Below BSL rant

[Anisaa]

Hi everyone!!! I hope everyone is doing great and reaching their hair goals:eyebrows:...
I just felt like sharing my frustration and desperation today! Well, my hair is about three fingers below my bra strap, it is growing but very, very SLOW.. My goal is for it to reach waist (about five fingers away)..However, that goal seems very unreachable because my hair is growing slower and my ENDS are extremely dry and brittle(ANY ADVICE on how to deal with dry brittle ends w/o cutting). I really try to take good care of my hair..I rarely use heat or products on my hair. I don't dye my hair and try to use quality products.. I refuse to cut my hair, because it has taken me this long for it to reach the length is has( a year (w/o cutting it), but feeling my ends so dry and brittle is getting annoying and I have been very close to cutting it......Thank you all for reading this and any advice, tips you have are GREATLY appreciated~~ If you need to let out some steam regarding your hair you may also do so.... Have a great week :thumbsup: PEACE and Love to everyone~

[Laylah]

I know what you mean about dry ends... Last year my ends were so bad even my beloved coconut oil couldn't fix them. You could try shea butter- it seems to "cling" to very damaged hair better than oil. The problem is, shea butter can be quite pricey so it would be a disappointment if it didn't work for you. I don't know what you've tried so far, but if you haven't yet I'd suggest coconut oil. Parachute is a good brand that you can find in most Indian grocery stores. In my experience, it can fix almost anything. In the mean time, try to put you hair back in a braid so you don't think about it so much. Hope this helps!

[Sara_1987]

I'm exactly the same, past BSL, wanting to get to waist but my ends keep on splitting.

I've just been cutting. I'd rather have nice looking hair than longer straggly looking hair. I just hate having unhealthy ends.

[Juanita]

S&D for any splits then Shea butter for those crispy ends. And put it in a protective bun.
This works for me. I am growing out dye and it took me three years to gain from BSL to waist because of fragile breaking off dyed hair. Still have some dye to go. about six inches.

[Anisaa]

Thank you, I have never tried shea butter, is it like a cream?I have only seen it in lotion form, can I get it in a health food store? I use coconut oil once a week as well as olive oil. I am excited to try out shea butter!!

[Capybara]

Maybe the dryness is from product build-up? You could try doing a clarifying wash, and see how your hair feels afterwards :)

[HintOfMint]

Clarify and do an SMT. After the shower, try a bit of coconut oil, or anything else (not a silicone) that will seal in the moisture.

Also check the ingredients in your shampoo, conditioner and styling products. Silicone (that isn't washed off) and protein can cause dry crispy ends.

P.S. I'm in below-BSL-hell, too. *pout*

[tanya222]

Hi everyone!!! I hope everyone is doing great and reaching their hair goals:eyebrows:...
I just felt like sharing my frustration and desperation today! Well, my hair is about three fingers below my bra strap, it is growing but very, very SLOW.. My goal is for it to reach waist (about five fingers away)..However, that goal seems very unreachable because my hair is growing slower and my ENDS are extremely dry and brittle(ANY ADVICE on how to deal with dry brittle ends w/o cutting). I really try to take good care of my hair..I rarely use heat or products on my hair. I don't dye my hair and try to use quality products.. I refuse to cut my hair, because it has taken me this long for it to reach the length is has( a year (w/o cutting it), but feeling my ends so dry and brittle is getting annoying and I have been very close to cutting it......Thank you all for reading this and any advice, tips you have are GREATLY appreciated~~ If you need to let out some steam regarding your hair you may also do so.... Have a great week :thumbsup: PEACE and Love to everyone~


You might like to read about taking supplemental silica. I used to buy it but just can't afford it right now as I only work parttime, but it is great for promoting hair & nail growth.

[Anisaa]

Thanks for the recommendation, I will definitely do a clarifying! as far as SMT, what is thta? How do you do it?

[Merewen]

SMT = Snowymoon's Moisture Treatment (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=128&highlight=snowy+moisture+treatment)

I totally hear you on the crunchy ends, too. I haven't quite figured out how to banish them yet, myself, I'm afraid.

[HintOfMint]

Here is the link! It is 1 part honey (nuked in the microwave for about 20 seconds), 1 part aloe vera gel (clear, not green), and 4 parts non-protein silicone free conditioner (usually the cheapest stuff you can find. V05 is a godsend). SMT is short for Snowymoon's Moisture Treatment. Snowy is a member on this site.

An SMT is heavy on humectants which makes it actually moisturizing as it draws moisture from the conditioner and the air into one's hair, as opposed to an emollient which only seals in what is already there.

Good luck!

[MsBubbles]

Just below BSL for me (and probably a lot of other people) marked the rubbing-against-chairs point, as well as an apparent spontaneous combustion of my ends, which I attributed to years of highlights and blowfrying.

What worked best for me was trimming half a centimeter or 1/4 inch or so of my ends myself (a la Feye's Self Trim) every month without fail. My hemline has just now gotten to waist in tact, but it took twice the time due to my cutting off half my length gain each month. But I'm happy with the results.

Your hair might not be growing slowly, just breaking off some at the hemline.

Oh and another thing that saved my ends was quitting washing my entire length every other day and doing every other day scalp washes instead. It wasn't the washing so much as the detangling attempts afterwards that was ruining my length. I have fine, straight hair like you and it was really noticeable.

I second the SMT idea.

[McFearless]

Do you exercise frequently? Exercising 5 times a week helped me push to BSL. I usually speed walk or jump rope. I also leave a little conditioner on my ends and that seems to keep them happy