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Hi guys, I'm growing my hair out again after 5 years of having it short. It's already getting longish, I'll take a pic soon maybe.
I attached a pic of when I still had long hair though, years before cutting it in Nov. 2009. It looks shiny and nice, but that's just the flash of the camera. Still, I think it looked pretty cool in general, some days more than others, LOL.
On a side note, I'd like to give some advice, if I have your permission.
I think a lot of people make a critical mistake when it comes to growing their hair out and the way it looks. I think I can say this from a point of experience.
While genetics play a big role I also think that people don't help the situation, especially those who don't have super smooth hair that's super easy to comb, like me.
- People OVERCOMB their hair when it's DRY.
Seriously. If your hair gets tangled easily then that's your red flag. It means, don't mess with it when it's dry. I never, ever, ever, ever, combed my hair when dry (ok maybe a couple of times). By doing so there's going to be a lot of breakage and you'll be able to tell by the way it looks. I only combed when wet during and after the shower, after a good conditioning.
The best way actually is to comb it and untangle it while still in the shower and the conditioner is on (I did this with my fingers back then, but nowadays do it with my comb). Then you can re-comb right after you leave the shower and have rinsed. but while still wet.
I guess that I soon learned that some hair types have their own rules, including mine. Mine got tangled very easily and to me, that was my hair saying "I'm wild, leave me be - only comb me when conditioned and wet cause that's when there's more elasticity to me".
It could be argued that there's no point in having long hair if you can't have the pleasure of combing it. Well, it's your choice I guess. You have to weigh out if you want better looking hair or having the pleasure of combing it often.
It's all about taking the time to understand what type of hair you have. If it takes the combing very easily then it should be fine if you comb it often, if not, then don't.
Also, it takes time to find out the right shampoo for your hair. I noticed early on that the way my hair looked depended greatly on whatever brand of shampoo I used. I guess some people go through their entire long haired lives without knowing that different shampoos have different reactions on their hair and the way it looks.
I remember trying Pantene back then and it didn't leave my hair as smooth as Garnier, as an example.
I'm not going to advise on brands, as shampoos have chemicals and only god knows what kind of damage those can bring, not to hair, but to health in general. Guess some shampoos are better than others and more health friendly. Do some research.
Take care everyone.
This has occurred to me too. I most always just finger comb my hair. Doing that, I find tangles and can gently fix them. Occasionally I may use a hair brush but only after first finger combing.
Yeh, I only finger combed while in the shower, after I left the shower and my hair was still wet I'd do it again but with a comb. So it was a finger/comb COMBO LOL!
That was some very awesome hair you had before so I think that
its great that you want to grow it again. You have hair that's
to be envious of. At least I am!
Thanks so very much! Don't worry, the pic made it look better!
Hey Diogo,
The pic you provided of how your hair looked before you cut it shows that you had a head of hair which looked awesome, absolutely gorgeous. Congrats on your decision to regrow your hair.
I would like to ask your advise. I have collar-bone length hair. My hair is whitish-grey. It is somewhere between curly to wavy, more wavy than curly. I have been allowing my hair to grow for fifty (50) months. My hair is almost equally balanced between oily and dry.
I shampoo my hair with Nature's Gate Shampoo which is enriched with biotin. I water wash my hair each day. I condition my hair on even numbered days with Nexxus conditioner which has a sulfate-free system. I finger comb my hair.
What would you advise me to do which would enhance the health of my hair.
Your long haired bro,
Raymond
Hi Raymond, thanks very much.
I'm no pro when it comes to hair health, so I'm afraid I won't be able to help you that much :(
Do you have frizz? You mentioned that you finger-combed your hair. That's great, but if your hair is frizzy I'd also use a somewhat wide-tooth (nothing too crazy) comb after the finger combing. Again, only when wet and conditioned, unless your hair is easy to comb.
Your hair is probably going to look smoother and neater if you do, as the comb will get everything in place, which is impossible to do with fingers.
I don't think that finger-combing alone leaves the hair looking the best it can look. But then again, this REALLY depends on hair type. Mine gets too tangled. Impossible to undo all the tangles with my fingers alone. Also, it's more prone to getting frizz if I don't use the comb.
I like my hair to look full (this depends on one's taste), so after my hair dried I also messed up with it a bit with my hands and headbanged some, shaking the hair some (I don't recommend the headbanging though, I'm pretty sure I have a couple of screws missing because of all that brain shaking LOL). When one uses the comb to comb the hair and lets it dry it often just lays there, flat, not with much volume. This is good to keep the frizz at bay, especially on top of the head but after it's dry everything goes and the frizz will remain non-existant.
This made a huge difference. It made my hair full.
Once again, it's really about knowing your hair type and acting accordingly. I guess that certain things that work for a type of hair won't be any good for other types.
Also, I'm not sure but maybe you're washing too much (even if just with water). I'm a bit like you, I always want my hair to look super clean but I'm not sure if washing too much is good. My hair gets a bit oily so I have to wash at least every other day If I'm out and about. If I have nothing to do and just stay at home I can go longer without washing. Maybe that's something that would work for you too? It's something you really have to look into, there's nothing worse than dirty hair so if your hair is oily, yes, maybe every day is what you have to go for. How's your hair like in texture these days? if it's fine than you have clearly been doing the right thing.
Hey Diogo,
The texture of my hair is normal to fine. I'll comb my hair with a wide-toothed comb after finger-combing when wet. I do not have frizz, to speak of.
Raymond
So Raymond why would you shampoo (wet)you hair that often? You're hair would be much better off if you leave it to your body to right itself on its own. When I shampoo trying to keep at the scalp level I use shampoo less than once a week more often 2 weeks. I started using Avida over a year ago. If I feel like it I use a conditioner (Avida)in the shower then Coconut oil after towel drying (hand warmed to body temp). Most often I cover my head with a shower cap or a veggie bag with my hair wound up on the top of my head. I bike a lot for exercise so I admit I take a lot of showers. Coconut Oil (used for cooking)seems to take care of split ends and breakage. Recently I started ingesting a half ounce of Cold Pressed Olive oil every morning so I am noticing my natural oils coming out faster. When I check myself out in the morning I use my fingers to wet my hair and I don't wear a pony tail my hair has about the same wave to curl and it looks and feels much better leaving it slightly damp. Sorry I couldn't help but be concerned for you.
Hey Silverthorne AKA Daniel,
No need to apologize; I want advice. We're here to help each other.
I will run a hard copy of your post.
Thanks, bro.
Raymond
Hi there!
May I ask you what maded you get the decision for cutting your hair? Parents? Job Standards? Or it was your decision to cut it and not any of those side effects?
Take care my friend!
Hello, I think I was a bit tired of the fact that long hair is not as practical as short. Short hair you wash and go.
Also, in general, short hair is perceived as more attractive on men, I guess I felt pressured by that idea and decided to go ahead and cut it. It was a mix of things I think.
I think that my true self is long-haired though so I'm growing it back. There's no telling how long I'll wear it like that, time will tell!!!
The more interesting girls go for guys with long hair anyway.
And unless its really cold you can do wash and go with long
hair too.
What does your hair look like now? Or have more pics of it long? Always cool seeing the progress.
Wow, your hair looked healthy & very thick. How long was it?