maybe the last thing you should try is micro trim often. Like every 2 months. Take like half a cm off.
It might be that BSL is where you ends go "I'm outta here!" if they are never cut at all. If you keep the ends pretty fresh by trimming regularly (2 months) it might work for you.
I say this because you say you have trimmed in 9 years, that's a long time to -never- take damaged ends off. For some people it might work. For you it maybe might be the culprit. I'd say just try it, what have you got to lose?

i'm yet another person to agree that bsl seems rather short for terminal. def try micro trimming out. there were a couple members, i think quatango (sorry i cant spell her name) discovered she wasnt at terminal when she started microtrimming. prior to that it had been sneakily breaking off and giving the appearance of term/stall.

[Soltimus]

I though just below the shoulder blades was terminal length for me up until recently. It just never grew any further than that no matter what I tried (even thought what I tried was what the normal hair salon would tell me, and I've later learned not to trust them entirely). When I decided to see how far my hair would grow I didn't really expect it to AT ALL, but I did try and change a few things. I stopped balling my hair on top of my head when I washed it to reduce tangles and breaking, bought a proper brush (in my case a Tangle Teezer), and tried to find out how my hair preferred to be treated on a day to day basis. This helped my hair like nothing else and it's now past BSL which it has never been before and I never thought it would! I seriously thought BSL was terminal length for me for years and years, so don't give up. Maybe you just need to make a few adjustments in your haircare routine? And if not, then that's just how it is. BSL is a nice length where you can play around with different updos and halfups. Don't be discouraged :)

[chen bao jun]

Check out black (African American) hair care boards and web sites. Even though you don't look as if you have a similar hair type from your siggy, there are many hints on those boards to keep hair growing that appears to be doomed to be short, or has never been long (often not even as long as BSL) before.

[PrincessIdril]

Are you vertically endowed? If you are, BSL may actually be quite long.


Urgh this is exactly my problem. I have such a long torso, so much so that my MBL hair actually measures about 35"!!! One of my friends has 32" of hair which is practically TBL on her!

Also it's not that strange that BSL could be terminal for someone. The average may be classic, but it's just that, the average. That sample would include people with a terminal of floor and others with something like shoulder!

[LadyCelestina]

Extensions probably...

Can terminal length change with time ? :confused:
I don't mean two-three years...I mean,over the course of 40 years or so?

[lapushka]

I agree with what's been said before: BSL for terminal seems short. Are you doing anything to your hair to stunt growth, such as dyeing it, bleaching it, using heat on it? If not, still seems strange to me. Are you cutting it, at all, because you or a hairdresser might be cutting too much off. That is also a possibility.

[MusingFrog]

I'm sorry to hear that you think BSL really is your real terminal length. :(

For years I thought thigh length hair would be really cool. Then I found out my terminal length was just past tailbone. I had a few hairs that would grow out real long, but everything just tapered down to nothing and it never thickened. I held on for years trying to get it to grow with no success. Now, I'm content with thick waist length hair. :D

[Mesmerise]

Honestly, I think the OP has probably tried babying her hair in order to get it to grow longer, and if it hasn't... then it hasn't. I doubt it's still breaking off at this length after years of care (I could imagine that with someone who doesn't know how to treat their hair well, but not someone who has been making an effort to care for their hair for years). I'm sure everyone's trying to help, but I know how I felt when hairdresser suggested my hair had broken off when I knew for a fact it hadn't!! (It sort of implied "your hair is obviously in bad condition"!!). As it is, the underlayer of my hair seems to have a short terminal length (I also have short bits all around my head which are clearly not due to breakage, but which just have short terminal lengths). I have no idea what my actual terminal length is, but I'm pretty sure it won't be much beyond waist (I'm very short, so that would probably only be BSL on some people!)

I'm not saying that someone with short terminal length should give up hope altogether, but it shouldn't be assumed that her ends are breaking off either!

[catamonica]

Between 2009 & 2010 I started using Mane & Tail Original horse shampoo from Wall Mart. My hair grew fourteen inches to waist. Now it is
one inch from tail bone. It was stuck at just past mid back. Since high school. It didn't grow until age 50's. I also put two capfuls of olive oil in my shampoo & conditioner. Makes it soft & possibly helps growth. I hope this helps. One more thing. I started wear it in a braided bun last November 2011. It grew from waist to hip in March. It really protects your hair, if you wear it up five days a week.

[Silverbrumby]

There is no doubt that BSL is my terminal length. In all my life, ever since I was a kid, even before I knew what terminal length was, it has never grown longer than BSL. As this point I haven't had a hair cut in 9 years. No heat products, no blow drying, although I do chemical dye it. I did trim a couple of inches off a couple of years ago and they grew back and that was it.

Unfortunately neko_kawaii, all of my friends and family have short hair.

It is what is, and I just have to accept I'll never have super awesome long hair. I can still bun it up and wear sticks and forks.

Sounds like you have a great attitude and super healthy hair now. I'm also a short terminal and now just crawled my length past BSL. I have photos and the longest it's ever been is just past BSL. I'm curious to see if it can go longer but I do see it stalling. I just wanted to say that I recently added MSM and Biosil drops to my routine and it's going through a growth spurt.

Fingers crossed I can hit 28 inches and I just wanted to mention the MSM and biosil for the just in case. With the biosil they say 6 drops twice a day but I'm doing 10 drops twice a day after reading up on it.

[Roscata]

I've been debating whether or not to reply to this thread. Here are my 2 cents:

- trimming is crucial: you have fine hair which tends to crumble as is and you chemically dye it (which drys it), you have to trim on a regular basis if you want to see length progress; I suggest you do one big chop to begin with that removes most of the damage/split ends then continue by trimming half of your growth every month, the progress will be slow but existent. If you're curios as to why I say trimming is necessary here is an (as short as I can condense it) explanation: ends get worn out with time (http://www.thenaturalhavenbloom.com/2011/11/white-hair-under-microscope.html), which thins them and makes them have a pointed look (like a needle), fine hair gets worn out faster/easier because there is less strand thickness to begin with, trims turn that V into a blunt line on the bottom of the hair strand, thus having more thickness than a point and being more resistant to breakage/split ends.
- chemical dye drys and damages hair which is bad on it's own but add that to fine hair (which is more fragile) and you have a bad combination. Since you dye your hair black why not try a two step henna/indigo? Henna has been said to help fine hair by making it less likely to break, plus the shine will be wonderful and you won't be damaging your hair. Alternatively you should at least use coconut oil to minimize dye damage (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=10495) (apply the oil heavily to your hair and leave it on for at least one hour then apply the dye on your still oiled hair) or use deposit only dyes that are peroxide and ammonia free.
- as a final thought, consider following 'the rules (http://adelinahair.blogspot.com/2012/04/what-you-need-to-know-about-growing.html)' if you aren't already.

I honestly advise you not to call your terminal length BSL and not to give up on your dreams! At least not until you've tried everything (here I mostly mean henna, regular trims and gentle handling - ALL of those together). Good luck! :)

[Kiwiwi]

I'm not saying that someone with short terminal length should give up hope altogether, but it shouldn't be assumed that her ends are breaking off either!

I just want to point out that I don't think her hair is in a bad condition and I also don't just assume her ends are breaking off.
I have been reading the OP's messages and I thought "what's in there that -might- stop her from growing longer?". She takes great care of her hair and it seems that BSL has been her terminal length her entire life. But I see in her messages that she hadn't cut at all in 9 years. No trim whatsoever (just one bigger one, if I am reading correctly). And I don't know how often she would trim before that time. I'm not just saying her ends are bad, at all. She gave that information, I didn't just assume.
So I just want to help her by suggesting trimming more regularly because it -could- help because we don't know because she hasn't tried yet. And because I've read from many people that once they started trimming regularly they got to lengths they never had before.
Really, indeed, just trying to help. Not by suggesting she has bad hair at all. But by suggesting she tries something she hasn't yet tried. I think one can only say they are truly at terminal if they have tried everything that they know of helped others.
If it doesn't work then it doesn't. And if she tried this already and it didn't work then she will tell us, and then we'll know.
I hope I explained myself understandably.