Protective hairstyle vs. traction alopecia?

[meepster]

Tell me I'm overthinking this. So my hair has just reached waist length, and I've been wearing it up pretty much consistently for the past year or so. Usually it's either a braid or a very low bun of some kind. Is it OK to keep doing this, or am I going to stress out my follicles too much? It really doesn't look good loose, and it tangles a lot more. I'm especially nervous of hair loss at my hairline, since I already have some hair there that really doesn't grow too long at all (maybe 6 inches or so), and sticks out. I don't think any of my hairstyles put any tension on that hair, but could it be damaged from my past experimentation?

For those of you who have reached very long hair lengths while wearing it up every day, do you notice any effects around your hairline? How do you avoid traction alopecia issues?

[Finda]

I'm also interested in what people have to say. I was worried about this in the past, because I noticed all of a sudden that my hairline along my forehead was a bit wonky with sort of a dent on one side. But then I found a photo from years ago where I definitely had the same dent. So it's just my hairline I guess. It's normal to have shorter hair around the hairline, I have that, too, around my face and neck. I think it's important to switch hairstyles and, as you said, put as little traction as possible in the hair.

[tuanyiji]

Ever since COVID, I became very concerned about cold, so I wear a bonnet most of the time (I have a loose braid inside the bonnet so my hair won’t tangle), and only bun when I need to go out or work out.
If my bun makes me feel uncomfortable, even as small as a hair gets pulled too much, I will redo it immediately.
Also, every time I finish a bun, I would puff the hairline hair so they won’t get too much traction.
I also change my bun every day, not just the position, but also the style, I have a dozen in my rotation and I love experimenting with new variations all the time, that way the hair won’t be worn out by the repeated coiling/twisting pattern.

[Shorty89]

Honestly, I'm not too concerned about traction alopecia. I think you'd have to pull your hair pretty tight in the same spot, same hairstyle every day and I think most of us don't bun that tightly. I think it's more common with ponytails or box braids where you have a lot of weight hanging off a few spots.

[shelomit]

I had trouble not with alopecia/hair fall, but with breakage due to wearing the same daily style for many years. I also preferred a very low bun, and would get breakage right at the nape of the neck from where I twisted the hairs to start forming the bun. I was able to train my scalp (very gradually) to tolerate "hinging" the bun in different places, and now I'm able to tolerate a much wider variety of styles. Plus, simply alternating between different types of buns, now that I've learned more of them, seems to help vary the pressure. But to stress once again: I was only having breakage down the shaft, not losing the hair at the root like with alopecia.

[Lady Winchester]

I always wear my hair back in a ponytail and I haven't experienced any of this. The elastics I use are the ones covered with material, so perhaps this is what makes the difference. I also try not to double it over too much (even when the elastic is wearing out, since wrapped around too many times makes it too tight and can make it hard on my muscles). I wear low ponytails, gathered at the nape of the neck (high ones give me a headache if kept in this style for too long). When it was shorter, I used to keep it back with barrettes, but once I gained more length, I was back to my signature style; pulled back in a low ponytail. Though I've tried the odd braid, I prefer ponytails, since I can never get the braid to look the way I want it to, so I usually end up pulling it back out. I used to wear a big barrette to secure the ponytail, so perhaps I should try this again, since the barrette is more loose than an elastic and won't be as tight. I don't know when I stopped doing this, but perhaps it was when I couldn't find a decent enough barrette, so I switched to the covered elastics.

[purple_omelette]

I agree with what as been said, generally speaking varying your style every day and only wearing styles that are comfortable (i.e. where you don't feel any 'pulling') should go a long way in preventing traction alopecia. As always, it's impossible to avoid all damage, but we can do plenty to minimise it

[meepster]

Thanks so much! That makes me feel better. My hair is very coarse and strong (I could probably use it as fishing line), so I'm not too worried about breakage. I've been trying to really puff out the hair at the front so that there's literally no pulling on any of that hair. I've just recently mastered a low braided bun sort of thing that looks really nice on me, so I've been wearing that one pretty much almost daily, but I guess I can change things out.

[Pilate]

Stress on the hairline is why I only ever wear french or dutch braids, since there is absolutely no strain anywhere so long as I don't pull to tightly.