Sections that won't grow out

[hennaphile]

Hi everyone, I'm new here.

A little back story: for years I had long thick hair, about mid hip length. I cut it and shaved the underside for about three years.:brickwall . Silly, I know! About four years ago I started growing it out again. Even after the lengths had evened up, I noticed some sections that just wouldn't grow out again. I've had some serious hair loss from stress which seem to have stabilized with the thickness returning, with a little extra boost from henna (I can't wait to try cassia). What I have now is a relatively thick hair near the roots, and very thin hair toward the tips. In its former days, my hair was the same thickness from root to tip; I kept my old braid so i can compare how my hair is doing now compared to its former glory (which can be depressing given how nice it was :( ).

Does anyone else have this problem? Is there anything that can be done?

Thanks!!

[Finoriel]

Hi there :waving:welcome to the forum.
When looking at old pictures I had a very even braid as a teenager as well. Then I kept it short for some years and now growing my hair out again I notice that I have a reasonable amount of taper - not too bad but more than it used to be.
Something which seems very common for adults.
My guess is that it has not much to do with cutting ones hair short or shaving it, it´s more because of hormonal changes while becoming older. Children hair differs from teenage hair which differs from adult hair which differs from greying hair. :shrug: Circle of life. Not much stays the same on ones body from school time to retirement anyways... for most people there are noticeable changes over the years :wink: and it´s not gravity which is increasing. Not only in thickness and taper also the grade of straightness/waviness/curliness can change over the years.
As long as you can rule out health issues (thyroid, skin problems, allergies, stress, etc.), eat a balanced diet and it´s not breakage which makes your taper more pronounced than it was some years ago... hormones most likely are the ones to blame for it.
But hang in there, even though you say it´s not as thick as it used to be, it´s still thick and healthy looking and most updos hold better when there´s a little taper. :flower:

[Omens]

Hmm. My only guess would be that maybe what you're seeing is still just the result of the stress? It could take awhile for it to get back to the way it was, probably a good year or two. Perhaps it only needs more time to grow out healthily again. :confused:

What Finoriel said could definitely be a possiblity too; hair does change drastically sometimes when we age. Even in a couple of years it can become very different from what it formerly was.

Welcome to the LHC :D

[hennaphile]

Thanks guys!

I had blood work done, no thyroid issues, no hormone issues.... every derm has said it's stress (hey college should come with a black box warning!).

So my hunch is that probably hormonal changes combined with stress are the culprit. I eat well, take vitamins, and take good care of my hair, so hopefully it'll grow out nicely.

I do have those curlicues that just don't grow though-- those little locks that just stay put and don't catch up... do you guys have any of those?

Thanks again, this is a great forum!:cheese:

[Omens]

Thanks guys!

I had blood work done, no thyroid issues, no hormone issues.... every derm has said it's stress (hey college should come with a black box warning!).

So my hunch is that probably hormonal changes combined with stress are the culprit. I eat well, take vitamins, and take good care of my hair, so hopefully it'll grow out nicely.

I do have those curlicues that just don't grow though-- those little locks that just stay put and don't catch up... do you guys have any of those?

Thanks again, this is a great forum!:cheese:

Yeah, college can be pretty evil at times. As long as you are consciously looking out for your hair and managing the stress as best you can, I don't see any reason why it shouldn't keep growing and improving. Sounds like you're doing all the right stuff. :)

I think everyone has those little curlies that don't grow. I have some by my ears that are strangely about 4-5 inches long, that refuse to grown any longer, then a bunch of those short little baby hairs around my neck.

[SpecialKitty]

hennaphile, your hair looks beautiful in your avatar photo! I know it is hard to look back and compare your hair now to your hair then. Maybe try to focus on the present and enjoy your hair for what it is - it is very lovely even with it's finer ends. Maybe over time putting into practice what your learn here at LHC, your hair will thicken up. :flowers:

[Asha]

I have a few "baby hairs" that will never catch up to the rest of my hair no matter what I do. Its just the way a few of them are and I've learned to accept them...

[jera]

The hair in your avatar pic does look awsome. I have a couple of sections that seem to go nowhere too. :( But I keep experimenting with different things, treatments and regimes, to see if I can jump start those follicles. :p

And you bet, college can be super stressful. Good luck. BTW, that was one of the cutest emoticons I've ever seen here. LOL.