Thoughts, O wise ones?

[Rayosunshine]

Hello! I would love some feedback from experienced hair growers. I have been growing my hair out for 5(!) years but for the last 3 years growth seems to have stalled. I can't get it longer than just under armpit length. My friend, who is a hairdresser, and numerous google searches would seem to suggest that I have reached terminal length. But after trawling through these forums I think have reason to hope again!

BREAKAGE - I had always ruled this out because I hardly ever get split ends. This is despite my ends always being dry and almost bleached looking. I have never dyed, heat styled, wash weekly and generally treat my hair gently, but is it possible there is something else which is causing the dry/bleached ends, and that hair is still breaking off but not leaving splits? I think we have hard water, could this be the culprit?

SUPER SLOW GROWTH RATE - Again, this was not something I had really considered. Every article on hair growth gives an average growth rate and it's easy to assume you fall into that category. But when I started this journey I had a longish fringe, nearly 5 years later and it's only just past my jawline. It gets trimmed half as much as my ends. I did have baby #3 about 3 1/2 years ago. Could pregnancy/feeding throw off you growth rate for that amount of time? Anyone else had experience with this?

I think my plan is to get a water filter, oil and use protective styles 24/7 to reduce possible breakage and stop the 8-12 weekly trims and see what happens.

Thoughts, o wise ones?

PS I am so pleased I found you all! I can dream of long, flowing tresses again :)

[ArtOfNoot]

Hard water can be rough on the hair. AVC rinses every few washes can help with that.
This might be an obvious question, but how much are you trimming off in these every-8-to-12-week trims? Getting trims more than once or twice a year seems excessive to me (unless they are micro trims for hemline thickening).
Your game plan seems to be on the money but, with all things, Your Mileage May Vary. This forum is a treasure trove of information, which may seem overwhelming at first. There are as many hair care routines as there are heads of hair, so it is really just a long-term game of trial and error. And the LHC is a super valuable resource because so many people on here have already documented their trials and errors on this amazing cant-believe-its-free forum.

EDIT: Also, trimming is not necessarily required for hair growth. Especially since you say you hardly ever get split ends. Maybe the products you are using are too drying? :shrug: There could be any number of causes of dry hair.

[tuanyiji]

Granted each person grows at a different rate (and at different temperatures), but 1-2cm/month is pretty normal for a healthy person in a warm climate.
I think one of the key elements to growing healthy long hair is nutrients, do you consume enough proteins?
If you keep trimming your hair every 8-12 weeks, no wonder you don't see much growth, because you're trimming it way more than your natural growth.
If your ends are healthy, there's no need to trim your hair at all if you want to reach your goal length more quickly.
I haven't trimmed in three to four years and my hair naturally grew from BSL to close to fingertip length with a long ass fairytail.
But if you want to maintain a specific hemline, try microtrimming and reduce the frequency.

[paulownia]

I second tuanyiji about nutrition. Good diet and water intake and extra supplements if necessary :D protein, healthy fats ( nuts, avocado, fat fish) and green vegetables.
I have been faithful for years to drinking nettle tea and occasionally yeast, those two speed up hair growth.
And of course scalp massage and scalp treatments ( key ingredients horsetail, rosemary, caffeine, biotin, ginseng and so on:D)

[cookies]

Hi and welcome to LHC! :)

I'm not that experienced yet, but I've read a whole lot of info from around this lovely forum in the past six months, so I'll share my two cents :)

First and foremost, like ArtOfNoot pointed out, it is a game of trial and error and you'll need to mix and match information to figure out what works for you. Unfortunately, that also means not trying everything at once, but rather one adjustment at a time, so that you can determine if there's an improvement from it or not.

Secondly, I also agree that you probably don't need all those trims if you don't see any split ends. I assume it's the dryness that urges you to trim, but once you find a solution for it, you likely won't feel the need to trim unless it's to shape your hemline.

Now, the dryness of the ends. My ends were totally fried pre-LHC and I thought I'll just have to live with that until I cut all the bleach damage off. But as it turns out, all they needed was some hydration and then oiling in between washes. So here's some questions to think about and possible solutions based on my personal experience:

How do you wash your hair? More specifically, do you shampoo all of it, root to tip?
If yes, that could be very drying for your ends.
Try coating the lengths from your ears down with conditioner, massaging the shampoo into your scalp and then rinsing it off again with focus on the scalp until the shampoo is gone first, and then rinsing the lengths from the conditioner. Then condition from root (or close to, if you want to avoid the scalp) to ends and leave that in for a few minutes while you do your shower things.

Do you do any moisture treatments?
If not, your ends might not be hydrated enough and be dry as a result.
My personal favorite has been this one (https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=128). I do it after every other wash. I coat my hair generously from root to tip at the end of my shower and then put a shower cap on, then wrap that in a towel and leave it on for an hour before I rinse it off. My ends came back to life after the very first time I did this, my mind was blown.

You mention hard water.
This can definitely be a problem. I also have hard water and it never even crossed my mind that it could affect my hair until I found LHC.
Aside from a water filter, you can use a clarifying shampoo occasionally, for example look for one for swimmers (who need to wash chlorine off on regular basis). Aside from that, as mentioned, you can try an ACV rinse (https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=71915). I did it twice and my hair felt amazing, but I have to admit I hated the lingering vinegar smell :D Next time I'll try with lemon juice instead.

Do you use any leave-in products?
Your hair might need that extra support. Look for a leave-in conditioner and/or a hair oil and apply a little bit right after you get out of the shower. I do conditioner first, oil second, sometimes followed by aloe vera gel for wave definition (not sure the last is doing anything for me though).

Are your hair products too harsh for your hair/contain any drying ingredients?
I'm no expert on hair care science, but aside from drying ingredients (e.g. alcohol), there's apparently also a balance between proteins, humectants and oils to look out for. paulownia explained that briefly to me here (https://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=170&p=3978067&viewfull=1#post3978067) which was enough to go off of.

The other two game changers for me were oiling my ends with a tiny bit of hair oil every evening and drinking lots of water :D I was pretty bad with my water intake, but when I started making sure I get my 2L every day, I saw a massive growth spurt.

Also, be cautious with the protective styles, especially if intend to do it 24/7, as that could accidentally cause some trouble too - don't make them too tight and switch them up (especially their position on your head) so you don't put too much tension on specific parts of your hair, which could then cause breakage.

Aaaaand lastly - none of these things, even the ones that do work for you, will affect your growth rate (except possibly nutrition if you're lacking there). They'd only affect the condition of your hair, which can then affect your trimming intervals and reduce breakage, which in turn affects the overall length :)


P.S. OMG, I did not realize I'd written such a massive wall of text :lol: appologies everyone!

[lapushka]

Your... hairdresser? That suggests to me you are going... often? Or, am I mistaken. Are you getting your hair trimmed every 6 to 8 weeks, because if so she is taking *all* your growth off each time you visit. There is absolutely no need to trim that often. Once to 2 times a year, on healthy (growing) hair is more than enough. You only grow 6 inches a year. That's half an inch a month. If you are approximately going monthly, then... see what I mean? :)

[mochichichi]

I definitely also agree with a lot of the comments about trimming--I would suspect that as the main culprit. Stop the trims for a while and see what happens.

Your hairdresser is your friend, but around here they're also notorious for taking off just a little more than necessary a lot of the time.

[Rayosunshine]

Thanks for the replies. So much information! #lapushka - lol yes that would be concerning if that were the case! Luckily she is just a friend who happens to be a hairdresser.

I trim my own hair every 8 or so weeks. I have always been told it's a *must* to maintain healthy hair. I would have said I trim about 1cm. But thinking about it now, I'll do a little bit, then a little bit more, and then a little bit more. I think it's become a compulsion because I hate my dry ends so much. I might even be addicted as the thought of not doing it makes me very nervous!

I think oiling my ends and tucking them away - at least for a time - might help. I have never really had success with leave-in conditioners/treatments etc but am wondering now if that was due to hard water build up. ACV rinse might be my new best friend!

#cookies thanks for the tip re protective styles. I am pretty lazy with hair styling, a plait or a top bun with scrunchie is the extent of my skills. I will look into other options!

[Ylva]

If you're taking off "1 cm and a little bit more and then a little more" every 8 weeks, it only takes 2 cm to trim off the average growth for that amount of time, so I, too, think that is where the issue lies. And the very good news is that there is an extremely easy fix! ;)

[lapushka]

Yes the easy fix is: keep your mitts off your hair, girlfriend. :lol: No, all fun aside. Honestly. Dry ends can be fixed not by cutting them, but by conditioning your hair, that's *all it takes* Honestly. No need to do more, and certainly not trim! Oh God no!

And it is a big ole' myth that you need to trim every 6 to 8 weeks. Myth! Nobody here does that, unless they are happy with their hair and maintaining it (such as me).

[Joliebaby]

Yes, the number one thing to do is STOP TRIMMING. My last trim was over two years ago, I don't even remember when it was. If you absolutely must, trim every 6 months at most. Join the no-trimming challenge here. I started at above shoulders, am now at waist, and plan to go past hips before trimming.

If you were at terminal length, you would see a lot of taper.

Secondly, water filter is probably a good idea, and adding moisture and oils in your dry ends. I would recommend a sulphate free shampoo and conditioner.

Happy growing :o

[Joliebaby]

Yes, the number one thing to do is STOP TRIMMING. My last trim was over two years ago, I don't even remember when it was. If you absolutely must, trim every 6 months at most. Join the no-trimming challenge here. I started at above shoulders, am now at waist, and plan to go past hips before trimming.

If you were at terminal length, you would see a lot of taper.

Secondly, water filter is probably a good idea, and adding moisture and oils in your dry ends. I would recommend a sulphate free shampoo and conditioner.

Happy growing :o