Natural Hair Problems

of course!  the trials are easier to get through when we do it together!  laugh to keep from cryin, right? :) so glad you like it!

lol no prob! :-D glad you enjoy it!!

oh no!  i’m sorry to hear that :(  it happens to the best of us, though.. everything ain’t for everybody, and i’m sure most of us have run into a product that ended up being just blatantly disrespectful. 

as far as growing hair back quickly, i’m of the opinion that there’s no secret or specific growth serum or oil or cream.  unless its like rogaine or something, and i have no idea how that works.  i really think the most important thing to speed along/encourage hair growth is healthy habits.  mind you, i could be totally wrong about this, but that’s just my humble opinion.

i cut my hair chin-length in 2010, and it’s now grown to reach the middle of my back.  this is due to genetics—my dad’s side of the family has lots and lots of hair—and also, i think, due to keeping it moisturized.  my hair has never grown as fast as it has since ive gone natural, and i attribute that to washing it more often and paying close attention to keeping it moisturized. 

here’s a post i did awhile ago with tips on how to keep hair moisturized, along with some of the products that i personally use.

as far as products that may specifically help encourage growth, i have heard wonders about castor oil, especially around the hair line.  ive even read that it works wonders for thickening eyebrows and growing longer, thicker lashes.  ive started using it on my temples where the hair is thinning myself.  here’s some detailed information about castor oil for hair growth.

there are also people who swear by anti-fungal creams, such as monistat, for hair growth, used by putting it on the scalp.  and while ago, Megatek, a product used to promote health in the coats and hooves of horses, was all the rage for growing long hair.  there are TONS of tips, tricks, and remedies out there, some sound crazy, some may work.  take a tip toe through google and see what you’re willing to try and what sounds too crazy.  lol.  but for me, the most basic thing i can think of is simply to feed it well, keep it clean, keep your ends trimmed and healthy, and give it an occasional rest with protective styling.

another option is pre-natal vitamins.  my doctor prescribed some for me for cheap because my fingernails were so weak and brittle.  i didnt take them long enough to notice any hair growth, but if youre interested, talk to your doctor! 

good luck!

dear lady going into the wildnerness:  here’s an added bit of advice for you!

it takes a village to raise a healthy head of hair that doesn’t look like 100 messes at once! 

(thanks, asigrow!)

oh man.  you may be asking the wrong person here—i don’t do outdoorsy things.  not for extended periods of time, at least.  there’s just too much nature out there that i dont have the preparedness or constitution to deal with.

but hmm, let’s think.  braids were actually my first thought; if youre in a harsh environment where your hair could be damaged, it’s always best to fortify it as best you can, and braids are great for that.  it sounds like getting your hair dirty will be unavoidable, and if dirt’s gonna get in it, braids will be a good barrier—the dirt will settle on top of the braids as opposed to in between the individual strands of your loose hair.  and then you could rinse them nightly/daily/every other day/as needed.

with braids, you could get them long enough to be pulled up into a bun, for added protection—the denser your hair is arranged and the closer it is to your scalp, the more protected it will be from the elements.

you can also dress it up and add added protection with scarves, wraps, turbans, etc, and hats if the environment will allow it (if it wont be too hot). 

if i had to vote, i vote braids.  i cant even think of anything else to suggest.  lol.  good luck, and have fun!

lol yes, you’re absolutely right.  it’s a big struggle for me with all the writing and other projects i have going on right now, and with life in general (i’m currently trying to find a good treatment for my recently diagnosed ADD, which keeps me from focusing long enough to update any of my sites the way i’d like).  im really mad at myself over it.. my inbox has over 300 messages in it, some nearly a year old and unanswered :(  im the worst!  my apologies to everyone.

i’ll have a lot more time on my hands now, though, because i got laid off!  blessing and a curse!  lol.  i’m really going to try harder to update more regularly, and really hope you’ll keep rocking with me!  im trying very hard, i promise!

stay with me guys!   DON’T LEAVE ME, I NEED YOU!!  *gives flowers and candy*

hey!  thanks for writing!  i definitely identify with your problem.. i’m so terrified of heat damaging my hair that i rarely use it.. i’ve had a few scares before, but was thankfully able to love my hair back to it’s normal sproinginess.  don’t get too excited though—prolonged heat usage CAN and WILL ruin your hair pattern to the point of no return if you use it too frequently without following proper precautions and practices.

check out this post on the Natural Hair Problems Wordpress blog — someone had a similar question, and the answer contains information & tips on how to protect your hair from heat styling, and ways that MIGHT help love it back to life if you push it a little too much.  check out this link on straightening without heat damage, too.

some things i’d like to note:

-it’s good that you’re gonna go ahead and cut off your dead & damaged ends and lay it to rest.  no use holding on to dead, damaged ends; they’ll only continue to ravage your hair as new healthy hair grows in.  healthy hair is much more important than long hair. i hate seeing chicks with their ends looking like mountain ranges just for the sake of having bra strap length hair.  kudos to you!

-i’m not sure if the blog entry linked above mentions it, and apparently i’m too lazy to check, but look into protein treatments to repair and protect your hair.  you’ll want to make sure you do plenty of reading on proteins and the hair first, because what works for one may not work for the next.  here’s some really awesome info on protein & protein sensitivity in natural hair.

-if length is what you’re after, look into heat-free ways to stretch your natural hair.  roller sets, twist sets, braid-outs and bantu knot outs are all ways to achieve both length and texture without using heat.  if you want length without texture, go head and holler at a weave.  ain’t no shame as long as it’s a good one.

good luck, and happy hairing!

girl!  you don’t do a thing about that big beautiful curly hair!  know what i do when someone has beef with my big ol hair?  i make it bigger, because f#ck them, that’s why.  if someone else can’t handle your ferocity, that’s their problem.  nothin you can do about that but pray for them, hope they feel better, and continue to slay any and every hoe that crosses your path.  (note:  i can’t tell how old you are in the pic you sent, but if you’re too young for such langage, my millions of apologies!  bad words are bad! )

now i’m being silly, but i’m serious.  i’m all for doing whatever you want with your hair because you want to do it, but don’t diminish who you are—be it hair, personality, body type, whatever—because someone else is uncomfortable with it.  women have been forced to do that for far too long, and women of color especially.  and you’re gorgeous!  if you only knew how many people would kill to have that big beautiful hair you’ve got!!  

part of accepting and loving yourself includes doing so in the face of people who may not approve.  there *are* things that you can do to tame and minimize your hair’s volume, of course, but i can’t find it in myself to help you do that just to make some lames around you feel better.  you’re perfect and beautiful, toenail to hair tip.  make the world deal with your awesomeness!  they don’t have a choice!!