always increased thickness at puberty?

[mamaherrera]

I saw on here that many of you got increased thickness at puberty, so your hair is thicker now as an adult than when you were a child. Is that true for everyone? I only ask because my braids are basically (I Hope not smaller) but they are the same size as when I was four?? do some people stay with the same texture/thickness throughout??

[pili]

My thickness didn't increase, it's always been thick, but the texture did change. It was wavie as a child, maybe 2b. It became a solid 3a/b until I had kids and now it is 2b/3a.

ETA: My moms's hair was 2b, changed to 3b and now that she is in her sixties, it has gone back to 2b.

[amanda_the_tall]

My hair has the same texture/thickness, and might even be thinner now.

[restless]

No, the thickness of my hair didnt change during puberty (not that I noticed anyway). However, to my utter despair ;) the texture changed quite a lot. As a kid my hair was straight (I´d say 1b/1c) but during puberty I suddenly found myself being a 2b/2c. It took many years before I learnt how to tame it somewhat.

[lapushka]

My hair was always thick, and I don't know if it got thicker at puberty or not; my texture changed - I know that much. I lost a lot of hair going through puberty, I started shedding like crazy, thinning out as if I'd had a baby or something. Luckily within a year to two years we got it back on track. Just one of these phases you go through. Hormones, you know. What can you do?

[Lauraes]

I think my hair looks thicker now, but that may be because as a baby, all of my hair fell out and grew back in as a different color (light blonde), so I didn't have a good amount of hair for a while. My mom, however, went from having straight hair like me when she was younger, and it was red, to becoming curly (about 3a) and blonde. My hair has always been fine and straight, the only change I got around puberty was that my hair color changed again to a darker blonde/blondette.

[mamaherrera]

well that's good to know!! My texture did change too, but I don't know if it's because I let it curl more (like I stopped brushing) or if it really got more curly. From my pics, it looks like it was always just as coarse, but like I said, my mom would brush it and me too, and I could almost pass as having straight hair but poofy, but I think if I started brushing now, it would go back to the same texture. But thanks for sharing!! I was just curious!

[Rosetta]

My texture or thickness didn't change at puberty as far as I can remember, the only thing that changed was the colour ;) I was light blonde pre-puberty, and that changed to dark blonde. (Which I soon started dyeing, but that's another story...)

[BambooBeauty]

Mine did. My hair was baby fine as a child. As I've grown older my hair has thickened.

[MINAKO]

I definitely had finer hair as a child, but plenty of it and the texture was 3a/b ringlets that have grown out to a frizzy 2c wave over the years. And now since i straighten it i cant really tell if my natural texture still gradually loosens its texture by itself. my hairs is thick, thicker than before, but also my head is larger now i guess, lol. Does anybody know if the amount of follicles increases in the early years?

[ositarosita]

My thickness did increase then I lost it all due a stress related shed and I am finally getting it all back, PLUS SOME.

[Alex Lou]

I hear people talk about having really thick hair during pregnancy as well so I guess those female hormones really can do it.

If my hair got thicker during puberty it was a minor change that no one noticed, including myself. I haven't personally noticed any thickening during pregnancy yet, either. Hormones have very different effects on different people.

[Anje]

Pretty sure mine stayed about the same. I always had a 3-wrap ponytail, from about age 7 (when I went off to summer camp and realized I had to put my own hair up, because it was too hot down!) till now.

[neko_kawaii]

Definitely darkened, but I don't think thickness changed.

[jeanniet]

I'd say mine stayed about the same, at least from about age 4 or 5 on. The texture got curlier, but it's always been pretty thick. My older son's hair has stayed about the same, too. My younger son's hair was pretty fine and curly until he was about 4 and then started getting thicker and coarser, and now it's very thick. I can't imagine that he developed that many more follicles, so I think most of the increased thickness is simply due to the actual strands of hair getting thicker. I don't really remember my own hair all that much (not at a very young age, anyway), so it's been interesting to see how much his has changed.

[Sarahlabyrinth]

My hair may have thickened at puberty, I don't really remember (I never used to take much notice of my hair back then - it was just there), however, it did darken considerably from a light blonde to what is called - mouse colour.

[endlessly]

As far as I remember, my hair has always been thick. When I really, really abused it about 10 or so years ago, it was at its thinnest, but a lot of TLC helped it to re-thicken up and look healthy. A lot of it has to do with your hair texture, too. If you had fine, thin hair as a child, you'll more than likely have fine, thin hair as an adult just as thicker-haired children or more than likely thicker-haired adults. Also, look at your genetics because fortunately (or unfortunately depending on what your parents' hair is like) that's also a determining factor.

[Betazed]

My hair changed completely during my early teens. I used to have very fine, very straight hair. I'm talking 1a. It was also lighter in color. Now it's a dark auburn but in pics from my early years it was a very light auburn. (Another reason I was teased for not looking "Native enough"). It started developing waves when I was 14 or so. I really miss my childhood hair. It was so much easier to style. Of course back then, I hated that it wouldn't hold any curl for more than a half hour. It still doesn't hold curl very well and I get annoyed because the underside is quite wavy but the top is very straight. It can't make up it's mind. Without heat styling, it just looks messy. Thank goodness for buns! :p

[IndyAndy]

I didn't experience any texture changes but I LOST a lot of thickness during puberty & my color shifted (carrot to more light brown-auburn)

[mamaherrera]

so there really is variation then. I was just trying to compare my braids to see if I have the same amount of hair as when I was young, and they are pretty much the same size (can't judge 100% because it depends on how you braid, where you place the braid,etc.) but yeah, I wondered because I've seen my daughters' strands really thicken up almost like mine. She now has more of a mix, but many coarse hairs. I don't think you get more follicles at all, you have the follicles you have at birth, but they separate more as your head grows obviously. My son, he was born with coarser hair and I don't see it changing yet, but he's only 10 and my 6 year old, she's already getting thicker strands in her new growth. So it' s not always due to puberty. But I was just curious. My thing that mostly bothers me (because i don't really remember back then either, didn't care about my hair) but I always remember it feeling heavy on my neck and now I don'tt. But then I lived in WI at that time and things were humid and now I'm in NM so there's no humidity, maybe that has to do with it. I assume in humid climates, the hair strands stay swollen more the whole day. But thanks to all who chimed in, maybe I"m one of the lucky ones who kept the same "thickness" of strands since I was a yongeon!

[Jynkies]

My hair went from very thick to medium thickness, the strands became coarser, my colour darkened significantly and my hair gained more wave - I actually have a 30cm long pony tail that was cut when I was 9 years old and it's really interesting to compare my current hair to it.

[maria_asa]

My hair is the same thickness and texture now as it was when I was a child. The colour has changed quite a bit though, from golden blonde as a child to the light golden, redish brown I have now.

[mamaherrera]

My hair went from very thick to medium thickness, the strands became coarser, my colour darkened significantly and my hair gained more wave - I actually have a 30cm long pony tail that was cut when I was 9 years old and it's really interesting to compare my current hair to it.

That is so cool!! WOW. That's a definite way to compare I guess to the, talking about keepsakes!! That's funny. So you lost thickness "like ponytail thickness" but your hair got more coarse, as in individual strands?? I kind of think that might have happened to me. Now I"ll have to see how my daughter's hair history goes. I can see even slight differences from my "pregnancy *extra gain in the ponytail" hair to now *it's dropped a little under normal, but I hope it comes back in a couple years) but my braids right after pregnancy were a bit thicker/plumper, so you having actual hair to compare, wow!!

[mamaherrera]

My hair is the same thickness and texture now as it was when I was a child. The colour has changed quite a bit though, from golden blonde as a child to the light golden, redish brown I have now.

good to know! At least your color changed to another good pretty color, mine has lightened up a bit and gotten more 'whites". Not a puberty thing, but a stress thing I think and genetics.

[lapushka]

That is so cool!! WOW. That's a definite way to compare I guess to the, talking about keepsakes!! That's funny. So you lost thickness "like ponytail thickness" but your hair got more coarse, as in individual strands?? I kind of think that might have happened to me. Now I"ll have to see how my daughter's hair history goes. I can see even slight differences from my "pregnancy *extra gain in the ponytail" hair to now *it's dropped a little under normal, but I hope it comes back in a couple years) but my braids right after pregnancy were a bit thicker/plumper, so you having actual hair to compare, wow!!

Yes, it's awesome to have that as a keepsake. I got my ponytail when I cut from classic to a page-style bob at age 10/11 as well. My mom keeps it in a jar. I don't think she has hair from when I was a baby. My dad still has his first blonde curl (he had light blonde curls as a toddler).

[Hairkay]

As far as I can see, there's been no change for me. Hair is always thick.

[Jynkies]

That is so cool!! WOW. That's a definite way to compare I guess to the, talking about keepsakes!! That's funny. So you lost thickness "like ponytail thickness" but your hair got more coarse, as in individual strands?? I kind of think that might have happened to me. Now I"ll have to see how my daughter's hair history goes. I can see even slight differences from my "pregnancy *extra gain in the ponytail" hair to now *it's dropped a little under normal, but I hope it comes back in a couple years) but my braids right after pregnancy were a bit thicker/plumper, so you having actual hair to compare, wow!!

Yup - I can just get my index finger and thumb around the old ponytail (which was just near the nape of my neck in a short bob) and with my current pony tail at the same point the index finger nail comes to the joint of my thumb nearest it's tip (think of making an ok sign with your hand' but the individual strands are thicker and although I still get comments from hairdressers about how fine my hair is and how much I have - it's nothing compared to what it used to be.

I've been trying to extract the hair from my mother's keeping for years to use in hair pieces (I do historical reenactment and use a lot of hair pieces) but she will not hand the pony tail over!

[Gertrude]

For me my hair changed from very pale blonde to darker, more golden blonde. But it's fine and slippery as it always was. I didn't gain noticeably in pregnancy but conversely I didn't have any increased post-natal loss either.

My daughter has her father's really strong brown hair, that's slowly changing from golden brown towards the very dark brown her dad is, she's seven now and each year a little darker. It's not happened this year but previous years she grows more hair at the front. Like extra rows of hair on a doll. Hard to explain, but the whole front hairline moves forward and then back as she grows. She's gained a lot of thickness each year but her hair looks really layered as the new rows of hair are shorter of course. She's lost the babyish look and looks much more grown up, so it probably won't happen this summer.

Looking at her classmates and year 2 ( grade 2) you already have some girls with really thick hair whose mums also have amazing manes or similar thickness. So that suggests for them puberty made no difference.

Completely unscientific data point rambling, sorry.

[DreamSheep]

Mine was always quite thick, but I never measured or anything.
I remember not being able to put my hand around my ponytail when I was 9-10, but my hands have grown since, so it is probably about the same.

[mtzw]

My hair changed completely during puberty.

-My pin straight hair became super wavy. Today the waves have almost dissapear.

-Thickness of hair 'fibres' increased and thus texture changed from silky to more straw like :pumpkin:

-As for color, it went from light blonde to light brown

[mamaherrera]

Yup - I can just get my index finger and thumb around the old ponytail (which was just near the nape of my neck in a short bob) and with my current pony tail at the same point the index finger nail comes to the joint of my thumb nearest it's tip (think of making an ok sign with your hand' but the individual strands are thicker and although I still get comments from hairdressers about how fine my hair is and how much I have - it's nothing compared to what it used to be.

I've been trying to extract the hair from my mother's keeping for years to use in hair pieces (I do historical reenactment and use a lot of hair pieces) but she will not hand the pony tail over!

Thanks for sharing, neat observations that most people can't make. Your ponytail is still thicker than mine. I can wrap my fingers around and my finger (index) comes to the bottom of my thumb. So that's why you still get the comments of having lots of hair. I heard those as a teen, but don't anymore!! If I could only know it's gonna stay like this and not get any smaller!! Thanks for sharing!

[lapushka]

If I could only know it's gonna stay like this and not get any smaller!! Thanks for sharing!

Only time will tell, and there is (trust me) no use on worrying about things like this. Just take it as it comes. Aren't you, BTW, still getting over post-partum shed? Or am I mistaken? :)

[mamaherrera]

Well I don't think I have postpartum shed any longer. I was shedding a very good quantity, normal wise-low, now I'm up a bit, but still normal. the baby is 1.5 years old now, but maybe it just takes lots of time for all the new hair to get to the ponytail, hopefully that's it.

[lapushka]

Yes, it takes a long time. Count on maybe 2 years to get a good deal of your hair back on track. When I started getting thin patches (almost bald parts) going through puberty (for some reason I lost an abnormal amount of hair), it took a good 2 years. From age 13/14 to 15/16. It's good to hear your hair loss is within the normal range once again. :thumbsup:

[spidermom]

Thicker or thinner? Don't know and don't care. It was a lot straighter.

[mamaherrera]

Yes, it takes a long time. Count on maybe 2 years to get a good deal of your hair back on track. When I started getting thin patches (almost bald parts) going through puberty (for some reason I lost an abnormal amount of hair), it took a good 2 years. From age 13/14 to 15/16. It's good to hear your hair loss is within the normal range once again. :thumbsup:

Thanks, I guess I need more patience and faith. so I'll give it two years, not from the day she was born,but starting when I started to shed, so I still will give it time. My husband said, "it's gonna take time to get back at maintaining,because the whole time you weren't shedding at all, you weren't really having "new growth" either, so everything starts basically from zero again, when you start to shed," Hope you are all right. Maybe I'll end up with your thickness :-)) Just kidding, but glad you got all yours back!!

[lapushka]

Thanks, I guess I need more patience and faith. so I'll give it two years, not from the day she was born,but starting when I started to shed, so I still will give it time. My husband said, "it's gonna take time to get back at maintaining,because the whole time you weren't shedding at all, you weren't really having "new growth" either, so everything starts basically from zero again, when you start to shed," Hope you are all right. Maybe I'll end up with your thickness :-)) Just kidding, but glad you got all yours back!!

That's so sweet of you to say. Never give up hope! You'll be back on track before you know it! :D :flower: