PLEASE HELP---where is it going

[lovelyyardie]

Hi everyone, I'm a newbie who's been registered for a couple of weeks but this is my veyr first post

... Well a bit about my hair---I'm a 3c/4a with VERY thick mid-back length hair; my hair is very reminiscent of the girl who played Rudy in the Cosby show but it looks slightly different. Anyways I've been transitioning since last May but I'm not sure when, if ever, I'm going to do the big chop.
My problem is that although I've been transitioning for close to a year, I can't tell a difference in growth (in fact it looks maybe like it's shorter). I know that over this time span my hair has grown about 5 to 6 inches (since I would measure the roots of my braids) but I cant tell the difference. Since June, I have worn nothing but braids and cornrows and everytime I take them out it seems like my hair is the exact same length as when I put them in (or even shorter

) although I can see new growth. I know that there is a possibility of hair breaking from the difference in two textures, however I'm not sure that it's happening in my case since the textures arent THAT different (since my hair was more texturized than relaxed) and also my hair would be in braids for a couple of months and IMMEDIATELY after I took them out I couldn't tell a difference. Now I compare my hair's growth right after I take the braids out and wash my hair and it's dripping wet and fairly straight since I get hella shrinkage when it's dry. I am at my wits end with this thing because I feel like I haven't made any progress in a year

If anyone could explain what exactly is happening to me, if in fact this is normal or if my hair is indeed maybe breaking in the braids, I would greatly appreciate it
Some other background details that may help: My regimen is pretty simple since I'm in braids; I wash every couple of weeks and use Surge and put some oil on the ends from time to time. My diet is pretty horrible but I do take a multivitamin. Thanks in advance for your help ladies

Sorry this is so long but this thing is driving me insane

 

[atlantatiffany]

when i transitioned i had the same problem u did. i went without a relaxer for almost a year. the problem maybe the 2 textures like u said, because that is were i also had the same problem. i never had braids so i'm not sure if that is helping . since your hair is so long have u thought about finding a stylist that can do your hair once a month. i did that and it helped alot, but in the end i just went back to relaxing(not as often) because i couldn't deal with the 2 textures.

 

[babyblue]

well when i first transitioned i could have sworn my hair wasnt growing a lick. it actually seemed like it was getting shorter. Keep in mind in the first few months i was doing styles with no heat and my relaxed hair was maybe 3 inches past shoulder with a whole lot of new growth buried beneath it. Well when i decided to start pressing it i couldnt believe how much new growth i had. the first time i pressed it my hair was past my bra strap even with breakage(although very uneven) so of course i chopped a few inches at a time to get rid of the relaxer. Anyway my point in my rambling is sometimes with natural hair its hard to tell if your hair is growing unless u straighten it with heat. Shrinkage can be a very confusing thing. perhaps if your curious about your growth u can blow dry or press your hair (or just a small section). Even now that my hair has grown and is past my b-strap when stretched i still have up to 50% shrinkage and my hair sits on my shoulders the same way its been for the past 2 years making it appear as if no growth has taken place at all. i hope i made sense

 

[lovelyyardie]

Thanks for replying ATLTiffany, see I'm not sure when if ever I want to do the big chop but since my hair is so thick there really isn't anything I can do to it besides putting it in braids. I have seriously been thinking about just going back to relaxing because I really didn't have any problems in terms of breakage or anything but I thought transitioning would be healthier or something but instead I haven't seen any change in close to a year

Anyways thanks again for replying

 

[lovelyyardie]

Thank you Babyblue for posting, yes I do think your explanation makes sense

Maybe I need to get it pressed or soemthing to see if it actually is growing; all this time of transitioning I have never had it thermally straightened just used the way it looked in the shower as a gauge. Thanks I think I'll give it a try maybe for Valentines day; hopefully it's just shrinkage and my hair is not actually shorter or the same length as last year