Hair Myths Shattered Here!! If you are on the grow be encouraged!

[Tara]

I know this was a topic about two years ago, I looked for it but can't find it. It was something like "What hair myths were you told back in the day" or something to that effect.

Anywhoo, I just wanted to ask what are/were the hair myths that you were told about growing your hair, and which turned out to be false?

1. Your hair can only grow as long as it's EVER been.

This one was told to me by a hair dresser about 6 or 7 years ago when I really wanted to grow my hair and saw a hairdresser in her shop with waist length hair. This was SOOOOO discouraging because I was never one of those women with the "my hair was so long as a child" stories. My hair was always short, and I mean like Patty LaBelle, or Toni Braxton (not by choice, lol!) So I'm here to tell you ladies if you've heard this one, it's a lie, because all my childhood life my hair had been earlength, now it's at shoulder. So it's about care, not where you were before.

2. Only people who've had long hair before can grow their hair long now
See above

3. Washing your hair everyday is bad for the hair.
Now this one is *partly* correct. If you are using a harsh soap, not conditioning, and have terribly hard water, it can be tough on the hair, but water is water, and so that is some moisture. I wash every 3 days, and I used to rinse daily with no issues.

4. Only people with "good" hair can grow their hair really long....
Sigh, not true. First all HEALTHY hair is "good" hair, IMO this is not determined by texture or curl pattern. Secondly if people have poor hair habits it doesn't matter their hair type. I used to work with this woman from Inida who had 2B hair, and it NEVER got past shoulder length, and it was NOT because she was keeping it trimmed. She said her hair just "didn't grow". As we talked more, it turned out she just had bad habits.

On the flip side, I will say this, those with coarser (meaning thick) strands seem to be able to withstand more than those with fine (meaning skinny) strands. For example, I know some women who can perm, and then die their hair and do all kinds of stuff that would make my hair run...but they can do it because their hair is thicker.

I can't think of anymore, but if you all have some please share It is encouraging for those of us who may have heard these things, and can have someone shatter the myths!!

 

[MizAvalon]

Excellent thread! Hopefully it will be able to help some ladies, Here are some that I wish I had known weren't true when I was a teenager:

"Trimming your hair makes it grow faster." This is the most ridiculous thing ever. Trimming dead hair DOES NOT affect your growth rate!

"You have to get your hair trimmed every time you get a touch-up." Also completely untrue. If your ends are not split why would you need to trim your hair? Unless of course, you're trying to maintain it at it's current length.

"Stretching your relaxers will make your hair break off and/or fall out." I have actually heard this from professionals. Granted this MAY be true for some women, but it IS NOT for me. If it was, WHY would I be doing it? Do they think I'm some kind of IDIOT?


Ok, this is kind of a dumb, unrelated one but I'll list it anyway.

"You're supposed to cut a baby boy's hair when he turns 1 yr. old so that he can get some kind of special new/fresh growth." WTH does that mean? That one is courtesy of my mother who of course had no way of explaining herself when I asked.

That's all I can think of offhand, but I'm sure there should be some interesting and very funny posts in this thread! Come on ladies, let's hear all the dumb hair myths you've heard over the years!

 

[Ashee]

Amen MizAvalon on the trim drama!! I back that 200 x 1,000,000%!!!

1. I'm not into wrapping my hair, I've done it successfully but after a while my hair was not trying to have it. So not everyone needs to wrap in order for the hair to grow!

2. "Black people can't wash their hair everyday/too often" What are we Chi-Chi Pets who shouldn't get wet after dark like a Gremlin? Water moisturizes, just don't get a cold *achew*

3. Braids breaks the hair. No, tight, unkempt braids will cause damage after a while. Not taking your time to unravel them will cause breakage. Even ignoring the moisture aspect and leaving the braids in too long will cause the damage. If not properly maintaing, they will begin to dread up.

4. Weaves damages the hair. False again. Maintanence is the key. You need to pay attention to your hair. If you are not dedicated to the upkeep, then don't do the style.

5. Dominican Salons don't work. False again. This is just as false as the "Black Stylists don't know what they're doing" Rumor. Each salon has their standard, you just have to make sure that it matches YOUR standard. Never allow a stylist to go buck wild on your tress, it's you who has to walk around with it, not them. If you shop around and ask questions, you'll find the salon that fits you and your time the best, no matter who runs it. NEVER SETTLE FOR TRASH! Shop around, not everyone will charge you $100 for a touch up or $35 to wash your hair! They do have $10 wash days & the look is FAB-U-LOUS!!!

6. Switching Products Will Damage Your Hair. Not true at all!! How are you supposed to know what works & what doesn't They key is to watch how your hair reacts and to give products at least 30 to 60 days to show results.

7. Hair Care For FREE.... WHATEVER. Unless you are growing your own Olive, Aloe, Sulpher, Peppermint, and Rosemary Trees in your backyard, you will have to shell out some cash to someone!

-That's all I have for now... I'll be back if I think of more nonsense I've heard!

 

[CarLiTa]

Ok, here are some that I've seen:

1) Only other ethnicities or mixed blacks can grow long hair. A girl said that the other day... I just thought to myself: Watch, by the time we go back to school next year, my hair will be brastrap *crossing fingers* and growing! HA! I'll show her and everyone else

2) You must trim your hair every 6-8 weeks to keep it healthy. Man, I did that for months! If I had found out about LHCF, I would have been past bra strap. I got so close to brastrap in December, then again in March, and then the hairdresser chopped it off; I let her take off SOME *of course she took off a whole LOT* on the basis that it would make my hair healthy, when I seriously didnt need a trim.

3) Your hair is programmed to grow a certain length. What does that mean! How would it know that it's being cut?!?! It doesnt make any sense...

4) After you get a HUGE trim from your stylist, she says: No, I didnt take off a lot, this is the length where it looks best. WHERE THE HECK DID ALL MY NEW GROWTH GO!!! MY HAIR IS THE SAME LENGTH AFTER 3 MONTHS OF HARD GROWTH!

As you can see, I'm bitter, but I"ll stop now... the other ones I wanted to mention, you've already mentioned them.

 

[WesternEyes]

1. You should only use black hair products on your hair. Ummmm no...I look at the ingredients and decide what goes in my hair and what doesn't. Just because the product is labeled for black hair doesn't mean it will work for all black hair. How many great products would I have missed out on if I listened to this advice?

 

[Ashee]

1. You should only use black hair products on your hair. Ummmm no...I look at the ingredients and decide what goes in my hair and what doesn't. Just because the product is labeled for black hair doesn't mean it will work for all black hair. How many great products would I have missed out on if I listened to this advice?

8. Also, most, if not all Balck Hair Companies are subsidiaries of larger White Hair Companies!
It blew my mind when I looked up all of the well known's home websites!
If they were independent before, they aren't now.

 

[Jaelin]

It's not about growing hair, but I had a battle with my mother when she used to style my hair about using pink oil/dax/vaseline/some other type of hair grease etc. I went out and got scientific evidence for her that it just wasn't always necessary. The scalp does produce its own oils.

P.S. It might work for some peeple but pink oil is the devil . I have never in my life had more dandruff and tangled hair than the few months this was used on my head.

 

[Ashee]

Yes it's me again...
9. The whole Hair is different myth!
I am so upset that I listened to this crap! "Black" hair is different from "White" hair. That's just crap to help the industry sell "Black Products" at OUTRAGEOUS PRICES:dollar:!!
The make-up of hair is the EXACT SAME!!! What I needed to focus on ALL THOSE WASTED YEARS was how to take care of CURLY HAIR!!!!! Moisturizer was to be my friend, not enemy!!! I too could have used a product made for "Emily" but instead I was geared towards things with "Shaniqua" on the bottle. Those would either dry out my hair or break my mom's, and later my own wallet!!

10. THE MIRICLE GROWTH PRODUCTS! The only thing they ALL do is simply PROMOTE GROWTH!!! Since I now take the time to READ the ingredients I see that they all have the majority of the SAME THINGS! It's to the point that I just go straight to the actual Essential Oils! I'll make my own promoting product! I will wait a good two months to three months before I say that the "promotion" isn't working. No longer seeking MIRICLES!

 

[belleza]

Cutting my hair with every relaxer is a big one. I'm angry that people have been cutting my hair for years. My hair grows really fast, but I never knew that. All I knew was that after I left the salon for my retouch, my hair was no longer than when I came. So of course I thought my hair didn't grow, THEY KEPT CUTTING IT OFF!!!!!!!

I was only one year away from a beautiful head of hair. I started in August '04 with short hair to the middle of my neck, and now it's going down my back. It hasn't been a full year since I started this journey, but as I get older, I am unlearning all the CRAP that has been endoctrinated so long. This forum is helping me to question some of the absolutes we've been handed.

...concluding my rant...if anyone needs the soapbox, I'm done...

 

[blessedangil03]

This is an excellent thread.

 

[Jewell]

I second the trimming after every re-touch crap, as I fell victim to this for nearly 2 years, and guess what?! My hair stayed right in the same place...bra-strap. All my precious new growth was being chopped off every 8 weeks or so! I also second the "Washing your hair every day is bad for black hair." This woman at my job insists on that, but hers looks like it hasn't been washed in 3 weeks w/so much product buildup and its stiff as a board.

SIDEBAR: I have been CO washing every day for coming up on 2 months in May, (hair hasn't been better, and I may start to shampoo everyday, as I have found a very, very gentle shampoo: Creme of Nature Ultra Moisturizing Formula Detangling Shampoo. It doesn't have SLS or ALS in it, and has lots of natural extracts like honey, wheat germ oil, myrrha extract, etc. I shampooed this morning with it, and wondered, "Where have you been all my life?!" Plus, its cheap. My Nexxus shampoos are taking the back burner and will only be used once a week, because they contain SLS. I have a question for you ladies: My mother said that I need to be careful about shampooing and conditioning my hair everyday, because I can over condition. I know that too much of a good thing is bad in some cases, but I use a light conditoner. My hair hasn't been breaking because its too soft or anything. What do you all think? I think this is just another one of her gripes about my daily washing in general...TIA, and sorry so long!

 

[Netta1]

Heres are a few BIG myths....

You need a perm to grow your HAIR :0(

Nappy hair is hard to GROW

Nappy hair is hard to STYLE

Nappy hair is UNPROFESSIONAL

Nappy hair is too WEAK it will break OFF

Nappy hair is UNATTRACTIVE

Nappy hair is BORING


LYES LYES, ALL LYES I TELL YA.....lol

 

[candie19]

Myth:

You need to go to a professional sylist to grow your hair and keep it healthy.

Truth: That is a bunch of bullsh#t!!!!

All you need is this forum. I believed that crap going to a stylist every week, dishing out $35 each visit. These sylist never said: Take MSM, EPO, lysistine, extend your relaxers, used a daily moisturizer, put the curlers down, all you have to do is wash and condition your hair every wash, you really don't need your ends trimmed...... just thinking about it I get pissed. I only go to salons for retouches only.

 

[angelbaby]

Myth:

You need to go to a professional sylist to grow your hair and keep it healthy.

Truth: That is a bunch of bullsh#t!!!!

All you need is this forum. I believed that crap going to a stylist every week, dishing out $35 each visit. These sylist never said: Take MSM, EPO, lysistine, extend your relaxers, used a daily moisturizer, put the curlers down, all you have to do is wash and condition your hair every wash, you really don't need your ends trimmed...... just thinking about it I get pissed. I only go to salons for retouches only.

That is so true! Professional stylists have never caused me anything but grief.

 

[ThursdayGirl]

Natural hair is unmanagable and you must get your hair retouched every 4-6 weeks.

Not true. I find my (by now) really really thick roots are just as easy to detangle and comb as my relaxed hair.

Most people can stretch their relaxer at least to 6-8 weeks before they get a touch up...the key is keeping the hair moist!

 

[Ashee]

Natural hair is unmanagable and you must get your hair retouched every 4-6 weeks.

Not true. I find my (by now) really really thick roots are just as easy to detangle and comb as my relaxed hair.

Most people can stretch their relaxer at least to 6-8 weeks before they get a touch up...the key is keeping the hair moist!

You are so right TG, you are so right!