6 Tips for Long, Healthy Hair

If you're looking for absolute scientific facts about hair growth, this is not the blog post for you. If you're looking for experience and tips from someone who has personally chopped her hair off and grown it back multiple times, then this is for you. I am the queen of impulsively deciding to CHOP IT OFF. I'm also currently a licensed hairdresser with a career who has seen several clients successfully growth their hair out from short and unhealthy to long and strong. This post is based on experience alone and what I have noticed over the years. I have seen methods that work great and methods that don't seem to make a difference.

The last time I chopped my hair off was about 7 years ago, when I was in beauty school. I was going to school 8 hours a day, then going straight to JCPenney to work a minimum of 6 hours. Basically, I was getting about 4 hours of sleep a night for almost 11 months. I strongly believe that most of us (who typically have long hair) chop our hair off when we are experiencing some extreme emotional change in our life. Chopping your hair off is almost like a rebirth. When we feel like we have lost control in one or several areas of our life, it's easy to control one major part of our identity: our hair. Struggling with body image? Short hair will make me feel so different and sexy. Breakup? Short hair will show him! Sleep deprivation? Hello, scissors. I'm not saying this is always the reason, because sometimes this is genuinely a good choice. I don't hate short hair AT ALL. But, sometimes the need for change is often taken out on the length of our hair.

This blog post is meant to help anyone trying to grow their hair out again, anyone that struggles from chemical damage, or anyone who feels like their hair always stops growing at a certain point.

It shouldn't have taken me 7 years to grow my back hair out again. Luckily for you all, I was my own guinea pig and figured out what works best. Hopefully my journey will give you all insight on how to speed up the process and keep your hair healthy in the long run.

Tip #1

Slow down on the color services

-If I had chosen to maintain my hair color throughout the growth process rather than change it drastically 3 times a year (at least), It would have taken me half the amount of time to reach my goal length. It takes a tremendous amount of self control, but bleach and color are not your friend when it comes to length. Nothing stresses me out more than when a client comes in every 6 weeks asking for their hair to be as blonde as possible, and then asks me why their hair won't grow. If you are not okay with a little bit of outgrowth, you will not have long hair. Plain and simple. My clients that are patient and come in every 3 months and are okay with a little definition in their root see so much more growth than those that come in every time they see dark on their root. If you want to be incredibly blonde with no outgrowth you will have to spend a lot of money on a lot of different haircare products. Same goes for clients that come in and change their color from dark to light regularly. You will not see progress, and if you do it won't last very long. Consistency and giving your hair a break is key. Take my cousin Sophia, for example. She used to bleach her hair consistently and it wouldn't grow past her shoulders. If it did, it was broken. Once we started highlighting only the top of her hair every few months, her hair really took off. Now, if she wants to be super blonde and have super long hair it will be easy.

Tip #2

Deep condition regularly

I saw a huge difference in the health of my hair when I started deep conditioning my hair once a week. I would always preach at home hair care to my clients, but was a total hypocrite in all honesty. When I started to practice what I preached, my hair changed completely. I can tell immediately when a client comes in who regularly deep conditions their hair. Deep conditioning at home regularly keeps your hair hydrated and strong. For those of you that feel like your hair only grows to a certain length and then breaks off, this is for you. If your ends are not hydrated, it doesn't matter how fast your hair grows. If they are brittle, they will break off. Same goes for my blondes out there. Long, blonde hair needs hydration to stay long.

Tip #3

Stop cutting your hair all the damn time !!!

I think my biggest pet peeve is the rumor that "cutting your hair makes it grow." Think about it. How on Earth can cutting the ends of your hair somehow activate something in your scalp to increase hair growth? It can't. The truth is that if you never trim your hair, you will get split ends. Split ends lead to breakage. If your ends are constantly breaking off, it will never growth past a certain length. The point of trimming it semi-regularly is to get rid of split ends or extremely damaged ends that have the potential to break off. So, stop getting your hair cut every month if you want it to grow out. Get it trimmed every few months and you will see more progress.

Tip #4

Use a heat protectant

Another thing that I learned after I finally started practicing what I preach: heat protectant works. If you are someone who blow dries, straightens, and curls their hair regularly, you need a heat protectant. I suggest one for when it's wet and one for when it's dry. Just do it. Heat depletes the health of your hair. 

Tip #5

Be gentle with your hair when it's wet

I cannot stress this enough. When you get out of the shower, the worst possible thing that you can do is rip through it with a hair brush. When your hair is wet it has less elasticity, which means it is way more likely to snap off when you brush it. When you get out of the shower,  wrap it in a towel or take as much moisture out of it as possible with the towel. Once it's not dripping wet, spray a detangler or leave in conditioner. After that has had time to sit in, go with with a wet brush. These brushes are magical, trust me. They are also super affordable so you have no excuse not to use one. When brushing your hair, always start from the ends and work your way up. Be very gentle, please. For the love of God, be gentle. It physically hurts me to watch people rip a brush through their hair. I honestly don't even brush it too much when it's wet, just enough to make sure that it's not knotted. When the hair is dry I brush through it completely and smooth it out. Be nice to your hair if you want it to grow, please. 

Tip #6

Use gentle hair ties

If you struggle with breakage around your face and at the nape of your neck, the problem could be your rubber bands. If you use regular rubber bands and if you wear your hair up in a ponytail or bun regularly, your hair is constantly having friction on its' most fragile strands. Try switching to a scrunchie or something softer. I also suggest sleeping with your hair in a braid or down, never in a bun.

Side Note: Vitamins

• Vitamins are a great tool to increase the health of your hair or help with hair loss. Personally, I didn't see an increase with the speed of hair growth but I have definitely seen a difference when clients who have brittle hair have started taking them. Barefoot Blonde sent me some and they are super yummy! I also linked some on Amazon below this blog post.

I added a list of products from Amazon that will help with hair growth and health!

If you have any questions, feel free to ask!

lovelovelove,
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