Pre-LHCF

[hOnii]

what kinds of damaging things were you doing to your hair before you knew better?

now that i look back, i can see why my hair couldnt grow past my shoulders. i was so abusive! lol...

- i would allow overlapping during a retouch. i figured it could only get straighter!

- i would get relaxers when i didnt even need it quite yet.

- when i was younger my hair used to STAY in a ponytail. nice and tight. so my hair broke off right at that spot and it was always thin right there for as long as i can remember.

- since my hair was short, it was necessary to curl my hair, so i used to use the curling iron every day! talk about split ends...

- i used to use the blowdryer everytime i washed, on the hottest setting.

- i slept with cotton scarfs, and didnt even wrap my hair. i would just put it in a bun.

my hair is doing sooooooooooo much better now i cant even believe it. for once, i've accomplished shoulder length, healthily. usually my hair would get there, then i'd have to get a big chop to get rid of all the split ends and damage.

 

[jaded_faerie]

I wouldnt wear scarfs
I would curl my hair every day
Get relaxers whenever
never wore protective styles
would go weeks with out washing my hair
wore glued in weaves, months at a time...which contributed to my non existing hairline.

 

[senimoni]

Let me count the ways.

1) Moisturizer - What is that....I put grease on my hair and scalp once a month. Maybe some pink lotion and oil sheen.

2)Wash - When I got my relaxers...maybe once or twice in between. I would tear through my hair with the comb. No such thing as a deep conditioner.

4)Styling - Flat Iron every day of the week. If not it was a ponytail that was too tight or wearing headbands that ate up my edges b/c of the material and the fact that my hair was so dry.

5) Relaxers - I didn't do my own but I got them every 6 weeks and scratched up to the minute it was time. In addition if I was over 6 weeks my hair broke really bad b/c it was so dry.

6) I did not cover my hair at night, nor did I have a silk/satin pillowcase.

 

[Poohbear]

Pre-LHCF:
My mom would relax my entire hair shaft...

I would use curling irons almost every day of the week...

The only products I used was shampoo, relaxer, and grease...

Blowdried after every wash (every 4 weeks) but my hair really didnt suffer from doing this...

My hair still grew long but then it started to stay the same length (about 3-4 inches passed shoulder length)...

Then I cut my hair in 2003 to mid-neck length for a fresh start.

POST LHCF:
Joined the LHCF in April 2004 to grow my hair back a better way
Stopped using curling irons and use less heat
Experimented with different tips and advice from the forum to see what worked for my hair
Decided to go natural Oct 2004

 

[Kalani]

Let see....


1) Would overlap with relaxing

2) Never wore any kind of scarf when I went to bed. I wouldn't even put my hair up I just left it loose and went on to sleep.

3) Totally neglected my ends and never paid any kind of attention to them moisture wise.

4) Often lost patience while detangling and would rake the comb through my tangles. I still have to watch myself with this. Patience is a virtue!

5) I used scrunching sprays when they first became popular. They were good for styling but were loaded with alcohol.

 

[LaNecia]

Let me count the ways.

1) Moisturizer - What is that....I put grease on my hair and scalp once a month. Maybe some pink lotion and oil sheen.

2)Wash - When I got my relaxers...maybe once or twice in between. I would tear through my hair with the comb. No such thing as a deep conditioner.

4)Styling - Flat Iron every day of the week. If not it was a ponytail that was too tight or wearing headbands that ate up my edges b/c of the material and the fact that my hair was so dry.

5) I did not cover my hair at night, nor did I have a silk/satin pillowcase.

Dang, someone wrote my old regimen before I did!

What else did I do that was naughty?

6)Relaxers - Did my own every 6 weeks and going for 101% straightness.

7)Wear braids that were toooooo tight for tooo long.

8)Never trimmed the split ends, always had to do a cut cause of damage.

9)Never did a prepoo treatment on my hair.

10)Would not stay with a regimen or product long enough to determine if it was actually yielding a benefit or not.

 

[brownhaired_bonanza]

Even though I went to the hairdresser every 2 weeks I always, I mean ALWAYS got my hair blowdried. I don't think I had ever heard of a roller-wrap.

 

[AngelicRose07]

cotton scarves

used grease as a "moisturizer"

curled often(ifi wasnt too lazy to wake up often)

greased my scalp *gags*

trimmed my hair with regular scissors b/c they SEEMED sharp

combed my hair alot during the day to keep it flat

never moisturized my braids....was too lazy

didnt baby my ends....and they love some moisture =0)

 

[kristina]

Wore my hair in braids for 5+ months without every conditioning or even spraying with braid spray. Oh and I'd wash my braids with Suave Shampoo.

When I relaxed I practically treated the stuff like it was conditioner! So I had overlap breakage galor.

When transitioning the first time- I would blowdry and flat iron my hair 2x a week (i remember thinking that the 'sizzle' sound was a good thing)

So, yeah, I'm still learning but I have made some big changes.

 

[vikkisecret]

Hmm this is a great question....

1. I shampooed my hair everytime I conditioned it (which was 2x a month!)

2.Overlapped my relaxer everytime I needed a touchup

3.Would relax once a month

4.Didn't have a clue about what protein treatments were

5. Paid no extra attention to my ends--->just applied grease

6.Used heat on my hair almost everyday (i.e. wave,flat,or curling iron)

 

[Porsche19]

Pre lhfc I had a pretty good regimen...

because I went to other hair boards

Pre hair board I would:

Put grease in my hair everyday (no moisturizing)
Wash my hair every 2 weeks
Let stylist do a hard press in my hair with a relaxer (vigorol)
Let the same stylist put a curly perm on heat damaged and lightly relaxed hair
Let the same stylist relax AND color my lightly relaxed, heat damaged, curly permed hair.
Used Sponge rollers every night
Wash my hair with pantene and do and instant conditioning with the conditioner
Wore cotton scarves
Tore through my hair with small toothed combs
Always used no-lye relaxers

That's bad, isn't it?

 

[hOnii]

Let stylist do a hard press in my hair with a relaxer (vigorol)
Let the same stylist put a curly perm on heat damaged and lightly relaxed hair
Let the same stylist relax AND color my lightly relaxed, heat damaged, curly permed hair.

u know whats sad is how many stylists are out to make a quick buck reguardless of your hair's condition. i remember once i had just got a relaxer, and then a teacher who knew my mom told her about the salon she goes to, and that i should go there b/c my hair is damaged, so not even a week later i go, and the lady relaxes my hair again!! now she knew there was no new growth..

 

[Porsche19]

I'm happy that I know that now, honii. I can't believe that people would do that to someone and be able to feel good about themselves at the end of the day.

The funny thing is that she used to do her neices' hair and they were both past bra strap. She obviously didn't do the same things to their hair.

 

[mvonnesha]

Before coming to this board I would:

1) Never wrap my hair in a scarf
2) Use the tiniest combs,( when I combed my hair) ripping out enough hair to start my own wig shop.
3) Using any shampoo that was handy,and available, including dish detergent and tide, when I was out of shampoo.
4) Barely combing my hair, slapping it into a ponytail with dreadlocks in the middle.
5) Picking hair products just because they smelled good.

 

[Angelicus]

posted this before but I need a good laugh...

1. I set my bangs on fire to see what would happened
2. mom would relax all my hair, which eventually resulted in a bald spot in the back of my hair.
3. I was too scared to cut my hair so my split ends went right up the shaft.
4.Having nails dug in your hair was a theraputic way of getting the dandruff out.

 

[karezone]

Before August 1999
1. relax from root to tip every touch up
2. never trim
3. curl or flat iron daily
4. blow dry only
5. Only used hair grease
6. Go weeks without washing
7. Hair gel and ponytail, nough said

After August 1999.
1. still relaxed root to tip
2. only blow dried
3. used heat every day
4. Washed hair every three days but still used high heat
5. hair gel
6. greased scalp

After August 2001
1. relaxed root to tip every touch up
2. high heat (only twice btwn washes, but still)
3. greased scalp

After January 2003
1. Product junkie


Just thinking about all the hair I could have had makes me want to cry. Right now I am trying to work past my Pjism and peer pressure to relax more often. I am slowly but surely getting better.

 

[karezone]

posted this before but I need a good laugh...

1. I set my bangs on fire to see what would happened

Girl you must be crazy!!! You could have caused yourself some serious damage!!!

 

[hOnii]

posted this before but I need a good laugh...

1. I set my bangs on fire to see what would happened

oh my!

 

[Shatani]

what kinds of damaging things were you doing to your hair before you knew better?

now that i look back, i can see why my hair couldnt grow past my shoulders. i was so abusive! lol...

- i would allow overlapping during a retouch. i figured it could only get straighter!

- i would get relaxers when i didnt even need it quite yet.

- when i was younger my hair used to STAY in a ponytail. nice and tight. so my hair broke off right at that spot and it was always thin right there for as long as i can remember.

- since my hair was short, it was necessary to curl my hair, so i used to use the curling iron every day! talk about split ends...

- i used to use the blowdryer everytime i washed, on the hottest setting.

- i slept with cotton scarfs, and didnt even wrap my hair. i would just put it in a bun.

my hair is doing sooooooooooo much better now i cant even believe it. for once, i've accomplished shoulder length, healthily. usually my hair would get there, then i'd have to get a big chop to get rid of all the split ends and damage.

yep....i did ALL of that (well i didnt even sleep in a scarf) when i was relaxed....plus not only were my pony tails tight, but i had like 18 scrunchies wrapped around it as tight as possible!!!

 

[senimoni]

posted this before but I need a good laugh...

1. I set my bangs on fire to see what would happened
2. mom would relax all my hair, which eventually resulted in a bald spot in the back of my hair.
3. I was too scared to cut my hair so my split ends went right up the shaft.
4.Having nails dug in your hair was a theraputic way of getting the dandruff out.

Wow I burned hair before....but not while it was still attached to my head I burn skin and nails too but that is a whole other issue.

 

[prettygrl]

1.) I would never wash/condition my hair on my own; which meant I would go weeks with dirty hair, and hardly ever get any deep conditioning

2.) I never moisturized my ends, or any of my hair for that matter

3.) I would comb my hair with whatever was handy, I remember on pictured days I would use those little tiny combs

4.) I slept on cotton pillow cases.

5.) I never wrapped my hair.

6.) I rarely drank water.

7.) I ate mostly junk food.

8.) I trusted stylists completly with my hair, as though they were God, because I didn't know anything about hair care.

9.) I would buy products, based strictly on what they claimed to do...never paying attention to product ingredents.

10.) I ignored the short pieces of hair that were always on the back of my clothes and in my sink.

11.) I used the curling iron, whenever I felt like it, which was usually every day.

12.) I blow dried my hair on the highest setting possible, I thought this was best.

13.) I curled my hair on the highest setting possible, I though that was best.

14.) I used aerosol (alcohol based) hair spray to hold my hair in place.

15.) I glued in hair pieces; I sprayed my hair with red hair color

16.) I did stuff to my hair that I thought was cute for the day, only to have to suffer the damage for months and years

I did all of this and then wondered my hair wouldn't grow any longer.

 

[Shatani]

4) Often lost patience while detangling and would rake the comb through my tangles. I still have to watch myself with this. Patience is a virtue!

that was me too...i had a comb on me at all times and was relentless with those knots!!! im workin on it though....

Wore my hair in braids for 5+ months without every conditioning or even spraying with braid spray.

i wouldnt wash my hair for MONTHS when i had braids! i thought i wasnt supposed to....and that ring of buildup when i was taking them down would get that comb ripped RIGHT through it!

 

[controlFreak]

Prior to lurking on the boards, i did the following:

touched-up every 4 weeks
only washed hair at touch up
slept with my hair out (actually, i still do that!)
trimmed every 4 weeks (due to scissor happy stylists)

 

[Crystalicequeen123]

Oh my... prior to finding the LHCF and reading books on African American hair I would:

-Go a LOOONG time without washing my hair, so much so that my hair would actually STINK!! *shudders* I would wash my hair maybe once or twice in between a relaxer. Oh wait, scratch that...sometimes the only time I would get a hair wash would BE when I was getting a relaxer! OH the horror!

-I would NEVER wear any type of head covering to bed, let alone a silk scarf! I would just wear my hair out and sleep on my pillow.

-I'd get a REGULAR strength relaxer every 6-8 weeks.

-I would hardly if EVER condition my hair.

-I wouldn't buy high quality shampoos or conditioners.

-I would curl my hair with the curling iron just about every day. I had to have those bangs! LOL*

-I would only go to the salon for a relaxer, not for any "In between" servicing from the salon. *rolls eyes*

-I would comb and brush my hair in a harsh way

-I would wear tighter than tight ponytails and hair bows in my hair with the clips. No wonder my hair always broke off at the back!

-I was wearing TIGHT hair braids/extensions in my hair. Ughghg....my hairline was slowly but surely receeding.

-I would spray spritz hair spray to "hold" my style. Now I know that stuff is just FILLED with alcohol.

-I would put little gel on the edges of my hair line to give myself "baby hair" on my hair line. *rolls eyes* Gosh, what was I thinking??


WOW, when I look back and see all of the damaging things I used to do to my hair (unknowingly), it's NO WONDER my hair would barely grow past my neck! Now, that I've been taking care of my hair, my hair is in SO much better condition! I may not be doing everything perfectly, and I'm sure I could ALWAYS improve in how I take care of my hair, but now my hair is a little past shoulder length and is still growing.

 

[simplycee]

Pre LHCF - The Good:

• wash once a week
• use conditioner after every wash
• blow dried on low setting
• wore braid outs a couple times a month
• wore braids during summer months to give my hair a break
• trimmed when necessary not on a schedule
• never touched up before 8 weeks

Pre LHCF - The Bad:

• used a flat/curling iron 3 or more times a week
• since I washed once a week so some days I was using flat/curling irons on dirty hair
• heavy handed on the pink oil junk (used it on wet and dry hair)
• tried to comb thru hair sprayed hair
• left braids in for 3 months but only rinsed braids once a month
• used sprtiz for setting lotion
• used spritz on hair while curling it
• used sponge rollers (with end papers though)
• never read ingredients on hair care products

 

[Crystalicequeen123]

that was me too...i had a comb on me at all times and was relentless with those knots!!! im workin on it though....

i wouldnt wash my hair for MONTHS when i had braids! i thought i wasnt supposed to....and that ring of buildup when i was taking them down would get that comb ripped RIGHT through it!

OMG...count me in on this too. Oh my, I'd wear my hair in braids for 3+ months, so long that one day in school one of my braids had fallen out on the floor, and some white girl picked it up and said: "oh, here's some of your hair." HAHAAH! I can laugh at it now, but back then I was SO embarrassed! LOL*

I wouldn't even wash my hair when I had braids in. I would go months without washing. *shudders* I would get little dirt rings around my braids (my mom would call them "gnat city" LOL). *covers face in embarrassment*

Now, I don't put braids in my hair anymore. My type 4a/b fragile hair can't take it. Plus, no matter how much I tell braiders to make the braids loose, they always make them so tight!

 

[DangerouslyShy]

Let me count the ways.

1) Moisturizer - What is that....I put grease on my hair and scalp once a month. Maybe some pink lotion and oil sheen.

2)Wash - When I got my relaxers...maybe once or twice in between. I would tear through my hair with the comb. No such thing as a deep conditioner.

4)Styling - Flat Iron every day of the week. If not it was a ponytail that was too tight or wearing headbands that ate up my edges b/c of the material and the fact that my hair was so dry.

5) Relaxers - I didn't do my own but I got them every 6 weeks and scratched up to the minute it was time. In addition if I was over 6 weeks my hair broke really bad b/c it was so dry.

6) I did not cover my hair at night, nor did I have a silk/satin pillowcase.

I couldnt have said it better myself...thats everything I did!!

 

[cyninmon123]

Well where can i start?

I use to get tracks in my hair with glue and leave them in for 2-3weeks (they looked real and actually pretty). after i removed my hair which was quite difficult (i just yanked the hair out) and then I would immediately perm my hair and repeat this again and when i wore briads my hair became stronger. but i would just repeat the same cycle with the tracks. I only washed my hair once a month and I never used hot oil treatments or even took any hair vitamins my hair was thick and short. My hair line was really jacked up and my ends well that is another story.

Now: when i wear braids I don't wash as frequently but i still wash. and when i wear tracks I don't use glue i get it sewn it my hair which gives me alot of new growth. I take hair vit. and I hot oil and deep condition regularly.. I also perm only when I need to not every month or 2-4weeks. I comb my hair carefully and brush it carefully. I wear buns between my braids for two weeks then I apply the braids again not perming my hair. My hair is alot longer and it's stronger and doesn't shed as much and I am truthfully blessed to found LHCF and happy to know that I can achieve long hair.

 

[c_octavia]

1) Would wear braids, (micros cornrows, box ect) for MONTHS at a time. Never washing my hair, never spraying my scalp, pulling them into tight poney tails.
2) Would ask my braider to do them as tight as possiable..(so I could leave them in longer)
3) Would only wash once a week, or every two.
4) Would use anything, even if it dryed out my hair, I figured atleast I was washing it!
5) Used grease as a moisturizer, but never put anything on my ends.
6) Would see my hair breaking off to above my ear, but never cut off the damaged hair. I was certain it would grow back.
7) I never really knew anything about taking care of my hair, my mother has about 3a/ 3c, and couldn't handle my 4b.. so she would just get it braided, it would grow in braids, I would wear it out damage it, then turn back to braids.
8) NEVER sleep with my hair tied up, wouldnt moisturize it at night, and thought sleeping with a satin bonnet or anything like that was too much like my grandmother (who has hair down her back btw)
9) would relax all my hair when i relaxed.
10) When I would wash it I used a blowdryer, flat iron, and curling iron that same day.
11) Used Hair Spray, while curling.. thinking thoes hard crispy curls were good.
12) Protective Style???... Whats that?
I'm sure there are a ton I am forgetting still.. I was really bad with my hair.
Not all these problems were solved by LHCF. I actually started reading b/c I wondered how my sisters, and cousin's with the same type of hair as me were growing hair past their shoulders. And I was barley making it past chin length.. But I am finding a ton of advice on the site.

 

[Ashee]

I would:
1. Re-touch too soon causing overlapping. (Helped cause major breakage) erplexed
2. NEVER MOISTURIZED
3. Never took time with it - roughed it up like it owed me money!
4. Never wrapped hair up (I refused to take the time to learn how)
5. Never used silk or satin to protect my hair
6. Never stuck to a routine to care for my hair
7. Never paid attention to diet
8. Never spoke to others for guidence