Why does it not look/feel like i'm making any progress

[neanie]

My hair doesn't look any healthier or longer since i joined


The three(attatched) pictures are from when i first joined



and these pictures were taken the other day

In this picture i felt like i was making progress until i combed all my hair down and he result was this

I have slightey W shaped hair
i don't know but why it has always been like this even after a trim it grows back into this shape

 

[pureebony]

i have the same issue too... it sucks!

 

[diadall]

You don't think you are making progress because you see and touch your hair everyday. Don't think about it. Just keep doing things that make your hair healthy. I feel that way sometimes and then I look at photos from last year or 2008 and I see a difference.

 

[Eclass215]

The same thing happens to me - I have a W shape where the sides are longer than the middle, and the right is longer than the left. It's just the way the hair grows - I don't think you can really do much about it other than keep trimming to keep it even. What I've decided to do is only trim once a year for evenness, and just dustings throughout the year for healthy ends. Good luck!

 

[nymane]

What's your regimen OP?

 

[danysedai]

co-signing with nymane,what's your regimen? Maybe there's smthg you are overlooking?smthg that can be tweaked so it works better?
Looking at your pictures,maybe you need to give your nape area extra TLC? I know I do, and I didn't see progress in thickness and length until I did.

 

[Chaosbutterfly]

Um, how many weeks post are you? Sometimes, shrinkage at the roots hides some progress.
And I think it looks better...the W has improved.
Sometimes it grows that way, but other times, it forms because of haircare habits that we have. And it seems like it grows that way, because we always do the same things to our hair, so it always ends up W-shaped.

So I have some questions:
How do you wear your hair everyday? Do you use claw clips or elastics? If you wear ponytails or buns, how tight are you making them and where are they positioned
When you deep condition or moisturize your hair, how do you apply it? Do you part your hair and apply in sections? If so, are you paying extra attention to the back and middle of your head?

 

[gadgetdiva]

You don't think you are making progress because you see and touch your hair everyday. Don't think about it. Just keep doing things that make your hair healthy. I feel that way sometimes and then I look at photos from last year or 2008 and I see a difference.

YEP thats it!


neanie If your ends are healthy you may not want to trim so often to even up because you're cutting your lead hairs...you could try bunning or another PS so that you wont see that uneven pattern and just make sure your ends are healthy.

see: Lead Hairs

 

[lushcoils]

I don't think it has anything to do with looking at your hair everyday. I mean, you joined in April 2009. If that's when you started taking care of your hair, that's 1 and half years. (It's not like you started your journey September 30 2010, and are expecting to have 2 inches of hair by now.)

I would have expected more progress by now too. It seems that you are not retaining length. Are you experiencing a lot of breakage? If not, maybe you are trimming away all of your growth. It's actually a good thing that you are keeping track of your hair. Now you know you are not where you want to be and can fix it.

 

[manter26]

I agree with lushcoils. It's a good idea to post your reggie for any experts to take a look at. I really don't think products matter as much as how you handle your hair.

My mom's hair is a testimony to that. It's been the same length all her life. She relaxes about every 2 weeks (if she waits that long) and she always has her hair down. There's no fighting the relaxer out of her hands, so I concentrate on getting her to pin up her ends. She doesn't listen and her ends break off at her collar.

Finding the right protective style is key to retaining hair.

 

[Janet']

Honestly, the hardest point (at least for me) was going from SL to APL and what I had to do was protective and low manipulation styling. I'm interested in knowing your regimen as well OP...

 

[mstk]

It looks like your hair has gotten thicker to me OP, so there is some difference.

 

[lilsparkle825]

Cosign....post your regimen! Specifically, I would be interested in how often you relax, how you normally wear your hair, and how often you trim.

 

[Chevelure618]

There certainly is progress. The botton 4 inches were see through. Now they are not.

I know from experience that it takes a long time for the old damaged hair to grow down. It looks as though you have been gradually trimming. That is what I did at first and it is only now, 3 years later that I am really starting to see more rapid length.

Even now, I get discouraged because it seems that it is taking so long. The thing about textured hair is the shrinkage. An inch just doesn't seem like an inch. It is better to view your progress from your new growth and just make sure you don't have any breakage at your ends.

I am telling you what I tell myself. It takes time and patience, and even tiny trims makes it harder to wait. Keep going. The time is going to pass anyway.

 

[Solitude]

I don't think you have to protective style, but it wouldn't hurt to try it. I think it helps my hair to give it a break occasionally. For relaxed hair, I think the two keys to retention are 1. deep conditioning and 2. keeping your hair moisturized. When I am consistent with these two things, I see an improvement in my hair - it's shinier, bouncier, my ends are not dry or frizzy, and I retain length better. Note: you have to keep your ends super moisturized when protective styling because they can break off from being tucked away when dry. I use a heavier moisturizer and/or seal with oil when bunning.

First, assess your hair's needs...is your hair dry and brittle? Is it breaking off in any area? Look at your hair layer by layer to make sure the "W" shape is not caused by breakage. Is it limp? Does it hold a curl? When you touch your ends, do they break off? Are you seeing little hairs in the sink or on your shirt? After a year and half, you should have seen more progress in my opinion...

Are you doing your hair yourself or going to the beautician? Is he or she cutting or trimming your hair???? Give us more info!!!

Also, stress, eating habits, and hormone levels can also affect your hair's growth and retention. Are you getting proper nutrition? Do you take any medications (including birth control)?

You don't have to answer all these questions - they are for you to think about and to give us more info if you want more detailed advice.

 

[*CherryPie*]

I agree with you, it looks exactly the same length as when you started. When my hair length stands still, and i'm still doing touch ups, I look for breakage. Are you balancing moisture and protein?

 

[neanie]

i moistuise with mango butter and herbal essences healthy ends daily
i wash with aussie mircale moist weekly and also DC with ORS replenishing conditioner weekly(when i wash)
once a month i use ors aloe shampoo and hair mayonnaise
my hair feels dry alot which is why i moisturise it with mango butter daily
i am constantly finding little broken hairs which is frustrating as i have tried moisture(DC-ing more),protein, moisturing (daily) more often, i thought the culprit was my ouchless hair bands as i always seem to have hair left in the band when removing them
i have tried tying the bands looser,untying them carefully
i retain the most lenght whilst in weave but i fear about not being able to get to my hair
erm what else? I am using BC but tbh my hair is gentically thin my moms ,nans and great gran all had thin hair
i don't relax often i stretch to 5/6 months unintentionally but i don't intend on doing this agin (its a habit when i was younger my mom didn't relax my hair often)

 

[D.Lisha]

neanie: When I look at your pictures, I do see a slight difference in your ends, seems like they've filled in alil more. As far as your regi goes, while I am not a hair expert, I will offer a few suggestions of my own :
Now when you mentioned the hair band issue and about the lil hairs still being found after you've removed the headband...I would say you should try soaking them in oil first before putting them in your hair. Also, you mentioned that you retain the most length in weaves BUT you still want access to your real hair: have you ever thought about putting your hair in cornrows while it's under a wig? This serves as an advantage in two ways:
1.) You can easily have access to your hair when you remove your wig at the end of the day.
2.) Since your hair is cornrowed, your ends will be fully protected

Also, I noticed you mentioned that your hair is constantly dry, have you ever considered baggying at night? This is a method i've recently discovered, and girl let me tell you! It has done wonders with keeping my hair moist

That's just my lil two cents thrown in....HTH!!

 

[nymane]

It sounds like your moisture/protein balance is off...the elasta qp mango butter, ORS replenishing pack, hair mayonnaise may be a little bit too much protein for your hair (or just the wrong products for your hair). My hair absolutely adores protein, but if you're protein sensitive those products could be the culprit.

How do you wear your hair on a daily basis? How often do you dust/trim? Do you heat style often?

After each individual step in your regimen (i.e. shampoo, condition, moisturize & style etc..) try to evaluate how your hair feels....if it still feels dry after you DC then that product is not benefiting your hair. Toss it and try another one. hth

 

[neanie]

i have been trying not to heat style except for blowdrying on cool on wash days with heat protectant
is mango butter protein ? im so confused and what is a good moisturising DC?

 

[BillsBackerz67]

very few people here have had success using qp mango butter as a moisturizer. Me being one of them. Now I only use it for slicking my hair back and to give definition to my twists. I cant recommend another good moisturizer, but I know that particular moisturizer does nothing for a good 90% of people.

 

[Chevelure618]

It sounds like your moisture/protein balance is off...the elasta qp mango butter, ORS replenishing pack, hair mayonnaise may be a little bit too much protein for your hair (or just the wrong products for your hair). My hair absolutely adores protein, but if you're protein sensitive those products could be the culprit.

How do you wear your hair on a daily basis? How often do you dust/trim? Do you heat style often?

After each individual step in your regimen (i.e. shampoo, condition, moisturize & style etc..) try to evaluate how your hair feels....if it still feels dry after you DC then that product is not benefiting your hair. Toss it and try another one. hth

I concur. Too much stuff. Stick with one protein product. I'd try the ORS only for awhile.

 

[Nonie]

neanie, as much as people may disagree with me, I think the only way to see steady progress when your hair gets to shoulder length is by keeping your ends from enduring trauma by sealing and protective styling and by dusting regularly so that you can nip splits in the bud. Low manipulation also helps if you have fine, weak strands.

The reason a lot of people seem to show good, steady progress till they get to shoulder length is because up until that point, the hair wasn't rubbing against clothing and so while it might've been exposed to the drying air from not being protective styled, at SL comes another assault comes into play: friction from clothes. What's more, your hair's ends are so much older and worn out--especially if you've been holding onto them over the course of your journey, so there's no way they can be full if they haven't been kept tucked away and the damage that occurs at the tip hasn't been prevented from wrecking more havoc by being snipped away.

So my advice would be to get into a habit of dusting a little regularly and sealing/protective styling. You don't have to be able to do a bun but you can wear a phony pony so that your ends are hidden in plastic under the pony after being well moisturized--as your protective style. Or you can wear Frencb braids so ends are tucked away. Or you can weave your hair (low mani helps) so that it's tucked away and out of sight. Not seeing your hair or messing with it has a way of inspiring folks because they get to see the progress they are making after some time has elapsed and come to realize retention was the problem because hair is definitely being sprout out at the scalp.

As crazy as my suggestion sounds, don't knock it till you've tried it. It's not as if you haven't been practicing good hair care, but obviously something isn't working. So why not go out on a limb and try something that you haven't tried yet: regular dusting and protective styling. Look at people who believe in regularly dusting and see how full their hair looks and how well their hair is growing. If you think about it, what good comes from holding onto ends that have had some of the whole torn away?

This to me is just gross and reminds me of a rat's tail:

^^This lady would have hair that'd be worth looking at if she's snip off that ugly long tail and keep the bulky part. She's still have longer hair than most and it'd be so beautiful.

These heads on the other hand are more appealing to me:

 

[Rocky91]

^^yuuuck @ that pic of the hair "tail."

 

[JJamiah]

Hey Nonie,

Hello All,

My I agree with some that has been said. epecially the ends being abused by sweaters, Car seats, car doors, purses, nasty man toys who pull OKay okay enough.

I wear my lace front and ladies it is so crazy that even the lace front hair that constantly touches my sweater, and chain and get dry.

For me ORS replenishing acts more of moisture not as protein FOR MY HAIR I repeat. So I have to limit it in my regimen. My hair on the other hand is PROTEIN hungry.

Learning your hair is key.

Do you see lots broken hairs when you comb? Okay that means somethings got to change. I would clarify x 2 and start with a clean slate.

Aphogee 2 minute seems to work for most, get your self a .99 cent packet and try it before you buy it.

Next Get yourself some Silk Elements megasilk Moisturizing treatment .99 cent pack. Leave it on for 1-2 hours under a self heating cap.

Rinse well afterwards, use a leave in and then style as usual.

Check your hair wash to wash to see if your having better progress, if not re-evaluate and try again

another note Is Don't hold on to raggedy ends. If you maintain health and enjoy your hair growth will come. But SPLIT Raggedy Ends are not worth the length.

 

[neanie]

****UPDATE WITH PICS**** Why does it not look/feel like i'm making any progress

These pictures were taken after a relaxer i feel like i can see slightly more progress
what do you think ?

Weirdly afta my relaxer i have suffered less shedding which i think now was probably breakage due to weakness at the line of demarcation maybe ??

 

[lilikoi]

Re: ****UPDATE WITH PICS**** Why does it not look/feel like i'm making any progress

These pictures were taken after a relaxer i feel like i can see slightly more progress
what do you think ?
Weirdly afta my relaxer i have suffered less shedding which i think now was probably breakage due to weakness at the line of demarcation maybe ??

See, there's some progress! I think something that has not been suggested is adding coconut oil to your reggie. After all, it's been scientifically proven to penetrate the hair strand, make hair more pliable, and prevent protein loss. Give it a try!