Is it possible to grow your hair long without putting it up all the time?

[SheeJee]

When I put my hair up I usually get a major headache, so I usually just leave my hair out (although I put it up in a bun at night and sleep on a satin pillowcase usually)

Do you think it's still possible for me to grow my hair long despite mostly wearing it down? Thanks!

[kme81]

Does a french braid hurt? Ponytails have hurt my head since pre-bsl, braiding saved my ends.

[wooliswonderful]

I grew mine to between thigh & knee and very seldom had my hair up in anything more than a braid or pony tail.

[pink.sara]

I only ever really put mine up at work otherwise it tangles in my headset (I'm on the phone about half of the day)
Ive also previously grown it to TBL wearing it down all the time and not treating it particularly nicely.
It depends how resilient your hair is I guess!

[C.H.]

I'm sure you can. Your progress might be slower or you might want to be extra careful about some things. But I'm sure it can be done. I've known plenty of women with nice-looking hair in the BSL to WL that was worn down most of the time.

[Mesmerise]

It depends on your hair and how long you want to grow it! If you want super long hair, you're probably better off babying it by keeping it up. If you want waist or hip length hair (or shorter), it probably isn't as crucial. I have always grown my hair while wearing it loose (or just in a ponytail, which isn't exactly protective). Before LHC it never occurred to me to do it any other way!

I prefer wearing my hair loose...and generally only put it up if it's annoying me, or if it's looking particularly bad! If it looks good, I wear it out.

[Pierre]

How do you put it up? If you do one bun, try two, one on each side. One of my favorite styles is two braids, one on each side, both wrapped around the back and held by Flexis.

[owlathena]

Of course! Keeping it up just helps protect it and keep it from tangling, so just be aware of it (not getting it caught in zippers, straps, etc) and be gentle with it, to minimize damage.

My friends BF burnt her hair with his cigarette the other day O.O they were dancing and he was careless...I dont know if a bun would have helped, but it might! I suggest playing around with putting it up, you might discover something that you like.

[luxepiggy]

Depends on your hair, and your definition of long (^(oo)^)v

It's really all about tradeoffs - the longer you want the hair to be, the more you need to protect it from damage, otherwise it will just break or split before you reach your goal. If your hair is naturally fairly resilient, then you won't have to be quite as careful as someone with more fragile hair. I almost always wear my hair down, and I've hit classic a couple of times.

[hototogisu]

I try to keep my hair up whenever I'm outdoors, as a rule, because my fine, porous, 'grabby' hair whips and snarls horribly in the wind. Have you tried experimenting with different styles? I swear by long, open French pins (I buy them from dance stores, they're meant for ballet dancers). I'm guessing they work in the same way as a fork, but I lose them constantly and I don't want to lose a beautiful hair fork. I find I don't get headaches with pins, but I definitely do with elastics.

Braids are also great. If I need to keep my layers under control I put it all in a quickie French braid. It looks a bit strange at work (I work in a creative industry and my coworkers are all very cooler-than-thou, bless them), but it's very comfortable and does the trick!

[IanB]

Simple answer - yes, The majority of guys who grow long hair wear it down.

[supbanana]

My hair is super resilient. I never wore it up prior to finding LHC and I'm not noticing much of a difference in terms of growth between keeping it up or down - I hit waist a few times thick and healthy. However, I seem to be getting less split ends this way, so take from that what you will.

[Panth]

It depends on your hair and how long you want to grow it! If you want super long hair, you're probably better off babying it by keeping it up. If you want waist or hip length hair (or shorter), it probably isn't as crucial.

This.

Personally, I can only grow to a raggy TB when I wear my hair loose every day (or ponytailed, or the occasional english plait). Updos nearly every day = heading steadily towards knee, with 10" gained in the last 12 months since TB.

For you, things may vary. Often people notice a slowing/stalling of length gain at BSL, due to their hair starting to rub on the backs of chairs. It all depends on the natural strength of your hair (which depends on how you treat it otherwise (dye, bleach, heat treatment, chemical straightening/perm, brushing, harmful hairtoys, etc.) plus its fineness) plus how much you have to lose (which depends on your total hair thickness).

[Chromis]

When I put my hair up I usually get a major headache, so I usually just leave my hair out (although I put it up in a bun at night and sleep on a satin pillowcase usually)

Do you think it's still possible for me to grow my hair long despite mostly wearing it down? Thanks!

It's possible, though mine would not look very good if I did. Yours might be fine. I know I used to wear ponytails a lot and I had major damage on the ends and at the nape.

I get headaches from high buns and French braids. As long as I do a lower bun that doesn't require me to comb the hair away from its natural direction on the scalp, I am quite comfy. Even just a simple braid should be a little more protective than completely down and would keep it out of the way.

[WaitingSoLong]

I grew to waist before I started wearing it up, now I wear it down more for several reasons I will skip.

I got headaches, too, from wearing it up. Before LHC I never knew how to do a bun except with bobby pins. It would never stay and I would get massive headaches no matter where the bun was placed. Hair sticks were a godsend to me. I was to the point it was either cut it or find a new way to keep it up (because of the nature of my life, hobbies, I cannot wear it down...like when I mow the yard, I use a riding mower and my hair would get sucked into the mototr fan if I wore it down! Funny story about a T-shirt once....)

As others have said, it depends on your lifestyle and your hairs resilience.

[EdG]

I always wear my hair down. I'm pretty good at keeping it out of trouble.
Ed

[Yame]

I grew mine to waist+ without a single updo or braid, but now I want to get to tailbone and take beter care of it so I do put it up

[Madora]

First of all, it all depends on your genes. Some longhairs can grow hair past the knees, others never get past waist.

Second, it depends on your hair. Some hair seems like iron and will take just about anything. Others not so much.

You can grow hair long w/o keeping it up, but you will need to be extra pro active in making sure those fragile ends are trimmed regularly (every 3 months). Also, hair is more prone to tangling when worn down, so you might experience more damage when dealing with detangling issues.

As far as headaches are concerned, you might try sectioning your hair when doing buns as this distributes the weight more comfortably on your head.

If your scalp hurts when wearing updos, most probably it is due to the fact that the follicles are not accustomed to being pulled in a different direction and they will hurt. In that case, you need to gradually accustom your follicles to the different direction..i. e. wear the new style for an hour each day, then revert to wearing it down. Increase the duration of the updo a little every day until you can wear it w/o the headaches.

If you find this isn't working for you and you need to wear your hair down, then try confining it in a braid..or banding it at intervals.

[Zindell]

My hair is down 95% or more of the time. It grows perfectly fine and is in good condition. :)

[pepperpot]

When I put my hair up I usually get a major headache, so I usually just leave my hair out (although I put it up in a bun at night and sleep on a satin pillowcase usually)

Do you think it's still possible for me to grow my hair long despite mostly wearing it down? Thanks!

Absolutely. I grew my hair to tailbone length and almost never wore it up while I was growing it. I also kept it down most of the time for all the years my hair was that long. It stayed in good condition because I never used heated appliances. I guess it depends on how fragile your hair is though. That's just my expereince.

[Zesty]

I'm sure it is. I grew to nearly-waist with only the occasional ponytail, and my hair isn't particularly resilient. That's the point at which it got annoying, though, so I've started putting it up and it's so much easier to deal with. I had headaches too at first (partly from not being used to buns and partly because as a hair stick newbie I was making them pretty tight) but I just sucked it up and after a week or so I wasn't bothered anymore.

[verene]

Depends on your hair. When I was younger I grew my hair to waist-length just fine, almost never putting it up beyond a pony-tail or braid. I wear it up regularly now for a variety of reasons, but I think it is possible to grow to semi-long lengths with out babying your hair in updos all the time.

[Slamca]

I almost never wear my hair up when I'm out, but they're always in a bun when I'm at home. Tailbone length and still super strong and healthy, with a few split ends here and there. They still grow 3/4 inch per month and there's almost no tapering. So far so good, right? :)

[spidermom]

You probably could, but you'd have to get used to making sure your hair is secure and not getting snatched up in the seatbelt mechanism, etc, etc, etc. I don't want to live my live with my mind on my hair's safety all the time, so up it goes.

[xoxophelia]

I agree that it depends. I don't wear many updos and my hair grows just fine. When it was hip length before I also rarely wore updos. The thing is though that my hair very rarely tangles. If you have issues with that it may end up being much easier to just wear it up.

[TitaniaOfFairys]

When I put my hair up I usually get a major headache, so I usually just leave my hair out (although I put it up in a bun at night and sleep on a satin pillowcase usually)

Do you think it's still possible for me to grow my hair long despite mostly wearing it down? Thanks!

Hi,
I'm sure it's possible. I wear my hair down a lot, it is only up when I'm home, because it is more practical and easier. I get headache from a high updo too, so I just twist my hair around my head and secure it with 4 plastic hair clips. Nothing fancy, but it is confortable. When I do sports, I braid my hair and clip it the same way. It's holds well with the braiding.

My hair is hip length now, and I like to wear down (or half updos) when I'm not home. Sometimes is tangles a bit, but I always have a comb in my handbag, and comb it when I need to. If the weather is very windy it's better to wear a braid though.
I have fine hair and I've never had major damage from wearing it down a lot. It grows fast, and I do S&D every month - never find many split ends, just a few. I think if you use the right products and your hair is healthy, it will be okay.

BTW, I know a girl who is an actress and dancer in theatre. She has gorgeous tailbone length (and fine!) hair that she always wear down in the rehearsals - she usually dance for hours every day, and her hair is in fantastic condition from tip to end.