Monday, 4 March 2013

20 Tips to Grow Healthy Hair and Retain Length


These are tips I believe I have learned from other 'Healthy Hair Journey-ers', incorporated into my hair regimen, and I can vouch for positive changes. Enjoy...


1. Moisture! Moisture!! Moisture!!! : I cannot stress enough the effect this has had on my hair. The amount of hair I see on my comb after detangling has definitely reduced, and I seem to have retained a lot of length around my edges (still working on that by the way). This is my number 1 to retain length. It can be achieved with just water or a very good leave in conditioner, such as the one in this post.

2. It is not enough to ensure that the hair is moisturised. The moisture must be sealed in with a natural oil of your choice. I use coconut oil, because it is light and it combats dryness.

3. Condition with both a deep condition treatment (weekly) and a leave-in conditioner (daily) for moisture and strength. This has helped me stretch my relaxer successfully from the usual 6 weeks to 8 weeks. (2 more weeks to go)

4. A good way to make sure that the hair shaft absorbs the natural oils for hair growth is to do a hot oil treatment (weekly). It has been called the green house effect. After doing this, I notice that my ends are softer.

5. Usually when I seal daily using the L.O.C method, I massage the oil into my scalp using my fingertips for a few minutes. This is apparently meant to stimulate the scalp and enable hair growth.

6. Use castor oil for edges and napes for growth and thickness. It could also be applied to any other problem areas, or even as a scalp oil for maximum effect.

7. Shield hair and ends with silk or satin scarf at night, especially after the L.O.C method.

8. Try and stretch relaxers to a minimum of 10 weeks to about 12 weeks, when the hair is left out. However, the hair might be stretched longer if the hair is in a protective style.

9. When detangling, I would advise that a wide-toothed comb is used. It reduces the amount of hair you see on the comb. I have also found that detangling in the shower is easier and avoids the hair being pulled out too much.

10. Low manipulation is also important. This includes avoiding hairstyles that pull too much on the hair, or combing the hair strands as little as possible (maybe once a day or so). Finger combing is another example of low manipulation.

11. Take Vitamins. It could be anyone that has the essential vitamins for daily nutrition.

12. It is not just enough to make sure that the hair itself is moisturised. It is important as well to ensure that our liquid intake is enough. So, it is best to drink lots of water during the day.

13. Avoid direct heat on the hair, such as hair straighteners. I have not used any form of heat, except of course body heat, since I started my hair journey, and I have noticed a lot of changes. My hair is definitely not as dry as it used to be and the breakage has reduced a lot.

14. A healthy diet is also important. Especially one consisting more of Proteins, Fruits and Vegetables. Eliminate fast food, oily food and sweets.

15. Avoid using hair products containing petroleum. It only clogs the pores, preventing moisture and natural oils from being absorbed by the hair shaft. Besides, because it is heavy, it weighs the hair down and attracts a lot of dirt and dust to the hair.

16. Protective styling is advisable as well. This can range from box braids to weaves and buns. Anything as long as it protects the ends. I plan on getting box braids done in April. I decided to avoid this for a while, so I can focus on getting my hair back to shape by putting back moisture and oils that my hair had missed out on all these years.

17. You know the saying that goes: 'if you stand for nothing, you fall for anything'? This can also be applied to the hair. Using too many products or not being consistent with hair treaments can just be as hazardous as doing nothing at all. So I would advise that a healthy hair regimen be developed, and be consistent with it.

18. A trim every 6 months is a good way to retain length in the long run. It avoids any split ends running up the hair shaft, and you can eliminate any unhealthy old hair you might have started your hair  journey with.

19. It might help to record your hair progress in a hair diary or online as I have done. That way you can tell what products helped your hair, and those that did not, and also be proud of yourself of the progress made.

20. Be Patient. Its easy to become obsessive with hair length and all. But sometimes its best to do your best and watch your hair progress. Do not compare your hair length to others. We all have different hair textures, genes, regimens and so on.

Happy Hair Growth...

W.


No comments:

Post a Comment