Spinoff - Why is SL to APL so difficult?

[tapioca_pudding]

I have been trying to figure this out since I joined. Why is SL to APL so Difficult? I know that everyone says it's the time where your hair rubs against your clothes, etc. But if you're a member of this board, you KNOW that fact, so the logical thing to do would be to keep it pinned up. So I guess my question is more based upon your personal experience...

Why was SL to APL difficult for YOU?

I hope this makes sense..

 

[taz007]

Subscribing!!!!!!!!

 

[TLC1020]

Not really sure.....but for me it was a bit difficult to get from SL to APL than APL to BSL..

 

[Nix08]

I think in part it's because there is the largest distance between those 2 parts. At least for me it is:
SL to APL is 5"
APL to BSL is 3"
And also for me starting at my HJ at SL you are still getting use to things. Not to mention how impatient you, well I am!!

 

[tapioca_pudding]

Not really sure.....but for me it was a bit difficult to get from SL to APL than APL to BSL..

Yeh SL to APL is a beast! I haven't even begun to think about getting to BSL.. lol!

I think in part it's because there is the largest distance between those 2 parts. At least for me it is:
SL to APL is 5"
APL to BSL is 3"
And also for me starting at my HJ at SL you are still getting use to things. Not to mention how impatient you, well I am!!

That makes soooo much sense!! It could take 10-12 months to get 5 inches, depending on your growth rate! I never thought of that.. thank you for your input!

 

[Ladybelle]

I got to SL & got lazy. I'm wearing my hair down alllllllll the time, knowing full well I will never get past SL doing that. I stopped co-washing throughout the week and only dc on the weekends.

I've made a vow to get on it beginning in the New Year. I think I may have to just hide my hair for another year- that's how I got to SL.

 

[indarican]

I find that im still getting used to everything with the regimine and also my ends are all jacked up from previous hair practices... soo i seems like for every inch that grows another breaks off.

 

[davisbr88]

I made it to APL when I was transitioning. It wasn't particularly difficult to get there; it just took a looooong time. For instance, I started out NL and I was SL in like 3 months. At the end of my transition, 9 months later, I was only scraping APL. So I wouldn't have claimed it probably for another month. So it would have taken me 10 months to get there (I chopped at 12-months post so I'll never officially know), while APL and BSL and MBL are all within two inches from each other (I'm short), so I'm sure I can get to all of those lengths in a year's time (provided I don't mess up)

 

[NikkiQ]

^^^well I think they mean difficult as in it taking longer to get from SL to APL compared to anything else. So considering it took you 10 months to get there, that can be considered difficult to some people if they compare it to you getting from NL to SL in just 3 months.

 

[davisbr88]

^^ Oh, well the questions OP asked in the poll weren't related to time at all, so that's why I said that. All of her questions seem to be related to damage. I am just saying that as someone who had a solid regimen and pretty healthy hair practices at that point, it still took a long time because of the sheer amount of inches. So it isn't necessarily the hardest to get to just because of damage, but just because it's a lot of inches.

 

[NikkiQ]

^^^^Gotcha

 

[Aveena]

For me it has taken forever because as soon as I get a little hang I start over manipulating my hair. I gave up washing in four section. Comb it more in general and quite frankly didn't wear protective styles as much because I was so excited about the length.

My last major set back was because I got tracks instead of a weaving up all the hair in the back. That was about 8 months ago. I've been totally weaved up since then because I am so disgusted with messing up my progress.

I joined in 2006 grazing the top of my shoulder and I have YET to claim full APL. I'm hoping for a big reveal in January for 40th birthday and I hope to finally be APL by then.

 

[topnotch1010]

I don't think the REAL answer is in the poll. I think it's the distance. There is a huge gap between SL and APL....... aaaaannnnnd I think some may claim SL too early.

I think the hair brushing off on your clothes is a myth and the only time it does that is if it's extremely dry and damaged. That's the only way that theory even makes sense.

 

[topnotch1010]

Yeh SL to APL is a beast! I haven't even begun to think about getting to BSL.. lol!


That makes soooo much sense!! It could take 10-12 months to get 5 inches, depending on your growth rate! I never thought of that.. thank you for your input!

I haven't either. I mean, I joined the challenges but I'm not really even thinking about getting there. It took sooooooo long for me to get to APL that I'm just happy to finally be here and I'll think about that later. I guess getting over that hump made my patience grow.

 

[chasturner84]

I don't think the REAL answer is in the poll. I think it's the distance. There is a huge gap between SL and APL....... aaaaannnnnd I think some may claim SL too early

I totally agree with this statement. I too believe that it takes so long to reach APL because of the distance between SL and APL. For instance, the distance between the two points on me is 5-5.5". With an average growth rate and good retention, it should still (in theory) take me about a year to reach that point if you believe that hair grows about 6"/yr. It took me about 14 months to reach APL with relaxer stretching, low/no manipulation, and no direct heat and I really doubt that I get the "average" .5" a month each month.

 

[kandake]

I don't think the REAL answer is in the poll. I think it's the distance. There is a huge gap between SL and APL....... aaaaannnnnd I think some may claim SL too early.

I think the hair brushing off on your clothes is a myth and the only time it does that is if it's extremely dry and damaged. That's the only way that theory even makes sense.

When is the appropriate time to claim SL?

 

[lovelexi]

Well for me I wear my hair down alot. My hair is too short for a decent bun and ponytails make my head look bigger than what it is. In fact I cant wait until I'm APL to wear some beautiful buns and updos. I'm planning to protective style until next summer to get over this APL hump.

 

[nymane]

It wasn't really difficult for me, but it took longer than it normally would have because I started my journey at SL and I was just learning about healthy hair care practices. As a result there was a lot of trial and ERROR

 

[tapioca_pudding]

Thanks so much for all the responses.. The responses in the poll were just random responses I thought of, not necessarily anyone's reason.

I do think it seems 'difficult' to reach that point (APL) because of the distance. SL to APL is probably the most dramatic of all the stages, as far as amount of inches goes. These are general statements, of course. Even if you wear your hair up religiously and splash it with holy water every day, I think it will still take you 10 mos to a year to get there.

 

[tapioca_pudding]

Before I BC'd I had gotten to a lil past SL. Then I got heat/color/manipulation crazy. I was excited to have a bit of length and started doing everything to my hair. It was healthy for a while, but after like 3 or 4 months of consistent damage (plus a bad color job), it was a wrap. So I got a necklength bob, then eventually did the big chop. I BC'd in Jan of this year, and I'm at neck length again. So who knows when I'll hit APL.. heck, who knows when I'll hit SL... lol

 

[kizzylonghair]

Personally I think if people are realistic about their correct length & condition they will feel better. This feels like the biggest challenge for me, but because I am growing out layers. I really can't even claim full SL, parts are and parts are neck length.
I do agree with what most of said about it being the largest amount of growth needed, but if I not at least APL but this time next year, I aint gonna be happy

 

[ladyvixen]

Currently I am APL. And my issue was that i left my hair out all the time and it was always rubbing against my collar for my clothing. As soon as I started pinning up my hair I started to see a lot of growth.

 

[Ms Kain]

I think in part it's because there is the largest distance between those 2 parts. At least for me it is:
SL to APL is 5"
APL to BSL is 3"
And also for me starting at my HJ at SL you are still getting use to things. Not to mention how impatient you, well I am!!

I never thought about it but I think you're right! It's harder to see the growth that goes on between SL to APL. I am right in the middle of SL and APL and even though I know there's progress, it's hard to see. I have to constantly give myself "positive mental talks" when I look back there and can barely see the growtherplexed. I guess that's why Hair Progress shirts are a good thing!

 

[Carisa]

I think alot of people get excited by reaching full sl and want to wear thier hair down or manipulate it more because full sl is the longest it has ever grown for many of us. Also our friends and family may encourage us to wear it down once we reach full SL because they say things like "your hair is too long to be wearing wigs/braids/any ps" so that may influence some to wear thier hair out more when reaching this lenght. I also think the distance has alot to do with it to. For me ful sl to apl is 4" in whereas full apl is about 2" from brastrap so that shouldnt be so bad (as long as there arent any setbacks).

 

[Nonie]

When is the appropriate time to claim SL?

That is a tricky question because shoulders slant for most people and so some people will claim it when the hair touches the part of the shoulder closest to the neck (right where neck-length ends) and others wait till the hair is at collar bone where no one can deny it is truly at shoulder-length--usually referred to as Full SL. (See image below) I personally wait to get to Full SL to claim it but no one should be afraid to claim SL when it makes sense to them. Just know that you may be at SL for a long time if you claim it too early, which can be discouraging.

I agree with the statement that distance between shoulder and armpit being great and part of the reason for the "difficulty" in getting from SL to APL.

Carissa sort of touched on the other reason I think it takes long. Before SL, your hair is "safe" from friction caused by rubbing on your clothes. So even if you wear your hair out all the time, the only obstacle to retention is the drying air if you're not sealing (and that is assuming you are practicing good hair care and low manipulation).

Once your hair gets to shoulders, it's now long enough to rub against your clothes. So besides the drying air being the first adversary, there's now friction from your clothes wrecking havoc on your ends thus thwarting retention. So unless you're sealing and protective styling, then APL will just be a rumor you hear about for a long time, not a reality.

Someone may say that from APL to BSB or MBL or WL didn't take as long, but besides the distances being shorter, hair at SL has its ends actually hitting an obstacle. Beyond APL, hair/the ends lie(s) parallel to your body, almost cradled by your back or chest like a baby. As SL, your hair/the ends stop perpendicular to a part of your body almost as if they're hitting a wall. Then you turn your head about and it's like your ends are getting filed away.

 

[Lady Esquire]

I don't think the REAL answer is in the poll. I think it's the distance. There is a huge gap between SL and APL....... aaaaannnnnd I think some may claim SL too early.

I think the hair brushing off on your clothes is a myth and the only time it does that is if it's extremely dry and damaged. That's the only way that theory even makes sense.

TopNotch1010, I agree 100% about the distance. You're right. Nonie's diagram supports your point. The first time I grew my hair out long, it took almost 8 months or so, from full SL to APL. But I do beleive when the ends fall directly on your should blades, it's the most susceptible to setbacks for some hair types. For me, once my hair started to hit the shoulders, if I wore an office cardigan or a sweater, I could literally see hairs snapping off left and right. The hair used to get snagged and caught.

 

[kandake]

That is a tricky question because shoulders slant for most people and so some people will claim it when the hair touches the part of the shoulder closest to the neck (right where neck-length ends) and others wait till the hair is at collar bone where no one can deny it is truly at shoulder-length--usually referred to as Full SL. (See image below) I personally wait to get to Full SL to claim it but no one should be afraid to claim SL when it makes sense to them. Just know that you may be at SL for a long time if you claim it too early, which can be discouraging.

I agree with the statement that distance between shoulder and armpit being great and part of the reason for the "difficulty" in getting from SL to APL.

Thanks Noni. Thanks for mentioning the slant in the shoulders. Just recently I started analyzing this area in other ladies who had been claiming SL and comparing my shoulders to theirs to figure out why they were able to claim SL and I wasn't.

Again, thanks for the info. and the picture. That's the best one of seen.

 

[davisbr88]

That's very true Nonie.
I have broad shoulders with virtually no slant, so I can see how I'd be able to tell easier that my hair is shoulder-length as opposed to other ladies.

 

[mzsophisticated26]

I really think its the distance and also some people are slow growers like me. It has been 15mths and I am just about grazing APL. I always wear protective styles just because I like to change my hair alot.

 

[MaintaintheSexy]

I think in part it's because there is the largest distance between those 2 parts. At least for me it is:
SL to APL is 5"
APL to BSL is 3"
And also for me starting at my HJ at SL you are still getting use to things. Not to mention how impatient you, well I am!!

I agree. SL to APL is a long distance, therefore it would take a much longer time to achieve. I don't think its for any other reason.