Every 6 weeks trim and growth--Is it possible?

[Scasey]

Just curious, is it possible to collect growth if you get your hair trimmed every six weeks? I don't believe it is but I have tried going for months without a trim and the longer my hair grew, the more I lost style. Like the old saying, you have to sacrifice style for length or length for style. I want long hair but I also want style. I think I am going to focus on style for now. Maybe getting a trim every other relaxer will help me reach my goal. Just wanted to ask the experts.

 

[TCatt86]

It's possible to grow but you won't retain much length. On average people grow about .5 inches a month, that's 6 inches a year, if you cut half of that you will have about 3 inches. I'm natural so even ends don't matter to me, but if you have a blunt cut that doesn't grow out nicely them trim. I personally think that's too often if you aren't abusing heat, when I was relaxed I trimmed about every 8-12 weeks.

 

[Qualitee]

You will get growth but your hair will just get thicker not longer.

 

[hillytmj]

Hello,
I have the exact same testimony. If I go months and months without trimming, I end up having to trim more than I want. So to answer your question, yes, I think you can trim and retain; however, I would challenge you to do it with your relaxer cycles or every 8 weeks. This will require lots of protection for your ends (moisturize, seal, etc.)

I started stretching (relaxing and trimming at 8 weeks) and I've had pretty good success. I did this and went from APL to BSL in 4 months. Since then I've been hovering around BSL, but I think some of this was due to the fact that I got slap happy and decided not to trim till midback. My hair grew over a 4.5 month period (not quite to MBL), but I had to trim it back to full BSL. I really believe that if I had kept my normal routine of relaxing and trimming at 8 weeks, I would be MBL now.

Nevertheless, I'm back on schedule and I have incorporated bunning along with my usual moisture and sealing. I hope to great results at the end of the summer.

I hope you do too!
Good luck!

 

[hillytmj]

Oh, I forgot to add, I think a TRIM works on a regular relaxer cycle. I define a trim as 1/4 inch or less. As long as you protect your ends, I think you can trim this small amount and still retain significant growth.

 

[HeChangedMyName]

For me it worked. I spent roughly a year and a half when I first started taking care of my hair and i'd trim not every six weeks but maybe 8-10 weeks or so. I did less than an inch though and my hair grew and basically replaced itself.

For me, when I don't trim, it gets straggly so I'd rather have it growing at a good rate but look good rather than just look like long hair that needs a trim.

 

[Scasey]

Thank you ladies for your sound advice. I may have to go 8 weeks between relaxers and get 1/4 inch trims as suggested, we will see how that works.

I truly appreciate all of your advice.

 

[doll-baby]

My mom and I were just talking about this. She said that I should trim my hair every 6 weeks and I told her that if I did that I would be cutting away my progress. I use to cut my hair every 6 weeks or so and It took a much longer time for me to see how much my hair had grown. Now I trim whenever my ends need it, which isn't too often.

 

[sunshinelady]

Try every 8 weeks, get 1/4 inch trimmed.

 

[HeChangedMyName]

Thank you ladies for your sound advice. I may have to go 8 weeks between relaxers and get 1/4 inch trims as suggested, we will see how that works.

I truly appreciate all of your advice.

or even try dusty, where you only cut the splits off.

 

[Aspire]

This is just my opinion . . .

If you NEED a trim, get a trim. It is not really length if your ends are damaged and it makes your hair look bad. Additionally, the damaged ends tangle easier and cause possilbe breakage when they tangle with other hairs. They also make ALL of your hair more succeptable to damage.

Once you get a good trim, your HHJ gets much easier. Yes you will lose length initially, but if you are taking care of your hair you should only need subsequent dustings. 1/8 inch dusted off 1/month means you would only lose 1.5 inches for the year. Even at 3 inches/year you are retaining half of your growth. If you have a solid successful regimen you should be getting your 6 inches/year. At that rate, even if your initial trim reduces 3 inches, you would still get 1.5 inches the first year. Barrring any setbacks you should be good.

Even though people do not really talk about it, if you really peruse the folktis, you can see that a lot of successful HJs started with a good trim.

The key here?
- Get a stylist who undertands what a dusting is.
- Recognize that UNEVEN ends to not necessarily mean unhealthy ends. Your hair grows at uneven rates. Within a month after getting a trim, your ends may no longer look even. Do not be fooled into thinking they are split or thinking I need to get a trim.
- Understand the difference between trimming for health and trimming/cutting for style. if you are truly trying to grow your hair out, only trim for health (and then maintain the health while you dust). Forgo the BLUNT type styles until you have the length you want. If you keep trimming for blunt styles, you will keep your hair at the same length of your original cut
- If you want to keep the blunt styles, let your stylist know that you are growing it out. They will start to blend and feather the ends so that you retain most of your length and the style and shape. I had a stylist who was EXTREMLY good at this, and my hair retained shape while I grew it out. Plus the growth was incredibly evident because one could see the difference in the stlye itself.

Either way . . . good luck!!

 

[dynamic1]

I believe you can still get regular trims and still grow longer hair. When I was mildly relaxed, I received regular trims, every 6-8 weeks. The longer my hair got, the longer I could go between trims. There was less manipulation required for styling as it got longer. I had some major trims for shape and style only. My hair grew from a tapered Hallesque cut to BSL in about 3.5-4 years.

You do need to find a good stylist if you cannot trim your own hair. The stylist should understand your goals and support it through their actions.