Edges, Hairline, and Nape--OH MY!!!

princessdi

princessdi

Active Member
Ladies,

I have a serious question regarding breakage around the hairline, edges, or nape of one’s hair.

Why is it that a lot of women on this board have gorgeous heads of hair but their edges, hairline, and nape still seems to be suffering or is considerably shorter than the rest of their hair, myself included.

I have tried and tried to pinpoint the problem with a section of hair in the front of my head that continues to be a pain in my ***. I also have shorter pieces in my nape. I can’t for the life of me figure out what is going on. I try to baby those sections of hair as much as possible, however, nothing seems to be helping but the rest of my hair is flourishing. I’m so confused and frustrated as to what is going on. I wet bun daily (the silk scrunchi that I use is never tight and sometimes falls out) and moisturize like crazy, but to no avail!!:wallbash:

Since, a lot of women seem to suffer from this frustration, I’m searching for answers on what I can do to help this portion of hair flourish as much as the rest. If you are continuously suffering from breakage around your hairline, edges, or nape- what are you doing to combat the problem and help this area to flourish?

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.​
 
Good question. I been kind of pondering the same, like is my nape and edges supposed to be the same length as the rest of my hair? I think the only time was when I was a child with no relaxer, and since the nape & my edges were always overlapped, I damaged my hair. So what I have been doing (while in a full head weave) is moisturize and seal. Using glycerin based products and jamaican black castor oil. And most likely not relaxing to see if it grow in long and strong. Seems to be working, so far.
 
BronxMyth said:
The only thing that comes to mind for me is wrapping and head scarves. Please chime in, ladies.
Click to expand...

I stopped wrapping, because I suspected this can be an issue too for me. One side was thinner then the other, tried the switching sides, but my edges & nape were still a mess. Plus I can't wrap to save my life.
 
good point, Princessdi!

i'm new on this forum, but have noticed that, as well.

even now, while my hair is growing out, my nape and edges (hairline), are way behind.

believe me, the last thing i want is a head full of long, healthy hair that just happens to be a little bald on the sides! lol!

to combat this, i'm using jbco and eo's especially around my sides/hairline.

i USED to wrap nightly, but for the last month, i have only put on my bonnet (and bag).

i am just starting to see the tiniest bit of progress, but i think those parts of my hair will always be slowest.

i'm texlaxing in 3 weeks and still debating: should i put just a tiny bit of relaxer on those areas only for a hot minute or just leave them alone?

what do you ladies think?

having a head full of straight hair with fuzzy, nappy edges is not a nice look.
but what can we do?
 
For me, the hair in those areas is really fine. Styling & pulling the hair back, even a loose bun, inevitably leads to shorter hairs around those areas. Don't quote me, but I think it would be less of a problem if the hair is worn loose & down most of the time, without heat. But I'm not testing that theory until I reach "maintenance mode" so oh well. :look: It doesn't bother me too much.
 
This issue is a problem for natural, texlaxed and relaxed hair ladies.

I am one of them and I have been natural for a looooooooong time.

What is funny is that someone mentioned even the crown area. I will at times have a problem there like a tiny area all of a sudden is much shorter than the rest of the hair.

I can't do the normal protective styles and I have not had on a wig or used extension hair at all in the past 6 mnoths or so and STILL areas mentioned are slow to grow and or suffering.

I am now back to doing flat twists to the front part of my edges because it seems to be the only style that helps with growing out my hairline.

The back where my hair has the "W" shape napeline always has those beads, you can see them when I take pictures like I did the other day for fotki and I swear it can drive you just nuts.

I am NOT giving up. For now I am going back to making sure those two areas are almost saturated with moisture of some type in the morning and evening and using oil like coconut and jojoba more often. That seems to be the only thing I can see that I have done differently which is I cut down on the amount of moisture/oil.

I am also going to be more sensitive about taking my hands and moving them both across the hairline and the nape when I put moisture or product on them. I am heavy handed by nature and that cannot be helpful.

As for the crown area....I am lost I can only think that when I comb up there from tip to root I am just too heavy handed again, but I cannot figure out why it seems to be more sensitve around this time of year and then I spend the summer months getting it to grow back again.

Can you say FRUSTRATING!!!!
 
Last edited:
For me, the problem stems from various reasons:

1) wearing a neck collar due to a neck injury,
2) tight scarves and head wraps,
3) tension from buns and ponytails,
4) friction caused by wig caps and wigs,
5) rubbing caused by hats,
6) years of wearing tight braids, and
6) applying relaxer to that area for more than a couple minutes.

To combat the problem hairline and nape, I use OCT, lightly massage, moisturize, and seal with my rosemary and castor oil mix. I have been having issues with these areas for the last 6 years.
 
I've been obsessing over my edges lately. These days I'm more impressed with full edges than I am with length!

I wear a bonnet pretty much all day while I'm working at home. I try to keep it pulled down to my forehead so the perimeter is not rubbing against my edges. They're filling in nicely but there's always room for improvement. I use Mega Tek and castor oil.

Great idea for a thread. I can't wait to read more responses!
 
I had this issue when my hair started to fall out from alopecia.
My nape has finally caught up with the rest of my hair since i've gone natural.

My edges are okay, but I'm working on the front which came out from alopecia, as well.
 
Br*nzeb*mbsh~ll said:
I had this issue when my hair started to fall out from alopecia.
My nape has finally caught up with the rest of my hair since i've gone natural.

My edges are okay, but I'm working on the front which came out from alopecia, as well.
Click to expand...


@the bold - this is why I want to go natural. My edges & nape can't take the relaxer. But on the flipside I don't wanna be looking like beedeebeed. My kitchen gets the peas poppin! But I am making progess, as my nape grows they look more like loose curls vs tight curls, and now the nape hair stretches.
 
I will speak from experience only!

My edges fell out because of wearing too many headscarves. I wore a headscarf everyday for an entire year. People naturally assumed I was Muslim, because I wore it so much. To this day, people still refer to me as the Muslim girl.

Anyhow, you can see a pic of my damage in my fotki.

I have now stopped wearing headscarves all of the time and thankfully, my edges have returned FULL FORCE! Good luck with yours!
 
grow said:
good point, Princessdi!

i'm new on this forum, but have noticed that, as well.

even now, while my hair is growing out, my nape and edges (hairline), are way behind.

believe me, the last thing i want is a head full of long, healthy hair that just happens to be a little bald on the sides! lol!

to combat this, i'm using jbco and eo's especially around my sides/hairline.

i USED to wrap nightly, but for the last month, i have only put on my bonnet (and bag).

i am just starting to see the tiniest bit of progress, but i think those parts of my hair will always be slowest.

i'm texlaxing in 3 weeks and still debating: should i put just a tiny bit of relaxer on those areas only for a hot minute or just leave them alone?

what do you ladies think?

having a head full of straight hair with fuzzy, nappy edges is not a nice look.
but what can we do?
Click to expand...

I stopped relaxing my nape for six months (prior to deciding to transition), and my nape grew back in nicely. I was bald back there, pretty much.
 
That’s the reason I stopped wearing wigs. Well I stop using anything that applies too much tension on my hair, edges, or nape. As far as making that area flourish after the damage, I have no answers. My edges have grown back, but noticeably thinner.
 
I just corrected a W hemline (with a trim) and have been pondering this very question for a while... the things I am considering are:

NO ponytail holders. I think my hair even at collarbone length is too short to put in a ponytail because it ends up being too tight and MIGHT be causing breakage at the crown and nape at the same time too

If I want a bun then I have to find a way to do so without using the holder

No more relaxers at the edges every other time I relax.
 
I had to stop wearing hats and headscarves because they would rub out my hairline. Unfortunately, it seems like the easiest hairstyles do this too (buns and ponytails.)
 
My hair around my front edges have always been short, since I was young. My hair was BSL when I was younger, but my baby hairs were still short.

My crown is the longest it has every been, it is 12 inches now. My nape is also the longest it has ever been at 8 inches. Going natural was the best thing for me!
 
I think the scalp is just thinner and less nurturing in the hairline area, which is why hairlines tend to be rather weak and respond slower to the extra care. :yep:
 
My nape used to be the slowest growth area. Once I started babying it, it progressed. It's still coming along. I think protective styling and oils have helped a lot. Also, my edges are filling in a lot better because of castor oil usage.

I've stopped wrapping as I think it added stress to these areas and I'm careful to not tighten my head scarf at night.
 
Great responses ladies. Since this seems to be a huge issue for most of us, I'm hoping that more people chime in.

For those of you who bun for growth retention, what is another way to bun without using ponytail holders? Maybe that’s the route I should take, or maybe I should just try to figure out how to do the Southerntease bun. It’s elegant and seems easy to do too, and it seems to not put a lot of tension on those stressed areas while offering the protection that is needed for growth retention.

I’ve tried to wear my hair down, but I jog about 5 days a week and am completely drenched when I’m finished, so when my hair is out or not in a bun, my hair seems so parched from being in the sun. It is for this reason that I can’t wear my hair down right now. If I do, it’s a setback waiting to happen.

Any suggestions for styles that offer protection but doesn’t add stress to the edges, crown, hairline, and nape?
 
Golden75 said:
I stopped wrapping, because I suspected this can be an issue too for me. One side was thinner then the other, tried the switching sides, but my edges & nape were still a mess. Plus I can't wrap to save my life.
Click to expand...

How do you, I guess, "settle" your hair at night? Sorry if you answered already, browsing on my phone.
 
princessdi said:
Great responses ladies. Since this seems to be a huge issue for most of us, I'm hoping that more people chime in.

For those of you who bun for growth retention, what is another way to bun without using ponytail holders? Maybe that’s the route I should take, or maybe I should just try to figure out how to do the Southerntease bun. It’s elegant and seems easy to do too, and it seems to not put a lot of tension on those stressed areas while offering the protection that is needed for growth retention.

I’ve tried to wear my hair down, but I jog about 5 days a week and am completely drenched when I’m finished, so when my hair is out or not in a bun, my hair seems so parched from being in the sun. It is for this reason that I can’t wear my hair down right now. If I do, it’s a setback waiting to happen.

Any suggestions for styles that offer protection but doesn’t add stress to the edges, crown, hairline, and nape?
Click to expand...

i, too got tired of feeling those tight pulling ponytail holders, so what i do now is, i just take the sandwich bag i would have usually put over my bun, but instead i throw my ends directly in it.

after having smoothed my hair down with my hands, and having the baggy holding my ends, i just roll the bag up until it's loosley at my scalp.
then i wrap the knee highs or decorative ornaments around the bag until it's covered and it stays put all day.

no pins, no ponytail holders, and no pulling on my hair.
 
princessdi said:
Great responses ladies. Since this seems to be a huge issue for most of us, I'm hoping that more people chime in.

For those of you who bun for growth retention, what is another way to bun without using ponytail holders? Maybe that’s the route I should take, or maybe I should just try to figure out how to do the Southerntease bun. It’s elegant and seems easy to do too, and it seems to not put a lot of tension on those stressed areas while offering the protection that is needed for growth retention.

I’ve tried to wear my hair down, but I jog about 5 days a week and am completely drenched when I’m finished, so when my hair is out or not in a bun, my hair seems so parched from being in the sun. It is for this reason that I can’t wear my hair down right now. If I do, it’s a setback waiting to happen.

Any suggestions for styles that offer protection but doesn’t add stress to the edges, crown, hairline, and nape?
Click to expand...

You can use one of those hair pins with the stick and do a "tuck under" type of bun without any other holder.
 
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