Let me show you why I’m tripping…

Netta1

Netta1

Well-Known Member
BASED off the pictures BELOW I am not retaining any length…
1st picture: my hair length check for year 5 no flat iron just pull and go


Second picture: my hair length check for year 6 with LIGHT non-experienced flat iron-->leave my skills alone just focus on the length…:lol:



No change!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If the average person grows 6 inches per year then where is my HAIR???? :whyme:


Add reggie and year 3 comparison…my back length has not changed since year three
Reggie:

I really don't have one lets see....


in the first 3 yrs I co washed often now....

I co wash but my hair is damp not wet

in the first 3 yrs when I did used shampoo I usually used SLS free shampoos now...

I just wash with whatever works...

in the first three years I wore my hair out a lot (or so it seems)...I styled it more now....

Its usually protected...

in the first three years I used a braid spray with extensions and surge (protein spray) now...

I don't really get braided extensions that often and I don't use braid spray on my natural braided hair

in the first three years I deep conditioned often w/ lekairs now....
I don't "deep condition" I just slap some conditioner in there let it sit while I am in the shower and rinse it out

in the first three years I did a lot of steam treatments at the gym in the locker room now... I don't

My diet has changed over the years I went from gradually cutting meat out of my diet... now I just eat fish

I never was really big on trimming my ends...evey once in a while I would get them dusted...

My hair is still thick after 6 yrs...pic of thickness...

but where is the length????
 
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chebaby

chebaby

Well-Known Member
i can only see the last pic from where i am so i cant tell if there is a change. but done give up, sometimes we hit a standstill and it seems like we arent growing when we are. just keep babying your hair.
 
C

ceebee3

New Member
How often do you do length checks?

The last time I waited a while and I realized that my hair wasn't progressing.

It must be breaking off. What's your reggie?
 
Netta1

Netta1

Well-Known Member
Okay I will be right back to post my reggie...leaving work now...

Be right back....give or take traffic...
 
PPGbubbles

PPGbubbles

Well-Known Member
Perhaps it is the shrinkage but I would say your hair looks significantly thicker in yr 5 than in yr 6.... I suspect (like another poster) that some breakage has occured.

I will be looking forward to seeing ur reggie as well.

Have you noticed and excess hair loss while detangling and what not?
 
Q

Queen_Earth

New Member
Maybe your hair is in that 6-18 month resting period?!? I think I read something recently on how our hair goes through months where it rests and there really isn't any growth...let me go see if I can find the post
 
I Am So Blessed

I Am So Blessed

I'm easy going.
mmmmmmm thats not good. i heard msm is good to get you hair growing. not faster but just growing steady without the resting period, thats what i read somewhere. good thing for picuture diarys
 
T

ThickHair

New Member
Queen_Earth said:
Maybe your hair is in that 6-18 month resting period?!? I think I read something recently on how our hair goes through months where it rests and there really isn't any growth...let me go see if I can find the post
Click to expand...

That is true, but you have to remember that is the growth cycle of one strand of hair. Not your whole head. Not all strands are in growth and resting stage at the same time. So I would have to disagree with your statement.

I think her issue is in her maintainence. I have never had my hair not grow. I remember times when I thought it wasn't growing and it was just shrinkage. I thought my hair didnt grow much in 09, but I was a little past mid back now my hair is about waist length. Of course stretched as I am natural. Unmanipulated hair is barely past my ears. Yes, I got shrinkage bad, but I love it.
 
RENIBELL

RENIBELL

New Member
sorry to hear this, i have to agree that the hair looks thicker and fuller in year 5 than 6 too, you still have a nice head of hair though, so dont give up, lets see your reggie
 
beans4reezy

beans4reezy

Well-Known Member
Sorry about this situation. I would be really discouraged myself. There has to breakage somewhere, in which case, you'll need to tweak your reggie.
 
Q

Queen_Earth

New Member
ThickHair said:
That is true, but you have to remember that is the growth cycle of one strand of hair. Not your whole head. Not all strands are in growth and resting stage at the same time. So I would have to disagree with your statement.
Click to expand...

THANKS!!! That makes me feel a lot better because I really thought it was the hold head at once :drunk: ...I been trying to figure out how I can get around that
 
J

jamaraa

Well-Known Member
Netta, you def have progress and it's growing hun. :giggle: You need to just suck it up and get a bone straight "length check" press. That way you'll see the full length/progress. Your hair is virgin I'm thinking, so you need more heat for the full length to be seen.

Do you have anybody you trust and w/ experience on virgin natural hair?
 
Netta1

Netta1

Well-Known Member
dlewis said:
It has to be growing. Tell us more about your regimen.
Click to expand...

ceebee3 said:
How often do you do length checks?

The last time I waited a while and I realized that my hair wasn't progressing.

It must be breaking off. What's your reggie?
Click to expand...

Reggie:

I really don't have one lets see....


in the first 3 yrs I co washed often now....

I co wash but my hair is damp not wet

in the first 3 yrs when I did used shampoo I usually used SLS free shampoos now...

I just wash with whatever works...

in the first three years I wore my hair out a lot (or so it seems)...I styled it more now....

Its usually protected...

in the first three years I used a braid spray with extensions and surge (protein spray) now...

I don't really get braided extensions that often and I don't use braid spray on my natural braided hair

in the first three years I deep conditioned often w/ lekairs now....

I don't "deep condition" I just slap some conditioner in there let it sit while I am in the shower and rinse it out

in the first three years I did a lot of steam treatments at the gym in the locker room now... I don't

My diet has changed over the years I went from gradually cutting meat out of my diet... now I just eat fish

I never was really big on trimming my ends...evey once in a while I would get them dusted...

ppg0069 said:
Perhaps it is the shrinkage but I would say your hair looks significantly thicker in yr 5 than in yr 6.... I suspect (like another poster) that some breakage has occured.

I will be looking forward to seeing ur reggie as well.

Have you noticed and excess hair loss while detangling and what not?
Click to expand...


I think the thickness is the same...that might've increased :lol: I tried to flat iron in the second pic which is why my hair looks a little wimpy compared to the first... no extreme hair loss while detangling...

AdoraAdora24 said:
mmmmmmm thats not good. i heard msm is good to get you hair growing. not faster but just growing steady without the resting period, thats what i read somewhere. good thing for picuture diarys
Click to expand...

Its funny I know my hair is growing b/c when I have it braided I can see the newgrowth...but I am not retaining it :cry:

ThickHair said:
I think her issue is in her maintainence. I have never had my hair not grow. I remember times when I thought it wasn't growing and it was just shrinkage. I thought my hair didnt grow much in 09, but I was a little past mid back now my hair is about waist length. Of course stretched as I am natural. Unmanipulated hair is barely past my ears. Yes, I got shrinkage bad, but I love it.
Click to expand...

It has to be maintainence I just wish I knew what I was doing....

RENIBELL said:
sorry to hear this, i have to agree that the hair looks thicker and fuller in year 5 than 6 too, you still have a nice head of hair though, so dont give up, lets see your reggie
Click to expand...

I won't give up...but here is a picture of my thickness...my thickness has not decreased but my length on the other hand has not caught up to it by far... :lol:

pic of thickness...thickness has not changed...







jamaraa said:
Netta, you def have progress and it's growing hun. :giggle: You need to just suck it up and get a bone straight "length check" press. That way you'll see the full length/progress. Your hair is virgin I'm thinking, so you need more heat for the full length to be seen.

Do you have anybody you trust and w/ experience on virgin natural hair?
Click to expand...

I wish I knew somebody...

you think I'm alright-you are soooo sweet :kiss:
 
Last edited:
Nayeli

Nayeli

Well-Known Member
Your thickness is ASTOUNDING!!! I agree with you though, you should have noticed a more dramatic change in length. Do you notice breakage Netta? You mentioned that you don't DC and while some heads can do that, others need DC's to strengthen the strands.
 
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Netta1

Netta1

Well-Known Member
^^^I don't DC like I used to...I used to let the Deep conditioner sit in hair with steam and everything, but now I just throw some conditioner in (in may not even be a deep conditioner) and I let it sit there while I wash-up-then I rinse it out.

I have not noticed breakage, but I will do a DC and co wash and let you know...

Thanks for responding, THANK YOU so much for caring :kiss:
 
a_shoe_6307

a_shoe_6307

New Member
You're gonna have to suck it up and get a good straightening done to really tell. I know as I let my hair stay in it's natural state the more it shrinks up. Yes, I know it sounds crazy, but it does. The longer I go without heat and continue to wash the more it shrinks up and the shorter my hair starts to look. Then I will get it flat ironed and then I see how much my hair has grown. After you do that then you will be able to tell if you have breakage or other issues or if it was just good old shrinkage.
 
Netta1

Netta1

Well-Known Member
^^^^interesting^^^^^ The more moisture I add to my hair the more it shrinks...the more it grows the more it seemingly shrinks also....
 
Sweet_Ambrosia

Sweet_Ambrosia

Well-Known Member
Your hair is pretty and it’s thick, but after 6 years the amount of growth retention could/should be more. I would probably trip too. *lol* After reading through your regimen, your hair may be in need of some serious moisture. It’s one of the most important elements when it comes to growth retention. CO-Washing is fine (I’m a big fan of it) but once you rinse out the conditioner your hair still needs some extra moisture, same thing for deep conditioning. You could try using a regular moisturizing conditioner as a leave-in/moisturizer and seal with an oil /butter or use a regular leave-in or moisturizer and seal with an oil/butter after you’ve washed your hair. I don’t know if you let your hair air-dry loose all the time but I wouldn’t recommend it as it would definitely hinder growth retention, it’s best to air-dry natural hair in some sort of semi-stretched style be it large braids/twists, big bantus, banding etc.. this way your hair wont have a chance to tangle and knot up. Once you up the moisture (daily moisturizing, more dc’s etc..) in your regimen you may see a positive change in growth retention, it definitely wouldn’t hurt to try it out.

Also I like to add that at least 50% of naturals (on the hair boards and fotki) stretch sections of their hair to see how much longer their hair is---there's some accuracy to it, it may not be 100% accurate but the accuracy isn’t so far off that using direct heat is absolutely necessary in order to see the true length of ones hair--speaking as a natural that ‘stretches’ 99% of the time.
 
Last edited:
PearlyCurly

PearlyCurly

New Member
Netta1 said:
Reggie:

I really don't have one lets see....

in the first 3 yrs I co washed often now....

I co wash but my hair is damp not wet-
I find it better for me to cowash with soaking wet hair, and do you use a moisturizing conditioner??

in the first 3 yrs when I did used shampoo I usually used SLS free shampoos now...
I just wash with whatever works...
I think you should go back to shampooing w/ SLS free shampoo.

in the first three years I wore my hair out a lot (or so it seems)...I styled it more now....
Its usually protected...
Theres nothing wrong with protecting your hair:grin:

in the first three years I used a braid spray with extensions and surge (protein spray) now...
I don't really get braided extensions that often and I don't use braid spray on my natural braided hair
I dont think theres anything wrong w/ not getting braids anymore. But maybe your hair is missing that protection from braids. I know my hair grows like weeds in braids but most weaves makes my scalp itch..so now i do more protection styling.

in the first three years I deep conditioned often w/ lekairs now....
I don't "deep condition" I just slap some conditioner in there let it sit while I am in the shower and rinse it out
I have to admit, i do not DC like i use to when i first went natural, and i think my hair is missing that. I think that you should start DCing more! Atleast once a week, especially with all the hair you have:grin:

in the first three years I did a lot of steam treatments at the gym in the locker room now... I don't
Have you ever heard of a hair steamer?? You can buy one instead of going to the gym. Steam also adds moisture to the hair, and helps conditioner penetrate more!

My diet has changed over the years I went from gradually cutting meat out of my diet... now I just eat fish
Nothing wrong with that IMO!

I never was really big on trimming my ends...evey once in a while I would get them dusted...
Nothing wrong with that either. But i think the less trims you have to do if your taking care of your ends.
Click to expand...

I wrote some of my suggested to your regimen. Everyones hair grows, but some do not retain! I think you need more moisture in your regimen. Maybe a little protein every once in a while too!
 
JinaRicci

JinaRicci

New Member
Hi Netta, your hair & skin are so pretty! If you haven't noticed breakage, then maybe it's something else? I would look at any changes in your overall health, weight (you do look smaller in yr 6 but IDK) & diet. I only eat fish (& vegetable protein) too & sometimes I take iron & B12 supplements if I don't get enough protein that day.

What about pre-poos? I agree with those who said to step up the DC too.
 
Netta1

Netta1

Well-Known Member
Sweet_Ambrosia said:
Your hair is pretty and it’s thick, but after 6 years the amount of growth retention could/should be more. I would probably trip too. *lol* After reading through your regimen, your hair may be in need of some serious moisture. It’s one of the most important elements when it comes to growth retention. CO-Washing is fine (I’m a big fan of it) but once you rinse out the conditioner your hair still needs some extra moisture, same thing for deep conditioning. You could try using a regular moisturizing conditioner as a leave-in/moisturizer and seal with an oil /butter or use a regular leave-in or moisturizer and seal with an oil/butter after you’ve washed your hair. I don’t know if you let your hair air-dry loose all the time but I wouldn’t recommend it as it would definitely hinder growth retention, it’s best to air-dry natural hair in some sort of semi-stretched style be it large braids/twists, big bantus, banding etc.. this way your hair wont have a chance to tangle and knot up. Once you up the moisture (daily moisturizing, more dc’s etc..) in your regimen you may see a positive change in growth retention, it definitely wouldn’t hurt to try it out.
Click to expand...


Thanks so much for this post! I always let my hair air dry in out styles, especially if the style that I'm wearing for the day is a puff persay..so how do I get past that. I do agree however that I should limit letting my hair shrink up because it is dangerously coily and a pain to separate when its that way. The only think that "relaxes" it is warm/hot water. During the week, my hair is protected and I think I may prefer a semi-stretched protected style for work so after I wash it I could just band it or something. Last night I put some shea butter and lekairs in my hair and DCed, then I rinsed out my hair and used VO5 conditioner for a CO wash. Well, my hair was super coily from all the previous conditioner I had in it and it was a mess to part through.

The shea butter was a little sticky and made for less pilable hair. I think in the future I will have to melt this with an oil (unless I am going to be sitting in a steam room DCing). Anyhow I was going to put my hair in too big french braids and my hair was like :antlers:---> it was too much work trying to separate. I noticed that I lost very few hairs which was good. My hair was conditioned but the added moisture from the conditioner brought the coils OUT full force :lol: So I put it in two low ponytails and twisted them and added some shea butter to the ends. Today I am wearing my hair in that same style accept my ponytail/twist are tucked into each other. I also noticed last night that my hair is indeed thick and my sides have filled in a lot since the beginning of my journey.

PearlyCurly said:
I wrote some of my suggested to your regimen. Everyones hair grows, but some do not retain! I think you need more moisture in your regimen. Maybe a little protein every once in a while too!
Click to expand...

I agree I need moisture. Do you have any moisturiser reccomendations?

JinaRicci said:
Hi Netta, your hair & skin are so pretty! If you haven't noticed breakage, then maybe it's something else? I would look at any changes in your overall health, weight (you do look smaller in yr 6 but IDK) & diet. I only eat fish (& vegetable protein) too & sometimes I take iron & B12 supplements if I don't get enough protein that day.

What about pre-poos? I agree with those who said to step up the DC too.
Click to expand...


Well I eat beans alot, I also eat soy everything. I eat salads and I still eat cheese and eggs. I weight about 115-120 pounds and I've been that way for years. I've always been small...my mother is small :lol: I should be taking vitamins...but I hate taking pills.

What do you do for pre-poos, I used to do them back in the day with olive oil only----->but that got messy and old...I am open for ideas though...
 
Netta1

Netta1

Well-Known Member
AdoraAdora24 said:
i never not retained length, i retain every inch every year, i think its becuase i soak my hair with moisurizer.
Click to expand...

What kind of moisture do you use...



Kikootie said:
Are you getting enough protein in your diet since cutting out the meats?
Click to expand...

Yeah I think so, I eat soy products, beans and salads when I can. I eat fish at least once a week and I still eat eggs and cheese. I eat eggs like nobody's business...new studies show that a few eggs per week are actually good for you :lol: I am just justifying my habit...don't mind me...
 
brownbean96

brownbean96

New Member
I think you should def UP your moisture game. You might want to dry deep conditioning if not every week/every other week and with heat (i.e. heating cap/dryer). You could also dry using Lucky's Mom - home grown steam treatment.

I would also suggest clarifying your hair at least once a month. If you're only co-washing, you aren't really removing product build up. I tried strictly co-washing for a month or two straight and my hair was mush. Now I clarify every other wash.

Additionally, you may want to try adding protein treatments to your regimine. I currently use the Joico's KPAK line exclusively. I use it bi-weekly. One week I co-wash and deep condition and the other week I use the Joico KPAK line including the Protein reconstructer.

HTH
 
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