Is bra-strap length hair possible?

joemerald

you sound like me. I decided I am not trimming my ends again and I am not worried about it being uneven either. I will even it out once I reach my goal. But no more trims for me.

Jainygirl,

Your hair is beautiful. What is ur regimen?? How often do you have to relax??

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Wolftrap said:
So I guess you answered my question Denali. you had that length in H.S. Sooooo.....Yes I am still a skeptic and don't think it can really happen but rest assured that if I reach my goal. THIS WHOLEEEE BOARD IS GONNA KNOW!! I will DEFINITELY post pictures.

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I know thats right
I RARELY used heat in high school, so maybe that helped

Hey Elaine I'm a self relaxer, I touch up every 12 weeks with Revlon Professional (lye) . Before coming to LHCF i would go 8-9 at the most but now that i changed it, 8-9 weeks seems kinda fast to me.

i copied my response from the thread on Why so Many Products-- but my routine is in here so HTH -- jainygirl

yeah, i use cream of nature detangling shampoo, rinse, pat dry, add Elasta QP oil moisturizer and blowdry w/comb attachment. Add vaseline to ends and into a bun. (i know the conditioning part is missing (tried it and didnt like conditioning after washing -- can we say a hot mess--i do a once a month deep conditioning with queen helene cholesterol and that works out great) I am honestly just not all that excited at the prospect of trying stuff because my hair is really picky about what i put on it so when i find something that works and my hair is happy--- i'm happy too. So i definitely try to keep experimentation to a minimum -- jainygirl

jainygirl,

Your hair is exactly what I'm striving for. I myself have given on on accelerating growth and try to focus more on retaining the hair. Do you mosturize daily? how often do you wash?

Of course your hair can get to bra lenght. I believe like DSD that a positive attitude also is key to growing long hair. If you tell yourself it won't grow then it won't. If you tell it will grow then it will. Take a look at a lot of the ladies here and you can see that it's quite possible to grow hair bra lenght and beyond...Adrienne, Den1 and Sherrylove are great examples and inspirations too!

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Keen said:
jainygirl,

Your hair is exactly what I'm striving for. I myself have given on on accelerating growth and try to focus more on retaining the hair. Do you mosturize daily? how often do you wash?

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I shampoo every friday and i add vaseline to my ends once every three days or so and put it into a bun. Also sometimes i spray a little Isoplus oil sheen on my hair, put it into a bun and in the morning when i take it down i have a nice ponytail with sheen and some body to it. HTH -- jainygirl

I have 4a hair and my hair has been very close to brastrap a few times. I've learned few bad relaxers and excessive trimming will really kill your progress, so i'm really paying close attention to detail these days.
I'm confident I will reach my goal of brastrap within the next 12 months.

My hair rested on my shoulders when i was a child but was certainly never this long. I'm not brastrap yet but I'm about an inch and a half away (a guess since i haven't measured in a while) and I see no reason why I won't get there. My hair is progressing nicely. Minimizing heat, oiling my ends every night, and wearing protective styles have helped tremendously. Conditioner washes have allowed me to extend the time between relaxers.

I started caring for my hair in January 2004 and when I started my hair was barely touching the middle of my neck and now just five short months later its grazing shoulder length. One of my friends has grown her hair past shoulder length once, and this girl has never had any hair scince I have known her, neither did anyone in her family so I dont think genetics or your past hair length has anything to do with the length u are trying to acheive. I also think that u have to be realistic when it comes to the time frame it would take yo reach your goal. For instance at first when I joined the hair boards I was so excited that I thought that I could get my mid-neck length hair to bra strap in one year meaning that I wanted Bra strap by January 2005, well now I am just grazing shoulder length and I dont think there is a miracle out there that is going to help me reach bra strap in 6 months so I decided that if I sick to a healthy hair care regimen then I can reach my goals within a matter of two years. My goal for January 2005 is back bone and then after I reach back bone(armpit) length, hopefully it would just take a year to reach bra strap, Now that sounds a lil more realistic. Happy hair growing everyone and Bra Strap Length dust to all

If you go to Cathy Howse's website you will see that she never had long hair as a child or adult....read her bio and look at her pics...I think you shouldn't focus on the negative...instead maintain your routine and be patient.

When I was in my early 20's I was broke and had to do my own hair I started to self-relaxer and used heat only once a week when I would wash, roller set and wrap my hair. It grew like never before. I had shoulder length hair as a child but never longer than that. It was close to bra-strap when I started going to the Dominican's for weekly blow outs thinking I needed someone to take care of it now that it was getting long (big mistake by the way!)

In less than a year my hair was brittle and dry I struggled for 2 years after that to get it back into condition...did the big chop went natural and everything.

Now in less than 2 months of finding LHCF and sticking with a good routine and minimizing heat my hair is growing noticeably!

You can do it...don't think negatively. Maybe you won't reach bra-strap but you can make you hair at whatever length shiny healthy and strong!


P.S you say you never had long hair as a child? Well how was you hair taken care of as a child? Were you always relaxed? Did you parent take care of the hair? Most AA's don't know much about taking care of our own hair (Truth in my case) Much less our daughter's. So maybe it's just that your hair has never been properly taken care of. So the only way to find out if you can grow hair long is to start now!

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Keen said:
lonei, are you taking any vits? I tried taking biotin and it broke me out and I haven't tried MSM because of some of the side effects that I see on this board. Maybe one day I will try it.


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No, not vitamins for hair, just a multi vitamin and omega 3 oil but I only started taking them fairly recently.

My mom took pretty good care of my hair when I was younger. I'm a 4a/b. My hair was a lil' bit past bra strap. My moms twin had extremely long hair, but she's a 2b/3a. as I grew older I didn't care about my hair so it was damaged but never really broke off. Now I'm an inch from bra strap (can't wait for my touch up in July!) and I know I can make it. I don't think it has to do w/ how long your hair was as a kid but how it was cared for. Now ask me if I think waist is possible for my texture, and I'll tell you no, but you never know. I say don't worry about the past, your armed with so much knowledge. Go for it!

I think it is possible. You get new growth every month so the hair is growing. I think the problem might be the breakage at the ends that prevents many of us from retaining length. I always had short hair as long as I can remember but I was always coloring, cutting, braiding, weaving, doing some crazy stuff with my hair. Whenever I stop messing around with it and left it alone, it grew. I'm right at bra strap and the only way I am reaching that goal is by taking care of my hair myself and being very gentle. Check out this album. She's from a yahoo forum but I love looking at her progress pictures. I hope she doesn't get upset Her growth is amazing.

http://f1.pg.photos.yahoo.com/bc/foxybronx/lst?.view=t&.dir=/Hair+pics

do you guys ever think that your hair was longer as a child because you were a child??

lets suppose youre 4'6'' (54 inches) tall and your hair is 25inches long. so now that youre 21 and all grown up and your hair is still 25 inches. only now youre 5'10'' (70 inches), so even though your hair is still "the same length", youre taller, therefore making your hair seem shorter??

im just asking because a lot of people seem to say that their hair was long as a child and now its not. if you want an example, look at keshia knight-pulliam. as rudy her hair was in the middle of her back when she wore it down, now in the chingy video, it doesnt look as long? maybe her body got longer, instead of her hair getting shorter.

is this possible? or is everyone just attributing their "hair loss" to _________ reason?

do you guys also take into account your diet? go to the robin the hair lady's site and read kathy howse's book, they both talk about foods that attribute to stronger hair

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honeydrop1130 said:
do you guys ever think that your hair was longer as a child because you were a child??

lets suppose youre 4'6'' (54 inches) tall and your hair is 25inches long. so now that youre 21 and all grown up and your hair is still 25 inches. only now youre 5'10'' (70 inches), so even though your hair is still "the same length", youre taller, therefore making your hair seem shorter??

im just asking because a lot of people seem to say that their hair was long as a child and now its not. if you want an example, look at keshia knight-pulliam. as rudy her hair was in the middle of her back when she wore it down, now in the chingy video, it doesnt look as long? maybe her body got longer, instead of her hair getting shorter.

is this possible? or is everyone just attributing their "hair loss" to _________ reason?

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That's an interesting point.

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honeydrop1130 said:
do you guys ever think that your hair was longer as a child because you were a child??

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It does make you wonder.

good thread. I think henrilou is a good example. I think she said that no one in her family has long hair. She had a really inspirational thread back in 2002 or 2003. I'm pretty sure it was her, i might have to check on that.

I fit this exactly and bra-strap length is possible. When I was a child everyone thought I was a boy ... my hair was never longer than 3 or 4" and it was always matted up really bad. Well I got a curl when I was 9 because my mother got sick of me going around looking like that. I had a curl until I was 15 and then transitioned for 2 years with a wave nouveau until I had enough new growth to cut off the permed ends. So my hair was just about to my ears. Anyway I had the same scissor happy stylist up until I was 23 or so (I'm now 29) when I saw her daughter bust in the shop with waist length hair!!!!...not weaved. I was like because my stylist new that I wanted to keep my length and let it get longer but it never seemed to get past my shoulders. I stopped going after I saw that because her daughter and I had the same length hair when I got a relaxer. So then I started going to another girl who had a license but no shop for relaxers and my hair started creeping past my shoulders after a couple of years so that was cool (mind you I was NOT taking care of my hair like I am now). Then she got all crazy on me and cut my hair above my shoulders after she relaxed it one time. So then I started having my friends put my relaxers in until the last time I let one (a little over a year ago) put one in and I had serious underprocessed hair ... very frizzy and fragile. So from then I came across lovely hair boards and learned so much. I came to a decision that I was going to go natural so I transitioned for a year (with MANY setbacks as far a knots are concerned). After the year was up and a fierce battle (that I lost) with knots I decided to relax my hair again. At the time I started transitioning my hair was a little past my shoulder and that was a little less than 2 years ago. My hair is now at the bottom of my bra strap. I have learned alot through these hair boards but agree 100% with what Adrienne mentioned in her routine ... to not keep switching techniques and products just because others rave about something and to stick with what works. I have also learned that not everyones hair is going to grow the same, look the same, etc. and I should focus on the health of my hair and then length will follow. I'm sure that anyone can achieve bra-strap length or longer hair but focus on the health of your hair and get a set routine and the length will definitely follow.

Sigh..........I wonder if I'm making any progress. My mother did tell me the other day that my hair has really grown and she wanted to know what vitamins I was taking.
(She has lost a lot of hair due to Graves disease)
However, everytime I look or measure I'm not seeing any progress.

Remember a watched pot never boils!

Concentrate on keeping your hair healtly and the length will come. Just let your hair be for a while. Do you regular routine and leave it alone for a while. You also have to keep a postive attitude all the while.

Try not measuring your hair for a while and see how it goes.

I believe that this time next year I will be close or even at brastrap.

Good Luck!

When I was younger my hair would only grow to my shoulders. However, that could be because my mother would press & curl my hair once a week. But, one summer a few years ago I was obsessed with my weight so I would exercise everyday. And since I was exercising everyday I decided not to have my mother press & curl my hair.

Well for three months I would wash, condition apply some oil to my hair and french braid it. Anyway by the end of those three months my hair had grown so long and I was clueless b/c I never paid any attention to my hair. It was by accident that I had discovered my hair had grown long. In fact, it was my brother who first brought my hair growth to my attention. I was in the mirror preparing to braid my hair when my brother came up to me and pulled my hair. After he pulled my hair he informed me that my hair had grown.

About a week or so after discovering my hair had grown so much. I had my mother press & curl my hair. My hair had grown so much that it was only few inches from my bra strap. And I do believe anyone can grow longer hair. But, I do believe that if you leave your hair alone and do not put alot of chemicals in it then it will grow.

I never had bra strap hair until now and I'm 4a. I came close in 1999, but it started to break off. It seemed to take about a year to grow 3-4 inches with one trim. I think my sucess is due to wearing it up most of the time, which prevents knots and excessive manipulation. I also follow Adrienne's recommendation of only brushing the top half of hair into a ponytail/bun/twist. There's no need to comb through to the ends since it's being pulled up anyway. Deep conditioning and moisture is also very important.

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lonei said:
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AnnDriena_ said:
2 years ago halle berry now, brastrap length are you trying to make us hate you?

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Ah, no... I am merely trying to tell you that it can be done... If I can do it, anyone can....

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I just love looking at your hair. You are an inspiration Lonei!

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jainygirl said:
I dont spend any time getting it to grow, i spend my time in "hair retention" not hair growth. Our hair is going to grow anyway.

The thing is keeping breakage to a minimum. That's where i think MOST attention should be placed. I think it's too time comsuming trying to speed up the natural growth process, then deal with everyday shedding, then deal with breakage that may occur (blah, blah, blah) i dont multi-task well at all so i put all my energy into just one thing-- retaining what i grow, that's it. HTH -- jainygirl

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Very important point. And your beautiful, long hair is proof that it works.

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Alli77 said:
Of course your hair can get to bra lenght. I believe like DSD that a positive attitude also is key to growing long hair. If you tell yourself it won't grow then it won't. If you tell it will grow then it will. Take a look at a lot of the ladies here and you can see that it's quite possible to grow hair bra lenght and beyond...Adrienne, Den1 and Sherrylove are great examples and inspirations too!

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ITA with this philosophy! Attitude is everything. What we say about our hair and bodies to others and to ourselves is what helps create the results. I would include visualizing our hair the length and health we want it to be also ensures it will happen.

I agree with all the above - as DSD says 'a watched kettle never boils'!!!!

To a certain extent genetics has a factor in growing hair. For example some people who do not look after their hair have long hair BUT it normally stays at a certain length. Now if they paid more attention then imagine how long their hair would be. Also how your hair was treated as a child has a bearing on acheiving length. My mother has long hair and she used to look after mine & my twin sister's hair so well. Our hair was way below bra-strap length. On the other side of the coin my aunt had hair to her waist when she was a teenager but she never (IMO) cared for her 2 daughters' hair very well and both have never had long hair.

Alot of us as black people do not concentrate on the ends in retaining what we have; therefore it appears as though our hair does not and cannot grow long.

So IMO there are many different factors re achieving long hair that come into play and it is not just about genetics. It might just be that some have to look after their hair more carefully than others.

Just my humble opnion.

I feel your anguish, Wolftrap I myself have NEVER had long hair.. .currently my hair is about 10in. which on me is shorter than shoulder length and it has only once been longer (in high school it was shoulder length b/c I stayed with my hair braided- I was doing the crownNglory method and didn't even know it). I'm getting nervous too b/c it seems this is always the length that I get to and then *f* it all up somehow .
I think that you (and me too) are under-estimating all this knowledge that we now have because of LHCF. Just keep doing what works, that's my motto---
And like DSD says, concentrate on keeping it healthy since it grows anyway (DSD you are my role model, your hair journey is most realistic to me )

My question to the board is, Has anyone (particularly 4a/b) grown their hair without protective styles?? If so what did you do?

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Isis said:
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lonei said:
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AnnDriena_ said:
2 years ago halle berry now, brastrap length are you trying to make us hate you?

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Ah, no... I am merely trying to tell you that it can be done... If I can do it, anyone can....

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I just love looking at your hair. You are an inspiration Lonei!

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Thank you so much, by the looks of things you dont have far to go, keep the faith and try not to sit around watching it grow.