At a stand still - WHAT IS HINDERING MY LENGTH RETENTION??

[WriteCurl]

So, I've been at BSL for a long time. I've reached this length as a relaxed girl and now as a natural girl. I must admit that I thought that without heat and chemicals, my hair would just be so strong and would grow down to my ankles without much work from me! This is not the case! It's true that my hair is much stronger and WAY thicker and healthier than it was. But I realize that it's still fragile and requires time and attention to thrive. If I'm being honest with myself and I really want to reach waist length, I need to make some changes. Here's a list of things that I may need to change in order to get past BSL:

1. I rarely shampoo and when I do, I only shampoo my scalp. I use a squirt pump. Could my follicles not be getting cleaned often enough? Could my hair have too much build up?

2. I rarely deep condition with heat. I skip heat because of time constraints. I have 3 kids.

3. I rarely/never do heavy protein treatments. I use Giovanni Direct Leave In which is a light protein conditioner and I thought this was enough but maybe not.

4. I leave my twist outs in for 3,4,5 days and by the time I cowash, it's very very tangled. Maybe I'd get less single strand knots if I didn't let it go for so long.

5. Perhaps I need to stretch my ends more often. i.e. using rollers at the ends of my twist outs, blowdrying occasionally...not sure what else to do to stretch my ends...

6. I don't really know how to determine my hair's porosity. Could this be a problem?

7. I know I don't drink enough water and I'm actively changing that bad habit not just for hair reasons but for overall health.

Does anyone have any insight or experience to share that helped you get out of a rut?? I need some advice

 

[Janet']

It seems like you have pinpointed some things that need to be tweaked a little. I definitely think that water intake has much to do with our overall health as humans...

What I have realized though is that not every head of hair needs what another does. I do not know if my hair is highly porous or not, but thus far that has not been an issue; for others, figuring that one simple fact out has made a major difference in retention.

On the other hand, when comparing your hair before and after the start of your healthy hair journey, you admit that your hair is much healthier than before- it's stronger and thicker, so you should be commended for what you ARE doing right!!!

 

[Urban]

How much breakage are you experiencing?

 

[lnhair]

I know some people would suggest only washing or cleansing your scalp with shampoo but I shampoo my strands also. Our hair gets build up also. I hardly ever use protein for my natural hair because it just doesnt need as compared to when I was relaxed. I think you should list the products that you are using and people can help you better. We don't know your full routine. In your post you didnt mention what or how you are moisturizing your hair. Your leave has protein even if its light. You may be experiencing breakage from not having enough moisture.

 

[southerncitygirl]

its a myth that naturals need less protein, maybe you need more.
find a low manipulation hair style and stick with it....maybe twistouts are hindering you progress by giving you ssk's and breakage.
try washing your hair in plaits.
try pre-pooing/dcing/ or hot oil treaments on dry hair and put on a plastic cap then a shower cap and do what you need to around the house till its wash time.
do you sleep on satin/silk pillowcases or use a scarf/bonnet
do you mositurize and or seal?
what products do you use for each part of your reggie?
what is your diet like? I know you are trying to get in enough water but you also need a good bablance of healthy fats, protein and greens
are you using the bathroom regularly? i ask this cause if not you could be effectingt he way your body absorbs nutrients.
i suggest aubrey organics gbp condish as it is a medium weight protein, for a heavier protein every 4-6 wks i suggest komaza care protein strengthner.
op, you have a thick ,lovely head of hair, we'll help you over this hump!

 

[WriteCurl]

Thanks Ladies! Here's some more info:

My routine is kind of random and depends on how busy I am, but here's my usual summer routine:
- I cowash my hair every 3 - 4 days with either Aussie Moist, HH, or Tresemme Naturals. I put my hair in 4 sections and finger detangle first then detangle with a wide tooth (not Jiberi shower comb) under the stream of water.
- sometimes I prepoo on dry hair with whatever DC I have at the time (usually cholesterol) or sometimes with oil (EEOO, castor or coconut) but I never sit under the dryer. Other times, after cowashing, I saturate with cholesterol and rock this as a wash and go for a couple days. Again, I never sit under the dryer.
- If I don't wash and go, then I do twist outs 90% of the time. After cowashing, I use a t shirt to "dry" my hair a bit. I put it in sections again and apply leave-in conditioner (usually Giovanni Direct but have also used Cantu Shea Butter Leave-In...want to try Knot Today by KC) then I use Bee Mine Luscious Moisturizer then I seal with a mixture of shea butter and coconut oil. In the past, my moisturizers have varied a lot but I'm in love with Bee Mine Luscious and have used it for most of this summer. I do about 8- 10 twists and either sleep in a bonnet or on a satin pillowcase.
I maintain by putting a pineapple ponytail on top of my head. Usually after 2 days or so I have to start wearing a ponytail or bun. Occasionally, I will retwist and reseal after the first day but often not. (Could be letting it get too dry?!)

when I do protective styling, it's either a bun or cornrows but that's few and far between.

I see a lot of single strand knots throughout my hair (i do search and destroys every couple months) and I also see breakage in my crown area. that's my frizziest and driest area!

I have a sweet tooth and i love bread so I think i eat way more sugar and starches than I do fruits and veggies. I just had a baby so I've been doing way better with water since I was just pregnant. I think i answered all the questions...let me know if i didn't!

 

[Eclass215]

I know for me, what helped me out a lot was a a good trim! Once I did that, I retained every inch that grew out of my head!

 

[Chevelure618]

I think you should deep condition with heat. A lot of these quality deep conditioners don't even work if you don't use heat. You don't have to be captive to a bonnet dryer. Wet a towel or turbie towel, heat it for awhile in the microwave put it around your head with a plastic cap over it and go about your household chores. This is an good source of heat.

 

[pringe]

ok, so i'm not on ur level with my hair, ur hair is longer than mine but some helpful tips that I've been noticing over the months. I don't really do twist outs anymore. MY hair doesn't really hold up well to them. It makes it a b!@#$ to detanlge afterwards and I get a lot of ssk from doing that. MY hair doesn't like to be out a lot without some protective styling done before bed. It gets tangled and gives me a lot of ssk.

Maybe that's too much manipulation of ur strands. Just something to think about. :O)

 

[Chevelure618]

I hate to say this and please don't blast me, but at some point we all will reach our terminal length. I hope it isn't BSL if you want WL and I hope mine isn't either .....

 

[Uniquely Blessed]

I believe you have a pretty good handle on what you can do better to help retain your growth and you've just got to DO IT. A suggestion for the heated DC? Wrap your hair in a hot towel, put a plastic cap and hat on over that and keep it moving. This way you aren't confined to sitting in one spot under a bonnet.

 

[Janet']

^^^Chevelure, you make a valid point about terminal length, but I don't think that applies to OP...She has pretty much grown her hair without doing much...I really think that it's just tweaking her regimen a little bit.

 

[southerncitygirl]

I hate to say this and please don't blast me, but at some point we all will reach our terminal length. I hope it isn't BSL if you want WL and I hope mine isn't either .....

most folks don't know their terminal length cause we never had proper hair practices,most peoples terminal length is below wl......my hair keeps getting longer and longer and wasn't anymore than shoulder length as a kids....the op needs to continue tweaking her reggie like i and many others have

 

[classychic1908]

OP, the most important thing for me retention wise has been protective styling. Maybe try protecting your ends for some time to see if it helps you get over this hump.
HHG

 

[lnhair]

I know alot of ladies arent going to agree with me but I believe it is too much protein. Most of the products you use often have protein. The Giovanni and the Cholesterol have protein and you seem to use that almost every time you wash or cowash also the Cantu has bad reviews. I used it on my own hair before. It went on nice and smooth and was all good but eventually made my hair feel extremely dry after an hour or two.

Here is a review I saw on the Cantu. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NKyebhn1Wc

This lady thought the product was great but after testing it awhile she disliked it and alot of her viewers felt the same way. I think maybe you should step up the moisture and lessen up on the protein. More protective styles doesnt hurt to get past a certain length but I really do think its the protein. Its just my opinion.

 

[yamilee21]

Since your straightened length is BSL, are your twistouts and WNGs right around shoulder-length? If so, you may be getting damage to the ends from your hair rubbing on your clothes. I agree with the suggestions of protective styling. I was "stuck" between APL and MBL for years, and the main thing that finally got me to WL was putting my hair up most of the time. I was not deep conditioning, using protein or doing anything special other than washing (usually only conditioner) and putting my hair up, every 2-4 days.

 

[aymone]

Is there a way you could rearrange your schedule to have more time to sit under the dryer, drink more water, etc. Because it seems you pretty much know what is wrong with your regimen but don't know how to find the time to make it work.

 

[WriteCurl]

You guys have given me a lot to think about! I need to be realistic. I always tend to look for the quick fix, ya know? And often there is none. If I really want to surpass this roadblock I have to work with my current situation. I'm already doing way better with the water and diet. That's something I have to continue to work at. Beyond that, I think that protective styling is the way to go. It will meet two objectives for me: it will save me time from styling and messing with my hair day to day and it will allow my hair to rest and grow. If I develop a regimen of pooing and deep conditioning (thanks so much for the hot towel idea! i also may try one of those turban things) atleast every two weeks...and protective styling in between, I think I will see results. I do wear my hair out A LOT and my twist outs are shoulder length so my ends are definitely rubbing on my clothes...

This leads me to another question actually...

When I was relaxed, I reached BSL many times. I went through this cycle of babying my hair to help it grow and then once it became long and thick, I'd think it was strong so I'd get happy with the heat and color and wearing it down all the time on wool sweaters and coats and such and of course it would break off again.

So I'm just wondering if my goal is reach WL, will I have to wear it up most of the time to keep it that way? Maybe it's about finding a better balance. Instead of wearing my hair down 90% of the time, I could wear it down 50% of the time so it has time to rest. What do you think?

 

[WriteCurl]

Here is my current length - blown out, twisted out and wash and go.

 

[curlyninjagirl]

ITA about protective styling. I think this will, without a doubt, get you over the hurdle.

I'm all about sacrificing style for strands these days, because what I've observed is that--with the exception a few--most ladies on here that are WL and beyond protect their ends the majority of the time.