Stuck at APL Limbo: I don't think I'll ever make it to BSL

0live0il

0live0il

New Member
*Takes a deep breath*

I'm frustrated because I've had to cut knots from my hair in the last few days about 5 times. I don't know what my hair needs. My hair has always been aple to grow to APL with ease. Even when I used to neglect it.. hair strands would still be at APL. But once my hair gets to that stage, my tangles become crazy, and I notice breakage.

I know my hair needs protein because my hair snaps & I think that's the sign of too much moisture? At the moment I use ORS olive oil mayo but sometimes I feel my hair needs a harder protein. I also think I need to just keep my hair braided and do less wash and gos because right now I wash my hair every other day.

TIPS please. I really want to reach BSL.

I haven't been BSL since I was a child :sad:

Maybe, I need to do what my mum was doing. She used to wash my hair once a week and leave my hair in braids/leave it alone for the whole week. I think washing my hair too much is overloading it with moisture and causing the breakage.

The reason why I wash so often is because my hair gets really oily and after a day my scalp beings to irritate me. That might be because I use a lot of oil. I always use creamy-based oils.. could that be the problem? But I prefer them.. or maybe I need to just learn how to not be so heavy-handed and try to go a week without washing.

HELP!

ETA: I've been stuck at APL for 10+years.. it's time to break that cycle.
 
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Hair length for natural people is what it can stretch to. I bet your hair can stretch to bra strap
 
Leave ur hair alone. I think your doing too much. And I also think you know what you should do already. If oily hair is a problem of course you should stop putting so much oil in it, no matter what type of oil. Wash and goes will undoubtedly create more tangles than a uniform style because your giving your hair 24 hours to ravel in whichever direction that it wants.

You could try French braiding or rolling the front of your hair then bunning the back,.. Or make twists in the back and then bun them. Controlled style without looking juvenile. It should last you a couple is days.

Maybe detangle in the shower with soaking wet hair, braid it in the shower wet, then air dry or blow dry on cool/ warm to stretch. When i was natural, and even now, stretched hair tangled less even if it's not stretched straight.

Try a weave or braids. No fuss and retention is usually good.

GL
 
You should join the BSL 2012 or BSL 2013 challenge, lots of ladies at your length who will help and support you to reach your goal.
 
I'm only grazing APL right now, but...

I hard protein weekly. Maybe try a different protein, or increase the frequency of use?
I do regular trims with the split ender, about 3-4x's a year.
When I apply my oil, I only apply it to my hair and not my scalp. This way I can go 2-3 days without washing.
I wash in sections, which has helped to cut down on the tangles. I only manipulate my hair in the shower while co-cleansing. I use co-cleansers that have great slip.
HTH!
 
You said your hair snaps? That's probably too much protein and not enough moisture. Can you hear it "pop"? Does it give any at all when gently stretching? If not, you need to lay off protein. ORS Mayo isn't a hard protein, but that joker is strong. It just takes me one treatment to restore balance with my hair.
 
Your Cheeziness said:
You said your hair snaps? That's probably too much protein and not enough moisture. Can you hear it "pop"? Does it give any at all when gently stretching? If not, you need to lay off protein. ORS Mayo isn't a hard protein, but that joker is strong. It just takes me one treatment to restore balance with my hair.
Click to expand...

@Your Cheeziness - I never got to thank you for your hair tip last time. I was having problems with not enough protein and you suggested ORS Mayo & I've never looked back.

YupI hear that POP sound. I had no idea that was too much protein lol & I haven't used my deep conditioner in a while.

GIRL I LOVE YOU

:bighug:
 
0live0il said:
@Your Cheeziness - I never got to thank you for your hair tip last time. I was having problems with not enough protein and you suggested ORS Mayo & I've never looked back.

YupI hear that POP sound. I had no idea that was too much protein lol & I haven't used my deep conditioner in a while.

GIRL I LOVE YOU

:bighug:
Click to expand...
Oh heeey!! :wave: Yeah, I should have mentioned (didn't cross my mind at the time) to play it by ear with ORS Mayo. Sounds like your hair has had enough of it.
 
op are you hiding /protecting your ends b?,remember ends= inches
ididnt see significant progress until i started protective styling,and leaving my hair alone :yep:
 
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@RENIBELL - Yup, I rarely wear my hair out anymore. I'm going to try what YourCheeziness suggested & up my moisture and hopefully that will stop the breakage.
 
0live0il said:
@RENIBELL - Yup, I rarely wear my hair out anymore. I'm going to try what YourCheeziness suggested & up my moisture and hopefully that will stop the breakage.
Click to expand...

i'd rather have too much moisture than protein overload cause the damage from protein overload for me is more dramatic.i think this is a good idea.
 
@PinkSunshine77 - I'm a little confused because my hair doesn't feel crispy crunchy or dry. It snaps when it IS stretched.. like when I'm running my hands through my hair.. I feel the hair stretch and then a crack and pop, there it goes and snaps!

Last time I washed my hair, I didnt follow up my protein with a DC.. so maybe my hair does need more moisture. I'm confused. I really am. Can somebody please break it down for me?
 
OP, you need to stop doing what other people are doing or did to get BSL and do what your mom was doing because you know IT WORKED FOR YOU.

When I joined LHCF, there were all these good ideas, from making sure your hair had moisture moisture moisture to taking hair-growth supplements. Prior to joining LHCF I had already found a regimen in which I didn't apply any leave-ins, didn't take supplements...and my hair grew past my life-time mark of SL. Around the time I joined LHCF, I read Cathy Howse's book so learned about DCing. LHCF with Cathy got me thinking I need to moisturize my hair (even though I hadn't been doing it and my hair was doing well). I also started taking supplements for hair growth. Oh and LHCF also informed me that trimming wasn't necessary so I didn't dust for 4 months.

I ended up losing 2 inches of my hair after just 4 months of not trimming. Supplements made no difference to my hair growth--I probably peed them away coz I was doing just fine healthwise with my multi and fairly healthy diet. And the moisture, moisture, moisture did nothing but make me feel icky. My hair didn't grow faster, in fact I ended up regressing. Clearly no matter how good all these recommendations sounded, they didn't work for me. So I went back to the tried and true methods, and I've never looked back.

So if you already know what got you to BSL before, why aren't you doing that again? If you really want to get to BSL NOW, then quit playing "experimentation" and buckle down and do what Mama who knows best did and get there. We bring on problems when we ignore that still small voice and try to keep up with everyone else. One man's meat is another's poison. Do you.
 
Don't overthink it because it can get overwhelming. Protein overload doesn't always go straight to crispy hair and crispy hair is not always indicative of protein overload.
It sounds like you just need to rotate more moisture in. You knew something was up with your hair, so you're doing a good job staying on top of it.

ETA: And don't go overboard with moisture. Moderation is key for balance. It may take a couple moisture dcs before you get back to normal. And that's fine.
 
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Nonie said:
OP, you need to stop doing what other people are doing or did to get BSL and do what your mom was doing because you know IT WORKED FOR YOU.

When I joined LHCF, there were all these good ideas, from making sure your hair had moisture moisture moisture to taking hair-growth supplements. Prior to joining LHCF I had already found a regimen in which I didn't apply any leave-ins, didn't take supplements...and my hair grew past my life-time mark of SL. Around the time I joined LHCF, I read Cathy Howse's book so learned about DCing. LHCF with Cathy got me thinking I need to moisturize my hair (even though I hadn't been doing it and my hair was doing well). I also started taking supplements for hair growth. Oh and LHCF also informed me that trimming wasn't necessary so I didn't dust for 4 months.

I ended up losing 2 inches of my hair after just 4 months of not trimming. Supplements made no difference to my hair growth--I probably peed them away coz I was doing just fine healthwise with my multi and fairly healthy diet. And the moisture, moisture, moisture did nothing but make me feel icky. My hair didn't grow faster, in fact I ended up regressing. Clearly no matter how good all these recommendations sounded, they didn't work for me. So I went back to the tried and true methods, and I've never looked back.

So if you already know what got you to BSL before, why aren't you doing that again? If you really want to get to BSL NOW, then quit playing "experimentation" and buckle down and do what Mama who knows best did and get there. We bring on problems when we ignore that still small voice and try to keep up with everyone else. One man's meat is another's poison. Do you.
Click to expand...

@Nonie - I guess it's because braids don't look so good on me :lol: but yes you're RIGHT. I need to stop experimenting and do what my mom did because evidently that worked. Thank you!!

And thank you to every1 else who has responded.

I've decided I'm going to up the moisture because I believe I need it right now & then I'm going to go back to simply washing my hair once a week and keeping it in braids like my mom did.
 
0live0il said:
@Nonie - I guess it's because braids don't look so good on me :lol: but yes you're RIGHT. I need to stop experimenting and do what my mom did because evidently that worked. Thank you!!

And thank you to every1 else who has responded.

I've decided I'm going to up the moisture because I believe I need it right now & then I'm going to go back to simply washing my hair once a week and keeping it in braids like my mom did.
Click to expand...

OliveOil, you can always plait your own hair and wear wigs for a change if you tire of braids. And who told you braids don't look good on you? Or are you just another sucker for "what's in fashion?" Your mom would never have done something to you to make you look ugly so stop the madness. Braids can look like relaxed hair. Folks who frown at braids oohed and aahed when I wore mine like this:
StraightBraids-vi.jpg


To me it looked no different from relaxed hair that has the ends curled under. And the same way straightened loose hair can be curled, is what *I* believe my hair looked like here:

bitmap61863-vi.jpg


So if you want to, you can make braids work for you. Stop listening to BS--even if its voices in your head.
 
Nonie said:
@OliveOil, you can always plait your own hair and wear wigs for a change if you tire of braids. And who told you braids don't look good on you? Or are you just another sucker for "what's in fashion?" Your mom would never have done something to you to make you look ugly so stop the madness. Braids can look like relaxed hair. Folks who frown at braids oohed and aahed when I wore mine like this:
StraightBraids-vi.jpg



So if you want to, you can make braids work for you. Stop listening to BS--even if its voices in your head.
Click to expand...

:lol: I love how straight forward you are.

I usually do 6 braids because I'm lazy... and then pin it up. I completely forgot about small braids, thanks for the reminder.

Ahhh I love that hairstyle on you! It's so beautiful!! I'm going to definitely try that tonight after my DC.

I'll keep you guys updated! :yep:
 
Nonie said:
OP, you need to stop doing what other people are doing or did to get BSL and do what your mom was doing because you know IT WORKED FOR YOU. When I joined LHCF, there were all these good ideas, from making sure your hair had moisture moisture moisture to taking hair-growth supplements. Prior to joining LHCF I had already found a regimen in which I didn't apply any leave-ins, didn't take supplements...and my hair grew past my life-time mark of SL. Around the time I joined LHCF, I read Cathy Howse's book so learned about DCing. LHCF with Cathy got me thinking I need to moisturize my hair (even though I hadn't been doing it and my hair was doing well). I also started taking supplements for hair growth. Oh and LHCF also informed me that trimming wasn't necessary so I didn't dust for 4 months. I ended up losing 2 inches of my hair after just 4 months of not trimming. Supplements made no difference to my hair growth--I probably peed them away coz I was doing just fine healthwise with my multi and fairly healthy diet. And the moisture, moisture, moisture did nothing but make me feel icky. My hair didn't grow faster, in fact I ended up regressing. Clearly no matter how good all these recommendations sounded, they didn't work for me. So I went back to the tried and true methods, and I've never looked back. So if you already know what got you to BSL before, why aren't you doing that again? If you really want to get to BSL NOW, then quit playing "experimentation" and buckle down and do what Mama who knows best did and get there. We bring on problems when we ignore that still small voice and try to keep up with everyone else. One man's meat is another's poison. Do you.
Click to expand...

Well said.
 
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