Growing as long as it will go! (The Terminal Goal Thread)

[vpatt]

Oh no! The more I read the more I change my hair goals. Now I am considering terminal. I suppose I could change my mind if I want, lol. First I thought APL as my first goal and then I thought waist. Waist is as long as I have ever had....I cut my hair (I believe as a form of rebellion) and over the years with every cut or trim I went shorter and shorter. Now I want long hair again! I am already hearing in my mind all the comments about my age and growing long hair. I guess I'd best sharpen up my "Glare of Death" for those unfortunates who dare criticize, lol. My hair seems very different than when it was long before. Gray for one thing and the texture is very light and fluffy...or is that volume? Well, I guess I need to get started on the journey, at 64 I don't want to run out of time.

[Dragon Faery]

Hello! Still here and still growing, though I've been absent from the forums for a while. Eventually I'll catch up with this thread. A little update, though: I'm finally closing in on Tailbone, which is 38.5" on me. I have less than an inch left until I'm there. Based on how much I've trimmed the past few years, I guesstimate I can make it to at least somewhere between Classic and Fingertip with my longest hairs, but of course I'm hoping my terminal is actually past knee. And past floor is my dream. So we'll see. Happy Growing to all!

[starfire]

Growing to terminal out of curiosity.

Once I get there and if it turns out to be longer than floor, I will cut it back to something more manageable. But until then, let it grow!

[longhairmomof7]

My next goal is hip.. then terminal.. unless hip is terminal for me LOL

[LauraLongLocks]

You just have to make sure all of your special occasions are formal enough to get away with wearing a dress with a train. ;)

Perfect.

ten characters

[nowxisxforever]

Holla! ;) I finally hit knee when wet. Man, the journey from classic to knee is intense! It took me forever!

I guess I'm not explicitly going for terminal, but my hair philosophy right now is apathy, which means it'll just keep growing until it wants to stop growing or I can't handle it, so.... terminal is likely, depending on how long that is! :)

[JadedByEntropy]

Hi everyone! I'm joining this thread. Though like many have said before, a slightly modified version of terminal, since I'd like to have at least some kind of hemline. Maybe TBL? Classic? I'm hoping I can get there before I turn 30.

I'm in the no-hiarcuts until i'm 30 boat. :) hopefully it'll help me stick to it. I also think i'll stick with the modified hemline just so noone knows thats my terminal ;)

[meisha~]

I've recently decided that I want my hair as long as it can possibly be. However, a couple years ago I took TERRIBLE care of my hair and I don't know if that past damage will affect the overall length I can achieve....

[flickm]

I'm going to try for terminal - but only if that's no longer than waist. I hate wearing my hair up (sorry, i know people on this board advise wearing it up to protect it, but i hate the feel and look of it on me), so I think longer than waist length would be difficult to manage. I've never got mine longer than halfway down my back, between bra strap and waist, but that's partly because i get fedup and cut it because it gets straggly. Maybe i should put up with straggly and see what happens, espcially with the romantic names for straggly like fairy-tale ends :) It may be my hair won't grow even to waist length, but i'm going to give it a go. It's at almost armpits now, after a severe trim to just below the shoulders a couple of months ago. It usually grows fairly fast, especially in the summer, so here goes! Wish me luck.

[flickm]

I've recently decided that I want my hair as long as it can possibly be. However, a couple years ago I took TERRIBLE care of my hair and I don't know if that past damage will affect the overall length I can achieve....

I may be wrong, but i think damage from within is worse than stuff done to the actual hair, since the hair shaft is dead anyway. Within reason anyway - I should think blitzing your follicles and scalp with repeated dye or bleach applications might take a bit of undoing.

[Dragon Faery]

I've recently decided that I want my hair as long as it can possibly be. However, a couple years ago I took TERRIBLE care of my hair and I don't know if that past damage will affect the overall length I can achieve....

Past damage will only temporarily affect it. That is, damage and trims will shorten the achievable length of the hair that is currently on your head, but all hair is in a continuous cycle of growing, pausing, shedding, letting the follicle rest, and starting over again. So with the hairs that are currently growing out of your head, the length they can reach will be less than your true potential terminal length. However, some unknown number of years down the road, those hairs will have shed out, one by one, and the follicles they came from will have started over on new hairs, and those hairs will be fully capable of growing as long as they can possibly go, assuming your health is good and you are taking care to keep those hairs damage-free.

In other words, it will take longer to get to your true terminal, but with time and patience it will still happen eventually.


I'm going to try for terminal - but only if that's no longer than waist. I hate wearing my hair up (sorry, i know people on this board advise wearing it up to protect it, but i hate the feel and look of it on me), so I think longer than waist length would be difficult to manage. I've never got mine longer than halfway down my back, between bra strap and waist, but that's partly because i get fedup and cut it because it gets straggly. Maybe i should put up with straggly and see what happens, espcially with the romantic names for straggly like fairy-tale ends :) It may be my hair won't grow even to waist length, but i'm going to give it a go. It's at almost armpits now, after a severe trim to just below the shoulders a couple of months ago. It usually grows fairly fast, especially in the summer, so here goes! Wish me luck.

If you don't want anything longer than waist, there is no reason to worry about wearing your hair down, especially if you take reasonable care of it. Wishing you luck! Hair tends to naturally thin at the ends as it gets longer, so don't despair. You could always try trimming less than you normally would and just see what happens. With enough time and patience, you may be pleasantly surprised. :)

[Dragon Faery]

I remember I tried those "calculate your terminal length" tests when I joined about 4 years ago. Definitely remember they are rough guesstimates! When I plugged in my numbers (don't ask me to remember them, but they were accurate at the time) I came out bald, so ... yeah. :eye:

I will be very curious to see how many of us actually reach Terminal (excluding those who are already there, of course). After all, you couldn't really be sure you'd reached it until you'd been stalled in the same place, without trims, for at least the same length of time as it took you to originally grow your hair out that long. And that could take several decades.

Here's something I've been wondering: if your terminal length turns out to be past Floor, would you keep growing to find it? I'd like to think I would, but I won't really know unless I get there and have a chance to see what it feels like.

[flickm]

If you don't want anything longer than waist, there is no reason to worry about wearing your hair down, especially if you take reasonable care of it. Wishing you luck! Hair tends to naturally thin at the ends as it gets longer, so don't despair. You could always try trimming less than you normally would and just see what happens. With enough time and patience, you may be pleasantly surprised. :)

Thanks :) i tend to trim infrequently anyway, and have now got some proper, sharp scissors. In the past I've just had it cut when it got messy, but I'll persevere. I'd never heard of terminal length tests. I will google it.

[Shepherdess]

Here's something I've been wondering: if your terminal length turns out to be past Floor, would you keep growing to find it? I'd like to think I would, but I won't really know unless I get there and have a chance to see what it feels like.

I would like to think I would too, though after last year when I couldn't bear how thin my ends were growing at 59" and trimmed them off, I worry I'll give in again next time they start to get thin, though I really would like to know what floor length feels like and how long it will grow (if my terminal length was that long) so I need to learn patience. :) I seem to have a few hairs that like to grow faster than the rest too, so hopefully the rest of my length will keep up. :P

[lapushka]

My hair is heavily layered, so it naturally thins out towards the ends (V-shape). I sometimes wonder about terminal, but I'm guessing I won't grow that far (reasons of comfort etc.).

[gossamer]

Here's something I've been wondering: if your terminal length turns out to be past Floor, would you keep growing to find it? I'd like to think I would, but I won't really know unless I get there and have a chance to see what it feels like.

No. Although I hit floor when wet a few months ago and still haven't cut, I'm still planning on cutting back to knee or fingertip length sometime this year.

I miss being able to wear it down. I did yesterday for a little bit while I was out walking, trying to get it to dry because it had been up most of the day after I washed it in the morning, and I realized that even though I was wearing heels so that it didn't drag on the ground, the ends kept getting caught between my heel and the back of my shoe. Annoying!

[ravenheather]

I honestly can't imagine longer than knee on myself. Its all guessing games right now as I haven't reached waist yet.

[Dragon Faery]

Thanks :) i tend to trim infrequently anyway, and have now got some proper, sharp scissors. In the past I've just had it cut when it got messy, but I'll persevere. I'd never heard of terminal length tests. I will google it.

The tests were referenced earlier in this thread. Sometime within the past 10 pages. :) I really don't think they're accurate, though.


No. Although I hit floor when wet a few months ago and still haven't cut, I'm still planning on cutting back to knee or fingertip length sometime this year.

I miss being able to wear it down. I did yesterday for a little bit while I was out walking, trying to get it to dry because it had been up most of the day after I washed it in the morning, and I realized that even though I was wearing heels so that it didn't drag on the ground, the ends kept getting caught between my heel and the back of my shoe. Annoying!
That makes a lot of sense. I'd get really annoyed at something like that, too, I think. I never enjoy wearing mine down as much as I think I will before I do it, so in a way I may find it nice to have the option taken away. But we'll see. Eventually ...


I would like to think I would too, though after last year when I couldn't bear how thin my ends were growing at 59" and trimmed them off, I worry I'll give in again next time they start to get thin, though I really would like to know what floor length feels like and how long it will grow (if my terminal length was that long) so I need to learn patience. :) I seem to have a few hairs that like to grow faster than the rest too, so hopefully the rest of my length will keep up. :P

It's quite possible that the bulk of your thickness could catch up, or at least partially catch up, given enough time. I'll be curious to know what you think if you do end up hitting Floor someday!

[JadedByEntropy]

Here's something I've been wondering: if your terminal length turns out to be past Floor, would you keep growing to find it? I'd like to think I would, but I won't really know unless I get there and have a chance to see what it feels like.

I'm confidant that it will terminate "soon" so I'm not worried about that too much. :laugh: But i don't have the patience or neck muscles to support all that much hair! I think Thigh/knee would be my limit of tolerance. My knees are too ticklish :eyebrows:

[MISSYLOUISY]

Sooo does anyone know a good product or home remedy to protect your ends and keep them from splitting?

[ravenheather]

I love nightblooming's panacea on etsy. Works really well.

[MISSYLOUISY]

Hey I just checked out Nightblooming's Panacea. Seems wonderful, and thanks for recommending ��

[gthlvrmx]

Sooo does anyone know a good product or home remedy to protect your ends and keep them from splitting?

Get to the root cause of your splits and then take it out and you will have a better chance of keeping splits away. Protective updo's, moisturizing, and oils help keep splits away. Dry hair tends to get splits more than well moisturized hair so maybe a SMT will be good for you.

[Remi]

Yes, this---------->
Get to the root cause of your splits and then take it out and you will have a better chance of keeping splits away. Protective updo's, moisturizing, and oils help keep splits away. Dry hair tends to get splits more than well moisturized hair so maybe a SMT will be good for you.

[ravenheather]

Hey I just checked out Nightblooming's Panacea. Seems wonderful, and thanks for recommending ��

No problem. I agree that moisturized ends are key. That's what panacea does.:D

[embee]

Why did I never join this thread? I've been here for 10 years already, and been at terminal for a good while. Last trim was in 2005, about 8 inches - I still have the tail and it was very fairytaled then.

I have several (seriously, like 1 or 2 or 3) racer hairs that are at mid thigh, maybe a bit longer - hard to tell since I cannot reach the end of them without bending! ;D Occasional S&D. Also older, with thyroid troubles. Can sit on the very tip end of the braid. Plan to stay at this length.

[diggem]

Has anyone actually reached terminal length? If so, how long is your hair, and how long did it take to get to terminal length? Also, did you ever think you had reached terminal length, just to have your hair continue to grow? How do you take care of your hair when it is at terminal length?

diggem

[gossamer]

Has anyone actually reached terminal length? If so, how long is your hair, and how long did it take to get to terminal length? Also, did you ever think you had reached terminal length, just to have your hair continue to grow? How do you take care of your hair when it is at terminal length?

diggem

Might want to read the post right above yours. I believe a few of us over on the knee-length and beyond thread have reached terminal too.

[Dragon Faery]

Has anyone actually reached terminal length? If so, how long is your hair, and how long did it take to get to terminal length? Also, did you ever think you had reached terminal length, just to have your hair continue to grow? How do you take care of your hair when it is at terminal length?

diggem


Might want to read the post right above yours. I believe a few of us over on the knee-length and beyond thread have reached terminal too.

What Gossamer said. :) I've learned a lot by reading those longer-haired threads through from start to finish. It takes some time, but you learn a ton. :eye:

[MISSYLOUISY]

Haha my root cause was previous neglect, but now I am trying to grow it to max length so I did start wearing hair up, super condition, add occasional hot oil treatments with mix of coconut and avocado oils. It has helped improve a lot. I just need to be faithful at putting moisturizer on my ends in between washings. Thank you so much for your wonderful advise��

[teal]

Well, I've found out that my terminal length is certainly past classic, so I suppose I can go update my signature now. :lol: The first of my hairs are just reaching fingertip length, which I think is a great achievement considering that I've lost some circumference in the last couple of years. I expect there'll be a stall as the ends of these hairs still have some damage from heat styling and occasionally I see some breakage.

I would like to see how far it can go, just to satisfy my own curiosity. That said, if it gets to a point where the brushing and styling is annoying and I could never wear it down, I would probably cut it back to a manageable length. I don't wear it down very often, but when I do, I want the experience to be enjoyable the majority of the time. Worrying about it wrapping around adjacent objects and persons is one thing; worrying about it tripping me up and/or dragging on the ground is another.

[darklyndsea]

Here's something I've been wondering: if your terminal length turns out to be past Floor, would you keep growing to find it? I'd like to think I would, but I won't really know unless I get there and have a chance to see what it feels like.

Honestly I think I might have a chance at my hair getting to be that long, based on my thickness and taper, so I've started thinking about it. I used to think there was no way I'd let it get that long...but lately I've started thinking maybe I would, depending on whether it got to be too annoying at that length. I'm curious about what my terminal is, but not curious enough to keep growing once i hit the point where my hair gets to be too annoying.

[meteor]

Here's something I've been wondering: if your terminal length turns out to be past Floor, would you keep growing to find it? I'd like to think I would, but I won't really know unless I get there and have a chance to see what it feels like.

Hmm, honestly, I don't know. :) I feel like so many things can and probably will happen before that beyond-floor point could be reached that it would be rather unreasonable for me to say what I'll do so many years in advance.
I think floor-length terminal is rare enough that (if I'm blessed with those lucky genes), I might try to grow past that just for science, to see how far it can go! ;)

[meteor]

Sooo does anyone know a good product or home remedy to protect your ends and keep them from splitting?


Get to the root cause of your splits and then take it out and you will have a better chance of keeping splits away. Protective updo's, moisturizing, and oils help keep splits away. Dry hair tends to get splits more than well moisturized hair so maybe a SMT will be good for you.

I think this is great advice! :thumbsup:
Keeping ends moisturized, oiled and tucked away really helps.
I'll add that mechanical damage is something can can be reduced dramatically if you keep hair contained and covered with silk (or any other silky materials) whenever you are sleeping or out on a windy day or active around the house or something... Also, make sure all your hair tools are smooth, completely snag-free. Be very mindful of brushes, combs and pins, but also chairs, clothing, bags, etc. Preventing split ends is about avoiding damage as much as possible.

[gthlvrmx]

I couldn't find the post where someone replied to me on how often they trim their hair after they got to terminal, so I will ask again. Would there be any point in trimming once you reach terminal? Is there any point in S&Ding once you reach terminal?

[lapushka]

Haha my root cause was previous neglect, but now I am trying to grow it to max length so I did start wearing hair up, super condition, add occasional hot oil treatments with mix of coconut and avocado oils. It has helped improve a lot. I just need to be faithful at putting moisturizer on my ends in between washings. Thank you so much for your wonderful advise��

Keeping the ends moisturized is key, in my routine anyway (see signature). My hair is TBL+, 2 inches from classic. Don't have splits or white dots and my hair gets diffused weekly, so it gets blow dryer time (on warm).

[flickm]

I think there has to be some sort of balance between looking after your hair and living your life. I'm getting paranoid about damaging my hair since joining this forum, and that's silly. I'm grateful for all the knowledge and wisdom people here have, but I also feel I need to get some perspective - hair is just one aspect of our lives and appearance. I'm talking to myself here, BTW, not criticising anyone else's viewpoint :)

[Madora]

I couldn't find the post where someone replied to me on how often they trim their hair after they got to terminal, so I will ask again. Would there be any point in trimming once you reach terminal? Is there any point in S&Ding once you reach terminal?

I've never been at terminal but I would think that one would trim their hair (and S and D too) to keep splits at bay and thus prevent damage.

[gus]

I think there has to be some sort of balance between looking after your hair and living your life. I'm getting paranoid about damaging my hair since joining this forum, and that's silly. I'm grateful for all the knowledge and wisdom people here have, but I also feel I need to get some perspective - hair is just one aspect of our lives and appearance. I'm talking to myself here, BTW, not criticising anyone else's viewpoint :)

I need to remember that, too! I'm a chronic lurker here on the forums and I love all the great tips I've gotten, but it's important (for me personally) to take a step back and not worry too much about my hair. The reason I'm growing it long is to enjoy it, after all!

That being said, I've made the decision to try for terminal length (before that I was just aiming for classic). I may have already reached it at tailbone, since it hasn't grown much in almost a year, but I'm curious to see how long it will go. Thanks to everybody in this thread for being such awesome inspiration!

[flickm]

That being said, I've made the decision to try for terminal length (before that I was just aiming for classic). I may have already reached it at tailbone, since it hasn't grown much in almost a year, but I'm curious to see how long it will go. Thanks to everybody in this thread for being such awesome inspiration!

I just looked at your profile and you are well on the way to your goal! I want waist or hip length or terminal, whichever comes first. And what you said about enjoying your hair resonates very much with me :)

[Dragon Faery]

I couldn't find the post where someone replied to me on how often they trim their hair after they got to terminal, so I will ask again. Would there be any point in trimming once you reach terminal? Is there any point in S&Ding once you reach terminal?

It would depend on whether you wanted true ultimate terminal or not. If you wanted true terminal, you wouldn't trim, not even any racer hairs. But S&D even in that case would probably be a good idea, as otherwise you'd end up with splits catching on other hairs and roughing them up and over time shortening your length. Plus it would start to look ratty.

However, if you wanted an approximation of your true terminal but with a recognizable hem, you'd probably trim semi-regularly. My personal plan is to find my ultimate terminal, which means for me that from 2020 to 2030 I'm going to attempt to do S&D ONLY and see how long it will get. After that my plan is to cut back to whatever length I like the best. I'm guessing that will be Knee, but we'll see. (Assuming my Terminal is longer than Knee. Otherwise I'll probably keep it as long as possible.)


I think there has to be some sort of balance between looking after your hair and living your life. I'm getting paranoid about damaging my hair since joining this forum, and that's silly. I'm grateful for all the knowledge and wisdom people here have, but I also feel I need to get some perspective - hair is just one aspect of our lives and appearance. I'm talking to myself here, BTW, not criticising anyone else's viewpoint :)

This is true. :) And it's also good to remember that shorter lengths require less attention to damage prevention than longer lengths do. (Unless your hair is ridiculously easy to damage, of course.) Sometimes in our zeal for haircare we can forget to slow down and just enjoy the ride and not mind the occasional "sin" of damage here and there. ;)


I need to remember that, too! I'm a chronic lurker here on the forums and I love all the great tips I've gotten, but it's important (for me personally) to take a step back and not worry too much about my hair. The reason I'm growing it long is to enjoy it, after all!

That being said, I've made the decision to try for terminal length (before that I was just aiming for classic). I may have already reached it at tailbone, since it hasn't grown much in almost a year, but I'm curious to see how long it will go. Thanks to everybody in this thread for being such awesome inspiration!

Yay! Welcome to the land of the Terminally Hopeful! :)

[bte]

It's always a question of whether terminal will just be a mass of split ends and damage or not. S&D could certainly actually increase the length where splits are a problem.

[diggem]

Yeah, I saw that. They were entered about the same time.

diggem

[meteor]

Yay! Welcome to the land of the Terminally Hopeful! :)

:D I just love this name "The Terminally Hopeful"! :thumbsup:

[gthlvrmx]

I've never been at terminal but I would think that one would trim their hair (and S and D too) to keep splits at bay and thus prevent damage.
Hmm but I wondering, wouldn't trimming get you farther away from a true terminal length? I understand that with S&D you lose less length, but you still would get a shorter terminal length, wouldn't you? I will definitely keep S&Ding when I get to terminal though.

It would depend on whether you wanted true ultimate terminal or not. If you wanted true terminal, you wouldn't trim, not even any racer hairs. But S&D even in that case would probably be a good idea, as otherwise you'd end up with splits catching on other hairs and roughing them up and over time shortening your length. Plus it would start to look ratty.

However, if you wanted an approximation of your true terminal but with a recognizable hem, you'd probably trim semi-regularly. My personal plan is to find my ultimate terminal, which means for me that from 2020 to 2030 I'm going to attempt to do S&D ONLY and see how long it will get. After that my plan is to cut back to whatever length I like the best. I'm guessing that will be Knee, but we'll see. (Assuming my Terminal is longer than Knee. Otherwise I'll probably keep it as long as possible.)


I want a true terminal, or at least as close as I can get to it, but I think I will S&D to get rid of splits and minor damage. I don't really care for hemline looks honestly, I am just going after length right now :) Would S&D prevent one from reaching a true terminal?

It's always a question of whether terminal will just be a mass of split ends and damage or not. S&D could certainly actually increase the length where splits are a problem.
It makes sense that the hair that doesn't have as much damage would reach farther lengths, splits and breakage can just eat up some length sometimes.

But I was just wondering because once you reach terminal length, wouldn't the longest hairs (even if they are split or damaged) just fall off pretty soon? So soon that there would be no point in trimming off splits (unless the splits are causing tangles) because the hair is going to shed out? Or maybe the S&D would be helpful for the hairs that have not reached terminal.

[julya]

I don't bother with trims or S&D anymore. I think I'm beyond floor at his point, and still slowly gaining length. I keep hoping for terminal but it might not come before I decide to trim back to a more manageable length.

[gthlvrmx]

I don't bother with trims or S&D anymore. I think I'm beyond floor at his point, and still slowly gaining length. I keep hoping for terminal but it might not come before I decide to trim back to a more manageable length.

Wow! I remember you!! I was amazed at your hair when I saw it when I first joined LHC and I am even more amazed that it's at beyond floor! Do you feel that the fact that you don't trim or S&D anymore is causing you to gain length much more slowly(you know, because of breakage) or that it is causing more tangles?

[Shepherdess]

I don't bother with trims or S&D anymore. I think I'm beyond floor at his point, and still slowly gaining length. I keep hoping for terminal but it might not come before I decide to trim back to a more manageable length.

Wow! Beyond floor length is amazing! I hope to grow my hair out that long someday. :D

[Mullsha]

I'm defiantly on the terminal length wagon and have been ever sense I can remember! The long braids are beautiful.

[Madora]

Hmm but I wondering, wouldn't trimming get you farther away from a true terminal length? I understand that with S&D you lose less length, but you still would get a shorter terminal length, wouldn't you? I will definitely keep S&Ding when I get to terminal though.



Yes, I see your point. It depends on how much you trim and if you do it more than once a year. By a trim I mean half an inch at most. S and Ding is preferable, if you have the patience and time to deal with your ends from time to time. Trimming gets rid of damage faster (if you're not into regular S and Ding every week).

[gthlvrmx]

I'm defiantly on the terminal length wagon and have been ever sense I can remember! The long braids are beautiful.
Welcome! Have you posted on this thread before?

Yes, I see your point. It depends on how much you trim and if you do it more than once a year. By a trim I mean half an inch at most. S and Ding is preferable, if you have the patience and time to deal with your ends from time to time. Trimming gets rid of damage faster (if you're not into regular S and Ding every week).

Oh 1/2 inch then! I keep thinking a trim is from 3 inches or a giant chop :p I think I will S&D for as long as I can and see what happens from there. Thank you!
Also, I found the post that I was looking for. Trolleypup was the one who replied to me, this is what it said,

If you reach full terminal, your ends will be in a steady state of fairytaledness. You may or may not choose to trim to shape it (some people end with half a dozen ends that are always much longer, for example others have a less pointy terminal shape). If you trim or cut it, it will grow back to that shape at the rate your hair grows.

Expect splits and damage at your tips to be as present as they are in any hair at extreme lengths. For example, my tips are about 8 years old and are visibly thinner than hairs at my scalp...just from accumulated wear and damage...of course, fragile and prone to splits, white dots, and internal cracks. For me, yes, S&D is all I do with scissors.

[krashadamson]

well i had said waist length but i think ill try terminal out of curiosity☺️

[gthlvrmx]

well i had said waist length but i think ill try terminal out of curiosity☺️

Yay! Another termi has joined! Welcome.

[Shepherdess]

well i had said waist length but i think ill try terminal out of curiosity☺️

That's great!! :D

[Mullsha]

Welcome! Have you posted on this thread before?


Oh 1/2 inch then! I keep thinking a trim is from 3 inches or a giant chop :p I think I will S&D for as long as I can and see what happens from there. Thank you!
Also, I found the post that I was looking for. Trolleypup was the one who replied to me, this is what it said,

No that was my first post and thank you for the warm welcome! I'm excited for my next goal which would be Classic I'm hoping my terminal will at least reach floor. *Keeps fingers crossed.*

[gthlvrmx]

No that was my first post and thank you for the warm welcome! I'm excited for my next goal which would be Classic I'm hoping my terminal will at least reach floor. *Keeps fingers crossed.*

Oh ok! I am hoping my terminal is floor as well! Beyond floor would be even better :)

[Dragon Faery]

Hooray for more joinees! :blossom: :happydance:

Lately I've been worried that my terminal will be far shorter than I want. My longest layers are in the process of shedding out, and if I add to my current length the amount that I know I've trimmed since my last chop in 2010 or 2011, my potential length for my longest hairs comes out to about Fingertip. I don't know how much I cut before 2010, or if it was all at once, or if those hairs have all shed out by now, so beyond that it's all guesswork.

I do know my layers create some extra fairytaling that I wouldn't have if I hadn't cut them in while getting rid of damage, so I'm hoping that my shorter layers will have a longer terminal. But I want at least Knee, so I obsess over this fairly regularly, especially when I'm tired and should have been asleep more than 8 hours ago. :writer::yawn::coffee:

[Mullsha]

Oh ok! I am hoping my terminal is floor as well! Beyond floor would be even better :)

Exactly!!! I know my hair can grow at least to classic cause I'm pretty sure my grandmother got it that long.

[BoopBoop1]

I really want to get my hair to WL(or longer) for several reasons: I had a bad haircut a year ago with lots of layers, I've never had long hair (I always had shoulder lenght) and because I fell in love with the way girls look with ridiculously long hair.
I never really cared about how my hair looked before, but now I'm trying to take care of it and make it grow.

Good luck growing your hair, ladies! :)

[BoopBoop1]

I really want to get my hair to WL(or longer) for several reasons: I had a bad haircut a year ago with lots of layers, I've never had long hair (I always had shoulder lenght) and because I fell in love with the way girls look with ridiculously long hair.
I never really cared about how my hair looked before, but now I'm trying to take care of it and make it grow.

Good luck growing your hair, ladies! :)

[Lucy Elizabeth]

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh this thread is sooo tempting

My ultimate goal is thigh, but lately I've been wondering what my terminal length would be :hmm:

I have a good 2-3 years to decide though, but in the meantime happy growing, ladies :D

[Shepherdess]

I really want to get my hair to WL(or longer) for several reasons: I had a bad haircut a year ago with lots of layers, I've never had long hair (I always had shoulder lenght) and because I fell in love with the way girls look with ridiculously long hair.
I never really cared about how my hair looked before, but now I'm trying to take care of it and make it grow.

Good luck growing your hair, ladies! :)
That's great!! I'm sure you'll get to WL and it is a lovely length, most people's terminal length is actually pretty long.


Hooray for more joinees! :blossom: :happydance:

Lately I've been worried that my terminal will be far shorter than I want. My longest layers are in the process of shedding out, and if I add to my current length the amount that I know I've trimmed since my last chop in 2010 or 2011, my potential length for my longest hairs comes out to about Fingertip. I don't know how much I cut before 2010, or if it was all at once, or if those hairs have all shed out by now, so beyond that it's all guesswork.

I do know my layers create some extra fairytaling that I wouldn't have if I hadn't cut them in while getting rid of damage, so I'm hoping that my shorter layers will have a longer terminal. But I want at least Knee, so I obsess over this fairly regularly, especially when I'm tired and should have been asleep more than 8 hours ago. :writer::yawn::coffee:
Yeah, I worry sometimes that my terminal length will not be as long as I am hoping, but you never know. It might be quite long for you. :) From what I have read, it sometimes can take over 10 years to reach terminal length (I could be wrong, I thought I read this somewhere though).


Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh this thread is sooo tempting

My ultimate goal is thigh, but lately I've been wondering what my terminal length would be :hmm:

I have a good 2-3 years to decide though, but in the meantime happy growing, ladies :D

Nice! :D You never know how long terminal will be, so it might be fun to find out someday.

[julya]

Wow! I remember you!! I was amazed at your hair when I saw it when I first joined LHC and I am even more amazed that it's at beyond floor! Do you feel that the fact that you don't trim or S&D anymore is causing you to gain length much more slowly(you know, because of breakage) or that it is causing more tangles?

Thanks, gthlvrmx! My hair is pretty fine, and I think is more likely to break off than get split ends. I don't think the lack of trimming is a problem for tangles. My tangles still seem to be concentrated from about shoulder to mid back, and I think have to do with the way I put my hair up. I have been growing out a pixie since 2003, so it has certainly taken me longer than 10 years to get to terminal and I don't even think I am there yet.

[Shepherdess]

Thanks, gthlvrmx! My hair is pretty fine, and I think is more likely to break off than get split ends. I don't think the lack of trimming is a problem for tangles. My tangles still seem to be concentrated from about shoulder to mid back, and I think have to do with the way I put my hair up. I have been growing out a pixie since 2003, so it has certainly taken me longer than 10 years to get to terminal and I don't even think I am there yet.
It is interesting how it can take a while to reach terminal, and I had thought it was over 10 years, though wasn't sure, so thanks for sharing your experience! :)

[gthlvrmx]

Exactly!!! I know my hair can grow at least to classic cause I'm pretty sure my grandmother got it that long.
Oh wow that's great! I have read online from someone else on LHC that most people can usually reach classic length. Most likely you will reach it easily. :)

Hooray for more joinees! :blossom: :happydance:

Lately I've been worried that my terminal will be far shorter than I want. My longest layers are in the process of shedding out, and if I add to my current length the amount that I know I've trimmed since my last chop in 2010 or 2011, my potential length for my longest hairs comes out to about Fingertip. I don't know how much I cut before 2010, or if it was all at once, or if those hairs have all shed out by now, so beyond that it's all guesswork.

I do know my layers create some extra fairytaling that I wouldn't have if I hadn't cut them in while getting rid of damage, so I'm hoping that my shorter layers will have a longer terminal. But I want at least Knee, so I obsess over this fairly regularly, especially when I'm tired and should have been asleep more than 8 hours ago. :writer::yawn::coffee:
You might get lucky and have a longer terminal. Maybe it'd be best to put it up, ignore it for a few months/years and see how much farther you have gotten.

I really want to get my hair to WL(or longer) for several reasons: I had a bad haircut a year ago with lots of layers, I've never had long hair (I always had shoulder lenght) and because I fell in love with the way girls look with ridiculously long hair.
I never really cared about how my hair looked before, but now I'm trying to take care of it and make it grow.

Good luck growing your hair, ladies! :)
Welcome! Happy growing!

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh this thread is sooo tempting

My ultimate goal is thigh, but lately I've been wondering what my terminal length would be :hmm:

I have a good 2-3 years to decide though, but in the meantime happy growing, ladies :D
If you don't like what length you get with terminal (that is, if your terminal is quite long), you can always cut back to a length you prefer.

Thanks, gthlvrmx! My hair is pretty fine, and I think is more likely to break off than get split ends. I don't think the lack of trimming is a problem for tangles. My tangles still seem to be concentrated from about shoulder to mid back, and I think have to do with the way I put my hair up. I have been growing out a pixie since 2003, so it has certainly taken me longer than 10 years to get to terminal and I don't even think I am there yet.
Wow 10 years! I am growing from bald so it's kinda from growing from pixie I guess.

It is interesting how it can take a while to reach terminal, and I had thought it was over 10 years, though wasn't sure, so thanks for sharing your experience! :)
I read that after you reach your stall or something when you think you have hit terminal, give it 10 more years and see if it still grows more. That should be enough time for your hair to get to terminal.

Dragon Faery, and for anyone who is curious, I found this link with answered questions that might help give some motivation or just random knowledge about knee length hair http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=55578

[Shepherdess]

I read that after you reach your stall or something when you think you have hit terminal, give it 10 more years and see if it still grows more. That should be enough time for your hair to get to terminal.

Dragon Faery, and for anyone who is curious, I found this link with answered questions that might help give some motivation or just random knowledge about knee length hair http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=55578
I think that is good advice to wait ten years after a stall. :) I went through a stall in growth last year but now seems to be growing again...in 7 years I'll be 30, so maybe by then I'll have a better idea of how close I will be to terminal length. In some ways it is exciting to figure out, and I'm hoping my terminal is past floor. :D

Thanks for sharing that thread...I don't think I have ever seen that thread before, even though I have been here for a few years, so I"ll have to save it and read through it...looks like there is some wisdom in there! :D So I'm excited to read it. xD Thanks! :)

[Dragon Faery]

Yeah, I worry sometimes that my terminal length will not be as long as I am hoping, but you never know. It might be quite long for you. :) From what I have read, it sometimes can take over 10 years to reach terminal length (I could be wrong, I thought I read this somewhere though).

I'm glad I'm not the only one who worries about that! Sometimes I feel bad for worrying about it, since I know there are far worse problems in the world. But it's (perhaps irrationally) important to me. :)
And I think you're right. Given the experience of some of the longhairs I've encountered on this forum, a lot of people with super lengths do seem to have a growth cycle of much more than 7 years, which is often cited as the "average". So I definitely won't lose hope. :)


Thanks, gthlvrmx! My hair is pretty fine, and I think is more likely to break off than get split ends. I don't think the lack of trimming is a problem for tangles. My tangles still seem to be concentrated from about shoulder to mid back, and I think have to do with the way I put my hair up. I have been growing out a pixie since 2003, so it has certainly taken me longer than 10 years to get to terminal and I don't even think I am there yet.
Given my worries above, it makes me happy to see that you're still gaining length after 12 years. Hooray! :happydance:


You might get lucky and have a longer terminal. Maybe it'd be best to put it up, ignore it for a few months/years and see how much farther you have gotten.

I read that after you reach your stall or something when you think you have hit terminal, give it 10 more years and see if it still grows more. That should be enough time for your hair to get to terminal.

Dragon Faery, and for anyone who is curious, I found this link with answered questions that might help give some motivation or just random knowledge about knee length hair http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=55578

I think you're right. I hope so! I have to find the balance between ignoring it and taking care of it because the last time I ignored it for 2 years I did gain length but it was horribly ratty and I had to trim half of it off. So I have to find a sort of high-maintenance version of benign neglect, I guess.

Thank you for the link! This looks like a good read. :) :blossom:

[pili]

I need to stop hanging out on these boards. My goal length keeps getting longer and longer and longer…

Seriously, though, my mom had blunt hemline classic hair until she was thirteen (and hacked it off herself with some scissors in a fit of frustration) and her grandmother had an ankle length braid the thickness of my wrist until she was in her 90s. I am very tempted to see if I can do the same. Tailbone was my original goal, but now…I do get my hair from that side of the family.

[Dragon Faery]

I need to stop hanging out on these boards. My goal length keeps getting longer and longer and longer…

Seriously, though, my mom had blunt hemline classic hair until she was thirteen (and hacked it off herself with some scissors in a fit of frustration) and her grandmother had an ankle length braid the thickness of my wrist until she was in her 90s. I am very tempted to see if I can do the same. Tailbone was my original goal, but now…I do get my hair from that side of the family.

Do it! Join the darker dark side! :demon:
(p.s. We have cookies!)

[pili]

Do it! Join the darker dark side! :demon:
(p.s. We have cookies!)

Yes, but do you have :cheese: ?

[yahirwaO.o]

Do it! Join the darker dark side! :demon:
(p.s. We have cookies!)

I wish I could join guys, but my hair craves for regular trims otherwise it can look not that pretty...

....but if u have chesse, well I can give it a thought!!!! LOL

[bte]

Waiting ten years after a stall is definitely a good idea. I had a stall of about 17 years and then gained about three inches last year. Tomorrow is 21 years since my last trim.

[CaranDulin]

I've had this as my goal for a while, but never posted here! Hello there! :D

Right now, my hair's the longest it's ever been: 2 inches past classic. Wooo! I cut back to TBL after I'd reached classic the first time, in order to get rid of dye damage. And then I went and dyed my hair again! Sheesh. Anyways, I'm growing out dye again, and aiming for as long as I can grow!

[JadedByEntropy]

I've had this as my goal for a while, but never posted here! Hello there! :D

Right now, my hair's the longest it's ever been: 2 inches past classic. Wooo! I cut back to TBL after I'd reached classic the first time, in order to get rid of dye damage. And then I went and dyed my hair again! Sheesh. Anyways, I'm growing out dye again, and aiming for as long as I can grow!

I so relate to this. its hard not to dye, yes? That color in your siggy is really great though. I hope you stuck to the general color and didn't do anything toooo damaging. Some color isn't always bad if it makes the growing more enjoyable. :D I'm keeping some streaks black to make my braids look cooler. I haven't touched bleach since i chopped that part out though. That wasn't worth it to me.

your hairs are pretty

[alexis917]

Starting from the bottom....

[meteor]

By the way, while we are on the subject of dyes, do you guys think temporary deposit-only dyes like MP, Adore, Directions, Pravana, etc are OK or would they still cause enough damage/dryness to be problematic for those who want to shoot for Terminal? :)
It seems like we can't afford many hair sins. ;)


Thanks, gthlvrmx! My hair is pretty fine, and I think is more likely to break off than get split ends. I don't think the lack of trimming is a problem for tangles. My tangles still seem to be concentrated from about shoulder to mid back, and I think have to do with the way I put my hair up. I have been growing out a pixie since 2003, so it has certainly taken me longer than 10 years to get to terminal and I don't even think I am there yet.

How do you put your hair up, julya? :)
Maybe you could try splitting hair down the middle to make 2 buns side by side?
Or separating nape hair to make a small braid or two to go up into (or over) the main bun on the crown? (e.g. like this (https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/ed/2e/6b/ed2e6bc840913d6f719e258f1eb2d183.jpg)).
Also, I'd check collars/scarves/hoods/etc for roughness, snags, lint-inducing wooly texture... that can really cause problems with nape tangles.
Overall, I think sectioning and keeping that hair well contained is key.

[JadedByEntropy]

By the way, while we are on the subject of dyes, do you guys think temporary deposit-only dyes like MP, Adore, Directions, Pravana, etc are OK or would they still cause enough damage/dryness to be problematic for those who want to shoot for Terminal? :)
It seems like we can't afford many hair sins. ;)


My hair is coarse and resilient, and I always colored on wash day [edit: only once/twice a year], so regular dye has not bothered it much. I've used MP a lot whenever the mood hits, and found its oddly conditioning on bleach, though i know thats not what you're asking necessarily. Deposit dye should be okay since its kind of like colored oils?? just not as healthy.
Anyone close to term i would guess would prefer no dye. Sounds like the more you mess with it, the more you're guaranteeing yourself a false terminal. :/

[meteor]

^ Thank you so much, JadedByEntropy! :blossom: That makes sense! :D

I wonder if it's oddly conditioning on bleach, as you mentioned, partly because bleached hair is essentially more porous and the deposit-only dye acts a bit like a filler/sealant, filling in cracked/missing cuticle cells? :hmm: Either way, I suspect it probably can't hurt... outside of the inevitable extra handling, wet manipulation, hygral fatigue, etc. :hmm:

[Ava Ruu]

Hi! I think that I am joining this thread. I've told hairdressers and curious friends that I am growing my hair to see how long it will grow (or until I get bored) for the last two years. Somehow writing in this thread feels like a commitment even though it is not. I'm not quite certain if I really will end up with terminal length hair - but I guess no one can know until they are there.

[meteor]

^ Yay, welcome aboard, Ava Ruu! :joy:

[gthlvrmx]

Oh meteor, I didn't realize you were a terminal grower! I love your posts, there is usually something "sciency" in them and I love reading that on here! :)

[meteor]

^ Aw, thanks a lot, gthlvrmx! :o And I love reading your posts, too, by the way: lots of great ideas! :D

It's so cool to see more and more LHCers joining the "terminally hopeful" club! ;)

[JadedByEntropy]

^ Aw, thanks a lot, gthlvrmx! :o And I love reading your posts, too, by the way: lots of great ideas! :D

It's so cool to see more and more LHCers joining the "terminally hopeful" club! ;)

lol yep.:cheese: the longer we're here the more milestones we pass and the more we realize that long isn't long enough until we can't grow any longer. :rollin:

[meteor]

^ :lol: Ha-ha, so true! :lol:

[Dragon Faery]

Yes, but do you have :cheese: ?
Of course! I'm addicted to :cheese: Wouldn't be here without it!

I wish I could join guys, but my hair craves for regular trims otherwise it can look not that pretty...

....but if u have chesse, well I can give it a thought!!!! LOL
:cheese:

bte, for your patience alone you are one of my hair heroes. I hope I have the patience to wait while growing as long as you have! :blossom:

Welcome to CaranDulin, alexis, and Ava Ruu!! :cheer:


By the way, while we are on the subject of dyes, do you guys think temporary deposit-only dyes like MP, Adore, Directions, Pravana, etc are OK or would they still cause enough damage/dryness to be problematic for those who want to shoot for Terminal?
It seems like we can't afford many hair sins.

As long as the dye doesn't contain ingredients that lift the cuticles of the hair in order to make it "take" better, it should be okay, I would think. Once my hair is mostly white, I intend to have some fun with occasionally dyeing it purple. I dyed over my natural dark brown twice before, and my hair was more silky when it had the dye in it. I don't really anticipate that kind of dye being too much of a problem.



It's so cool to see more and more LHCers joining the "terminally hopeful" club!
Yes! :happydance: :cheese: Cheese for all!!!


lol yep. the longer we're here the more milestones we pass and the more we realize that long isn't long enough until we can't grow any longer.
Too true!

[KittyCatCarrie]

I too am going for terminal!. I only trim the ends when they start to get really split. My cousin could grow her hair down to the floor, so fingers crossed so can I.

[Dragon Faery]

I too am going for terminal!. I only trim the ends when they start to get really split. My cousin could grow her hair down to the floor, so fingers crossed so can I.

Yay! Welcome! :cheer:

[Night_Kitten]

lol yep.:cheese: the longer we're here the more milestones we pass and the more we realize that long isn't long enough until we can't grow any longer. :rollin:

LOL, so true, it's never long enough :agree:

[shalindra]

hey folks,
Been awhile since I posted. I have been working on terminal for a while now.. we have gotten tail bone length now, and bangs grown out. I was really surprised how fast the bangs grew out. Hoping terminal for me is at least mid thigh... but we shall see...

Love and Light

[BoopBoop1]

That's great!! I'm sure you'll get to WL and it is a lovely length, most people's terminal length is actually pretty long.


I hope so x-x! Thank you for your support,Shepherdess :D

[Dragon Faery]

hey folks,Been awhile since I posted. I have been working on terminal for a while now.. we have gotten tail bone length now, and bangs grown out. I was really surprised how fast the bangs grew out. Hoping terminal for me is at least mid thigh... but we shall see...Love and LightYay for Tailbone! And yay for your bangs growing out fast! Mine took forever.

[Dragon Faery]

Well, I only have another half inch to go until Tailbone. My ends are looking thicker, so I think most of my longest layer has shed out now. I only have a few hairs that are longer than my current 38" measurement. I'm expecting they'll shed out within the next month or two, as well. And if they don't they'll be cut out in my next (eventual) trim. I'm still hoping for Tailbone by mid-August or shortly after.

[gthlvrmx]

I am waiting for my hair to grow long enough to bun it on top of my head and just ignore it! Or maybe bun it anyplace comfortable, but I really just want to ignore it and let it grow. Maybe it is best to try and enjoy every length of the journey. I will try that. I feel like I look like my younger me except now with a full on moustache and beard.

Oh! About the facial hair, I am growing my facial hair to terminal length. So now I have an extra spot to feel happy about. If I go bald naturally, I still have my beard. If I don't like how it looks though at any time during the journey, I will shave it off. So , yes I am growing as far as it can grow, but it's more of a "I am growing this out and if I don't like it at some point, it's gone". I am not terribly attached to my facial hair. Who else is growing their facial hair to terminal? I'd love to hear from others who are going through the terminal-facial hair journey.

Also, I do henna my facial hair. I am doing it just to give it extra strength so it can grow to longer lengths without much split ends :) Same thing for my head hair.

[bte]

I am waiting for my hair to grow long enough to bun it on top of my head and just ignore it! Or maybe bun it anyplace comfortable, but I really just want to ignore it and let it grow. Maybe it is best to try and enjoy every length of the journey. I will try that. I feel like I look like my younger me except now with a full on moustache and beard.

Oh! About the facial hair, I am growing my facial hair to terminal length. So now I have an extra spot to feel happy about. If I go bald naturally, I still have my beard. If I don't like how it looks though at any time during the journey, I will shave it off. So , yes I am growing as far as it can grow, but it's more of a "I am growing this out and if I don't like it at some point, it's gone". I am not terribly attached to my facial hair. Who else is growing their facial hair to terminal? I'd love to hear from others who are going through the terminal-facial hair journey.

Also, I do henna my facial hair. I am doing it just to give it extra strength so it can grow to longer lengths without much split ends :) Same thing for my head hair.
Good to see someone else growing to terminal. I wish I had done so when I as your age, but I left it too late to achieve the lengths I wanted. Not into facial hair myself, but as you are, why not go for it!

[Wildcat Diva]

There is a long beard community out there, I have found.

My husband likes his beard, but he recently developed a liking for the salon experience of getting it trimmed up regularly. I miss his fairy tale beard ends but I guess he likes a blunt hemline. XD

[teal]

What did you do if you experienced a significant shed/hairfall? Did your goal of terminal length take a detour?

I had a stress-induced shed last year which has only started to recover now. I'm still wanting to grow as long as it will grow, but the thickness at the ends has thinned considerably, and my hair is already fairly thin to start. I think the saving grace is that my hair is light and wavy, so I can fake some volume.

I think I'm going to take this opportunity to lighten the henna on my length (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=19317), since there'll be no better time to experiment than now - if I hate it, well, I'm growing out the shed anyway. I don't think I'll be able to escape without damage as some others appear to have managed to do, but at least it'll be a change that doesn't involve scissors and something different to do in the summer. :)

[lapushka]

I think I'm going to take this opportunity to lighten the henna on my length (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=19317), since there'll be no better time to experiment than now - if I hate it, well, I'm growing out the shed anyway. I don't think I'll be able to escape without damage as some others appear to have managed to do, but at least it'll be a change that doesn't involve scissors and something different to do in the summer. :)

Try doing it with sun-in first, like Nightshade did, instead of with straight-up bleach!

Edit:
Silly of me! I only saw the link after I posted. :o

[teal]

Try doing it with sun-in first, like Nightshade did, instead of with straight-up bleach!

Edit:
Silly of me! I only saw the link after I posted. :o

:agree: That's the plan! The Sun-In should be here Thursday if all goes well!

[lapushka]

:agree: That's the plan! The Sun-In should be here Thursday if all goes well!

Good luck! Keep us posted. :D

[gthlvrmx]

Good to see someone else growing to terminal. I wish I had done so when I as your age, but I left it too late to achieve the lengths I wanted. Not into facial hair myself, but as you are, why not go for it!
I actually wish I had kept growing my hair out at a younger age instead of cutting it to maintain it at a certain length for so many years. I think I finally decided to let my facial hair grow after reading Hairfreaky's post on facebook that he was growing out his beard to match his hair...which is really long. Whether he did that or not, it doesn't matter to me anymore, I liked the idea of having long hair on my face and on my head. Plus, it was such a hassle trying to shave and cut my sideburns and beard correctly. One side too short, the other too long, and then I was confused about where exactly my beard actually starts. Now I don't have to worry anymore.

There is a long beard community out there, I have found.

My husband likes his beard, but he recently developed a liking for the salon experience of getting it trimmed up regularly. I miss his fairy tale beard ends but I guess he likes a blunt hemline. XD
Do you have a link to the community you have found? I have found 2 websites for beards but maybe they are different from the one you found.

[Mullsha]

I am waiting for my hair to grow long enough to bun it on top of my head and just ignore it! Or maybe bun it anyplace comfortable, but I really just want to ignore it and let it grow. Maybe it is best to try and enjoy every length of the journey. I will try that. I feel like I look like my younger me except now with a full on moustache and beard.

Oh! About the facial hair, I am growing my facial hair to terminal length. So now I have an extra spot to feel happy about. If I go bald naturally, I still have my beard. If I don't like how it looks though at any time during the journey, I will shave it off. So , yes I am growing as far as it can grow, but it's more of a "I am growing this out and if I don't like it at some point, it's gone". I am not terribly attached to my facial hair. Who else is growing their facial hair to terminal? I'd love to hear from others who are going through the terminal-facial hair journey.

Also, I do henna my facial hair. I am doing it just to give it extra strength so it can grow to longer lengths without much split ends :) Same thing for my head hair.


I wanted to grow out a beard but all I got was peach fuzz. Turns our trying to grow out facial hair as a girl is much harder than trying to grow it on your head. xD But I will never give up on going term length on my head. I'm at tailbone right now! Much excitement.

[gthlvrmx]

I wanted to grow out a beard but all I got was peach fuzz. Turns our trying to grow out facial hair as a girl is much harder than trying to grow it on your head. xD But I will never give up on going term length on my head. I'm at tailbone right now! Much excitement.

That's good, never give up! Tailbone sounds like a good length to have! That is very exciting. I remember when I was at BCL, it was awesome! :)

[JadedByEntropy]

I've hit a stall of a half inch over 3 months. I can't be too close to terminal though because i have no fairy tale ends. It thins a lot, but i don't think its close. I'm going to begrudgingly give up the pony elastics and see if it helps my chances. My wrists will be so bare without all my bands! D:

[Shepherdess]

I am waiting for my hair to grow long enough to bun it on top of my head and just ignore it! Or maybe bun it anyplace comfortable, but I really just want to ignore it and let it grow. Maybe it is best to try and enjoy every length of the journey. I will try that. I feel like I look like my younger me except now with a full on moustache and beard.

Oh! About the facial hair, I am growing my facial hair to terminal length. So now I have an extra spot to feel happy about. If I go bald naturally, I still have my beard. If I don't like how it looks though at any time during the journey, I will shave it off. So , yes I am growing as far as it can grow, but it's more of a "I am growing this out and if I don't like it at some point, it's gone". I am not terribly attached to my facial hair. Who else is growing their facial hair to terminal? I'd love to hear from others who are going through the terminal-facial hair journey.

Also, I do henna my facial hair. I am doing it just to give it extra strength so it can grow to longer lengths without much split ends :) Same thing for my head hair.
Once your hair gets to a certain length, throwing it up in a bun and forgetting about it can be pretty easy. I sometimes neglect my hair more than I should because I like to be lazy and just wrap my messy morning braid up into a bun when I don't feel like combing. xD

I think that is really cool that you are going for terminal length with your facial hair! Best wishes to you in your new goal! :D


What did you do if you experienced a significant shed/hairfall? Did your goal of terminal length take a detour?

I had a stress-induced shed last year which has only started to recover now. I'm still wanting to grow as long as it will grow, but the thickness at the ends has thinned considerably, and my hair is already fairly thin to start. I think the saving grace is that my hair is light and wavy, so I can fake some volume.

I think I'm going to take this opportunity to lighten the henna on my length (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=19317), since there'll be no better time to experiment than now - if I hate it, well, I'm growing out the shed anyway. I don't think I'll be able to escape without damage as some others appear to have managed to do, but at least it'll be a change that doesn't involve scissors and something different to do in the summer. :)
Yes. I went through the same thing last year. I had such a major shed and I was very sad about how my hair thinned. I became discouraged and cut off the thin ends (which I now regret a bit since it had been getting so long). So I know how discouraging it can be.

Now that the stress is mostly gone, this year my hair thickness has come back quite a bit, though my ends are still a bit thin. I have also been using clary sage essential oil mixed with a dab of aloe vera and sometimes a drop of sesame seed oil and massage it into my scalp (since clary sage has anti androgen properties, so can help prevent hair shedding). I don't know if it has helped or not, but I really like it. Hope the henna is working for you. :)



I've hit a stall of a half inch over 3 months. I can't be too close to terminal though because i have no fairy tale ends. It thins a lot, but i don't think its close. I'm going to begrudgingly give up the pony elastics and see if it helps my chances. My wrists will be so bare without all my bands! D:

I think that hair periodically goes through stalls in growth...I have had my fair share of them. :D I stopped using all of my elastics that had metal pieces on them and started using loop and loom stretchies and soft scrunchies, both of which I really like and leave no hair damage that I have noticed, so I think it can be worth changing. :)

[teal]

Yes. I went through the same thing last year. I had such a major shed and I was very sad about how my hair thinned. I became discouraged and cut off the thin ends (which I now regret a bit since it had been getting so long). So I know how discouraging it can be.

Now that the stress is mostly gone, this year my hair thickness has come back quite a bit, though my ends are still a bit thin. I have also been using clary sage essential oil mixed with a dab of aloe vera and sometimes a drop of sesame seed oil and massage it into my scalp (since clary sage has anti androgen properties, so can help prevent hair shedding). I don't know if it has helped or not, but I really like it. Hope the henna is working for you. :)

Interesting... I didn't know about clary sage. I've actually fallen away from doing scalp massages outside of perfunctory ones done without oils when I brush my hair. I think between the stressful events, my stuffed schedule and the necessity of spending a while to wash out the oils of a scalp massage, I was not up for the effort. I should revisit this.

Edit: I haven't yet tried the sun-in, in case anyone was wondering.

[Angela_Rose]

Hello, darlings. I am wrestling with a growth goal decision. I have attained and now exceeded my goal of knee length. I am now sitting around upper calf, maybe 2" beyond the bottom of my knees?
Anyway, I'm not sure what to do. I think right now the plan is to trim back to knee and maintain/microtrim until April, and then reassess, possibly going for terminal next year. Thoughts? Suggestions? Advice?

[lapushka]

Hello, darlings. I am wrestling with a growth goal decision. I have attained and now exceeded my goal of knee length. I am now sitting around upper calf, maybe 2" beyond the bottom of my knees?
Anyway, I'm not sure what to do. I think right now the plan is to trim back to knee and maintain/microtrim until April, and then reassess, possibly going for terminal next year. Thoughts? Suggestions? Advice?

Might as well go for it now! :)

[Angela_Rose]

Might as well go for it now! :)

Kind of like delaying the inevitable, right? I think I'm going to do one last big trim, even up the ends and get it back to knee, and then let it go.

[JadedByEntropy]

Hello, darlings. I am wrestling with a growth goal decision. I have attained and now exceeded my goal of knee length. I am now sitting around upper calf, maybe 2" beyond the bottom of my knees?
Anyway, I'm not sure what to do. I think right now the plan is to trim back to knee and maintain/microtrim until April, and then reassess, possibly going for terminal next year. Thoughts? Suggestions? Advice?

wow! Knee! that's great! I say keep on going to terminal unless there is some damage you want to trim while you're comfortable staying at the new length of knee. I don't think 'hmm my hair is too long now' is going to happen within the next few inches. :)

[Mullsha]

That's good, never give up! Tailbone sounds like a good length to have! That is very exciting. I remember when I was at BCL, it was awesome! :)

Wait if you had it all the way to BCL why cut it? D:

[Angela_Rose]

wow! Knee! that's great! I say keep on going to terminal unless there is some damage you want to trim while you're comfortable staying at the new length of knee. I don't think 'hmm my hair is too long now' is going to happen within the next few inches. :)

I have some serious fairytale ends that I'm not thrilled with, so snipping them off back at knee would help even/thicken things up.

[gthlvrmx]

Hello, darlings. I am wrestling with a growth goal decision. I have attained and now exceeded my goal of knee length. I am now sitting around upper calf, maybe 2" beyond the bottom of my knees?
Anyway, I'm not sure what to do. I think right now the plan is to trim back to knee and maintain/microtrim until April, and then reassess, possibly going for terminal next year. Thoughts? Suggestions? Advice?
I say grow to terminal ;) You can cut it shorter afterwards to a place where you liked it more. Who knows, maybe you will like ankle length the most and maintain there! :) If you have damage though, maybe it would be nice to cut it out before growing to terminal just to make things easier for yourself.

Wait if you had it all the way to BCL why cut it? D:

A combination of me not feeling well, listening to someone else's hair advice, and the thought of "I wanted to start from bald before, I might as well do it now", got me to choose to cut it and shave my head to bald. I do regret a bit cutting it, but, my hair is much better now. It is thicker (it was around 2.5 inch circumference before when I first joined LHC, now it's around 3 and 3.5 inch circumference and I STILL have shorter hairs that will catch up later and make me have a bigger ponytail circumference) and softer now. I even have hairs that feel "bumpy" which I think is pretty cool. I didn't notice I had them before I shaved to bald.

[trolleypup]

Hello, darlings. I am wrestling with a growth goal decision. I have attained and now exceeded my goal of knee length. I am now sitting around upper calf, maybe 2" beyond the bottom of my knees?
Anyway, I'm not sure what to do. I think right now the plan is to trim back to knee and maintain/microtrim until April, and then reassess, possibly going for terminal next year. Thoughts? Suggestions? Advice?


Kind of like delaying the inevitable, right? I think I'm going to do one last big trim, even up the ends and get it back to knee, and then let it go.

I'd either let to grow (yeah, so my ends are thin...so what?) or take part of the growth every month or two, that will keep the ends more natural looking...at true terminal it is going to be fairytaled to nothing. I did trim a few months a few times...and it grew back to the exact same shape in that number of months...so I just let it go. But I am not a fan of blunt ends cut into a fairytale or heavy taper. This opinion worth the electrons it is printed on. Do whatever makes you feel happier.

[vpatt]

I say grow to terminal ;) You can cut it shorter afterwards to a place where you liked it more. Who knows, maybe you will like ankle length the most and maintain there! :) If you have damage though, maybe it would be nice to cut it out before growing to terminal just to make things easier for yourself.


A combination of me not feeling well, listening to someone else's hair advice, and the thought of "I wanted to start from bald before, I might as well do it now", got me to choose to cut it and shave my head to bald. I do regret a bit cutting it, but, my hair is much better now. It is thicker (it was around 2.5 inch circumference before when I first joined LHC, now it's around 3 and 3.5 inch circumference and I STILL have shorter hairs that will catch up later and make me have a bigger ponytail circumference) and softer now. I even have hairs that feel "bumpy" which I think is pretty cool. I didn't notice I had them before I shaved to bald.

It is great that your hair is getting thicker. What do you mean by bumpy? Is it curls?

I hope my hair will thicken up a bit over time.

[gthlvrmx]

It is great that your hair is getting thicker. What do you mean by bumpy? Is it curls?

I hope my hair will thicken up a bit over time.

Yes I have curly hair, but that's not the bumpy I am talking about. The bumps on my hair that I have felt and seen are on the individual hair. Before, when I ran my fingers down an individual hair strand, it was smooth and sometimes it felt bumpy on random strands while going down the length, and now I have many more bumpy hairs from root to ends. But I also have seen that when I hold one of those bumpy hairs in front of me, the hair looks like doesn't do a perfectly smooth S or spiral shape anymore...it looks crinkled? I'm not sure how to explain or why this is happening but it is.

[vpatt]

Yes I have curly hair, but that's not the bumpy I am talking about. The bumps on my hair that I have felt and seen are on the individual hair. Before, when I ran my fingers down an individual hair strand, it was smooth and sometimes it felt bumpy on random strands while going down the length, and now I have many more bumpy hairs from root to ends. But I also have seen that when I hold one of those bumpy hairs in front of me, the hair looks like doesn't do a perfectly smooth S or spiral shape anymore...it looks crinkled? I'm not sure how to explain or why this is happening but it is.

That is very curious, I wonder what causes it.

[Arctic]

^ sounds like kinky, wiry hairs. They are very common, and normal. I have them too! The bump is actually a place, where the hair shaft rotates around its axis.

[gthlvrmx]

^ sounds like kinky, wiry hairs. They are very common, and normal. I have them too! The bump is actually a place, where the hair shaft rotates around its axis.

Thank you for that! Yes they are probably kinky hairs.
I think these photos show what you just said about them rotating around their axis's
http://www.thenaturalhavenbloom.com/2011/05/curly-vs-kinky-what-is-difference.html

[Arctic]

Yes, that's what I meant! I have managed to get macro photos of my own wiry hairs years ago, and the structure is very interesting, how it rotates like that! I think my wiry hairs are what gives me volume.

[gthlvrmx]

Yes, that's what I meant! I have managed to get macro photos of my own wiry hairs years ago, and the structure is very interesting, how it rotates like that! I think my wiry hairs are what gives me volume.

That is interesting. I do like my bumpy hairs. They had another level of fun in my hair :)

[Mullsha]

That is interesting. I do like my bumpy hairs. They had another level of fun in my hair :)

As do I! I have a few here and there. So you did not have them before and just developed them? Or you did you just have more now?

[dogzdinner]

I actually think my goal is to grow to terminal or classic...which ever comes first! I have only been a little past waist before and if genetics are anything to go by then I have already gotten alot longer then most of my family (terminal length for my mother is just BSL!).
Not that if I ever got to classic I wouldnt sit and wonder. LOL

[liabobia]

I was super sad because I thought my terminal length was just barely at my tailbone - turns out it was breakage, and with a better routine I've put on another 2 inches in the last 6 months, with some trims. I'm so excited! My hair is very slow-growing but I hope it at least reaches my butt when it's done.

[gthlvrmx]

As do I! I have a few here and there. So you did not have them before and just developed them? Or you did you just have more now?

I feel I had less of the bumpy hairs before I shaved to bald. I feel I have so many more now! And this time, they are much more noticeably bumpy.

[brickworld13]

Oh hey, I should probably pop in and say hi. I never did pick a goal for how long I want my hair to grow. I guess you could say I'm curious to see how long it will get. Right now, I'm coming up on classic. Again. I trimmed off 6-8" right at the end of May and almost all of it has come back. I think I've finally wacked off the last of the pre-LHC damage. Onward to wherever it goes. :rolling:

[meteor]

^ Oh yay! Welcome aboard, brickworld13! :cheer: So cool to see you join! :D

[brickworld13]

^ Oh yay! Welcome aboard, brickworld13! :cheer: So cool to see you join! :D

Thanks! :flowers: I probably should have joined a couple years ago, but it's never too late.

[JadedByEntropy]

I actually think my goal is to grow to terminal or classic...which ever comes first! I have only been a little past waist before and if genetics are anything to go by then I have already gotten alot longer then most of my family (terminal length for my mother is just BSL!).
Not that if I ever got to classic I wouldnt sit and wonder. LOL

lol I'm the furthest my family has gotten too, but not many have tried. Hair genetics is really wacky. The men on my moms side don't have the bald gene, and thats the thick and dark that i inherited so we shall see. ^^
I hope you make it to your classic goal!

[Unnamed]

I should have joined this thread a *long* time ago. Surprised I've not posted, as my goal has long been terminal.

I thought hairs that twisted were just normal in non-1a hair, even though they don't seem to have anything to do with the spirals in my hair. I never had them when my hair typed 1a, but now I do. :shrug:


What did you do if you experienced a significant shed/hairfall? Did your goal of terminal length take a detour?

I know this reply is a little late, but...my hair went through a massive shed that ended about five years ago. It was a roughly 75% loss at the worst, I figure. I didn't measure until the shedding had stopped and it was getting thicker/feeling 'thick'...and was still 60% down! And I did have a moderate shed that ended a year before that one started, and another three years after it ended, so there's more going on with my hair than just that one huge shed. Anyway, for what I did...

After panicking and considering either maintaining at knee once it got there (pre-shed, length was 1" short of knee, post shed, it was about...5" short), growing to 50" then maintaining, or cutting back to 45" and maintaining *there*. What I actually did...was just leave it. :lol: It wasn't worth the stress of trying to decide what to do and worry over it and, very likely, see no real improvement/just stress over it more. My hair is/was probably close to terminal, though, at the time of the shed, so with leaving it alone, it's more or less been self-trimming itself, with the regrowth growing down. It's just a long process, which has gotten a little longer.

[vpatt]

I should have joined this thread a *long* time ago. Surprised I've not posted, as my goal has long been terminal.

I thought hairs that twisted were just normal in non-1a hair, even though they don't seem to have anything to do with the spirals in my hair. I never had them when my hair typed 1a, but now I do. :shrug:



I know this reply is a little late, but...my hair went through a massive shed that ended about five years ago. It was a roughly 75% loss at the worst, I figure. I didn't measure until the shedding had stopped and it was getting thicker/feeling 'thick'...and was still 60% down! And I did have a moderate shed that ended a year before that one started, and another three years after it ended, so there's more going on with my hair than just that one huge shed. Anyway, for what I did...

After panicking and considering either maintaining at knee once it got there (pre-shed, length was 1" short of knee, post shed, it was about...5" short), growing to 50" then maintaining, or cutting back to 45" and maintaining *there*. What I actually did...was just leave it. :lol: It wasn't worth the stress of trying to decide what to do and worry over it and, very likely, see no real improvement/just stress over it more. My hair is/was probably close to terminal, though, at the time of the shed, so with leaving it alone, it's more or less been self-trimming itself, with the regrowth growing down. It's just a long process, which has gotten a little longer.

Do you know what caused your shed? And has all of it come back? I am asking because I had a pretty major shed last fall and I have new growth, but I wonder if I can expect it to thicken any more this long after the shed. The shed was from fasting and I've been told it will all grow back....of course, there is my age....I don't know if that makes a difference.

[mary*rose]

Oh gosh how I wish my SO would grow out a beard. But that is his choice I suppose :shrug:

brickworld13, that is some incredible growth! Half a foot in half a year? That's fantastic! What a rate! :hifive:

As for terminal for me... When I started growing, I though classic would be enough for me. Then I got there, and I decided why not try for my knees? This might be a dangerous journey, resulting in floor length hair (don't know how I'll manage THAT) but maybe I'll finally be satisfied OR it will stop growing. One way or another :)

[brickworld13]

I think it's because my thyroid problems are finally under control. I'm feeling much better overall and my hair is growing like a weed. A much beloved weed.

[Belle Paix]

When I first started at pixie, last September, this seemed absolutely unrealistic. Now, I can put my hair all the way up, and I'm about collarbone length, it seems a little more plausible :). I can't wait to post my own pictures in this thread in a few years...

[HairFanson]

Hi Brickworld!
How did you get 6-8 in of growth in 4 months?
I can't access your profile, and I must know this awesome sorcery! LOL :google:

[brickworld13]

Hi Brickworld!
How did you get 6-8 in of growth in 4 months?
I can't access your profile, and I must know this awesome sorcery! LOL :google:

You can't access anyone's profile yet because you don't have enough posts. I was put on synthetic thyroid hormones because of hypothyroidism. There really isn't a magic growth secret to hair. I'm also shedding like crazy, but what I'm retaining is growing very fast. There is no secret beyond patience, good nutrition, and gentle care. If you're looking for a magic overnight solution, you will be disappointed. They don't exist.

[HairFanson]

LOL, I know. However, your growth is very impressive! Thank you!

[Shepherdess]

I think it's because my thyroid problems are finally under control. I'm feeling much better overall and my hair is growing like a weed. A much beloved weed.


You can't access anyone's profile yet because you don't have enough posts. I was put on synthetic thyroid hormones because of hypothyroidism. There really isn't a magic growth secret to hair. I'm also shedding like crazy, but what I'm retaining is growing very fast. There is no secret beyond patience, good nutrition, and gentle care. If you're looking for a magic overnight solution, you will be disappointed. They don't exist.
That is wonderful that your thyroid is doing better. I also was diagnosed with hypothyroidism some years ago, so I know what it is like. I am impressed with how much your hair has grown in just 4 months, so that must be very exciting!!!! :)

[brickworld13]

That is wonderful that your thyroid is doing better. I also was diagnosed with hypothyroidism some years ago, so I know what it is like. I am impressed with how much your hair has grown in just 4 months, so that must be very exciting!!!! :)

Yes and no. It's exciting, but I don't really pay attention to how fast my hair is or isn't growing. It does it's own thing and I try to keep it looking nice.

[Mullsha]

Do any of you get weird looks when you tell people you are growing your hair to terminal length? I get them all the time because. I tell them my ultimate goal is floor length.

[gthlvrmx]

Do any of you get weird looks when you tell people you are growing your hair to terminal length? I get them all the time because. I tell them my ultimate goal is floor length.

The last time I told someone I was growing my beard as long as it can grow they just sounded amazed about it and they may have said "Wow!". That was a few weeks ago. I want floor length hair too! That's my dream, to have floor length hair or longer...Rapunzel length would be nice

[Mullsha]

The last time I told someone I was growing my beard as long as it can grow they just sounded amazed about it and they may have said "Wow!". That was a few weeks ago. I want floor length hair too! That's my dream, to have floor length hair or longer...Rapunzel length would be nice

Yes I completely agree. My ultimate goal I hope I can reach is past my feet if I can do that then I'll be very happy. And hey if it keeps going after that even better!

[cat11]

Do any of you get weird looks when you tell people you are growing your hair to terminal length? I get them all the time because. I tell them my ultimate goal is floor length.

I'm kind of on the dl about my hair goals, since I possibly want terminal but I'm not sure. Im going to see how I feel at classic and knee but I love the idea of floor length hair. I don't really purposely keep it a secret but I know it would be easier for people to get used to if it just sort of happened than if I declared it- I know my mother would try to talk me out of it. So my hair goals are just sort of... unmentioned.

[mary*rose]

Most people who I tell about my hair length goals (currently knee) already know how abnormal my hair-care routine is, and just consider it another one of my weird hair traits haha. I'll get some disbelieving eye-brow raises, but I'm only two or three inches away (seems like an ETERNITY :boohoo:)

So I'm kind of on the same page as you, cat11. People just got used to it without me really telling them

[red autumn]

that's a great thread! i think i'll join. i'm now around the waist, i've been hips before, and my hair was thick. i don't know about my genes, everybody have short hair in my family. but... we'll see! i'd like to know where my hair want to grow.

[gthlvrmx]

that's a great thread! i think i'll join. i'm now around the waist, i've been hips before, and my hair was thick. i don't know about my genes, everybody have short hair in my family. but... we'll see! i'd like to know where my hair want to grow.

Welcome! You can be the first one in your family to find out what length your hair can actually grow to :)

[vpatt]

I know one of my grandma's had long hair.....but it was always up so I don't know how long it was. I am curious how long my hair could grow......but, and I'm only being honest here, not morbid..... at my age I don't know how much time I have to grow it. So it will grow as long as it grows and I will be happy.

[Fericera]

that's a great thread! i think i'll join. i'm now around the waist, i've been hips before, and my hair was thick. i don't know about my genes, everybody have short hair in my family. but... we'll see! i'd like to know where my hair want to grow.

If your hair was thick at hip, then I'm sure you could at least get to classic. Possibly even knee if you're okay with fairytaling. From what I've observed people usually have six to twelve inches of taper when at terminal length. So as long as your hemline is thick you can have confidence of your terminal probably being at least that far away.

[gthlvrmx]

I know one of my grandma's had long hair.....but it was always up so I don't know how long it was. I am curious how long my hair could grow......but, and I'm only being honest here, not morbid..... at my age I don't know how much time I have to grow it. So it will grow as long as it grows and I will be happy.

Maybe it could be fun trying to just enjoy the journey. I also chose to let it "grow as long as it grows" because I didn't want to get disappointed with having a goal of floor length and then my actual terminal is at knee and it won't grow any further.

[vpatt]

Maybe it could be fun trying to just enjoy the journey. I also chose to let it "grow as long as it grows" because I didn't want to get disappointed with having a goal of floor length and then my actual terminal is at knee and it won't grow any further.

Yes, I have been so obsessed with it being longer that I haven't enjoyed it as much as I should. All the little milestones. I can pull it all back now in a bun or ponytail even the grown out bangs. And it will soon be to APL. And it is growing fairly fast......I think being close to APL is helping me to relax.....that is such a dead spot at the beginning that can be so discouraging. And in the next couple of months I should be there. :joy:

[gthlvrmx]

Yes, I have been so obsessed with it being longer that I haven't enjoyed it as much as I should. All the little milestones. I can pull it all back now in a bun or ponytail even the grown out bangs. And it will soon be to APL. And it is growing fairly fast......I think being close to APL is helping me to relax.....that is such a dead spot at the beginning that can be so discouraging. And in the next couple of months I should be there. :joy:

That's great that you can put it in a bun or ponytail! I have read some people say that they just put their hair up and forget about it and one day, it somehow got longer. Just forgetting about it for a while can help. Do you measure your hair stretched? From the signature photo you have here it looks like you may be close to or right at APL when stretched. :)

[ravenheather]

Maybe it could be fun trying to just enjoy the journey. I also chose to let it "grow as long as it grows" because I didn't want to get disappointed with having a goal of floor length and then my actual terminal is at knee and it won't grow any further.

I feel the same way about not wanting to be disappointed. I didn't want to get too attached to a certain length. No idea what terminal length will be for me. There aren't any longhairs in my family.

[irodaryne]

I'll definitely be making my way to terminal! Right now I have a tentative goal of TBL to Classic, but I know that once I hit those I'm gonna keep growing. The only reason I'd quit is if my terminal got too close to the floor, and then only if it proved to be too much of a hindrance.

I've mentioned before, but I'm relatively positive that my hair can get to at least classic. My maternal grandmother used to have very long, thick hair that was somewhere between TBL and Classic (she started cutting it very short when her hairline started receding from the weight of her loose, low ponytail), and while my paternal grandmother never let her hair get long, her sister had knee length hair. I'm not sure if knee length was my Aunt Melissa's terminal length or if she just kept it at that length. I'll definitely ask her and get back on that.

[vpatt]

That's great that you can put it in a bun or ponytail! I have read some people say that they just put their hair up and forget about it and one day, it somehow got longer. Just forgetting about it for a while can help. Do you measure your hair stretched? From the signature photo you have here it looks like you may be close to or right at APL when stretched. :)

It is very close when stretched! But not unstretched. It is very light and fluffy so even tho it just barely has waves it shrinks up quite a bit when dry. Those are bun waves in the Sig. One of my next goals is an adult sized bun, lol.

[Knifegill]

I also want floor and beyond!

Posting here so I can follow up on other awesome people's posts!

[irodaryne]

I've mentioned before, but I'm relatively positive that my hair can get to at least classic. My maternal grandmother used to have very long, thick hair that was somewhere between TBL and Classic (she started cutting it very short when her hairline started receding from the weight of her loose, low ponytail), and while my paternal grandmother never let her hair get long, her sister had knee length hair. I'm not sure if knee length was my Aunt Melissa's terminal length or if she just kept it at that length. I'll definitely ask her and get back on that.

So I spoke to my Aunt Melissa about her hair. She told me that she cut it to just above knee, but she thinks she could have grown it longer. Her paternal grandmother had hair down to her ankles! She also gave me a lot of advice for growing out my hair to that length (very much along the lines of what's on here), but one was interesting. She said that she washed her hair every three days and that it should be conditioned once a month with mayonnaise. I don't know what to think about that one!

She was also telling me that her hair grows two inches a month, so it took her five years to grow it to just before knee from a bob.

It definitely seems like I've got the genes for a ridiculously long terminal. :cheese:

[Fericera]

So I spoke to my Aunt Melissa about her hair. She told me that she cut it to just above knee, but she thinks she could have grown it longer. Her paternal grandmother had hair down to her ankles! She also gave me a lot of advice for growing out my hair to that length (very much along the lines of what's on here), but one was interesting. She said that she washed her hair every three days and that it should be conditioned once a month with mayonnaise. I don't know what to think about that one!

She was also telling me that her hair grows two inches a month, so it took her five years to grow it to just before knee from a bob.

It definitely seems like I've got the genes for a ridiculously long terminal. :cheese:

How exciting! That must be pretty encouraging to know. Is your growth rate faster than normal by any chance? Two inches a month is the fastest I've ever heard of, I can't even imagine that! You should try to convince her to grow her hair out again. You could be a family of long hairs. :D

I've used mayonnaise before, and it's not so bad. I also put egg in it and it's a nice protein treatment. If mayo grosses you out too much, I've also used yogurt, both flavored and not, and it works too while smelling a little better.

[irodaryne]

How exciting! That must be pretty encouraging to know. Is your growth rate faster than normal by any chance? Two inches a month is the fastest I've ever heard of, I can't even imagine that! You should try to convince her to grow her hair out again. You could be a family of long hairs. :D

I've used mayonnaise before, and it's not so bad. I also put egg in it and it's a nice protein treatment. If mayo grosses you out too much, I've also used yogurt, both flavored and not, and it works too while smelling a little better.

My hair grows pretty fast, but not THAT fast. I'm not exactly sure how fast, but this will be a good chance to find out. I went from a 1/2" pixie cut to just bast shoulder length in 8 months (before I cut it to chin on Tuesday to even out the mullet). I was also looking at pictures of myself from march of my freshman year of high school. It was somewhere between bra strap and MBL, and I distinctly recall getting it cut to somewhere between chin and shoulder the prior (beginning of) August (possibly the very end of July?). That's somewhat over 7 months (closer to 8, really. It was taken near the end of March). I've not done measurements to document growth, though. 2016 will be that year for me.

She made it pretty clear that long hair was just too much of a hassle for her. Her hair is at MBL right now and she said it's just too dang long for her, so sadly that won't be happening. My mom's hair probably reaches TBL when stretched, though (she has it permed).

Mayo doesn't gross me out it's just..... weird. I'd never heard of mayo as conditioner before.

[gthlvrmx]

I feel the same way about not wanting to be disappointed. I didn't want to get too attached to a certain length. No idea what terminal length will be for me. There aren't any longhairs in my family.
It's a mystery for me too. You can be the first longhair in your family, that's pretty special!

It is very close when stretched! But not unstretched. It is very light and fluffy so even tho it just barely has waves it shrinks up quite a bit when dry. Those are bun waves in the Sig. One of my next goals is an adult sized bun, lol.
Oh good! You probably will reach APL some time next year. I have a tiny bun too :p My bun is getting better slowly though, we will get there! :)

[teal]

Mayo doesn't gross me out it's just..... weird. I'd never heard of mayo as conditioner before.

I'm not surprised at all. The traditional recipe for mayonnaise is eggs and oil, such as olive oil. So it's basically an egg-and-oil mask. For my fine hair this would be too heavy, but I would imagine it works great for thicker hair.

[irodaryne]

I'm not surprised at all. The traditional recipe for mayonnaise is eggs and oil, such as olive oil. So it's basically an egg-and-oil mask. For my fine hair this would be too heavy, but I would imagine it works great for thicker hair.

Ahhhh now that makes sense! It didn't occur to me that because mayo is made with eggs and oil, of course it would be similar to egg and oil conditioning techniques.

[Anya15]

Joining in! I am very curious to see what my terminal length is. The longest my hair has been is TBL, and my mom used to have mid-thigh length when she was in school, so I'm wondering if I have the genes for a long terminal. :)

[teal]

Joining in! I am very curious to see what my terminal length is. The longest my hair has been is TBL, and my mom used to have mid-thigh length when she was in school, so I'm wondering if I have the genes for a long terminal. :)

Welcome! I think your odds are good, since it sounds like you can trace genes for long hair to your bloodlines. I can't get any sense of it from my relatives since with only one exception they've all worn their hair short for as long as I can remember. My dad thinks his sisters had long hair (and the aforementioned exception did have hair at least to her waist, possibly hip or classic) but can't tell me how long it was. So I'll just have to find out for myself. :lol: Currently at mid-thigh and still growing despite stress-related sheds!

[Wusel]

I'm in. I have the LHCtitis. I don't think I'll ever be able to touch my hair with scissors...

[JadedByEntropy]

I'm putting a Limit to wherever i am at graduation. I'd hoped to find terminal near to classic, but doesn't look like thats happening at all :) :( 1 more year

[Anya15]

Welcome! I think your odds are good, since it sounds like you can trace genes for long hair to your bloodlines. I can't get any sense of it from my relatives since with only one exception they've all worn their hair short for as long as I can remember. My dad thinks his sisters had long hair (and the aforementioned exception did have hair at least to her waist, possibly hip or classic) but can't tell me how long it was. So I'll just have to find out for myself. :lol: Currently at mid-thigh and still growing despite stress-related sheds!

Mid thigh!!! :agape: Wow!!!

My grandmother and her three sisters had thick mid-thigh length hair when they were younger, my mom says. They still have long hair (TBL). But idk what if my hair just stalls somewhere along the way.

[Hinza]

I join in too with patience to wait years and...:)

[Moonfall]

I am joining as well. :D I have always noticed my hair getting thinner past BSL and I really, really hope this isn't a sign of BSL being my terminal length. Actually, I posted about this a few months ago, and I got some wonderful advice from a few members. I am now doing everything I can to protect my hair, desperately hoping for it to thicken past BSL! But really, my ultimate goal is infinite long hair :D

[teal]

Mid thigh!!! :agape: Wow!!!

My grandmother and her three sisters had thick mid-thigh length hair when they were younger, my mom says. They still have long hair (TBL). But idk what if my hair just stalls somewhere along the way.

Heheh, mine's not very thick at all. My hair is both fine and thin, and past classic it's very thin indeed. As for stalls, they happen to pretty much everyone at some point, whether it's a slowing of growth or a "visual stall" where breakage at the ends makes it look like the hair isn't growing. Just keep your body and mind happy and healthy and the hair will come. :)

[01]

Hello! Growing to terminal. In the past classic was my terminal but I was a tomboy and didn't cared about my hair, worn them in ponytails all the time and had almost only split ends and killed my edges. So I'm really curious what is my terminal when I actually take care of my hair.

[gthlvrmx]

Welcome to all of the new terminal growers! :)

[quirkybookworm]

I'm growing to term as well! I've been growing my hair out for over 2 years (will be 3 in September), and am currently at hip! My great aunt is the only person who's ever grown her hair out in our family and, from photos, looks to have had a thick hemline at mid-thigh. Hopefully that means a long terminal for me, but you never know. I'm really looking forward to this whole process. :)

[Shepherdess]

Yay! Welcome to all those who are now trying to grow to terminal length!!! :cheer: It can definitely be interesting to see if there are any long haired people in the family tree. I'm not really sure if there were any very long haired people or not other than my immediate family, although my grandma has told stories about my great -great-grandmother who kept a long thick braid in a box, and would often tell my mom never to cut her hair, since she liked long hair so much. :) I wonder what happened to the braid. I should look up more family history.

[kuroi]

I think terminal lenght is so interesting. It's so hard to predict and varies so much per person. My personal goal is tbl but I'm curious what my terminal lenght would be. I have no one in my family for an example so it's a big surprise. I'm close to hip now with no signs of being close to terminal so I'm happy about that. I read something a while ago for estimating terminal lenght. Can anyone tell my anything about it?
It was measure the thickness at nape and every 10" below that to calculate the taper.

[01]

Thread came back to life xD. Yeah, I'm curious too. But I guess it's not really possible to know what's your terminal unless you reach it.

[Stormster]

Hi, newbie here, but what does 'terminal' length mean? I printed out the info on what APL and TBL mean, but Terminal isn't on the list in that original post, so... inform a newbie? :3?

[teal]

Hi, newbie here, but what does 'terminal' length mean? I printed out the info on what APL and TBL mean, but Terminal isn't on the list in that original post, so... inform a newbie? :3?

It means to the natural length of your hair - the hair has a terminal length (the longest hair the follicle is capable of growing before going into its dormant phase) which is partly determined by genetics. For many people this is at or around classic length. For fewer people, it's somewhere between classic and calf. For fewer still, it is very long indeed (past floor).

[Stepo_NiNha]

Hi, newbie here, but what does 'terminal' length mean? I printed out the info on what APL and TBL mean, but Terminal isn't on the list in that original post, so... inform a newbie? :3?

Terminal is the longest length your hair can grow. Sctually predicting how long in inches or cm is difficult because 1. You may trim sometimes 2. You can have breakage. So lets say...how long your hair stays in the living phase, called anagen phase. Your hair has 3 phases during its cycle: anagen (living phase and can last for years), catagen (resting fase thats lasts for weeks) and telogen phase (hair falls). The major part is in anagen phase and all hairs are in their different cycles independently, otherwise they would fall altogether and grow altogether super thick. This growth cycle occurs in all your body's hairs and the anagen phase is much shorter or you would have a huge mane in all your body. Think about a cat's anagen phase. Short fur cats have shorter anagen phases than long fur persian and maine coon cats that can actually grow much longer. The anagen phase in the human hair is variable. Some are only able to grow hair to their shoulders (very rare). Others can pass floor length. Its really difficult to know your terminal unless you wear your hair up all the time to avoid breakage and dont trim at all... Terminal is also different in your hairs. Some have longer anagen phase than others and therefore when you reach terminal you have different lengths with healthy ends (no breakage and splits) but all tapered. That can also happen when you have hairs growing in different speeds but in case of terminal length you hair stays a little or a lot tapered in the same length... For ever.

[Stormster]

Terminal is the longest length your hair can grow. Sctually predicting how long in inches or cm is difficult because 1. You may trim sometimes 2. You can have breakage. So lets say...how long your hair stays in the living phase, called anagen phase. Your hair has 3 phases during its cycle: anagen (living phase and can last for years), catagen (resting fase thats lasts for weeks) and telogen phase (hair falls). The major part is in anagen phase and all hairs are in their different cycles independently, otherwise they would fall altogether and grow altogether super thick. This growth cycle occurs in all your body's hairs and the anagen phase is much shorter or you would have a huge mane in all your body. Think about a cat's anagen phase. Short fur cats have shorter anagen phases than long fur persian and maine coon cats that can actually grow much longer. The anagen phase in the human hair is variable. Some are only able to grow hair to their shoulders (very rare). Others can pass floor length. Its really difficult to know your terminal unless you wear your hair up all the time to avoid breakage and dont trim at all... Terminal is also different in your hairs. Some have longer anagen phase than others and therefore when you reach terminal you have different lengths with healthy ends (no breakage and splits) but all tapered. That can also happen when you have hairs growing in different speeds but in case of terminal length you hair stays a little or a lot tapered in the same length... For ever.


It means to the natural length of your hair - the hair has a terminal length (the longest hair the follicle is capable of growing before going into its dormant phase) which is partly determined by genetics. For many people this is at or around classic length. For fewer people, it's somewhere between classic and calf. For fewer still, it is very long indeed (past floor).

Oooh, I see. Thank you both for explaining it! :D Guess I belong here then XD I'd love to know how long is terminal for me :o guess I have an actual goal now. :D

[quirkybookworm]

Shepherdess, that's a really interesting family story -- the braid must've meant a great deal to her if she kept it. I looked into my family history last year, and was really surprised by what I found. I really recommend it, if you ever find the time. I also did 23andme while looking into my family background, and was considering posting my hair results here and their accuracy (23andme guesses your hair color, hair texture, amount of hair, etc based on your genes), but wasn't sure if anyone would be interested in those.

kuroi, it seems like we have very similar hair paths (I don't know what else to call it :) ). My original goal was tbl (it's term now, of course), and I'm currently at hip. From what I've heard, there are a couple of different ways to estimate your potential terminal length; one uses the ponytail method, and another uses a method in which you estimate the number of hairs (by hair color) and then divide by your annual shedding or something -- it's really complicated haha but it's on Igors bell tower (you can just google 'Ignors bell tower terminal length' and it should pop up) if you'd like to learn more about it :D

[rhyebud]

This is a great thread! Like many others, I am simply curious how long my hair can get. I've chopped it off to damn near nothing many times and it always grows back with a quickness. Like, an impressive quickness! I have noticed a pattern with myself: as soon as my hair reaches BSL, I immediately chop it off. I don't know why that length makes me do that, but I'm glad I finally noticed this was going on. I'm almost at BSL now and with this new awareness, I'm not going to cut it. I'm so curious how long it can really go! Thanks again for starting this thread, yay!

[pili]

I love this thread. I've posted before in other threads about my mom saying I'm too old to have hair longer than shoulder length. Today my wonderful hubby said I should go ahead and grow to terminal because he hates it when she tells me to cut it. I'm not sure I'm up for that, but it made me laugh. Let me get to tailbone curly and then we'll see. In the meantime, I'll keep reading about all the terminal growers here.

[Silverbrumby]

The no trimming seems to be working. Getting close to terminal i think. I have a few stands at 30 inches now. First time I've hit that length. I'll be over the moon of terminal is at waist. Who cares about see through hair past APL . Hehe.

[Shepherdess]

Shepherdess, that's a really interesting family story -- the braid must've meant a great deal to her if she kept it. I looked into my family history last year, and was really surprised by what I found. I really recommend it, if you ever find the time. I also did 23andme while looking into my family background, and was considering posting my hair results here and their accuracy (23andme guesses your hair color, hair texture, amount of hair, etc based on your genes), but wasn't sure if anyone would be interested in those.
Thank you! :) Yes, I was thinking that too, how it must have meant a lot to her. I wish I knew more about it. Wow, that is great! Family history is so interesting, isn't it? :D I have some pictures of family members from very far back, so I will have to look through those too, plus ask relatives questions and such. I have never heard of 23andme! That sounds pretty cool! I would definitely be interested in something like that. :)

[Anya15]

I will be here someday. Once I reach classic unstretched and grow out all my layers. terminal is my eventual goal :)

[Stormster]

Okay so, how do you know if you've hit terminal or not? I don't mean length wise, I mean like, is it terminal or a rest in the hair's growth, or a stall? how do you tell between them?

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Okay so, how do you know if you've hit terminal or not? I don't mean length wise, I mean like, is it terminal or a rest in the hair's growth, or a stall? how do you tell between them?

I have heard that if you are taking wonderful care of your hair and it hasn't grown longer in 10 years then you are likely to have reached your terminal length.

[01]

This is a great thread! Like many others, I am simply curious how long my hair can get. I've chopped it off to damn near nothing many times and it always grows back with a quickness. Like, an impressive quickness! I have noticed a pattern with myself: as soon as my hair reaches BSL, I immediately chop it off. I don't know why that length makes me do that, but I'm glad I finally noticed this was going on. I'm almost at BSL now and with this new awareness, I'm not going to cut it. I'm so curious how long it can really go! Thanks again for starting this thread, yay! Yeah, mine grow super quick too and I usually cut them into bob when I reach mid back. So yeah, I'm a bit past mid back and trying not to cut xP. I'm so curious since in the past longest I could get, and it wouldn't grow any longer, was classic. But I had splits everywhere then. So it wasn't my real terminal after all. Sooo curious. What complicates this more is that I always combed out my hair, never worn them curly so I wonder what length they're supposed to naturally get when they're curly. I mean, to get classic while curly they'd have to be even longer combed out. From about mid back combed out they get to curly bob. A lot of shrinkage. So I wonder. Also I used to yank through my hair with a comb and loosing a lot of hair this way so I'm hoping that if I'll figure out how to detangle without killing my hair maybe I'll get more volume too. Wow, this thread reminded me why I even bother with my hair.

[missmex]

Been growing for terminal for a year (without being active here, but definitely inspired by TLHC!) and having no actual goals made it so easy to grow to hop length. I had been trimming regularly so I think I would've been much past TBL at this point in the same amount of time (2 years growing out, 1 year actually aiming for terminal) and in less than two years (August 2014 to present) I've gone from APL/BSL to hip length. IDK, I'm just hoping I hit Classic in the next two years haha! Tailbone by Christmas. I'll try my best to make it by the end of summer though (my hair has always grown 2x faster in the summer).

[luvlonghair75]

My hair is past waist now and I can't wait to just see how far it will grow! I'm picking up some hair vitamins tonight to see if they really do help with hair growth. Even just taking a B complex seems to make my nails grow.

[Shepherdess]

Been growing for terminal for a year (without being active here, but definitely inspired by TLHC!) and having no actual goals made it so easy to grow to hop length. I had been trimming regularly so I think I would've been much past TBL at this point in the same amount of time (2 years growing out, 1 year actually aiming for terminal) and in less than two years (August 2014 to present) I've gone from APL/BSL to hip length. IDK, I'm just hoping I hit Classic in the next two years haha! Tailbone by Christmas. I'll try my best to make it by the end of summer though (my hair has always grown 2x faster in the summer).
Wow, it sounds like you have fast growing hair!! Good luck to you in growing for terminal length!! :cheer:



My hair is past waist now and I can't wait to just see how far it will grow! I'm picking up some hair vitamins tonight to see if they really do help with hair growth. Even just taking a B complex seems to make my nails grow.
I hope that you have good results with that. :)

[missmex]

Thank you :) I'm hoping I reach it and some weight loss goals as well! It'll be hard but very worth it!

[Tapioca]

I just hit waist, so I'm almost to my pre-what-was-I-thinking-chop. This time, I'm aiming for terminal, so we'll see!

[GrowingOut]

I've finally hit my knees! My ends are quite thin, but that's due to not cutting for 6 years and waiting for my bangs to meet up. So I'll probably start maintaining here from late-june to December, then continue growing for length!

[Knifegill]

Just past armpit now, boy do I have a long way to go - hopefully!

[Tassledown]

Makes my first post on a chilled thread, but this definitely felt like the right place to start making conversation for me.

I'm aiming for terminal, which is why I decided to join LHC in the first place because I finally, four years ago, shaved my head to answer for myself the question of whether or not there was indeed any short lengths I actually liked on myself. Which - yes I did actually like a buzzcut fine, but shaving my own head was annoying and I hate salons. (I have never had a haircut I seriously liked. Ever. I also had to get a friend to buzz my head, I could NOT talk any stylists into doing it ever.)

With that question answered and having discovered Curly Girl method stuff that sounded like it would actually make my hair manageable for once in my life I decided to grow it out (my mom has type 1 thick hair, so had no clue what to do with mine.) I wasn't sure for a while if I was going to keep growing it past my usual SL but I'm at WL now and perfectly content. I CO wash once or twice a week and keep it up or under a scarf most of the time and it's SOOO much easier to keep track of. Since I never want to got to a salon again and I'm too lazy to figure out how to properly trim curly hair I'm not going to ever cut it. I might S&D if I can ever figure out how to do it, but I haven't found that thread yet.

So yeah. Hi, nice to join you all. (That was an AWFULLY long thread good grief. Informative, but long.)

[Silverbrumby]

Welcome Tassledown, not cutting it ever again! That's ambitious and it use to be common for most women ages ago. I'm part of the no trim challenge for 2016 and so far I've resisted the urge to cut.

Come join us at the other thread if you want or need additional support. I'm going for terminal and can't wait to see as I'm looking like a short short terminal.




Makes my first post on a chilled thread, but this definitely felt like the right place to start making conversation for me.

I'm aiming for terminal, which is why I decided to join LHC in the first place because I finally, four years ago, shaved my head to answer for myself the question of whether or not there was indeed any short lengths I actually liked on myself. Which - yes I did actually like a buzzcut fine, but shaving my own head was annoying and I hate salons. (I have never had a haircut I seriously liked. Ever. I also had to get a friend to buzz my head, I could NOT talk any stylists into doing it ever.)

With that question answered and having discovered Curly Girl method stuff that sounded like it would actually make my hair manageable for once in my life I decided to grow it out (my mom has type 1 thick hair, so had no clue what to do with mine.) I wasn't sure for a while if I was going to keep growing it past my usual SL but I'm at WL now and perfectly content. I CO wash once or twice a week and keep it up or under a scarf most of the time and it's SOOO much easier to keep track of. Since I never want to got to a salon again and I'm too lazy to figure out how to properly trim curly hair I'm not going to ever cut it. I might S&D if I can ever figure out how to do it, but I haven't found that thread yet.

So yeah. Hi, nice to join you all. (That was an AWFULLY long thread good grief. Informative, but long.)

[Forever]

Hi Tassledown and everyone,
At age 20 I got a buzz cut and then didn't cut at all for 5 years (- after which I was at about TBL and my hair stopped getting longer -) and then some.

So now, in my fourties, I am back to see whether it really was terminal length then. Being close to hip now, I should know in a year or so. This time I did quite some cutting, but nevertheless my hair tapers as if approaching terminal soon. I am only having maybe half the thickness of hair to begin with, compared to then, so I should have started the retry earlier... :whistle:

Well, we will see - same time, next year.

[Silverbrumby]

@Forever, i get the feeling taper can be a good indicate of terminal. I start taper at APL. I'm almost at waist but it's mostly wisps there.

[Tassledown]

Welcome Tassledown, not cutting it ever again! That's ambitious and it use to be common for most women ages ago. I'm part of the no trim challenge for 2016 and so far I've resisted the urge to cut.

Come join us at the other thread if you want or need additional support. I'm going for terminal and can't wait to see as I'm looking like a short short terminal.

Thanks for the welcome! What's the other thread? This was the one that was linked on the masterpost for newbies; is there a more up to date one somewhere?

[Dark40]

I am so glad that there is a such thread :)

I'm letting my hair grow as long as it can grow. I don't know what my terminal length is but I letting my hair grow to a little pass my butt. Or,, to my thighs, and see how I will like it at that length.

[Knifegill]

Ends were like velcro, had to trim almost an inch (thanks, wifely for trim!) and maintaining at armpit for now. Tick, tock, tick, tock...keeping it UP every day again to minimize damage and trims. Down was fun but Ow.

[HairPlease]

Ends were like velcro, had to trim almost an inch (thanks, wifely for trim!) and maintaining at armpit for now. Tick, tock, tick, tock...keeping it UP every day again to minimize damage and trims. Down was fun but Ow.

Don't you just love having a SO that knows how to perform a decent trim? I can't thank my husband enough every time he trims for me. It's a form of a luxury - especially for me since I'm hair-dresser-phobic and not very confident with self trims. lol

I almost want to join this thread. My ultimate goal was knee, but the more I think about it the more I realize I want to learn how long my hair can grow, even if I don't keep it there for a long time. I would love to have a super long braid. The only thing that would stop me from growing to term is if term ended up being a foot below floor length. That's where too much is too much, for me.
I worry that I've already reached term, but I'm hopeful. It's more than likely just a temporary plateau. Short terminals are not exactly uncommon from what I've heard, though, which is a little sad to me.

[teal]

Ends were like velcro, had to trim almost an inch (thanks, wifely for trim!) and maintaining at armpit for now. Tick, tock, tick, tock...keeping it UP every day again to minimize damage and trims. Down was fun but Ow.

Yup. I just performed some S&D on the ends, which doesn't happen as often these days. Seems to have (temporarily, I'm sure...) solved that pesky issue whereupon my Tangle Teezer gets caught in the last few inches of hair.


I worry that I've already reached term, but I'm hopeful. It's more than likely just a temporary plateau. Short terminals are not exactly uncommon from what I've heard, though, which is a little sad to me.

I don't know much about tapers with regards to how those may indicate terminal length. I will say, however, that my taper is quite severe and I don't have a lot of hair to start with, and mine is still growing. Picture it this way: By the time my hair reaches mid-back, the circumference is less than that of a Barbie doll's hair. And it keeps going all the way to mid-thigh and beyond, and apparently has not bothered to listen to anyone saying it's too thin to keep growing. :lol: So, I wouldn't give up all hope based on severe taper alone.

[Knifegill]

Yes, my wife also is growing to terminal as far as I know, it only ever gets to her back, though, longer now that she wears it up almost always. She gets the idea of minimal trims, and usually only takes off my 1/2 inch every 6 months.

I can't seek and destroy because I have terrible eyes and still can't see my ends for longer than a few seconds. Maybe if it grows to waist I'll be able to see it finally.

I have yet to even out my ends from the original grow-out, I hacket the mulletness early on but the front and sides are still slightly shorter. I still am not sure if I should maintain to catch it all up or just let it go, let it go.

[Pamberpestana]

How do you know you're at terminal, and not just a plateau of some kind??

[Silverbrumby]

I think taper is an indicator. I taper severely between APL and BSL. Have about 50 hairs now at waist. Tried trimming back to blunt hemline for 4 years. No thickness increase in hemline.



How do you know you're at terminal, and not just a plateau of some kind??

[HairPlease]

Yeah, I have some fairly disturbing taper. I didn't notice it until I actually measured the taper (because my ends get puffy thanks to the humidity). Measuring was a bad idea, it freaked me out a little (a lot).
Other things can cause taper though such as a bad shed from poor diet, stress, things like that. Damage and S&D can cause a taper effect (fairy tale ends and all that whatever they call it?).
Since I haven't noticed any breakage and my diet and exercise have been on par, I've begun to question whether the taper is normal for ME or not. I've read on here about false terminals quite a bit and yeah, it is often very difficult to say whether or not it's terminal, especially with short (MBL) hair like mine. My hair has never been this long.

[Forever]

Tried trimming back to blunt hemline for 4 years. No thickness increase in hemline.
Now THAT is a strong indicator.

Until now I have refused doing special hair-protecting stuff like buns, night-braids, silklike surfaces in bed etc. I might give some of those a try after my hair comes to a halt. Then the effects should be visible within a month's time, from one measuring to the next - if it grows again, there was probably some damage involved in the stop.
But I don't know to what lengths I will be willing to go. Buns look silly on me. :silly:

[astrid92]

I've always wondered what my terminal length is. Maybe I'll join here, though I would like to grow out and cut off the dyed ends of my hair first.
I'm currently at hip and so far my short term goal is to reach tailbone and to try and :scissors: off as much of my dyed ends as possible without losing a lot of length. The dyed ends are about 10 inches long so maybe it will be roughly a little over two years before I have tailbone length without any dyed ends. After tail bone I think I'll just let it grow to however long it wants to. :puppy:

[Kajzh]

I think taper is an indicator. I taper severely between APL and BSL. Have about 50 hairs now at waist. Tried trimming back to blunt hemline for 4 years. No thickness increase in hemline.

Super interesting! I had no idea. Maybe I'll measure my mom's hair ... It's past BSL but hasn't "grown" in years and years.

[Dark40]

My hair is at hip. I would love to have it grow to middle thigh. But if it does not, then tailbone
or classic would be nice. Just have to wait & see how long it gets.

You are sooooo lucky to have reached hip length. I've got a while before I reach that length. But I know someday soon I will get there. I have a real life longtime high school girlfriend that used to have hip length hair, and it was always gorgeous!!!!

[Dark40]

My goal length for Mid 2017 is hip length. Right now, I'm Bra Strap Length.

[JadedByEntropy]

I'm itching to get back to fingertip and actually reach knee this go-round, but with trims its going to take much longer than the sprint i did last time..so i'll be out of Uni before i get there :) hopefully my future job won't stop me. I'd like to try. last time my ends were "thin" because of no trimming.

[Pacific]

I hope to reach classic at end of 2017. No trims are planned, though I'll microtrim if the ends are getting too thin and tapering.

[hanne jensen]

I'm still here. I've reached slightly below my waist, that irritating no mans land between waist and hip. This is the longest my hair has ever been in my life. I'm quite amazed that I've reached this far. My hemline is a little thin so I'll be micro trimming throughout the winter to try to thicken thing up a bit. I'm still aiming for terminal just out of curiosity.

[Tassledown]

I'm in about the same range (most of my hem is below waist, some bits are down to BCL since I've never straightened out my buzzcut.) and am doing my best to ignore it until it can grow out more. It's definitely the longest I've ever had it and I'm really thrilled to see the thickness moving down my braid as my hair catches up with itself.
Can anyone direct me to a thread on just how microtrimming is supposed to work, especially on curly hair? I've been rambling about for a while now and I can never seem to make sense of search engine results half the time...

[hanne jensen]

Just scroll through the Mane forum. There is a huge thread about microtrimming. Basically, microtrimming is cutting just the very tippy tips of your hair. What hits the floor looks more like dust than hair, hence the term dusting. Usually it's between a half and one centimeter. Just enough to tidy up the hemline.

[Forever]

@Tassledown: You can find the microtrimming-club here: http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/showthread.php?t=75468

[gthlvrmx]

I am currently still at mid back length when stretched. I am a bit concerned if I am hitting a small stall due to breakage. Back when I was doing CO washing, yes I had major tangles but I didnt have so many split ends and breakage as I do now! I am still in the mindset of growing my hair to terminal without cuts or trims, just S&D (unless a small trim is necessary here or there, like a microtrim) but I am unsure how I would do that since my hair is all fairytaled (grown straight out from shaven bald). Maybe I could trim curl by curl? But again, I am not looking into trims. S&D will be my friend, I just need to figure out what in the world is causing so much breakage,split ends, and dryness on my hair....shampoo maybe? Ive mainly been using baby shampoo, I thought it was too gentle to cause dryness(my head would smell the next day, thats how less harsh the shampoo was in my eyes). Today I used Aussie Moist shampoo and my hair feels better, but it still feels kinda dry. What gives on this journey to terminal?

[animetor7]

I am currently still at mid back length when stretched. I am a bit concerned if I am hitting a small stall due to breakage. Back when I was doing CO washing, yes I had major tangles but I didnt have so many split ends and breakage as I do now! I am still in the mindset of growing my hair to terminal without cuts or trims, just S&D (unless a small trim is necessary here or there, like a microtrim) but I am unsure how I would do that since my hair is all fairytaled (grown straight out from shaven bald). Maybe I could trim curl by curl? But again, I am not looking into trims. S&D will be my friend, I just need to figure out what in the world is causing so much breakage,split ends, and dryness on my hair....shampoo maybe? Ive mainly been using baby shampoo, I thought it was too gentle to cause dryness(my head would smell the next day, thats how less harsh the shampoo was in my eyes). Today I used Aussie Moist shampoo and my hair feels better, but it still feels kinda dry. What gives on this journey to terminal?

Baby shampoo is formulated to not bother babies' eyes. It is not at all gentle on hair, especially long hair. That is a common misconception about baby shampoo. But you'd be much better off using a regular shampoo or sulfate free if you're concerned about SLS. If you want a truly gentle shampoo I'd suggest the Shea moisture brand shampoos or shampoo bars.

[gthlvrmx]

Baby shampoo is formulated to not bother babies' eyes. It is not at all gentle on hair, especially long hair. That is a common misconception about baby shampoo. But you'd be much better off using a regular shampoo or sulfate free if you're concerned about SLS. If you want a truly gentle shampoo I'd suggest the Shea moisture brand shampoos or shampoo bars.
I've looked up the shea shampoo right now and I'm asking my best friend about it too. Thank you for your reply. I am ditching the baby shampoo.

[animetor7]

I've looked up the shea shampoo right now and I'm asking my best friend about it too. Thank you for your reply. I am ditching the baby shampoo.

I hope you find the shampoo that works best for you!! And don't thank me, thank the LHC. The topic of baby shampoo has come up quite a few times on here and in one of those threads I learned what it's actually formulated to do, which has nothing to do with being gentle on hair.

[gthlvrmx]

I hope you find the shampoo that works best for you!! And don't thank me, thank the LHC. The topic of baby shampoo has come up quite a few times on here and in one of those threads I learned what it's actually formulated to do, which has nothing to do with being gentle on hair.

I'm itching to go back to CO washing honestly since that's when I had the smoothest and silkiest hair in my life with not much dryness to worry about. I have to remember it's what my hair needs, not what I want. I think my hair is asking for moisture.

[animetor7]

I'm itching to go back to CO washing honestly since that's when I had the smoothest and silkiest hair in my life with not much dryness to worry about. I have to remember it's what my hair needs, not what I want. I think my hair is asking for moisture.

Why did you switch? You could always combine methods to make you and your hair happy. Either by switching off, CO washing once and then shampoo washing next wash, then back to CO and so on. Or you could add a little shampoo to your scalp if it needs it. Using myself as an example, my scalp hates SLS, but I love cones for my length. So most of the time I use my cones and wash my hair using shampoo bars, but every now and then when my hair needs it I'll use and SLS containing shampoo to get rid of the cones. So it's a mixing of techniques. You could maybe try something like that?

[gthlvrmx]

Why did you switch? You could always combine methods to make you and your hair happy. Either by switching off, CO washing once and then shampoo washing next wash, then back to CO and so on. Or you could add a little shampoo to your scalp if it needs it. Using myself as an example, my scalp hates SLS, but I love cones for my length. So most of the time I use my cones and wash my hair using shampoo bars, but every now and then when my hair needs it I'll use and SLS containing shampoo to get rid of the cones. So it's a mixing of techniques. You could maybe try something like that?

I switched because I didn't want as much build up after finding out that all conditioners build up. I also didn't want to use a clarifying shampoo often because I thought it'd be too harsh for my hair to be using it every few weeks for conditioner build up. I found out shampoos aren't actually damaging and I figured I might as well get a shampoo that doesn't build up fast and is not very harsh, but I couldn't find one with minimal ingredients except for baby shampoo.

Someone suggested Treseme or Pantene Undone, I saw the ingredients and they were minimal. I'll also look into the Shea Moisture shampoo's. I'll think about the mixing methods too. :)

Funny thing is that I remember my hair thickness increased after a few years of CO washing.

[Shepherdess]

Gthlvrmx, in the past, I had similar results with baby shampoo. Even with milder shampoos I have had some trouble with dryness and breakage. I think that curly hair types need more moisture than other hair types sometimes. I didn't realize how much moisture my hair craved until I started the WCC and LOC methods this summer and it really brought shine and bounce into my curls, I even found out I have some 3b curls in the process! I think that CO washing is a great idea, and if you are worried about buildup, I think that a cone free conditioner, like Suave naturals/hypoallergenic line works better ( I can't do most 100% natural conditioners since they have caused some buildup with oils and such, but haven't had trouble with Suave), I hear that V05 is good too, though haven't tried it, and both are super cheap conditioners, though I know they don't work for everyone. Anyway, hope you are able to find something that works for you!!

[gthlvrmx]

Gthlvrmx, in the past, I had similar results with baby shampoo. Even with milder shampoos I have had some trouble with dryness and breakage. I think that curly hair types need more moisture than other hair types sometimes. I didn't realize how much moisture my hair craved until I started the WCC and LOC methods this summer and it really brought shine and bounce into my curls, I even found out I have some 3b curls in the process! I think that CO washing is a great idea, and if you are worried about buildup, I think that a cone free conditioner, like Suave naturals/hypoallergenic line works better ( I can't do most 100% natural conditioners since they have caused some buildup with oils and such, but haven't had trouble with Suave), I hear that V05 is good too, though haven't tried it, and both are super cheap conditioners, though I know they don't work for everyone. Anyway, hope you are able to find something that works for you!!

Yes it must be a curly-moisture thing. When I tried WCC and the LOC methods, my hair also came out curlier, so I think the shampoo is drying my hair out a bit. I will give CO washing and SMTs more thought. I miss blending aloe vera flesh in the blender for my hair :)

[Shepherdess]

Yes it must be a curly-moisture thing. When I tried WCC and the LOC methods, my hair also came out curlier, so I think the shampoo is drying my hair out a bit. I will give CO washing and SMTs more thought. I miss blending aloe vera flesh in the blender for my hair :)

Yeah, it can really help a lot, though does take a little more time. Ahh, that is nice!! I absolutely love aloe Vera!! It can be a miracle worker, plus feels so nice!! :D

[gthlvrmx]

Yeah, it can really help a lot, though does take a little more time. Ahh, that is nice!! I absolutely love aloe Vera!! It can be a miracle worker, plus feels so nice!! :D

I used to do 30 minute CO washes and I didn't quite like it in the cold winter (I know Northern people, my area is not that cold but I feel cold!) with the cold tile. It worked for me to get a thorough cleansing. Now I am wondering if I can just do SMTs as my regular washes...?

[Shepherdess]

I used to do 30 minute CO washes and I didn't quite like it in the cold winter (I know Northern people, my area is not that cold but I feel cold!) with the cold tile. It worked for me to get a thorough cleansing. Now I am wondering if I can just do SMTs as my regular washes...?

Oh yeah, I can relate about the cold. It can be hard to wait after conditioning with cold weather for sure. :shudder: I'm not sure about SMTs, since I haven't done very many of them, though they definitely make my hair feel so nice. If you try it, I'd love to hear how it turns out for you! :)

[gthlvrmx]

Oh yeah, I can relate about the cold. It can be hard to wait after conditioning with cold weather for sure. :shudder: I'm not sure about SMTs, since I haven't done very many of them, though they definitely make my hair feel so nice. If you try it, I'd love to hear how it turns out for you! :)

Alright I will let you know.Thanks everyobe for the help :)

[Tassledown]

I personally CO wash with nothing fancy about it - I literally just do it like I would if I had shampooed first. Put the conditioner on, finger detangle (or wide toothed comb if I'm exhausted), let sit a couple minutes and rinse or use a leave-in for it. I swap those out based on how my hair feels and how long it has been since I washed my hair last.

I honestly almost never clarify and it doesn't seem to bother my hair much at all. I'm currently using the Giovanni moisture conditioner and a Curl-specific leave-in (I am not up to going to find the brand name right now, but it's one of the brands with wavy-to-curly and curly-to-kinky options.) I have to buy gluten-free products which tends to correlate with fancy ones without cones or sulfates, so that may be part of it.

Thank you for the link to whoever got me that, I'm on here exhausted again so can't dig up names.

[Sophiatrist]

I personally CO wash with nothing fancy about it - I literally just do it like I would if I had shampooed first. Put the conditioner on, finger detangle (or wide toothed comb if I'm exhausted), let sit a couple minutes and rinse or use a leave-in for it. I swap those out based on how my hair feels and how long it has been since I washed my hair last.

I honestly almost never clarify and it doesn't seem to bother my hair much at all...

That's pretty much my routine, except I don't clarify ever. My hair is super fine and any build-up at all would be noticeable. I do a CO only wash with Burt's Bees conditioner twice a week. The one I am using right now is supposed to be Baobab, but it has more coconut and avocado oils in it.

[gthlvrmx]

Hair related news for this thread that might be a bummer. I shaved my beard and moustache off. Change of plans, I am not growing it to terminal. It had a super long stall from around summer until I shaved it a few days ago and it wasn't that long. I didn't like the look of it on me. So that's it. :) Happy growing for everyone else!

[hanne jensen]

I'm still here and still growing. I'm almost at hip and hope to reach BCL by next Christmas. I haven't changed my mind about growing to terminal whatever length that will be on me.l

[Kat-Rinnè Naido]

I'm in. I am growing to terminal. Happy growing everyone.

[Mullsha]

Anyone else see a huge stall after tail bone length? I feel like I have been at Tailbone for ages. My hair was bleached (a few years ago) and there have been lots of split ends that I have found because of it. I am hoping that this is some of the reason why and holding out hope.
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/b0/51/42/b051421a7a9a991a9bba2b7311e7cec5.jpg
When my hair is streches out it pretty much reaches classic length but it's so hard to see because of how thin it becomes.
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/4b/2c/1c/4b2c1c2448acb202856cad302aac8e97.jpg
I was hoping this would capture the damage from the bleach you can clearly see when it becomes to get drastically thinner.
I am trying to decide what to do any help would be much appreciated! Because terminal length is a goal I've had for years.
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/24/a5/ec/24a5ecc232955d11e9207a3134f19892.jpg

[Alissalocks]

I'm in. I am growing to terminal. Happy growing everyone.
You go, girl! I admire the commitment you show! I've never even considered terminal, always thought hitting tailbone might be enough, but who knows? Maybe I'll get there and decide I'm still curious.

I have such severe taper already but I'm trying to just be calm with it, and zen, and accepting my hair as it is. Still, I would like to get some of these layers grown out once I hit waist later this coming spring. But maybe after I trim a bit at waist, I'll just see what happens and try to let go of expectations more. Fingertip seems kinda... magical. :magic:

[hanne jensen]

Anyone else see a huge stall after tail bone length? I feel like I have been at Tailbone for ages. My hair was bleached (a few years ago) and there have been lots of split ends that I have found because of it. I am hoping that this is some of the reason why and holding out hope.
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/b0/51/42/b051421a7a9a991a9bba2b7311e7cec5.jpg
When my hair is streches out it pretty much reaches classic length but it's so hard to see because of how thin it becomes.
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/4b/2c/1c/4b2c1c2448acb202856cad302aac8e97.jpg
I was hoping this would capture the damage from the bleach you can clearly see when it becomes to get drastically thinner.
I am trying to decide what to do any help would be much appreciated! Because terminal length is a goal I've had for years.
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/24/a5/ec/24a5ecc232955d11e9207a3134f19892.jpg

Maybe a dusting program? Just 1/2 centimeter every 2 months? That way you'll get rid of some of the damage and still grow. I have to do this or all my growth will just break off giving a "false stall".

[Mullsha]

Maybe a dusting program? Just 1/2 centimeter every 2 months? That way you'll get rid of some of the damage and still grow. I have to do this or all my growth will just break off giving a "false stall".

Yea I think I'll try that because what I have been doing is a search and distroy method. (Look for split ends and the snip them off) but it's a lot more time consuming.

[Kat-Rinnè Naido]

You go, girl! I admire the commitment you show! I've never even considered terminal, always thought hitting tailbone might be enough, but who knows? Maybe I'll get there and decide I'm still curious.

I have such severe taper already but I'm trying to just be calm with it, and zen, and accepting my hair as it is. Still, I would like to get some of these layers grown out once I hit waist later this coming spring. But maybe after I trim a bit at waist, I'll just see what happens and try to let go of expectations more. Fingertip seems kinda... magical. :magic:

Thank you Alissalocks
I try to just ignore my hair which of course is not easy. I did the 1 month different hairstyle challenge which removed the focus from length and hemline. Yes finger tips is magical.

[Pumpkin3826]

This is the first post I saw that mentions they want to grow it out for spiritual reason's!!!

I feel the same way! :D

1 Corinthians 11:15

[FennFire911]

This is the first post I saw that mentions they want to grow it out for spiritual reason's!!!

I feel the same way! :D

1 Corinthians 11:15


This is how I justify it. The reality it I was long hair and don't want to cut it. I believe the Scripture hit the nail on the head that long hair is our crowning glory. Any time someone is critical, being able to fall back on religious beliefs is the one thing people don't argue with.

I guess I better add my name to the list here. I never really thought about it before but now I AM curious. How long will mine go? Let's find out! I have a feeling it's going to be YEARS before I know that answer!

[Dark40]

I know I've said I was aiming to grow my hair to pass classic or thigh length but I'm seriously thinking now about letting it grow floor length. I'll see how I can maintain it, and handle it at that length.

[pili]

Yup, I'm in. First it was TBL, then, classic so I could have a TBL braid. Now hubby encouraged me to go to terminal just once to see what that looks like, and then cut back to Classic/TBL once I know what's it's like. He is such an enabler. I will be trimming until I either stall or hit calf length. Now to change my siggy ...

[Salwety]

Dark40 ... hi hiw long is your hair now? I am curious because we have the same hair type.

[Dark40]

Can I join this thread? I think terminal is my goal. I've never really had it longer than about mid back, it was usually the tangles that kept it shorter. But I'm going for terminal now with hopefully no trims. I have no idea where it will be but judging from my hair the way it is and how it grows, stays thick etc. I think it will be pretty long. Hopefully past floor because it would be fun to shock people with that length. Luckily my hair doesn't seem to have damage or splits, because I haven't been able to find a split for more than a year or something. I guess I'm lucky, or maybe it's just because my hair is so short right now.

On a side note, how many people on this thread have hair above bsl? How many do have terminal length hair? Where do you think terminal is and how long do you think it will take to get there?

Nicolezoie, that's amazing that your hair is so long. Congratulations.

Good luck to everybody in reaching your goals.:toast:

:cheese: a cheese for good measure. I decided to mix up the font. :)

Hey, we are hair length twins! The longest my hair has ever been was midback length. It has never grown anyway longer than that but I am shooting for a lot longer lengths like hip length this year, and then next year Tailbone.

[Dark40]

Dark40 ... hi hiw long is your hair now? I am curious because we have the same hair type.

Hi Salwety! My hair length right now is BSL. How long is your hair. Oh, we have the same hair type? What is your hair type?

[gthlvrmx]

I personally CO wash with nothing fancy about it - I literally just do it like I would if I had shampooed first. Put the conditioner on, finger detangle (or wide toothed comb if I'm exhausted), let sit a couple minutes and rinse or use a leave-in for it. I swap those out based on how my hair feels and how long it has been since I washed my hair last.

I honestly almost never clarify and it doesn't seem to bother my hair much at all. I'm currently using the Giovanni moisture conditioner and a Curl-specific leave-in (I am not up to going to find the brand name right now, but it's one of the brands with wavy-to-curly and curly-to-kinky options.) I have to buy gluten-free products which tends to correlate with fancy ones without cones or sulfates, so that may be part of it.

Thank you for the link to whoever got me that, I'm on here exhausted again so can't dig up names.

I should give that a shot and see if just doing extra manipulation with my fingers during a CO wash will get rid of any stinkiness and get a cleaner scalp. I read on an archived LHC post that for CO washing to work, you need to really scrub with your fingers and rinse so much. Plus, you have to leave the conditioner on in between that for about 15-30 minutes to get a good cleansing effect. I tried that and it worked for me, but why has it not occured to me to just scrub away and treat it like shampoo? I can just dump it on my head from the start of the wash and rinse it off at the very end, easy as that. Just scrub a little more, rinse a little more, no more wasting water or waiting in the cold for 30 minutes.

Although, I remember when I consistantly CO washed in 30 minute waiting times and I hardly had any split ends ever. Almost no signs of breakage.

[Salwety]

Hi Salwety! My hair length right now is BSL. How long is your hair. Oh, we have the same hair type? What is your hair type?

My hair is 3b/3c and just an inch above BSL.