Leave Your Hair Alone!

Okay...

I have been reading a TON of stuff on how to make your hair healthier and more able to grow. A few things should come from these techniques: your hair will be stronger and not break as much, it will grow a little faster, it will LOOK and FEEL healthier, it will take longer to get greasy and if you have any wave at all, it will start to curl your hair! :) Cool, huh?!

Here are some hair care tips I have learned:

1. avoid using heat as much as possible (that means hair dryers, straighteners, curling irons...etc)

2. limit your use of hot water

3. do NOT brush your hair when it is wet, wait until it is completely dry

4. limit your ponytail/updo time and take your hair down as often as you can

5. wear your hair down when you sleep

6. do not rub your hair with a towel, instead squeeze what you can out and then let it drip dry

7. only wash your hair 2 to 3 times a week

8. only condition pony tail down (only the ends of your hair NOT your roots and scalp)

9. massage head often

10. wear hats in the sun (protect it from heat)

11. avoid using hair products

12. trim regularly

13. get hot oil treatments

14. drink water

15. eat more protein

...and the list goes on.

If you would like to read more check out All Women's Talk:

30 Natural Remedies to Make Your Hair Grow Faster.

I have been working to slowly pick up these habits for my hair. See, I have really thin hair that takes a long time (compared to many) to grow. I am always shedding and my hair growth seems to be going nowhere. Well, for the past two weeks I have been doing these 17 things regularly. They have already become a habit...a good one. Have patience with me. I didn't realize that I was doing that many new things until I wrote them down on a piece of paper!

1. I wash my hair twice a week. I know, gross, right?!

It's gotten MUCH better, but for a while our hair goes through an awkward stage whenever we are trying something new. Whenever I am on that third day and it's starting to get greasy, I find my baseball cap and put it on. Simple. It's been like summer lately so it's not like I'm standing out from the crowd.

2. I ALWAYS wear my hair down when I sleep.

See, I have an awful habit of wearing a ponytail to bed. I HATE it getting in my face and on my neck, but I read that wear your hair up at night, even in a braid, can cause damage to your hair. ESPECIALLY if you are a toss 'n' turn kind of gal! I am.

3. I brush my hair only when it is completely dry.

I should have added it to the list, but I also leave it down and let it drip dry until it is completely dry. I learned that your hair is very vulnerable when it's wet, so you don't want to be exposing it to roughness or heat. Just leave it alone and let it dry.

4. I do not use heat. At all.

I do not use a blow dryer, a straightener or a curling iron. Heat damages hair.

5. I limit how much hot water I use on my hair.

Here's how it goes for me: while I am shampooing my hair I use warm water, but after a couple of minutes I use cool water. I just don't let me hair get too warm.

6. I use cool water when rinsing my conditioner out.

When I told my sister some of the things that I have been doing to make my hair healthier (and mentioning the "limit heat" rule) she told me that using cool water on my hair while conditioning is good also because it helps lock the conditioner in.

7. I limit my time wearing ponytails (or just having my hair up).

Even if it's a bad hair day, I don't need to have my hair up and under a hat ALL day. Whenever I am by myself or with someone close who doesn't care what my hair looks like, I will take my hair down and let it rest.

8. I massage my head when I shampoo.

Seriously, I just spend a couple of minutes massaging my head when I am washing my hair with shampoo.

9. I only condition ponytail down.

I was told that conditioner on your scalp is a bad thing. It's not healthy for the pores on your head. Therefore, I only condition ponytail down.


10. I rub in my conditioner.

I used to just put it in and sit there and wait 2 minutes to wash my conditioner out. Now I gently rub in the conditioner from the tips to the ponytail then leave it a minute to settle before rinsing it off.


11. I do NOT rub hair dry with a towel.

Towels are said to be too rough (cotton or other materials, actually) on your hair. I just squeeze my hair with the towel then let it drip dry.


12. I wear hats in the sun or just when my hair is dirty.

We are not supposed to allow the sun to set on our hair for too long. Heat damage. So, choose to wear a hat when outside for hours. It will protect your hair from getting too dry. I have been wearing a hat every third day of my cycle: when it's greasy, ready to be washed, but I am out and about town.


13. I wash my hair brushes.

My hair stays clean longer when my hair brush is clean.


14. I wash my pillow cases.

Same reason. My hair stays clean longer when my pillow cases are clean.


15. I don't use hair products.

This sucks, I know. Unless you can find a very good organic shampoo and conditioner, hair products are only going to further damage your hair. Research hairstyles that involve no heat and no products. There are plenty! ...and they are really cute, too! I have simply been keeping my hair down, pulling it half up, braiding it or wearing a ponytail. Simple, really.


16. I am drinking more water!

Our diet plays a huge part in our body's health. I have never been a huge water drinker. Sad, I know. However, I am challenging myself to drink water equally as much as I drink coffee and soda. When I am outdoors, I bring water with me. I am working towards gaining the habit of drinking more water on a regular basis.


17. I want to start using natural products.

Your best chance at healthy hair is using organic products. Few chemicals, and less "stuff." I haven't started this one yet, but I hope to soon. Baking soda shampoo, vinegar for stripping product build-up off, and olive oil as conditioner. Sounds crazy, right?!

My Results (after 2 weeks):

My hair feels softer, always.
I have few to zero split ends. Touching the ends, it feels like I just got a haircut.
My hair feels thicker. (My best friend said "I don't know how, but it does!")
My hair is getting wavy. Curls are starting to form. Yay!
My hair takes longer to get dirty.


This is after three days of not washing my hair. It does NOT look like I have been three days without washing my hair, if I do say so myself! It does not look too oily. Shiny? A little. It's not sticking to my head (blech!) and it looks like my hair normally does the day AFTER I wash my hair. Yay! (I don't use things like dry shampoo or baby powder. I just let my hair take it's course.)
My hair, honestly, feels a lot healthier already and it has only been two weeks!

Tell me what you think!

Blessings!

~Mrs. S