Discouraged 4a/4bs... this thread's for you!!!

[scorpian]

Hey all! Yahoo closed their photo sharing so I had to move my photos. Currently they're at Flickr.com. I don't like the set up and will probably move them again. For now, here are the photos...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/31341080@N00/sets/72157601833837804/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/31341080@N00/sets/72157601833839854/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/31341080@N00/sets/72157601839965663/

I kinda got back on the bandwagon. I gotta upload the last relaxer pics that I took the end of August.

Beautiful hair!!! That 10en1 conditioner is the truth!!!!!!!
Hair like Butta baby

 

[longhairluva]

Hello AJD. I am looking for your reggie. Can you point me to it. I love love love love love love love your progress.

 

[caramelty]

I needed this thread back in my life b/c I am a bit discouraged.

 

[SpiritJunkie]

mos def huge motivator for me. i know i will get there everytime i see your hair.

patience/determination..and care.

Can not grudge others, god bless us with different things at different times..i'm just working on my glory!!

this thread is the best.

 

[AJamericanDiva]

I am having online album issues, but a lot have been asking for an updated pic. Don't hold your breath for incredible growth as I had long since dropped off the bandwagon. I am back on tho'!

http://picasaweb.google.com/Jamaica...heHairGrowthJourney/photo#5112516477382611314

 

[AJamericanDiva]

bumping for another member.

 

[klb120475]

Cool!

 

[Radianthealth]

Thanks...anymore updates

 

[Barbara]

I agree with Shima01's comments. Also, moisture rich products used consistently helps keep the hair from drying out.

 

[nicki6]

This is the perfect night to revive this thread. Bumping for anyone that's feel discouraged. Be encouraged!!

 

[MonaLisa]

This is the perfect night to revive this thread. Bumping for anyone that's feel discouraged. Be encouraged!!

Thanks Nick....I was thinking about this thread too...
Perfect timing!

 

[AvaSpeaks]

I have a question.

Why is it that ladies of this particular hair texture get discouraged? What is still making us discouraged, despite the progress we are making with our hair?

Is it society's standards of beauty?

Mainstream African American standards of beauty?

Deep lingering feelings that this type of hair doesn't grow?

I mean what is it? I don't see a "Discouraged 3a" hair thread. So why for us?

What are some of you guys thoughts on this.

 

[dinaaike]

I have a question.

Why is it that ladies of this particular hair texture get discouraged? What is still making us discouraged, despite the progress we are making with our hair?

Is it society's standards of beauty?

Mainstream African American standards of beauty?

Deep lingering feelings that this type of hair doesn't grow?

I mean what is it? I don't see a "Discouraged 3a" hair thread. So why for us?

What are some of you guys thoughts on this.

I know there are a lot of people who will have an answer to this question. My answer is simple: people of this particular texture are more commonly discouraged because of the innate frailty of this hair type.

We have become accustomed to seeing people rip through snags and bleach and blow-dry and perm and dye. They brush every single day and grow hair to their hips because their hair is resilient and seemingly invulnerable.

So we rush through our caretaking and try to "hurry it up" and it can't take that kind of treatment. Though our tresses may seem cottony, they are the true silk of the textures. Treat it gently and it can last you forever. But we are only recently learning how to treat it. Beauticians don't know, the product manufacturers don't know, and professional stylists by and large don't know. How were we supposed to know? Who was there to educate us?

Some of the myths are still being dispelled, but the average "4" hair owner still has to combat insufficient information, unavailable adequate products, and naysayers everywhere. All this leads to unhealthy hair that breaks because it's very nature--each and every bend and curl--leave its inner layer more exposed than any other type of hair.

That's why this forum is so important. Information sharing cuts back on a lot of the set backs.

 

[AvaSpeaks]

I know there are a lot of people who will have an answer to this question. My answer is simple: people of this particular texture are more commonly discouraged because of the innate frailty of this hair type.

We have become accustomed to seeing people rip through snags and bleach and blow-dry and perm and dye. They brush every single day and grow hair to their hips because their hair is resilient and seemingly invulnerable.

So we rush through our caretaking and try to "hurry it up" and it can't take that kind of treatment. Though our tresses may seem cottony, they are the true silk of the textures. Treat it gently and it can last you forever. But we are only recently learning how to treat it. Beauticians don't know, the product manufacturers don't know, and professional stylists by and large don't know. How were we supposed to know? Who was there to educate us?

Some of the myths are still being dispelled, but the average "4" hair owner still has to combat insufficient information, unavailable adequate products, and naysayers everywhere. All this leads to unhealthy hair that breaks because it's very nature--each and every bend and curl--leave its inner layer more exposed than any other type of hair.

That's why this forum is so important. Information sharing cuts back on a lot of the set backs.

Very well said!

Happy New Year from the Chi!

 

[dinaaike]

Have a Happy Health Hair-growing New Year!

 

[SleepyJean]

I have a question.

Why is it that ladies of this particular hair texture get discouraged? What is still making us discouraged, despite the progress we are making with our hair?

Is it society's standards of beauty?

Mainstream African American standards of beauty?

Deep lingering feelings that this type of hair doesn't grow?

I mean what is it? I don't see a "Discouraged 3a" hair thread. So why for us?

What are some of you guys thoughts on this.

Um...no. I'm not discouraged by my hair texture. I like my texture of my hair relaxed and natural. I'm discouraged at my growth rate, not the texture. Some people may have a problem with their texture, but I don't.

I agree with the person above me. 4a/b hair isn't as strong as people think. It seems like other textures can take much more abuse than ours can.

 

[AvaSpeaks]

Um...no. I'm not discouraged by my hair texture. I like my texture of my hair relaxed and natural. I'm discouraged at my growth rate, not the texture. Some people may have a problem with their texture, but I don't.

I agree with the person above me. 4a/b hair isn't as strong as people think. It seems like other textures can take much more abuse than ours can.

I know, isn't that weird. I mean you would think Type 1 or Type 2 hair would be fragile but it's our hair.

Here's the thing about the growth rate. I think our hair doesn't grow slowly than anybody else's, as a whole. But I do think that our hair breaks just as soon as it grows.

If our hair grows faster than it would break, then alot of us would have alot more visible length.

 

[MonaLisa]

An excerpt from a short article on typing --

What Do the Numbers Mean?

Obviously different people have different types of hair. These differences aren't just limited to a category as broad as race. Even within certain ethnicities, hair types can range from thinner to thickest, coarsest to softest, and so forth. A numerical system of hair typing was established to simplify these types of hair and to provide more exact definition for the hair type.

The following numbers refer to the amount of curl or wave in a hair. Type 1 hair is always straight. The number 2 indicates a slight wave to a frizzy wave. The number 3 begins the plunge into curly hair and the number 4 indicates extremely kinky hair.

However, just defining the amount of curl or kink in one's hair isn't enough to provide an exact hair typing. Hence, the letters a, b, and c are used to define the actual thickness of the strand. A types are thinner than b types, who are still less thick and coarse than type c hair.


Commonalities between the 4A 4B 3C Hair Type

The 4a 4b 3c hair type generally indicates some sort of African American hair, meaning that the hair is coarse and tends towards frizziness.

The 3Cs absorb more water than the type 4, which means the hair will growlonger and somewhat stronger.

Unfortunately, type 4 hair contains less cuticle layers than the other hair numbers, meaning it is difficult to grow long. Type 4 hair is delicate and can break easily, and because of its kinky quality it should never be brushed.

 

[AfroKink]

An excerpt from a short article on typing --

What Do the Numbers Mean?

Obviously different people have different types of hair. These differences aren't just limited to a category as broad as race. Even within certain ethnicities, hair types can range from thinner to thickest, coarsest to softest, and so forth. A numerical system of hair typing was established to simplify these types of hair and to provide more exact definition for the hair type.

The following numbers refer to the amount of curl or wave in a hair. Type 1 hair is always straight. The number 2 indicates a slight wave to a frizzy wave. The number 3 begins the plunge into curly hair and the number 4 indicates extremely kinky hair.

However, just defining the amount of curl or kink in one's hair isn't enough to provide an exact hair typing. Hence, the letters a, b, and c are used to define the actual thickness of the strand. A types are thinner than b types, who are still less thick and coarse than type c hair.


Commonalities between the 4A 4B 3C Hair Type

The 4a 4b 3c hair type generally indicates some sort of African American hair, meaning that the hair is coarse and tends towards frizziness.

The 3Cs absorb more water than the type 4, which means the hair will growlonger and somewhat stronger.

Unfortunately, type 4 hair contains less cuticle layers than the other hair numbers, meaning it is difficult to grow long. Type 4 hair is delicate and can break easily, and because of its kinky quality it should never be brushed.

huh? The letters are suppose to be strand size? And it's a common misconception that Black folx have "coarse" hair. Coarse has to do with strand size/diameter. Black people, in general, least coarse (smallest diameter) hair. While Asain people, in general, have the most coarse hair.

That article is saying that Black people (type 4 hair) is coarse (thick stranded) yet it contained less cuticle layers? Isn't that a contradiction?

Lys

 

[*Luscious*Locked*Doc]

An excerpt from a short article on typing --

What Do the Numbers Mean?

Obviously different people have different types of hair. These differences aren't just limited to a category as broad as race. Even within certain ethnicities, hair types can range from thinner to thickest, coarsest to softest, and so forth. A numerical system of hair typing was established to simplify these types of hair and to provide more exact definition for the hair type.

The following numbers refer to the amount of curl or wave in a hair. Type 1 hair is always straight. The number 2 indicates a slight wave to a frizzy wave. The number 3 begins the plunge into curly hair and the number 4 indicates extremely kinky hair.

However, just defining the amount of curl or kink in one's hair isn't enough to provide an exact hair typing. Hence, the letters a, b, and c are used to define the actual thickness of the strand. A types are thinner than b types, who are still less thick and coarse than type c hair.


Commonalities between the 4A 4B 3C Hair Type

The 4a 4b 3c hair type generally indicates some sort of African American hair, meaning that the hair is coarse and tends towards frizziness.

The 3Cs absorb more water than the type 4, which means the hair will growlonger and somewhat stronger.

Unfortunately, type 4 hair contains less cuticle layers than the other hair numbers, meaning it is difficult to grow long. Type 4 hair is delicate and can break easily, and because of its kinky quality it should never be brushed.

So true. I never realized how delicate my hair was until I joined this board...it has always broken and snapped with the slightest manipulation...moreso when I wasn't caring for it properly. I am not discouraged necessarily by my hair but I get frustrated with the fact that....I feel as though every time I touch it I'm a damaging it somehow by my inadequate knowledge . For years I thought that washing your hair frequently was damaging so I hardly ever washed at all . That's what my mother taught me and that's what her mother taught her. It is only recently since I joined LHCF and started really learning to care for my hair that I have seen it respond. It's not hopeless to try and grow out this type of hair but it requires a ton of patience. You have to really understand the needs of your hair and what works best in order to get it to grow and thrive no matter what your hair type, but it certainly isn't made easier by a quality of hair that is much more prone to thinness, dryness, and breakage. But I'll never give up....I know that my hair has been healthy and long in the past and that was when I was taking care of it regularly and it can be again .

 

[SpiritJunkie]

great thought provoking question. i am not discouraged at all but lacked the knowledge on how to manage and take care of my hair until i hit this BOARD!

past bad hair practices made us believe our hair was undesirable, weak & dry but now that we all know better we are seeing LONG AND BEAUTIFUL 4a/4b hair.

 

[SpiritJunkie]

great thought provoking question. i am not discouraged at all but lacked the knowledge on how to manage and take care of my hair until i hit this BOARD!

past bad hair practices made us believe our hair was undesirable, weak & dry but now that we all know better we are seeing LONG AND BEAUTIFUL 4a/4b hair.

 

[AvaSpeaks]

huh? The letters are suppose to be strand size? And it's a common misconception that Black folx have "coarse" hair. Coarse has to do with strand size/diameter. Black people, in general, least coarse (smallest diameter) hair. While Asain people, in general, have the most coarse hair.

That article is saying that Black people (type 4 hair) is coarse (thick stranded) yet it contained less cuticle layers? Isn't that a contradiction?

Lys

No it's not really a contradiction.

Our hair is coarse and so is Asian hair. However, the different is that our hair is kinky or wirly whereas their hair is straight. So they still have the look and feel of straight hair.

See the thing with our hair that I think some people mistake on this board is that our hair is "curly". It's more coily. And the coils tend to be short. Sometimes the coils can be finer or coarser or thinner or thicker. If you have the coils coarser and thicker, then you have what's called kinky hair or the term I hate, "nappy" hair.

Now I think AA tends to have a looser variation of the "nappy" hair becaue of the obvious influences in our bloodline. But our hair is still not straight or "curly" overall. If that was the case, then Black women in this country would had never had to use hot combs or worse, relaxers, because their hair would had been straight enough where they felt it was managable.

That's why I always say that sometimes I think alot of us are mislabeling our hair on this board. For example, I don't fit that chart so I don't use it! Omarion the R&B singer, he doesn't fit that chart either. And our hair looks about the same. He (and I) has to be either another letter Type or a weird combination of the existing types (Type 1/Type 2/Type 4) or something like that.

The chart needs to be revamped!

 

[dinaaike]

For example, I don't fit that chart so I don't use it! Omarion the R&B singer, he doesn't fit that chart either. And our hair looks about the same. He (and I) has to be either another letter Type or a weird combination of the existing types (Type 1/Type 2/Type 4) or something like that.

The chart needs to be revamped!

1/2/4? Ooh girl, you got some stuff happening in your head! Now that's what I call "mixed" hair!

 

[AJamericanDiva]

Hey there... when I wrote this thread waaaaay back when, it was because a lot of people with my type hair 4a/4b were going through periods of discouragement with the rate of which their hair was growing or even the length. Growing up as a child, I never really saw people of my race with my hair type have long hair... it was usually the type 3's. I love my hair! Once I've come to realize the proper way to treat it, I realized that growing it longer wasn't as hard as I thought. It's still presents it's challenges, don't get me wrong, just because it is more fragile. It snaps easily and needs to be handled with kid gloves. We would believe at first glance that it's really strong and "tough", but our strands really need the TLC. I've been going back and forth between lengths. I would have thought I'd have been at waistlength by now... however, setbacks occur. Why? My hair is "fragile" and sometimes rebels against certain things I may do. This results in me having to get a trim to rid myself of my thin ends. That was the purpose of this thread... encouraging people that though it may seem difficult for us to get the longer length, we can... not as a European standard, but simply because we are capable and aspire to achieve longer lengths.

As for the chart, the number actually indicates the amount of curl or wave one has in the hair. I believe the letters deal with the degree of coarseness or even diameter.

Here's a pic of my last relaxer... The way I see it, I should have been longer by now. It would be easy to be discouraged in that I set a certain goal and have not reached it, but I am reminded by this thread that patience, perserverance and protection will get me where I need to go....





Do you see why it would be easy to be discouraged? My avatar pic was taken November 2004 and I've had to use that as my motivational pic... after I reached that length, I slacked off and took everything for granted... it would get longer, than shorter, then longer, then shorter. Here this pic was taken last week and I look basically almost the same length... all due to negligence. I'm back on the wagon now though.

 

[nappity]

Hey there... when I wrote this thread waaaaay back when, it was because a lot of people with my type hair 4a/4b were going through periods of discouragement with the rate of which their hair was growing or even the length. Growing up as a child, I never really saw people of my race with my hair type have long hair... it was usually the type 3's. I love my hair! Once I've come to realize the proper way to treat it, I realized that growing it longer wasn't as hard as I thought. It's still presents it's challenges, don't get me wrong, just because it is more fragile. It snaps easily and needs to be handled with kid gloves. We would believe at first glance that it's really strong and "tough", but our strands really need the TLC. I've been going back and forth between lengths. I would have thought I'd have been at waistlength by now... however, setbacks occur. Why? My hair is "fragile" and sometimes rebels against certain things I may do. This results in me having to get a trim to rid myself of my thin ends. That was the purpose of this thread... encouraging people that though it may seem difficult for us to get the longer length, we can... not as a European standard, but simply because we are capable and aspire to achieve longer lengths.

As for the chart, the number actually indicates the amount of curl or wave one has in the hair. I believe the letters deal with the degree of coarseness or even diameter.

Here's a pic of my last relaxer... The way I see it, I should have been longer by now. It would be easy to be discouraged in that I set a certain goal and have not reached it, but I am reminded by this thread that patience, perserverance and protection will get me where I need to go....





Do you see why it would be easy to be discouraged? My avatar pic was taken November 2004 and I've had to use that as my motivational pic... after I reached that length, I slacked off and took everything for granted... it would get longer, than shorter, then longer, then shorter. Here this pic was taken last week and I look basically almost the same length... all due to negligence. I'm back on the wagon now though.

As long as you came back so that we can pick your brain!!!
Your hair is still beautiful.

 

[AJamericanDiva]

Awwww.... You know, the funny thing is that the only time you see my hair like this is when it's freshly relaxed. Other than that, I airdry, use S-curl and such that most people think I'm natural... when I show up with my relaxer and hair down 4+ months later, they say jokingly, "You sell out!!! How could you relax/press your hair!!!!" I keep going through this... "It was ALWAYS relaxed... just didn't look that way!"

 

[cmw45]

Awwww.... You know, the funny thing is that the only time you see my hair like this is when it's freshly relaxed. Other than that, I airdry, use S-curl and such that most people think I'm natural... when I show up with my relaxer and hair down 4+ months later, they say jokingly, "You sell out!!! How could you relax/press your hair!!!!" I keep going through this... "It was ALWAYS relaxed... just didn't look that way!"

And where have you been Ms.?

 

[AJamericanDiva]

And where have you been Ms.?

Right back at you! Ever since Delta called me back to work, I've been really busy. I've been doing a lot of international trips since summer and it's proven hard to stay on top of the hairboards.... Sigh.... I've noticed so much has changed.

 

[deeshortesthair]

Awwww.... You know, the funny thing is that the only time you see my hair like this is when it's freshly relaxed. Other than that, I airdry, use S-curl and such that most people think I'm natural... when I show up with my relaxer and hair down 4+ months later, they say jokingly, "You sell out!!! How could you relax/press your hair!!!!" I keep going through this... "It was ALWAYS relaxed... just didn't look that way!"

i love your baby's hair...gimme gimmeeee!!!he is so cute