Hurdles . . .

[chellee]

To those of you who have achieved brastrap starting from ear-length or shorter hair, what would you say your biggest hurdle was?

To me, the journey to shoulder-length is the WORST!!! I have reviewed several albums and read numerous success stories. Once the hair reaches shoulder-length it seems to jet towards brastrap but reaching shoulder-length from above seems to take twice as long (although the distance is approx. the same). What up with that?

 

[buffalosoldier]

Maybe it's cos your focusing on it so much. I think the best thing is to just take care of your hair and let it do it's thing. Dont measure it!

 

[Enchantmt]

Good topic. I'm interested in hearing the replies although I would imagine one hurdle would be finding a protective style until your hair is long enoug to bun.

*sitting and awaiting wisdom from all the brastrap beauties*

 

[shellzfoshizzle]

that seems to make sense. once its pasted shoulder, it sprouts to bra-strap. i am 20 and have NEVER had shoulder length hair.

well.......a split end maybe GRrrazed my shoulder, but cut it off. THAT is my hurdle! Shoulder-length hair, HERE I COME. You can't tell me nuttin once I hit shoulder length!

 

[HairQueen]

This is an interesting post. I am excited to see the responses from the bra-strap ladies. I am currently shoulder length - a length that I have always been all my life - but my hair has never gotten much past that yet. Now that I have given up heat, wearing protective styles and deep cond twice per week I am excited to hear if it does grow faster from shoulder length and beyond.....

 

[ThickHair]

Don't pay attention. A watched pot never boils. My hair is natural and when I decided one day to stretch my hair it was past my bra clasp and I was like wow.

 

[Kalani]

Well, I'm not yet bra strap but getting there seems to be a big hurdle right now! Getting to shoulder length never seemed to be a problem. I was always cutting my hair to mid neck length or a long bob, but it would just shoot back to my shoulders in no time.
Well now that I'm aiming for bra strap it seems to be going no where! I mean I notice growth but everytime I stretch it down my back to see where its at, bra strap seems further and further away! I've accepted the fact that I won't be making my April goal.

Anyway, I think its because I'm watching it too much now. Before I never paid attention so maybe thats why it seemed to grow so fast. I'm going to attempt to not measure it again for at least a month.

 

[katie]

I've always had neck length hair at its longest.I don't remember having ever grazed shoulders before.When I started growing out my hair from an ear length bob I got to shoulder length fiarly quickly once I knew how to take care of my hair.I would have dramatic length changes from touchup to touchup.Everyone was amazed especially me since my hair had never grown past neck.
Now I'm a couple inches from brastrap and it has been taking FOREVER to get there. I don't have as much length progress as when I was going from ear to shoulder even though I've been stretching my touchups out.I just want to reach brastrap in the next 6 months and I will be happy.

 

[lveurslf]

I feel like I'm at a hurdle now...I want a comfortable shoulder length and it's taking forever to get there .

 

[Leslie_C]

Well, I'm not yet bra strap but getting there seems to be a big hurdle right now! Getting to shoulder length never seemed to be a problem. I was always cutting my hair to mid neck length or a long bob, but it would just shoot back to my shoulders in no time.
Well now that I'm aiming for bra strap it seems to be going no where! I mean I notice growth but everytime I stretch it down my back to see where its at, bra strap seems further and further away! I've accepted the fact that I won't be making my April goal.

Anyway, I think its because I'm watching it too much now. Before I never paid attention so maybe thats why it seemed to grow so fast. I'm going to attempt to not measure it again for at least a month.

I feel u on that! My hair seems to be just a tiny bit longer than it was in the summer when I joined the boards (just past my shoulders). And Ive been doing all the right things, not using heat, deep conditioning often, protective styles, and stretching relaxers but I took that to the extreme and now I have a lot of breakage at the middle of the back of my head!

I refuse to give up though. Im going to start taking vitamins again and actually stick to it this time. And Im going to stop airdrying and start rollersetting instead...I think the airdrying was causing dryness/frizziness/breakage. I will try rollersetting under the dryer with cool air while I study once or twice a week. Also I wont try to stretch my relaxer any more than 10 weeks bc the longer I stretch the more breakage I get in my problem spot in the back.

So for now my focus will be babying the broken areas back to health and trying to get a growth spurt to at least armpit length!

 

[bimbabe]

I'm with Katie on this one. But I guess it would depend on the individual. For me gettig to shoulder length was never a problem- I was always at shoulder length. I could cut to my ears and be shoulder length in a couple of months. I cut my hair to my neck March 2003 and had below shoulder hair by the end of August in the same year.

But I just reached brastrap and still I don't feel comfortable to say that I am at brastrap because all I need is one bad trim or 1 inch of jacked up ends and I will have to try to reach that brastrap goal again.

Just don't focus on it too much and it will come once you are taking care of the hair.

 

[senimoni]

Well my hair isn't long but the back gets to shoulder length easily but tends to break off, the sides have never gotten that long. I wonder if this length is more fragile when wearing you hair down b/c its always brushing against the top of your shirts or pulled in coats etc??

 

[Isis]

Well my hair isn't long but the back gets to shoulder length easily but tends to break off, the sides have never gotten that long. I wonder if this length is more fragile when wearing you hair down b/c its always brushing against the top of your shirts or pulled in coats etc??

I think that may be true. At shoulder length, the ends of the hair are constantly rubbing on the shoulders and are prone to breakage. This is a good time not to wear the hair down (protective styles) until it's past the shoulders.

 

[jaded_faerie]

ive never had hair thats bra strap, and my hair is currently brushing shoulders...the front is however layered....coming from the under the ears ro shoulder length went by real fast and now i feel as though it is taking MUCH longer to get to bra strap....but i have not been wearing my hair down and wearing protectivew styles since the beginning of the year, so we will see how long this hurdle will be....

 

[Poohbear]

Maybe it's cos your focusing on it so much. I think the best thing is to just take care of your hair and let it do it's thing. Dont measure it!

I agree. Try not to think about your hair.

 

[chellee]

I am trying hard not to be discouraged. My day will come soon . . .

 

[lveurslf]

I think that may be true. At shoulder length, the ends of the hair are constantly rubbing on the shoulders and are prone to breakage. This is a good time not to wear the hair down (protective styles) until it's past the shoulders.

Interesting point.

 

[Mariaat40]

Well, I'm not yet bra strap but getting there seems to be a big hurdle right now! Getting to shoulder length never seemed to be a problem. I was always cutting my hair to mid neck length or a long bob, but it would just shoot back to my shoulders in no time.
Well now that I'm aiming for bra strap it seems to be going no where! I mean I notice growth but everytime I stretch it down my back to see where its at, bra strap seems further and further away! I've accepted the fact that I won't be making my April goal.

This is me too. It seems like it's taking forever for me to get those last couple of inches. The good thing is that my hair is now long enough that I'm really enjoying it and not obsessing about the length. It certainly is LONG by everyone else's standards (except those of us with hair anorexia on the hair boards )