Questions about hair thickness/feeling thinner

[KlutzyChy1]

I've been worrying about my hair lately, as it seems thinner than it was last year. My bf thinks that it's just my hair texture changing, my hair getting longer, & it becoming sleeker & less poofy as it becomes healthier, but I'm having a hard time figuring this out. Can hair seem thinner as it grows longer & as damage grows out? & Can it seem this way also in the winter as opposed to the summer?

I took each of these sets of photos a year apart & I was wondering what you ladies think? Opinions on this would be very much appreciated. :heartbeat

https://i.imgur.com/LJT9YdYl.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/hvtRE7Vl.jpg

[akurah]

My hair's puffiness, for lack of a better word, varies (sometimes very wildly) based on various factors, including last wash, what products I'm currently using, what my last hairstyle was, and some other things I don't remember.

My hair after braids, for example, is quite "big" and puffy. The amount of puffiness I'm seeing on the left is akin to what I see after braids (if they weren't braided damp, if they were braided damp, my hair practically looks curly, and is even bigger) for my hair, and the one on the right looks more like my hair does after I wear a bun. I can get that degree of variation within a week, even back to back days.

Given what I described above about my hair, and what I'm seeing in your hair--there's no way to gauge if it's actually thinner or not short of you going back in a time machine and measuring the circumference. Unless the scalp hair looks thinner (or has bald patchy spots), try not to let yourself worry. Hair tends to do what it wants regardless of our intent.

[leayellena]

In the summer my braids look (and feel) double as thick as they look on winter time. If in summer I have 3.35" pony circ., I'll have 3.15" in winter. It's due to humidity Vs dryness, hot weather plumping the strands whereas dry hot air from heater in winter suck up all the moisture in my hair so my hair feel thinner.
We may actually lose more hair in winter, but everyone is different so I don't know if this is 💯% true.my hair has some volume if I massage my scalp and get rid of the gunk and if I wear braid waves.

[Begemot]

Can hair seem thinner as it grows longer & as damage grows out? & Can it seem this way also in the winter as opposed to the summer?


Yes. I think natural, unprocessed hair is typically more sleek and less puffy compared to hair that's processed and has its cuticles raised. Gravity pulls wavy/curly hair down/straighter as it grows.

[sugar&nutmeg]

My hair feels much 'bigger' in humid weather (summer) than in dry winter weather.

And as for photos...I have not found them to be a reliable way of judging thickness or volume. I can take two photos, just minutes apart, and have my hair look much fuller in one than in the other.

If you haven't recently been shedding--a LOT--it's probably mostly tricks of photography and weather.

[lapushka]

My hair feels much 'bigger' in humid weather (summer) than in dry winter weather.

And as for photos...I have not found them to be a reliable way of judging thickness or volume. I can take two photos, just minutes apart, and have my hair look much fuller in one than in the other.

If you haven't recently been shedding--a LOT--it's probably mostly tricks of photography and weather.

I have a thread on how your hair can "lay" differently from one moment to the next, one day to the next; it's here:
https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=145752 (your hair is never the same)

Also, it is longer, so the weight pulls it down.

If your circumference (good time to measure it) isn't drastically different (seasonal variations can occur) then I wouldn't worry.

[lithostoic]

I was concerned about this recently, but I measured my circ and it was actually thicker! Definitely the health and weight of the hair doing this. Maybe you'd like to have a few layers cut in.

[KlutzyChy1]

Thank you ladies for your input. ❤️

Last time I got (what I believe to be an accurate measurement on ponytail circumference), it was 3.75. However, my bf& I have tried to measure it now and for the life of us, cannot seem to get an accurate measurement. We got anywhere between 2- 4&1/2. (Which is partly why I was worrying).

I've been keeping track of my shedding, & I lost a lot more hair in the summer (but it seemed much thicker then). I've been losing anywhere from 70-110) on wash days, which is every other day & 20-30 on non wash days.

I've grown out most of my damage & finally gotten rid of my layers, and evened up my hemline, so I wonder if that has anything to do with it as well.

I'm so used to my hair being super poofy & unmanageable & lately it's been drying fairly straight & much sleeker so it seems like I've lost a lot of volume, but I'm so biased, it's hard for me to tell.

[KlutzyChy1]

Do you have any tips on how to measure ponytail circumference more accurately, since it seems hair texture, poofyness, etc seem to make such a huge difference?

[lapushka]

Try and measure it on wash day, right before you wash, with all of it brushed out, then it should compact better.

[MusicalSpoons]

I think we had a thread recently about measuring circumference. I'm on my phone so tricky to find it for you, but if you do a search it should come up :)

I personally use a piece of ribbon (no stretch in it at all) amd keep tight hild of where it starts to go round my ponytail and where it meets itself again (so the end of the circumference) and measure it. Holding it in my fingers means I can pull it totally tight and therefore my hair is as compacted as it will go, and I get consistent measurements with this method.

[Alexandrina]

I like the ribbon tip! Did it change the numbers much vs. when doing it with other methods?

[MusicalSpoons]

Not really - I think I did it once with a piece of string, and initially when I started trying to measure I used a cable which did inflate the numbers (I'm not entirely sure why because I thought the inner circumference would be the same, but evidently it didn't quite work like that!) but otherwise I've stuck with the ribbon since I thought of it. I tried with a tape measure once but couldn't hold it tight enough and the end bit got stuck in my hair so no reliable reading there!

I should clarify, I'm measuring using the ribbon around the hair, no hair elastic or anything. Not sure how to describe exactly how I do it but basically starting as if I were trying to tie a ponytail with a ribbon :shrug:

[Cate36]

I saw your photo.. and immediately thought of this photo https://www.instagram.com/p/Bq1vbvDAh2e/ hair thickness the same, but she takes care of it more now.. so a sleeker look (do a google translate on the Russian text and you'll read what she says about the difference).... hard to say if your hair is thinner or not, but it could just be (as others have said) the way your hair falls...