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View Full Version : need encouragement- slooow grower



Marjolein
March 23rd, 2010, 03:54 AM
Hi all,

I really need some encouragement, or else a wake up call :(.

I've never had hair longer than it is today, which is 24". My hair is fine and it grows very very slowly. I get about 6 centimeters of growth (less than 2,5 inches) a year. Of that 6 cms I need to trim about 2 cm's in order for my hair to stay healthy.

I truly pamper my hair (always have), and it's in pretty good condition. But the majority of it is 10 years old or even older. How much longer will those follicles hold on?

I really don't think my hair will grow much longer than it is right now.

Any comments, tips or reality checks are very welcome!

Dreams_in_Pink
March 23rd, 2010, 04:13 AM
That's a tough situation.

My hair also grows kinda slow. I'm trying to speed it up by doing scalp massages whenever i can, maybe you can try that too?

Deimos
March 23rd, 2010, 04:20 AM
Does it really grow that slow or does it break? If you wear it down all the time, it may seem as if it doesn't grow a lot because the hair breaks because of wear and tear and friction and what not.
I thought my hair was incapable of growing longer than bsl but I found that wearing it up all the time really helps (almost at waist now :)).

I hope you find what causes the problem :)

Marjolein
March 23rd, 2010, 04:24 AM
Thanks Dreams in Pink! I think I'll try that the pre-wash nights. Even if it won't help with the growth, it'll still feel gooood :grin:.

Marjolein
March 23rd, 2010, 04:25 AM
I henna my hair so I can pretty accurately tell how much my hair grows in a month. It really grows that slowly. Always has, too.

ETA reply to Deimos.

Konstifik
March 23rd, 2010, 07:14 AM
Ohh, that sounds exactly like my hair! I've been growing hair since I was 12, and I'm now at BSL. My growth doesn't seem to improve no matter how much I pamper my hair. So all I can say is: patience!!

I know that some days it feels hopeless and you just want to cut away it all. But don't give up. It'll soon pass. :flower:

Cleopatra18
March 23rd, 2010, 08:07 AM
Did you try taking growth aids as biotin and such? Also i did scalp massages daily last month and it gave me alot of growth.Castor oil may help you as well.

atlantaz3
March 23rd, 2010, 08:13 AM
I feel your pain as I think I get about 4 inches a year. My test is I only need highlights about twice a year. I seemed to be at 24 inches and though that may be it. Average hair age 7 years times 4 inches should be 28 was my calculation. Lately I have started wearing my hair up had the hubby do a measure and he got 25 - I had to have him double check. I think between my office chair and other obstacles the ends were breaking off. So I'm testing the hair up (at least out of the house) for a few months to see if I get any growth. I'm also on a healthy eating, plus exercising to lose about 20 pounds, taking a multi vitamin all of which I hope will stimulate hair. All I can add for encouragement is patience which is not one of my strong suites. Try and forget about your hair for a while, don't measure, be kind to it etc - benign neglect I think they call it.:cool:

Marjolein
March 23rd, 2010, 09:03 AM
Thanks all for your sweet replies!

There have been some questions and I'll try answering them here:

I have been taking multivitamins for just about all my life. Since a month or so I'm also taking hair growth supplements which (amongst others) contain vitamin B, Biotin and MSM. I haven't noticed any change in the growth rate of my hair yet, though.

I think I live pretty healthily. I exercise about 3-4 times a week. And I get around by bicycle. I eat a lot of fruits and veggies. And I drink about 2 liters of water (or herbal tea) a day.

I wear my hair up a lot when going outdoors, but in my own home I like to keep it loose. It isn't really long enough to get stuck, though. I sleep in braids and on a satin pillow cover.

But as I said before the problem really isn't breakage. My hair is pretty healthy, and I think that only needing 2 cm's trimmed of per year is actually quite good. The problem is that there's only 4cm's of growth left and my hair will only grow for so long before it falls out.

Sorry for this long post. The growth rate of my hair has really been getting to me lately. Would love to hear from some other superslow growers who did manage to get their hair longer than mine!

Marjolein
March 23rd, 2010, 09:07 AM
Castor oil may help you as well.

How would I use that? Massage it into my scalp? I'm a little afraid of trying something like that, because my hair truly HATES oils, particularly heavy ones like castor oil. I'm scared that the amount of product (be it shampoo, bar or conditioner) needed to take out the oil would leave my hair worse off than before the treatment.

renarok
March 23rd, 2010, 10:49 AM
It sounds like you are doing everything right. I bet your hair is lovely.

lesbia
March 23rd, 2010, 11:01 AM
Me too. Also my hair grow slowly, it's about 3 mounths at the same lenght -.- be patience...

heidihug
March 23rd, 2010, 11:07 AM
I use out-of-the-box color to cover my grays so I, too, can track growth very accurately, and I can commiserate with you about slow growth. Most months in the last year or so I've had about a cm of growth, which, while more than you, is much less than average.

I've found the best way to grow it is to practice benign neglect - treat it as you have been and wear it up as often as possible. Once I started doing that, I found that I just didn't pay attention to it, and it grew longer than I thought possible. I'm at 48" now and growing towards knee-length.

Best of luck, and keep up the loving patience - it'll pay off.

Cleopatra18
March 23rd, 2010, 11:41 AM
yes apply some castor oil on your finger tips and massage it on your scalp (do it for about 15 mins everyday if you can).i dont think you'll have any problem getting it out using normal amount of conditioner.i switched to co washing lately and it has been working really good for me even thought i oil my hair and scalp pretty much everyday.good luck :)

GoddesJourney
March 23rd, 2010, 12:39 PM
Often fine hair breaks without really showing damage. You may do well to really check everything. Have you checked your comb/brush or hairtoys? Sometimes there are seams or snags that go unnoticed. These could be ruining your growth.

I know this because, although most of my hair is medium to coarse, I have some fine areas as well. The coarser hairs always split and honestly look like tree roots. My fine hairs are barely capable of splitting. Usually, the just break off without really showing. The only way I can see this is because my hair is pretty dark, so I can see the little white spot if I look closely. Oh, you might want to look into what happens after you bun. I've noticed that bunning causes breakage for me. As it starts to untwist, it kinks my hair. Eventually those little kinks become white spots and break off.

Marjolein
March 24th, 2010, 06:37 AM
Thanks everybody! I'll give castor oil a try, and scalp massages also. And benign neglect is just about the only thing that will keep me sane, so that's very sound advice ;).

GoddesJourney, thanks for the suggestion. Breakage isn't really the problem for me, though. I S&D a few times a week and indeed have more white dots than actual splits, but they can easily be spotted against a dark background.

I usually only find a handful of dots and splits, my hair is overall in good condition. It's just old and I'm afraid that terminal length may be nearer than I wish.

Curlsgirl
March 24th, 2010, 12:30 PM
So you don't use any heat on your hair either? Wow it must be really healthy then. That's too bad! I know that must be frustrating! Mine has slowed down to probably 4 inches a year and I thought that was annoying enough! Could you try not trimming at all and seeing what happens? Could you possibly be trimming more than you think? Just thinking here..

tokidokichi
March 24th, 2010, 01:21 PM
I have been taking multivitamins for just about all my life. Since a month or so I'm also taking hair growth supplements which (amongst others) contain vitamin B, Biotin and MSM. I haven't noticed any change in the growth rate of my hair yet, though.


Sometimes hair growth supplements take a while to get in your system, it may take up to 2 or 3 months to notice any change. Try not to measure your new growth too often, as it can be a little disapointing sometimes, but don't be discouraged. =]

Quahatundightu
March 24th, 2010, 03:28 PM
Hello, I recommend catnip!! I've had my first noticeable growth in ages and I think it definitely contributed :)

Marjolein
March 25th, 2010, 12:34 AM
Thanks you guys! In answer to your questions:

Curlsgirl: Nope, no heat! And I would love it if I could go without trimming at all, but if I want to keep it healthy those 2cm's a year are necessecary I think.

Tokidokichi: Very true! I'll keep taking those hair supplements for at least 3 more months before I'll judge their effectiveness.

Quahatundightu: I've thought about using catnip! How do you use it? The Ktani method, or in another fashion?

jera
March 25th, 2010, 01:18 AM
How much MSM do you take? Can you increase the dose? MSM is supposed to extend the growth cycle of hair so it doesn't fall out as fast. Hmmm... You could also try castor oil which someone else has already recommended. :)

Debra83
March 25th, 2010, 01:36 AM
msm, and silica, and regular vitamins. Milk, yogurt, eggs, protein, oil of some type (I use omega 3-6-9 as a vitamin supplement), water.......occasional head massages, cwc's, occasional oil treatment, no brushes, no ponytails (very rarely)....hmmmmmm, I think that is it.