NEVER cut off your childhood hair!

[TeacherTeachMeSomeSense]

That was always my mother's stance. Her and my aunts would always tell me the same sob story of them as girls, which involved them all using and abusing the life out of their hair until they got to The Point of No Return somewhere in teen-hood (cue: relaxer, ill-advised haircut, bleach) that ruined/changed their hair forevermore. Of course, I never thought this would happen to me *eyeroll* She still believes the hair of your youth is always thicker, more lustrous and faster growing than any hair grown after your teens, and boy was she pissed when I cut off mine!. While this is not true of everybody, as there are lots of examples on here of hair being bigger and better than ever with proper maintenance, I have finally accepted it's probably not in the cards for me! But I wonder how far people agree with the old-school sentiment?

We all know recovering from setbacks needs patience, but how far do you believe it's possible to achieve the length/thickness you had in your youth/younger days? I thought it was extreme but I'm considering NEVER allowing my future children near scissors till they hit 18!



P.S I'm a newbie and this is my first post *waves* but I am a longtime lurker, and owe it to the beautiful ladies on here who share their regimens and PJ-ism for the greater good for coming out! By joining I hope being honest about my hair struggle will help another wayward traveller on the road to recovery from an Ultimate Setback! After stupidly bleaching and dyeing Yuko-ed hair, I have spent 4 years trying to recover thickness and length after transitioning (wasn't brave enough to BC!). The hair that has grown back in is 'see through' thin, and as my dye-job was only done in the back of my hair, that's where the most thin patchy hair grows, and of course the difference between the front and back of my hair is super obvious! At the moment I'm trying to be realistic and focus on a healthy scalp and hope my hair growth will follow in suit.

 

[hothair]

Well that would have done nothing for me I had very fine hair till I hit puberty with a deep widow's peak. My hair's only thickened up with age so...

BTW welcome to the posting side.

 

[knt1229]

I think hair is like every other part of the body in that it's always firmer, better, stronger, and leaner in your youth. Generally speaking, I believe hair tends to thin out and lose some of it's luster as you age. It's natural for this to happen. It's part of the aging process. So I don't think never cutting your hair would stop this from happening. However, always having healthy hair care practices through out your life would ensure a beautiful head of hair in your youth and in your older ages.

 

[cicilypayne]

I always marvel how thick the hair is on my neices. I think your Mom may have a point.

 

[LiftedUp]

I got trims about 2-3 times per year as a child so I doubt I would've been able to hold on to my childhood hair.

 

[ebonyseas]

I don't think it's the childhood trim that you all had in common, it's the bleaching, dye jobs, and other damaging practices. If you use the techniques you learn on this site, you'll grow it back in no time.

 

[Wildchild453]

Unless your hair is touching the floor, you childhood hair wouldn't last anyway. It breaks, it naturally sheds, etc. I'm leaning toward old wives tale.

 

[Harina]

My hair is still as dense and dry as it ever was. Difference is I used to have a relaxer.

 

[LilMissRed]

I dunno.. I'm on the fence about this... BUT I have a 3 yr old and I swear I'm not cutting her hair-ever! (unless of course something crazy (i.e. bubblegum) comes into play So I'm def planning to test this theory

 

[Prelude to a Kiss]

LilMissRed

I heard peanut butter does wonders for gum in your hair.

 

[FlowerHair]

My hair was thicker when I was younger, but I don't think there is any way to get healthy hair back if one continues to relax and color etc like there's no tomorrow... One of the reasons childhood hair is so thick and healthy is because it's usually "virgin" hair.

 

[Napp]

My childhood hair can stay in my childhood.it was short crispy and dry and a pain to be combed.

 

[anartist4u2001]

my hair was never really long is a child. it wasn't even that long when i had a perm. it's way longer now!!

 

[EmeRaldPrinXess]

My childhood hair can stay in my childhood.it was short crispy and dry and a pain to be combed.

I don't remember what my hair was like as a child, I'll have to ask my mum. I was never into hair like that when I was a kid plus I went to a boarding school where the mandated hair style for every1 (read girls) was an ultra low TWA- think 2 inches max!. When I did start growing my hair out, I relaxed my hair

 

[SmileyNY]

This may be true. I cringe when thinking about how my Mom, grandma, and aunts raked hard bristled brushes & small toothed combs through my hair when I was a child. Through all of the daily manipulation with all types of tools to get my hair into ponytails & cornrows... I still had waist length hair as a child when pressed.

These days, my hair is still thick and grows long, but it would cry bloody murder & die if I even look at a hard bristle brush or rat tail comb

It's not just because I'm texlaxed, either. I was natural for 8 years as a late teen/adult and it was the same deal. My natural hair couldn't take harsh daily manipulation either.


Sent from my iPhone using LHCF

 

[Avaya]

I think it has more to do with the chemicals we use (relaxers/bleach/dye/etc) that may touch the scalp, general aging, hormone changes, etc. affecting the hair and the hair follicles, altering them vs. something external like cutting. Cutting the length of the hair has absolutely nothing to do with what is going on on and below the scalp. I'm sure that I have fewer active hair follicles now as a 30 something then I did as a 10 year old.

 

[LiftedUp]

I don't think it's the childhood trim that you all had in common, it's the bleaching, dye jobs, and other damaging practices. If you use the techniques you learn on this site, you'll grow it back in no time.

My mother took good care of my hair, she trimmed to keep the ends healthy and split-end free. I'm just saying that inevitably you will not remain with the hair you were born it for the rest of your life.

 

[sweetlaughter]

I am going to say old wives tale. Hair starts to thin with age yeah but not right after your teens unless there is a pre-existing condition or family history of it. I think chemicals (e.g. relaxers, dyes, etc) and daily heat are the main culprits. With naturally having fine hair and society more focused on processed items (hair products, not food) pulling up the caboose.

 

[naturallygoldie]

Old wives tale. Was our hair really thicker as kids..or our heads just a lot smaller?

 

[nappystorm]

After going natural, I've definitely got my childhood hair back. Like some of the other posters said, I think it's the chemicals, dyes, excessive heat, styling, etc that attributes to the "change" in our hair.

 

[prettypithy]

Old wives tale. After years of abuse, my now fully natural hair is exactly as it was when I was a child. That is not just my analysis but also that of my mom, my sister and others who used to wrangle with my childhood hair. While I believe it will probably thin with time, I'm in my late 20's and my hair is just like my "childhood hair."

 

[TeacherTeachMeSomeSense]

This may be true. I cringe when thinking about how my Mom, grandma, and aunts raked hard bristled brushes & small toothed combs through my hair when I was a child. Through all of the daily manipulation with all types of tools to get my hair into ponytails & cornrows... I still had waist length hair as a child when pressed.

These days, my hair is still thick and grows long, but it would cry bloody murder & die if I even look at a hard bristle brush or rat tail comb

It's not just because I'm texlaxed, either. I was natural for 8 years as a late teen/adult and it was the same deal. My natural hair couldn't take harsh daily manipulation either.


Sent from my iPhone using LHCF

Omg YES! My hair as a child was not my property! I was barely allowed to touch it, let alone style it. It was always greased up and in two braids, the ends were always healthy, and it grew long off this low-mani regimen. My hair definitely thinned in density as I got into my teens, when I would flat iron my hair every week like there was no tomorrow. But ever since I grew out the Yuko, the hair strands are thinner and the curl pattern less defined- it's almost a different hair texture. I eat well, drink lots of water and take vitamins and growth aids, but my hair will never be as thick or healthy as it was when I did just about nothing to it I guess I'm not the best candidate to test this theory, since I've had chemical damage, oh well!

 

[DDTexlaxed]

My mom hot combed my hair and it was so long and silky. She used to take hours and hours to do it until she learned about relaxing. I'm too scared to use the stove hot comb. I want to have hair left on my head. The no cut hair of your child was really big in my family. That was a big no no.