Fake it Until you Make it — Long Hair Don’t Care (Guest Post)

 

     When I first started my hair journey, I remember watching a Youtube video where the hair vlogger was talking about the things she did to get her hair to longer lengths — products, regimen, etc.  But one tip really stood out to me — act like your hair is long already.  And I mean it makes sense, as you embark on your healthy hair journey, the length will be added gradually.  It’s not like on Day 271, you will have long hair and will have to instantaneously change up how you treat your hair.  So, why not act like it’s long from Day 1? That way, when long hair sneaks up on you, you’ll already be prepared to handle it.

Day 1: Aug 21, 2009

How do you act when your hair is long?

  1. Well, you’ve got to be gentle with your hair because at longer lengths, it’s delicate and more susceptible to breakage.  Plus, the hair you’ve got on your head now will likely be the hair that ends up grazing your goal lengths.  If you want that to be the case, you’ve got to be easy with it now. From Day One, I wore ‘kitten gloves’ when handling my hair and now that I’m BSL, I believe it’s what has keep my hair as thick as it is now.
  2. Avoid unnecessary breakage by keeping your hair off of your shoulders.  When I started my hair journey, my hair was barely touching my shoulders and despite that I started protectively styling immediately.  I just knew that I’d have APL hair in no time (it took me 16 months to get there, lol) and didn’t want it to be thin due to breakage. The first things that I tried to learn how to do were twist outs, braid outs, roller sets and other flattering ways to pin my hair up.
My first Twist-Out Attempt



Others Tips:

Remove all jewelry when washing your hair.  It’s really easy for my rings to get caught and yank it out, which means no jewelry for me on wash days.

Keep your hair hanging straight down while shampooing it.  Even when I am towel drying my hair, I keep my hair hanging straight down.  The point is to keep your hair in its neutral position at all times.  It minimizes how much you manipulate your hair and it cuts down on tangles.   That means no more washing your hair upside down in the sink, that’s a big no-no.

Shampoo your scalp and Condition your hair.  Shampoo can be stripping, but it’s a necessary element in your regimen to keep your scalp clean.  I focus the shampoo on my scalp and give it a nice healthy message.  Just before I rinse the shampoo, I allow the suds to run down the length of my hair, keeping it in it’s neutral position.

 My last tip is probably the most controversial because everyone wraps their hair — I did it daily before my healthy hair journey.  But I stopped wrapping my hair.  It was a lot of manipulation on a daily basis and it had my hair in a non-neutral position.  For me personally, wrapping my hair made my scalp tender and so it wasn’t hard for me to give up.  Instead of wrapping I wear my hair in a high bun or I cross-wrap at night and I don’t miss wrapping my hair at all.

     Of course you don’t have to abide by all of these rules, but you’ll be glad you did even if you just adopt one or two into your healthy hair journey.  Plus all of them can be boiled down to one of three important things to keep in mind as you do your hair:

(1) keep your hair in it’s neutral position as much as possible,

(2) try to minimize how much you manipulate your hair; and

(3) do whatever you can to avoid breakage.

What things do you do with your hair that you believe contributes to you attaining and retaining longer lengths?
About the author
kimfancy
kimfancy

Kim Fancy loves beautiful things -- Healthy Hair, Personal Style, Flawless Skin, Food, and Fitness. She's always on the hunt to learn new things. Her hair is currently at Bra Strap Length and she shares her personal journey at her blog, fancyflairlady.com.

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4 Comments to Fake it Until you Make it — Long Hair Don’t Care (Guest Post)

  1. I don’t wear rings-wedding n ear rings at home or at the salon cos of snagging. I trim my nails regularly and i also tilt my head backwards.

  2. Ada says:

    I would like a length check shirt please! Size-small (UK 8) *batting eyelashes

  3. lolade says:

    low manipulation cannot be over emphasized,especially during relaxer stretches.i want the large sized length check t-shirt

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