I remember when I thought my hair couldn't get long

M

mikimix

New Member
I'd look at long haired people and think "I guess I'll have to be happy with my shoulder length hair"

I remember when I got extensions and my (white) friends were like "i love the long hair on you, you should grow your hair out"
and I'd be like "nah my hair doesn't grow long"
(how stupid of me lol)

I literally thought this up until about a couple of months ago when I found this forum

And boy I am so glad I found you guys

Now when I look at long haired people, I think "Yeah i cant wait to reach that length!"

thank you<3

did anyone else feel like this?
 
I remember thinking that shoulder length was my terminal length. And that my hair wouldn't grow past that point. How ignorant of me.

Just as you mention, I now look at people and say "I can't wait until my hair gets to that length".
 
I used to think the same thing. Now I laugh when people accuse me of having good hair because I used to think the same thing of people with long hair.
 
I remember just over a year ago explaining why we didn't need to wash our hair as often *ignoramous*:giggle: Now I'm like wetting my hair every day to every other day:look:
 
Yes I definitely felt like this. I thought if a black girl had long hair it was either because 1)she was mixed or 2) she must have had long hair all her life. I didn't know we could actually grow it out like other folks. Back in the day I remember one of my best friends(she's white) her mom asked me if i was growing my hair out? because I guess she thought it looked a little longer and I was like "No, I mean not really, well it's been growing my whole life, I mean um I never cut it" lol I was so confused because I didnt think it was possible for black girls to be in the process of growing their hair out, I mean shoot we are always trying to grow it aren't we? Obviously I didnt know anything about haircare back then. After finding the hair boards and seeing such inspiring before and afters and learning about hair care, I knew I could grow long hair too. Now its just a matter of patience and implementing the healthy hair care techniques I've learned.
 
I remember thinking as long as I could wear weaves I didn't need long hair lol, then I grew up and realized instead of spending all this money I don't have on weave why not spend less and have my real hair.
 
I always had hair that I kept between SL and APL and I laugh more so because ppl thought that was long and I believed them. lol

I used to think that was the longest it would get, but now I know I didn't have the best hair care practices to let it grow longer.
 
My healthy hair journey is only about a year old and I though I could not grow my hair passed shoulder length too. My hair is currently the longest its been since I stopped constantly using direct heat on my hair 9 years ago.

I still fear that my hair won't be as long as I would like it to be, but only time will tell if I'm consistent.
 
I've always had mbl hair and used to see women with hl or longer hair and just envied like WOW I've never had longer hair than mbl so now that is my goal. Currently my hair sl so I have a ways to go but I'm determined. My struggle when my hair was long was I didn't do much more than my ponytail and I didn't get trims at all. I straightened it when I "styled" it and because it was so long and my arms grew tired from that I didn't do it often. So once it grows out again I have to find other styles that I can manage to do.
 
Growing up I remember seeing pictures of me as a 5 year old with long thick hair that was at least MBL. It broke off by the time I was 7 or 8 due to my mom putting chemicals in it. Throughout Jr. High and High school my hair never made it past ear length. It was only until I found LHCF that I realized that I could grow my hair long and healthy. During my first year as a member I grew my hair from SL to touching BSL ! I then became natural (BC'd) and I am currently I am trying to make it to APL by the end of the year :).
 
My hair has mostly been around APL and never actively tried to grow my hair. I thought that APL was "long" and didnt think my hair could get any longer.

Actually after a beautician burnt off all my hair I was gonna be bald for life lol but it came back to APL

now im on a mission to see how much further past APL I can grow. my longest layer is BSL and I never thought that was possible before LHCF.
 
Threads like this are so cute to me.

I started growing my hair out in January of 2010. I never paid it much attention tho because I fully expected it to stop growing when it hit my shoulders. But it didn't. And now I'm expecting APL by mid march and full APL before the end of the year. I'm so proud! I can buy hair accessories other than headbands lol. My ponytails swing. And when I see ppl with hair to their waist, I feel good knowing I'll be there in the next few years


Sent from my iPhone using LHCF
 
I remember walking around campus and seeing white girls with waist and hip length hair wishing I could get my hair that long. I never thought my hair could grow past bra strap length (I never understood why people just assumed people who were mixed had that "good hair" and that they could get it to grow like their caucasion counterparts :perplexed it may have been longer than my darker skinned sistas but it didn't budge from BSL). It wasn't until I discovered this forum that I was enlightened and introduced to the proper way to care for my hair.

With the help of the wonderful ladies on this site, I've made great progress with my hair :bighug:
 
I remember admiring my mum's hair but never wanting long hair for myself until I grew out of my tomboy ways and started getting into being more feminine. After sorting out what my hair likes and getting over bumps, I offcially started my journey in January 2010. My hair was full and thick SL but I wanted it to be at least to the bottom of my shoulder so my hair could brush against it. I got to that goal and kept pushing myself, making every goal so far. I'm MBL now and my ultimate goal is WL; I will make it there soon. I plan to push myself to HL because I know when I set my mind on something, I ALWAYS get it; never give up. :yep:
 
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I've never been really concerned with length but I can say that before this forum I didn't know my hair wasn't healthy. I thought excessive shedding all over the bathroom was normal and didn't realize breakage could be avoided. I accepted dull, dry hair because I thought that was just "my hair". Now though I'm enjoying my healthy tresses and look forward to seeing how low it can go, lol...

Great topic OP!
 
^ yup I accepted breakage because I thought it was the norm
how silly of me
now I cringe if I get the slightest amount of breakage
 
I never thought so either. Me or no one in my family has had hair past SL. While I believe it possible for the most part, the proof is in the pudding so I'm admittedly still a tiny bit skeptical; I'm on track to make APL in a few months, then I will totally believe it.

No one in my family believes it either. They are all generally very intelligent women, one of them even has a chemistry degree, but yet even with a scientific mind can't (or wont) understand when I explain the things I've learned on here (namely the fact that the issue is usually with breakage/retention NOT growth). Its like the things we have been told to believe about our hair is so ingrained in our minds, its hard to even entertain other possible conclusions.

I think one of them did finally start to understand breakage/vs shedding when I told them to start looking at their hairs in their combs to see if they had bulbs or not.

I ask my grandmother, "if your hair doesn't grow, then why do you touch up your gray color every 4 weeks? if your hair wasn't growing, there would not be any hair to touch up". She couldn't answer yet still insists her hair is short bc it doesn't grow.
 
This thread just made me realize that I don't think like this anymore.

When I first joined the forum, I was such a skeptic. But after reading testimony after testimony, the first mustard seed began to be realized.

A few months later, I thought, "Ok, my hair can grow, but it'll probably only get to APL or so. And I'll be happy with that."

A year and some change later, all I can think about is what I'm going to do with all this hair when it's WL. Not if it gets to WL, but when it's WL.

Only LHCF can give a one-time bald-head little black girl hope like that :yep: Thanks ya'll! :)
 
bride91501 said:
This thread just made me realize that I don't think like this anymore.

When I first joined the forum, I was such a skeptic. But after reading testimony after testimony, the first mustard seed began to be realized.

A few months later, I thought, "Ok, my hair can grow, but it'll probably only get to APL or so. And I'll be happy with that."

A year and some change later, all I can think about is what I'm going to do with all this hair when it's WL. Not if it gets to WL, but when it's WL.

Only LHCF can give a one-time bald-head little black girl hope like that :yep: Thanks ya'll! :)
Click to expand...


I think the bolded is where I was up until recently. I made SL and started thinking well, just maaaaaybe I can get to APL, but thats it. Then it seemed like APL wasn't that far away so now I'm gotten to where I think MBL might be a possibility and maybe even WL.
 
I remember feeling like this.

I flat ironed my hair last night and my hair is about 2 inches from BSL.

I could not believe it.

The ladies on this forum have provided me with such valuable information and instruction on how to care for my hair and have it growing long and healthy.

THANK YOU LADIES OF LHCF!!!!
 
^^You know Imani I saw you post that in another thread and I just smiled to myself lol. Cuz I thought, she's caught the bug! I remember a while ago seeing you say that your goal was APL, and I thought, why would she want to stunt that pretty hair's growth?! Then, as you've been inching closer, like LHCF clock-work, your goal has gotten bigger LOL.

I love it- it's a testament to this board- makes you dream big!
 
I definately felt this way. Before LHCF my hair would not grow past NL. I still can't believe I will be APL by december
 
I remember a few years back my cousin and I were talking about how we wish we could have long hair. Poor girls...I remember...our hearts actually ached, because we believed, it's either you have it or you don't.

Fast forward to 2011. I am approaching BSL and she still hides her hair under ridiculous, tranni inspired weaves.
 
I love to read stories of other people here who once thought they couldnt have really long hair. Honestly it breaks my freakin heart that our community is a mixture of just plain ignorant to and/or made to believe we can't do certain things....i mean if you look at the grand scheme of things....something as minute as hair is a HUGE issue in our community....and even within our newfound discovery of ourselves...there are people who still want to be better than the other. 3c this and 4a that.....NO...stop it! Because no two types are alike......

ANTYWAY....

Pre-LHCF...my hair was always between SL and BSL....and i felt that was as long as it would ever get. But then after being fed up with what salons did to my hair and not being satisfied....i found LHCF just by Googling "what is a good shampoo for Black hair?"....BAM!!! And i've been glued ever since:yep:
 
I think I used to take it for granted that my hair would never get past SL. I think I always used to fall between SL and APL then my hair would break off and I'd have to start over again.

Finding this forum and Cathy Howse opened my eyes because after reading her book and following her steps, I was able to get to APL. Then I had a setback with braids which led me to cut to NL and discover LHCF.

I grew my hair from SL to MBL with strands licking at WL as a relaxed head. And I'm ready to do it again as a natural.
 
I'm at the beginning of my hair journey, and I have to admit, I still sort of think like this...:look: I'm constantly in awe of some of the amazing heads of hair on this board, so I know and accept that black hair can grow, I'm just not convinced yet that mine can, as I've never had hair past SL. But I'm going to try my best to prove myself wrong!!
 
My family is chock-full of beautiful heads of long, thick hair... So I never bought the notion that "our" hair couldn't grow... Only that My hair wouldn't. I would reach BSL and would never go further... Just break or shed.

After lurking on this board for the longest, and slowly implementing what I've read, I love the way my hair feels... I will keep my mind right, my patience engaged, and watch my tresses slowly stretch down my back! ;-)
 
I've always admired very long hair on black women but didn't consciously think I couldn't grow it super long. I've always had "good hair" and am able to grow it easily to mbl. The problem is since my teenage years I've never grown it to wl/hl and did think mbl was my terminal length.

It wasn't until earlier this year that I realized "if my hair's not growing, why do I color the roots every 4-6 weeks?" I knew then that my problem wasn't growth but retention.

I am now 3-4 inches from wl and am confident I'll get there and to my goal length of hl.
 
Growing up I never knew that black women thought they couldn't have long hair. In fact I really never paid much attention to hair. But I had MBL hair as a kid and when I chopped it off to SL in high school I knew it could grow back. I just thought hair was hair. The only difference between mine and my friends was that theirs was straight and mine was curly. But it all grew. That's what I was taught as a child. "She cut her hair!" "Oh, it'll grow back." It wasnt until recently that I learned about "good hair, bad hair" and that a lot of people think they cant grow their hair past shoulder length. I thought it was so weird to think that way. But I can see where you ladies are coming from. Love the stories keep em coming.
 
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