MY HAIR DIDN'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[JenJen2721]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[ QUOTE ]
Okay Nessa, i just took my cornrows and braids out last week. I had them in for exactly a month. I did receive about an inch in the back, and 1/2 inch in the top. What I did was I let water run over the rows each night. I know you are thinking, yeah but what about frizzing. Well, after I let the water penetrate, then I took the worlds of curls activator and pushed it into the braided hair. I did this every night. Then I would tie them down in a doo rag. Each morning I got up, and my hair was still moist, and the hair laid down nicely.

Once a week, i would dilute shampoo and let it run between the rows, to clean the scalp. Then i would dilute conditioner and let it run on the braids. Then rinse. But i think the key for me, was the constant moisture from wetting each night, and the worlds of curls that kept the hair moist, but didn't leave build up. This was my first time ever having briads, so I am not veteran, but when my friend took my hair down, she was surprised at how soft my hair was. I was too. So try keeping the hair moist each day. Hope this helps.

Tracy

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That sounds like a simple yet very effective regimen there!

Simplicity is a beautiful thing!

 

[Nessa]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks Eygtian Sand- I go there all the time. And I have learned a whole lot from it.

Sbaker thank you.

 

[Nessa]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Maybe i should do that regimen.

 

[honeycomb719]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[ QUOTE ]

Also, make sure that the stylist is not cutting the pieces of hair that are sticking out of the braid. They are actually cutting your hair when they do that.

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So true. I had to "check out" on a stylist for doing that to my hair before.

 

[ineedmoney]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

nessa i am soo sorry about your braids. but don't give up hope, i think if you follow some of this advice you should be alright. sometimes it takes a little trial and error to get it right. also try that good ole protien treatment. i think that ( and my obession with african pride braid spray) is what reduced my breakage when i took my braids down 2wks ago. keep hope alive girl

 

[Nessa]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

okay ineedmoney

 

[melodee]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Nessa,is your hair shedding or breaking? I just took out my rows and experienced a tremendous amount of shedding from the bulb. But I think the shedding is okay, although scary looking. Read my thread for more info on this subject. Were your ends split at all before you had your hair braided?
Anyway, don't worry girl. I was a bit mad too, but I'll be okay. Let's keep each other updated on our post cornrow hair health, okay!

 

[Nessa]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My ends were split before I had my hair braided.

 

[Chichi]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

sorry to hear about your hair woes Nessa. Are you taking any vitamins? If so, which ones?

I also agree with super moisturizing the hair while in braids...

 

[Nessa]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Um. I am not allowed to take vitamins.

 

[Nonie]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hi Nessa

I'm sorry you are having such a headache. I wear braids and until I feel confident enough to take a chance at relaxing with my newfound knowledge I think I will be wearing them for quite a while. It's the only way I can manage and grow my natural Type 4A/4B hair. I am fortunate that I do my own braids coz that way I am constantly redoing them and thus taking the strain off the part I started the braid the last time and starting the attachment of my extensions on the new growth. Which is how I am able to wear braids for a year and to grow my hair with minimal breakage. I never relax my hair with chemicals before braiding thus I braid it when it's at its strongest. I follow more or less the same care routine as I would if it wasn't in braids. Wash twice a week and deep condition in a cap under a dryer. Of course the fact that I am constantly repairing the braids is how I can get away with washing so often without ruining the style. Sometimes I will use an oil on my hair and put on a plastic cap when I go to sleep the day before I wash it. How I oil the hair without using a spray is by putting my braids up in a pony tail using a scrunchy at the top of my head then pulling out one at a time and dipping my finger in a bottle cap of oil and smoothing that down the braid. This way I can be sure I cover each braid sufficiently, which is why I prefer this method than spraying. It's time consuming but I do it while watching TV or a video and it's less daunting a task that way. When deep conditioning, rather than dilute the conditioner and spray, I put my braids up again after shampooing them and rinsing and pull out a row at a time, rub a dab of conditioner between my hands and smooth it on the braids...sorta the way relaxer is applied to hair. Every now and then I will hold a bunch of them and squeeze so that I encourage the conditioner to soak into the braids. Rinsing does take a long time as I will keep squeezing sections till I feel confident that it's free of conditioner. I do sometimes sleep with a plastic cap on even on days I don't plan to wash my hair after applying moisturizer on my hair so that my thirsty hair gets a nightful of moisturizing. (I'm gonna try the curl activator idea; very ingenious, I say!)

Nessa, I know putting in extensions isn't easy for everyone. I wasn't very good when I started but I was about 13 and in high school when I started trying out what I saw hair stylists do in salons. It took me a long time to learn to attach the extension at the base of my hair without it sliding. But even if you don't learn to braid your own hair, a friend or family member can help you achieve a simple style without paying. Even though I grew up wearing cornrows, I love box braids/single braids probably because they are the easiest to do. And I used to wear them without extensions and coulda sworn my hair grew like weeds when I did. If you make the single braids small enough to be crowded, it won't matter if the lines aren't straight. No one will be able to tell. Of course they will hold better if your hair isn't relaxed. But you can still do it with your hair as it is. The idea is to minimize the combing you do to your hair so that it stops breaking and achieves length. If you do the single braids yourself or if someone initially does them for you to ensure straight neat lines, you can maintain the look by redoing one at a time as they get untidy or your hair grows. Doing them one by one is a good way to cheat and keep the partings as straight as they were done the first time and fool everyone into thinking you have a third eye. Also not having to undo all the braids at once makes the task less overwhelming. You don't have to do all at once. Just the ones that kinda stand out, but try to eventually braid all the hair. The reason I stress that (and some of you may know what I'm talking about) is that hair does sometimes seem to knot at the base of the braid if left braided too long and breaks when you try to untangle it. Oh another thing, if you can learn to undo your braids using your fingers and then sorta seperate with your fingers before rebraiding, it wouldn't be a bad idea. It's easier, I find, to avoid knotting up the hair that way. To be honest I have no idea where my combs are. Been so long since I used them. Yet, though my hair is natural and type 4, it's not tangled up or matted. The small braids seem to keep it as straight as possible without a relaxer, even after being washed...as long as I let the hair dry in braids (which I do).

Single braids will lie down/hang down when you wash them and air dry. And even hair just an inch short can start to move like locs if you wash with them in a few times. Tying a silk scarf when you go to bed can help keep your hair looking neat too.

I don't know if this is a style that appeals to you but I wore it in my teens and loved it and my hair grew a lot. I just got into the habit of running my fingers through my hair and checking for loose braids (depicting some growth) and then using my fingers, I'd undo one at time, separate the hair make sure there are no knots and then re-braid it before repairing the next one. This I did while watching TV. You can also wear big box braids and tuck in the ends for a different neat style that looks like little hills (LOL) on your head and keep that looking neat by tying a scarf at bed time. But why I prefer the smaller braids is because you are able to include more of your hair in the braid and thus not neglect the tiny shorter hairs. Am I making sense? I do tend to ramble on.

I don't know how much of this helps or if it does at all, but I'll be happy to answer any questions you have that I can. And I will work on being brief. LOL

 

[Peachez2503]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Nessa, why aren't you allowed to take vitamins? I started taking them about a month ago. I don't know if they're helping my hair yet, but they're helping my nails alot. Do you still have the braids in your hair? Braids also didn't work for me, so thats why I stopped wearing them.

 

[KinksnCurlz]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Peachez - Nessa just turned 13, I'm sure it's her parents wishes that she not consume the vitamins recommended on this board at such a young age.

 

[Peachez2503]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh, well the biotin I take can be used by teens.

 

[Nessa]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thank you nonie for that post I may do that too. but my hair is too short to even put to braid my hair. That's why I have to use extensions. My mom can braid single braids for me. But I mostly get cornrows.

 

[Nonie]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Nessa, I don't know what style you wear your hair in but I wore a TWA style that was less than an inch long during a good spell of my teens and it was natural and not that easy to comb. Well, that was until I discovered the wonders of applying an oil and sleeping with a plastic cap on. Paltas (also Pallitas) was the oil I used then but I'm sure a lot of the oils and moisturizers mentioned here would achieve the same results. It would make my hair baby soft though still curly, easier to comb, shiny and healthy looking. I even used this oil on my growth in-between touch-ups when I wore my hair relaxed and it made a huge difference. So I imagine if you use the advice everyone gives here on moisturizing, you'll be well on your way to growing your hair. You just a little patience.

The point I'd like to stress on is the night oil/moisturizer-under-plastic-cap treatment. It's probably an old wives' tale, but it's as if the warmth of the cap makes pores open up so that hair grows. OK...I know that sounds dumb and it could all just be in the mind that my hair grew noticeably that way but it never hurt me to do it. Maybe more of your natural oils are released to enhance the moisture? And a little positive mental attitude I'm sure helped. (If you believe, you will see.)

As for getting the nutrients necessary for your hair... Since you cannot take vitamins, here's a hair-enhancing diet. If you cannot follow it exactly, maybe you could try to include some of the recommended foods? More Helpful Hints A Yogi once told me that drinking onion water (water in which onions had been boiled (ahem))was good for growing hair. I don't know how much truth there is in that but since I don't think I could drink and keep that down, I stick to cooked onions in my food.

Wish you all the best girl! If I did it, you will too.

 

[Nessa]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thank You very much Nonie. I don't know how to thank you. I really really am happy. Maybe I should try that. Put oil in my scalp and then put a shower cap. I should do that. I will do that. Thank You.Did You get my Pm?

 

[jellynote]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I've got micros in and my hair is growing (3 wks now). If you want to get braids again don't relax your hair because your hair catches better nappy than if you relax your hair. Now I can't do micros by myself (takes to much time), but I do my on cornrows and it works for me. If you have someone that can show you or just watch someone doing braids or cornrows maybe that will help. Make sure you use plenty of leave in treatments and some type of oil. I use Doo Gro and Infusium 23 leave in and it works for me, plus if you learn to do them yourself you'll save your parents a lot of money.


Good luck

 

[Nonie]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You're most welcome, Nessa.

BTW, I know it's hard not to get oil on your scalp when your hair is short but when it grows longer, you do not need to put oil on your scalp; just your hair. A piece of advice (or is it an old wives' tale?) that didn't hurt me to believe was that putting grease/oil on our scalps clogs the pores and slows down growth. I was of the old school where we believed that if you didn't oil your scalp, you'd get dandruff. So every time I washed my hair, I'd sit down and make parts in my hair and rub in oil in sections till my head was drenched. I haven't oiled my scalp in years and I haven't had any problems. Whether that -- no grease on scalp -- helped with my growth I don't know. But don't worry about that now since with your hair length, it can't be helped.

And I just remembered that Paltas (Pallitas) used to have a tingling effect like Cathy Howse's Conditioner and maybe it had the stimulating effect of Cathy's Conditioner? I think Cathy says that's the same stimulation a massage of the scalp would provide. I don't know if Paltas is available here, but I have tried Cathy's conditioner and love it; and there could be other stimulants out there. I could get Paltas in Britain but I've never tried to find it here.

I haven't received your PM (Nothing new in my inbox). I'll take another look in a bit.

 

[Nessa]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yeah I know how to cornrow, a little bit. I just gotta learn how to do it on my hair. It is so hard to do it on your own hair though.

 

[Nessa]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thank you Nonie.

 

[mocha105]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Nessa, take it from me...you just hafta be patient. When I was growing my hair out in cornrows, i would experience dryness, breakage, shedding, everything badd that u could think of. You got some great tips here so imma just re-emphasize some of em: just keep your braids moisturized with s-curl, braid spray, keep ya scalp clean with eitha shampoo or some witch hazel, tie it down with a scarf, n drink madd water. Also, if u think that some type of vit mite help u just take a daily kiddie multivit. My motha doesnt really lyke tha idea of me takin vits eitha but she said my chewables will offer a lil bit of help. Like they say ya gotta put up with tha rain b4 u can get a rainbow. Be patient and just hang in there gyrl k??

 

[DatJerseyDyme]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Like they say ya gotta put up with tha rain b4 u can get a rainbow. Be patient and just hang in there gyrl k??

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I LIKE THAT!!

 

[Nessa]

Re: MY HAIR DIDN\'T EVEN GROW HALF AN INCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Okay thank you I will do that mocha 105. Thank you.