No Hair In The Back? (No-Nape Sydrome)

[CatSuga]

What causes this?

I've noticed that alot of folk (on and off line) have what could be considered long hair........but there's no hair in the back. My nape was like this before but it filled in after awhile. On another forum, a chick posted the pics of the back of her head and the hair is all gone. She going to see a doc about it.

 

[kitchen_tician]

I've also noticed this, but mainly with women who are relaxed, including myself at one point. I stopped relaxing my nape long before I decided to transition and my nape is the longest and healthiest it's ever been.

I think it also comes from relaxing the nape area first and then preceeding upward to relax the rest. Therefore, the relaxer remains on the nape the longest and often times it's the most fragile portion of your hair. Even when I did relax my nape area, I would do it last and make sure that I only did the newgrowth and not the entire nape.
I'm not sure about this problem with ladies who are natural, but it may also be due to previous scalp/relaxer damage and the stress that's applied with various hairstyles.

BTW, your hair is so pretty and luscious!

 

[karezone]

many forget that the nape area should be treated like the edges. With care.

 

[Porsche19]

It's either a bad relaxer or traction alopecia. I live in a prodominently hispanic are and I see may hispanic women (who liketo ear their hair in TIGHT ponytains and buns) that have absolutely no hair or big bald spots on their edges/napes. Just like black women who weart those phony ponies sometimes.

 

[CarefreeinChicago]

i was bald in the back when i was still perming but since i stopped it has grown back but i also had hives on my scalp but i think a mixture of the two was my culprit so now i use shampoo with zinc and don't perm and it is almost touching my shoulders now

 

[Candycane044]

My nape was jacked up because I wouldn't be able to get the relaxer all the way out (of course I thought it was out but it wasn't)... Finally, it's catching up with the rest of my hair. I simply just don't relax it anymore.

 

[Isis]

I too stopped relaxing my nape. It's growing nicely now.

 

[lala]

I wonder what causes this for ppl b/c I've never experienced this although I have very sensitive skin. It sounds like an allergic reaction to a product, or for those who are relaxed, I'd almost have to wonder if the hair isn't being rinsed thoroughly in that area.

I've got an abnormal amount of nape hair as it grows thick and long, closely behind my ears and down my neck. I've been relaxing my 4a nape hair for many years b/c it covers such a large area. I shave it so it doesn't look overgrown and unmanageable. Having too much nape hair can be a pain too...

 

[Crystalicequeen123]

Yeah, I'm still suffering with no-nape syndrome (lol...I like that name).

It's been getting better though since I started:

-Stretching my relaxers
-Switching to a mild relaxer instead of a regular
-Removing the towel around my neck after my stylist has rinsed the relaxer out of my hair (a lot of stylists inadvertently leave it around your neck, but after reading somewhere that this can cause perm to remain on the back of the neck after shampooing, I have since taken it off!)
-Using Nexxus Biotin cream along my edges (including my nape area)
-And just shampooing more often (scalp stimulation maybe?)

So, even though my nape area isn't necessarily thick or as long as the rest of my hair, I have seen great improvements on the condition of my nape area just from doing the aforementioned things. Oh, and telling my stylist to relax my nape and edges LAST has also greatly helped. I think with greater care of your hair your nape can be somewhat healthy even if you have a perm.

 

[lovelymissyoli]

I've also noticed this, but mainly with women who are relaxed, including myself at one point. I stopped relaxing my nape long before I decided to transition and my nape is the longest and healthiest it's ever been.

I think it also comes from relaxing the nape area first and then preceeding upward to relax the rest. Therefore, the relaxer remains on the nape the longest and often times it's the most fragile portion of your hair. Even when I did relax my nape area, I would do it last and make sure that I only did the newgrowth and not the entire nape.
I'm not sure about this problem with ladies who are natural, but it may also be due to previous scalp/relaxer damage and the stress that's applied with various hairstyles.

BTW, your hair is so pretty and luscious!

I agree. I think it has a lot to do with the relaxer. I remember when I was around 15 and my mother started to let me put my own relaxers in, she always told me “…make sure you get your kitchen last because that part burns the fastest…” When I think back on it, this is the area where most women apply the relaxer first and move from there. However, in my mother’s case, she leaves the relaxer on until she feels it burning (she thinks it’s working this way ) so maybe she wasn’t trying to get me to protect my nape so much as she was telling me that the rest of my hair won’t have enough time to process as well if this area starts burning first. I hated those times because she always told me to keep a wet towel close by in case my nape starts burning. That way, I could wipe the area that was burning and keep on applying that stuff to my hair . I’m so glad I gave it up!

In any case, I’ve never really suffered any problems with my nape being short or damaged to the point where I had little to no hair back there. I think there’s a consensus here that most of these problems are partly, if not mainly, caused by the relaxer. Yeah some women wear too tight ponytails, braids, or have some other skin/hair disorder, but for the most part, the relaxer is what messes a lot of women up!

 

[CatSuga]

Ok, so if you stop relaxing the nape, do you start wearing different styles?
Or do you stop relaxing the nape for a set period of time?
Does anyone alternate between starting on the edge and center?

 

[MeechUK]

Ok, so if you stop relaxing the nape, do you start wearing different styles?
Or do you stop relaxing the nape for a set period of time?
Does anyone alternate between starting on the edge and center?

Your thread makes a very valid point. I stopped self relaxing my own hair some years ago. Since joining this forum, I have read most of the threads and have noticed that many members relax their own hair relax in sections. Based on this method if I were to start relaxing my own hair again, I personally would relax my hair in sections. I would divide my hair in 4 sections and relax and neutralise each section separately. This would take longer because I would be in effect relaxing in 4 separate stages, but it would allow me to avoid over-processing areas of my hair such as the nape and edges.

Hope this helps,
MeechUK

 

[Porsche19]

I relax in two sections, which are each sectioned off in 10 sections to make appliction easier.

I always start at the crown, because that's the most curly part of my hair. The nape gets the least minutes of relaxer time... based on the looser texture alone. However, when my hair was growing back from a bout of eczema, I relaxed my every other time.

It worked for me because I'm texturized and I wear my hair curly anyway... I don't know how it would work out for anyone who wants their hair straight.

 

[Ayeshia]

I noticed that tieing my hair up at night too tight around the nape area contributes to breakage as well, even if it is silk

 

[Candycane044]

Ok, so if you stop relaxing the nape, do you start wearing different styles?
Or do you stop relaxing the nape for a set period of time?
Does anyone alternate between starting on the edge and center?

I dont relax it at all, and probably wont until it's caught up. I just don't really wear my hair up, so that way no one can see it.

 

[kitchen_tician]

I noticed that tieing my hair up at night too tight around the nape area contributes to breakage as well, even if it is silk

Oh yeah Ayeshia, I almost forgot about this one. Years ago, I think I suffered breakage in my nape area from tying the knot of my scarf on my nape. Now I wear my scarves "Aunt Jemima" style to avoid this.

 

[esoterica]

relaxers always destroy the nape area. i want to have the bottom inch of my nape undercut. it drives me mad.

 

[mochamadness]

I noticed that tieing my hair up at night too tight around the nape area contributes to breakage as well, even if it is silk

This is a very valid point!! My mother was experiencing the same problem.