length check (june 2015)

Since I haven’t been really growing out my hair, my length checks have been going through the same pattern—I record about three inches of growth then trim it back to waist-hip length. So this time around, I wasn’t very concerned about measuring and taking digital proof before trimming. I will say that my ends keep gradually getting thicker though, and my current length is now at 27 inches.

I can’t believe how much time has passed, I’ve now had 6 Japanese straightening touch-ups, 4 from Hair IB Club. I don't have much to say about my recent visit there, everything went along fine. I am still contemplating whether to start bringing my own wide tooth comb though. And speaking of how many JHS touch-ups I've gotten now, the sodium hydroxide relaxed parts of my hair are also now at the ends, roughly making up about 1/4th of my length.

I've been asked how I measure my hair, so here I'm showing how I do it when I want to take digital proof of it's length. Because it's hard to hold the measuring tape and take a picture from my back I clip it like shown and sweep it to the side.

length check (28 1/2 inches)

LENGTH CHECK

Here comes another belated, coveted post! The last time I gave a length check, it was July and my hair was 25 1/2 inches long after getting my roots touched and giving myself a trim at home. Five months later, November 2014, I went to Hair IB to get my hair touched up again. The first thing I noticed was that my ends were much fuller than the stringy spikes that were there before the time my hair got straightened.

When I got home and measured, I was 28 1/2 inches! In five months I'd usually grow 2 inches, I got an extra inch because I was leisurely doing the GHE method the last month. The picture below is my hair right after coming home from my Japanese straightening touch-up, no trimming. Now it's completely official and I'm claiming it, my ends have recovered from the hydroxide relaxed to Japanese straightening transitioning.

Still, about a month later I decided to trim. When I said I wasn't trying to grow out my hair until my relaxed hair grows out, I meant it. I trimmed back to about 26 inches, forgot to measure and record after so I'm honestly unsure. Right now, I think the majority of my JHS hair is about 15 inches down.

length check ( & setback comeback)

LENGTH CHECK

To the right is my current length after trimming those straggly ends, this picture was just taken a day ago. As I said in my last post, "at first I self-trimmed an inch off by banding, but wasn't satisfied, and trimmed another inch and a half in the shower. (I only recommend trimming in the shower if your hair is straight or has just been permanently straightened.)" When I trimmed using that banding self-trim method, I trimmed my ends in a U/V-shape since that's how my ends have been growing lately. Also about a week ago, I dusted and did the search and destroy method on my ends outside. The weather was nice and I thought trimming outside would give me good enough lighting. But holding up my ends to the computer screen's lightening, I see I missed spots, so I plan on doing the search and destroy method again soon. I just measured, and currently I'm a little pass 25 1/2 inches.

SETBACK COMEBACK

I think it's safe to say I've made a comeback from my setback, but I think I'm going to wait until next touch-up to say whether I fully concurred my thinning ends. My ends obviously aren't thinning anymore, but their health still isn't where I want them to be. They are still noticeable unhealthier compared to the rest of my hair. And whose to say if I stop my stronger ends regimen that they will start thinning again. Below I have done my best to align pictures so you can see the improvement in my ends. The second picture I added lines so the differences are more noticeable.

I'm very pleased with the improvement. I feel the biggest contributors in my comeback have been combing only on wash day, protein layering, protective styling, and doing the search and destroy method. I've also now passed my goal of blunt full ends at waist length, which is now at 23 1/2 inches on me. 

hair updates

GROWTH EXAMS

My life being busy the last couple months, I unfortunately discontinued the growth exams, sorry guys... plus, I kinda already had a bad start with it. I’m also going to take a break, and won’t be doing a season 3 right away. I might still use growth aids or practices now and then, but it probably won't be with proper recording.

STRONGER ENDS REGIMEN

I've been keeping up with my protein layering and stronger ends regimen, but adjusted it slightly to be more on the safe side. Instead of using protein every other week, like the protein laying pic shown above, I was doing it more every two washes. sometimes three. I feel my hair has benefited with it and will continue to use this regimen for more even strength throughout the hair strand. To protect and baby my transitioning relaxed ends, I had also incorporated other things in my regimen, which can be find listed at the bottom of this post. Despite my hair laziness the past couple months, I successfully added most of these practices, all but the ghe method, leave-in steaming, and continuing to test growth aids. My ends still need tlc as they grow out, but my efforts so far are showing.

TOUCH UP AT HAIR IB 

Two weeks ago, June 18, I went to Hair IB Club to get a touch-up. This was my second time going to this salon. This time, instead of getting the japanese brazilian straightening , I got the normal japanese straightening. I decided not to do the JBS because I didn't feel like the extra cash was worth it. And though I had no noticeable adverse effects, I'm also still not perfectly sure how I feel about the absence of neutralizer lotion in the process. It seems like a good idea, but I like to fully understand the science behind what's happening on my head, and there's holes in my understanding of JBS.

With my second Hair IB experience, I have updated pros and cons about the salon. One, is that the salon apparently does not use protection cream. The first time I interviewed them and asked they said they did, but apparently we had a misunderstanding. The protection cream they were talking about was an extra solution they mix into the Japanese straightener for $10-20 more. This caught me off guard when I was at the salon for my touch-up, as I've been very cautious of my ends. Was all the tlc I was giving them going to be ruined in one day? I asked them if they could put conditioner on my already treated hair to create a barrier, and if they could lift it up my hair and wash the roots out exclusively first to keep the JHS from rinsing into my ends. They did, but my ends still took a toll. nothing significant like disintegrating, but noticeable damage I would have to trim (I would have to trim off my thin ends anyway) and work back to health. This makes the salon lose a few points, next time I'm going to see if I can bring in my jar of protection cream.

On another note, in addition to adding their 'protection cream' into the Japanese straightener, they used a weaker JHS formula on my roots. I'm not sure whether to consider this a positive or negative however, since this made my processing time double. The stylist said this was fine, but unless I'm given a good explanation to back things up, I'm hesitant to wholeheartedly believe. The last thing that was different this second visit, was that my hair didn't end up stick- pin- dead straight like last time, and actually had some volume. This was likely from only doing a Japanese straightening touch-up, and not getting the JBS. I liked how my hair tuned out more this time. If I'm recalling properly, my hair also didn't feel as dry as last time.

LENGTH MEASUREMENT

Above is a picture of my hair, right after my touch-up and before I trimmed at home. As you can see the ends are stringy, but the hair that's growing out is thickening nicely. At first I self-trimmed an inch off by banding, but wasn't satisfied, and trimmed another inch and a half in the shower. I only recommend trimming in the shower if your hair is straight or has just been straightened. I haven't taken an after trim picture yet, but I measured after, and if memory is right I'm currently 25 inches. Remember, I'm currently not growing my hair out, and plan to keep my ends in the same area until my relaxer fully grows out.

growth aid exam (2nd session) update

EXAM UPDATE

I meant to update on this a month ago, sorry for the wait.

And not only am I late, but I didn't do all the things I should have this round. For example, I didn't take pictures along with my measurement recordings this time, so I have no real evidence for my skeptical audience. When I realized I've been forgetting to take pictures, in the back of my mind I thought "Well, it's okay, since I'm not going to trim my hair until exam season is over."

 ... ...I also broke my promise and trimmed my hair. I've been a bad girl. Bad Yahya.

I trimmed because I measured badly and panicked. Usually when I measure, I measure about 3 times for accuracy. Having new growth and uneven ends can make measuring tricky. Well, I measured once and I was getting a result saying I lost two inch. I panicked, wasn't thinking measuring again more carefully to confirm, and did a nice thorough trim. I measured again... and it was an inch longer then what I had just measured...

Yeah, I messed up. But I'm kinda glad that I trimmed because my ends feel a lot thicker.

4/12/14, New growth after scarf method. Varies from 2-4 inches,
which implies that the growth methods I've used don't affect my entire scalp.

GRADINGS

 january 15 to 21 - Did the inversion method for 1 week, this time doing the hot oil and washing parts to see if there would be a difference in growth. Last time I measured, which was around the end of December, my hair was measuring 24 inches. After trying the inversion method with the hot oil and washing parts, I was measuring 25 inches. Excluding my normal growth rate, that's an extra 1-2 cm of growth. So I didn't see any dramatic change compared to doing the inversion alone.
january 22 to 28 - Did the inversion method again for 1 week, this time without the hot oil and washing parts. There are girls out there who can do the inversion method without experiencing degrading results. I was testing to see if I was one of these lucky girls. Sadly, I'm not. I saw no growth.
january 31 to february 28 - Applied a sulfur mix to my scalp and did the green house effect method every other day. I measured 27 inches, 2 inches in 5 weeks (4 weeks of application). The growth also appeared to come out thicker.
march 1 to 7 - Did the inversion method, ghe method, and sulfur mix for 1 week. I didn't see the results of this because this is when I measured badly and trimmed my hair. I mis-measured to 25 inches, trimmed, and then measured 26 inches.

I didn't do anything after, because I was entering mid term period. Currently, I just started applying sulfur mixes alone. My recipe and results will be continued another time.

hair length charts

LENGTH LABELS

Today, lets talk about describing hair length! Most of us know those basic labels: neck length, shoulder length, bra strap length, etc. It sounds simple and straight forward, but people do often get confused when trying to figure out what length they should currently claim. This is especially true as your hair gets longer, because the labels get more vague. For example, where exactly does your waist and hip start? And with some people, like me, waist and hip length are only an inch away from each other. So I'm going to break it down further, giving these labels more detailed descriptions.

• ear length - From touching your ears to above your chin, a boyish cut.
• chin length - Starts at your chin, this length is usually a bob. 
• neck length - Starts in the middle of your neck.
• shoulder length - Not just above your shoulders and not just pass your shoulders, it starts where your hair touches your shoulders. You might be thinking this one is straight forward, starts at your shoulders, but I see a lot of unsure people ask about this one.
• arm pit length - Starts at the top of your, er, armpit's crease.
• bra strap length - Now this one gets questioned a lot, too. Bra strap length starts on the top of your strap. Who and why someone came up with using a bra as an indicator instead of a body part is beyond me.
• mid back length - Is usually right below a standard bra strap. It more accurately starts in the middle of your back. To be accurate, measure your back from your shoulders to tailbone, then take away the bottom half.
• waist length - Starts at the smallest part of your waist, this can be very varying from person to person.
• hip length - Hip length starts at the hip bone, but many don't know where the hip bone is and it's hard to describe. It's kinda where it looks like your legs start. Here's a slightly erotic picture to get a better idea.
  
• tail bone length - This one also confuses people. It's usually located around the middle of your hips. If humans had tails, this is where they'd grow out of. More specifically this location is located... well, right above our butt... cracks...
• classic length- This length is half your height, so measure yourself, subtract the bottom half, and this is where your classic length starts.
• mid thigh length - You can usually tell by just looking, but if you want to be accurate, bend your leg, measure your thigh, again subtract the half from below, and that is where it starts.
• knee length - Where your hair starts to touch your knee
• calf length - Starts in the middle of your calf, just like thigh length.
• ankle (fairytale) length - Where your hair starts to touch your ankles.
• floor length - Starts on the floor. (I get the mental image of your hair becoming like a broom.)

 CHART COMPARISON

Some people have their slightly different definitions, but I find these to be the accurate ones that must girls agree upon. You can even see the mix up in hair length labels from looking at charts. Test yourself! See if you can tell why each chart is right or wrong.

(Very accurate!)

(A little misleading.)

(Wrong...)

When talking about hair labels, it's always important to keep in mind everyone has different body proportions. Just because you have the same length label with someone doesn't mean you have the same length in measurement.

growth aid exams (2nd session)

Wow, a short post!

January fifteenth Longnheathy's 6 inches in 6 challenge started and I began testing growth aids once again. I started doing the inversion method, along with the hot olive oil and scalp cleansing part. Instead of shampooing I'm planning on cowashing and using amla powder on my scalp. I want to accurately see if doing all the parts of the inversion method creates better results. Last time I tried to test this, I ended up incorporating the GHE method with it so it didn't count. Next week I plan to continue doing the inversion method to see if my head gets use to it and the results degrade. It's recommended that you only do the inversion method for a week once a month because many find the increased growth rate stops. Some lucky girls, however, find that their results don't decrease or stop.

Like I said in my last post, I don't plan on trimming my ends but am going to see if growing it out and protective styling makes a difference. I hate stringy ends. When I see a picture of another girl with really long hair, but stringy ends, I think it's okay, yet I can't stand it on myself. But since I'm going to keep my hair tied up, it shouldn't bother me as much.

growth aid exams (end of 1st session)

EXAM UPDATE 2

With the end of 2013 was also the end of the Hairlista challenge I was participating in, the 6 inches in 6 months challenge. I chose to follow the challenge because I would be testing my growth aids during a similar time frame. I did actually make the six inches, about 6 1/2 inches, but my goal wasn't exactly length and I would trim my hair after testing each growth practice. To see the first half of my documented growth, visit this post. So how did I continue after September?   

september 3 - Almost measured 29 inches, but the ends grew out straggly again. I trimmed more thoroughly this time and accidentally trimmed to 25 inches 1 cm, but I didn't really mind it. I started testing bamboo tea in conjunction with the ghe method. I drank the tea once a day, sometimes twice.
october 1 - I strangely saw no growth. Like how your head can get use to the inversion, did my head get use to the ghe? I decided to stop doing the ghe method after one more week, to see if I'd get the results it usually gave me after a break. I also considered that I might not have given the bamboo tea enough time to kick in.
october 3 - I started doing the inversion method, this time keeping it closer to the book by doing hot oil treatments and cleansing my scalp. Last time I only inverted my head everyday for about 5 minutes.
october 10 - I measured about an extra 1 1/2 to 2 inches of growth, now I was a stringy 27 inches again. The next day I decided to try taking bamboo tea alone for a month, but I discontinued a week and a half in and saw no results.

When I did the inversion last time and only inverted my head, ignoring the washing and hot oil part, I only got 1-2 cm of growth. I'm not sure if doing the extra parts gave me the better results though, as I did the ghe method twice during the week. Did the ghe suddenly start working again? 

SCALP ONLY CLEANSING

I said before it's not good for girls with afro textured hair to wash their hair with shampoo everyday, it's too drying, and our scalps tend to not get oily quick anyway. This is why we often skip this part of the inversion method. This might be one of the reasons girls with straighter hair textures tend to see better results. So how did I incorporate the scalp washing part of this method? Well, I actually tried a variety of things that didn't work until I finally found one that did.

The significance of the wash step in the inversion method is that your scalp gets cleaned, cleaning your hair has nothing to do with it. How can I clean my scalp and not my hair? First I tried to make a homemade dry shampoo with only natural ingredients like lemon juice, aloe vera, and apple cider vinegar. It might have worked if it only had to clean my natural sebum and not the olive oil from the hot oil step of the inversion. I tried to change the recipe around, but sometimes it seemed to only be making the scalp situation oilier. Now I know why oily scalp girls can't help but wash their hair often, it really did not feel good. I'd rinse my hair after every failed attempt. Eventually I decided to just make a shikakai and amla tea and only apply it on my scalp with my roots-only applicator bottle. After at least a half hour I'd hit the shower and semi-wash my hair like a cowash. This method worked much better, and is something I'll continue to practice.

BAMBOO TEA EXPERIENCES

 I tested bamboo tea for about 5 weeks and sadly saw no results. It's suppose to be one of the greatest sources of silica. I'm a tea person, so a growth aid in tea form would have been a perfect match for me. Some girls who took it noted a faster growth rate, healthier new growth, and a looser curl pattern. People also like it because it actually has an okay taste compared to other hair growth sustenance, With sugar added, it tasted kinda like diluted green tea with a little bamboo flavor. Sadly, I didn't get any of those results but it is possible I didn't stay with it long enough to enter my system. I'm done with it for now but may test it again in the future. Also a note for those who plan to try it, it's very potent. You can use one bag twice. but don't be stupid like me, I ordered 30 tea bags and after using one I stored it in a container in the fridge. Instead of using it again the next day, I used and stored all of them in the container, planning to reuse them all again after I ran out of new bags. It would have made more sense to use one bag for two days. bamboo tea is expensive and that's a good way of extending it's life. The way I did it could have worked, but storing tea bags is tricky. If the container you keep them in isn't sealed properly the tea bags absorb the smells of the food in the fridge. This was why I was not able to reuse them like I planned and discontinued testing them in October.

END OF FIRST SESSION

I've been taking a break from my growth aid exams, but don't fret. I'll be testing again mid-January with the start of 6 inches in 6 months round 2. My goal during this growth aid testing was to gain thicker, fuller ends. Did I reach my goal? Not really... yes, I said not really, and I'll be explaining why soon.  

the inversion method (1 inch in 1 week)

BIRTHPLACE

The inversion is the newest hair growth method that's been circulating the hair care world. Its internet origin started on this video by youtuber LillianaLovesMakeup. And from here, the method began to spread through youtube.

I don't know who eventually named it the inversion method, but I'm 95 percent sure it was when it started circulating in the black hair care community. the method was then introduced to a couple hair care forums by user Barbara, who created challenges aiming for 1 inch in 1 week doing the inversion. This is when I first learned about the method. as explained in the video, the original method follows these steps: apply heated extra virgin olive oil on your scalp, let sit for about 2 hours, do the inversion for about 5 minutes, and wash hair; repeat for 7 days and start again in a month. The problem is, for girls with kinkier hair texture, washing your hair everyday is drying. so many girls in the afro hair care community skip this step or just rinse the oil out. Also, most girls don't use olive oil but other oils.

MY EXPERIENCE, SO FAR

In my growth aid exams update, I mentioned that when I did the inversion alone I only got 1-2 centimeters in a week, but then got 2 inches in one week when I did the inversion method along with the GHE method. I posted the before & after pictures there, too. how did I do the inversion method? All I did was lay on my back on a bed or couch and dangle my head for 4 to 5 minutes while watching TV. Just to be safe, after the time was up, I would slide my head back on the bed and lay on my back for another minute before getting up completely. it's almost too simple. I didn't even do a hot oil treatment on my scalp or wash my hair after, I washed once a week like usual. Being able to get so much growth with such easy practices like this and the GHE method, growth just seems so easy to get now.

(...did this cat notice extra fur on his/her scalp?)

SORTA SCIENCE

For some reason, girls of European descent tend to get more than just an inch using this method. they commonly get 2 to 4 inches of growth. (No far!) I'm the only kinky haired person I know that got 2 inches using the method, but that was in combination with the GHE method. This brings out my curiosity. Why do they get better growth? Is it because they are thoroughly cleansing their scalps after? Does it have something to do with sticking to olive oil? Is it because girls of european descent tend to have oilier scalps? When I did this along with the ghe method I got 2 inches of growth, did doing the GHE method imitate an oily scalp? There has to be some missing factor kinkier haired girls don't or do have that changes the outcome. or does it have to do with some physical difference between kinky and straight haired scalps, like our follicles, that can't be changed?

During my growth aid exams, I'll be trying to do the inversion methods in different ways to see if I get an improvement. Sadly I can only do it once a month. You're only suppose to do this once a month because, apparently, your body gets use to the increased blood circulation from the inversion. It isn't a shock anymore and your growth rate no longer increases. So be patient with me.

CAUTION!

• Be careful coming out of the inversion position, especially if you're older. I've noticed that it's the older adults that sometimes comment about getting dizzy. If you feel light headed, slowly come out of the position.  
• Do not attempt the inversion if you're pregnant.
• Do not attempt inversion if you have high blood pressure, heart problems, or any kind of blood related conditions.

For those of you who have a problem doing the inversion position, there's an alternative position you can try. One girl on hairlista's inversion challenge did this and saw some extra growth. Whether this works as good as the real inversion method position, I'm not sure. The alternate position: lay on your back with your legs elevated like in the picture. This position also increases the head's blood circulation. 

the green house effect (GHE) method

WHAT'S THE GHE?

In my last post about how I tripled and then octupled my hair growth rate, I said that the GHE method was the main factor in my growth increase (followed by the inversion method). For those of you who don't know, the GHE method is simply keeping your hair in a plastic cap over night. It's advised to do this no more than every other night and at least once a week. You can follow the plastic cap with a scarf to secure it or another cap to increase the effect. Or, if your relaxed and want to preserve your style you can put on a scarf before the plastic cap.

The GHE method originated from the Real Queens Regimen. The method creates a steam like effect on your hair and scalp. When we put a plastic cap on for an hour to deep condition, our body's temperature naturally heats the environment trapped in the plastic. GHEing uses the same idea, the reason for its name. So isn't that just baggying your whole head? Yes and no. The difference with the GHE method is that the main focus is on the scalp. Though you can, you don't have to apply anything on your hair or scalp before doing the GHE method. The aim is to put your head in a steamy environment for 6-8 hours. Oil or leave-in is optional, though I would advice only using a little. You can get a moisture overload if your not careful. Plus, your scalp and hair is going to be moist after using the method whether you used product with it or not. The steam effect increases blood circulation and aids sebum flow, increasing your growth rate and length retention. 

For the past two years, I had been getting random growth spurts but didn't know who to credit it for as I had been doing multiple things at the same time. Finally I can give rightful credit to the GHE method!

✂

HAIR SCIENCE (SEMI-RANT)

I remember on a popular hair care forum, there was a girl that started a GHE method challenge, claiming you can double or triple your normal growth rate. This was my first time encountering the method and I participated in the challenge for a short while (but stopped for a reason I can't remember). I remember in the challenge thread, she was given a hard time from older, 'more knowledgeable,' forum users who where trying to tell us that the GHE method is not going to triple, or even double, our growth rate and the minor increased growth people see is retained length. 

I understand that they were trying to enlighten us and didn't want us to try something supposedly guide-less to end up disappointed. This, however, isn't a good mindset to keep when on a hair care journey. Whether your a novice or have been a healthy hair journey girl for years, we have to remember that we're not real scientists when regarding hair (well, there might be a couple out there but I'm generalizing). We can test things, analyze, and record, but we can't know exactly why we see the outcomes we get unless its been scientifically proven. We can make educated, logical guesses, but in the end they are guesses, not fact. I think that we do these 'experiments' so much that we forget we're not real scientists. The older forum users argued that growth rate can only increase through increased blood circulation and keeping your scalp clean. These, as far as we currently know, is true. From what I remember, I agreed, but brought to the table that the GHE method can be increasing blood circulation due to the heat it creates. No one would counter this point, yet still kept their strong opinions. 

The point is, it's better to test something and then come up with an explanation, not the other way around. This is stuff we learned in elementary school: the scientific method. When we make a prediction and explanation it's called a hypothesis because it's only supported by the information we think is true, not reality. After we perform the experiment we have a better touch with reality and can come up with a better explanation--the conclusion. Our previous hypothesis might have been right or wrong, and if wrong we have to adjust our thinking. This is why healthy hair journey girls, especially those who have been on their path for a long time and develop egos (it's hard not to develop one! but there's a difference between ego and confidence) should always remember to stay open minded. None of us, whether we have been on our journey for 1 year or 30 years, know everything regarding hair. If we make a hypothesis (or pre-conclusion?) that something won't work and therefore we won't test it and tell other people not to test it, we can cause ourselves and others to miss out on tripling their growth. A journey is all about trial and error. Unless we have fear that something can negatively effect us, experiment. 

That's kinda the whole point in me doing these growth aid exams. 

✂

MY EXPERIMENT'S CONCLUSION

So why does the GHE method work? I have a couple reasons why. But remember I, and generally no one in our healthy hair journey community, is a scientist in this area. What we tell you are educated guesses from our own research and logic. The educated explanations I list might all be true, only one or two might hit the mark, or the reason might be something completely different. But I'm sure it's at least one of these reasons. 

Increased sebum flow helps length retention. This might be a factor, but is differently not the prime suspect. To say that the GHE method only helps retain length is to say that I, and all the other girls that doubled or tripled their growth rate doing it, has an average growth rate of 1 or 2 inches a month. This is very very unlikely. The average growth rate is 1/2 an inch a month and my normal growth rate is 1/2 an inch every 5 weeks. And what makes this even more unlikely is that it suggests that when I don't do the GHE method I'm only retaining 1/4 of my normal growth rate. With the zero to minimum breakage I usually get, that's impossible.

Heated environment increases blood circulation. This is a more likely the reason for the increased growth rate. Our scalp is the most difficult place for our blood to circulate because the blood has to move upwards, to the top floor. Remember our follicles, not our hair, are alive. A good blood circulation means our follicles are receiving their proper nutrients, proper nutrients equal healthy follicles, and healthy follicles equals a good hair harvest.

Sebum has a naturally low pH, resulting in a healthier scalp conditions. Our sebum has a natural pH of 4.5-5.5, pretty much the same pH as our hair. (Note oils don't have a pH. Sebum is oily, but it contains water, and so a pH.) Keeping your scalp at a low pH keeps it healthy and protects our scalp from bacteria and fungus. I'm not sure, however, if it destroys the same type of fungus that grows in our sebum and minimizes our growth rate (this is how applying sulfur/oil mixes increase growth rate, it destroys these type of bacteria).

Steaming removes toxins. Though currently it's debated whether this is true. But if true, just like when we sweat the rest of our body supposedly detoxifies, the same would go for our scalp. A healthy clean scalp and healthy conditioned hair equals growth. Sweating cleanses, but then the sweat/sebum stays there on top the scalp unless we wash it off.  During my growth exams I might try cleaning my scalp after and see if there's a change in results. Though if I see an increase in growth rate, it might be because I'm unclogging my pores.

growth aid exams update ( I octupled my growth! )

EXAM UPDATE

It's the end of summer (noo! I start classes tomorrow!) and I have growth updates to share! If you didn't read my first growth aid exams post talking about how I'll be testing growth aids, click here. Here's a little recap, too:  for the past years I've been getting random hair growth spurts and didn't know what to contribute it to. After doing a crazy growth overload challenge and getting 3 inches in 3 months without knowing what to credit, I had decided to test my growth aids and practices and make proper recordings. Hence beginning this growth aid exams sequence.

 I've finally discovered what was increasing my hair growth during the crazy growth overload challenge: the green house effect method. I'm so happy I finally unlocked the secret to my random growth spurts! And it's something as easy as the GHE method.

I have not been paying attention to my planned testing schedule made in the previous post at all, and have completely been doing my own thing. This is also just an update and not the end of growth aid exams, I'm extending it beyond summer.  My goal right now is to thicken my ends rather than grow it out right now, so I've been trimming my straggly ends after each recording.

I TRIPLED MY GROWTH ...AND THEN I OCTUPLED IT!

Here is a list of dates recording when I started what growth aid, the results, and my length after a trimmed.

june 2 - after Japanese straightening I trimmed hair to 25 inches
june 20 - started cayenne pepper oil
july 18 - sadly I saw no extra growth at all with cayenne pepper oil, it seems to work for other girls though
july 19 - started inversion method with about 25 1/2 inches
july 25 - finished inversion method with a thin 26 inches (gained 1-2 cm of growth)
july 26 - started ghe method
august 7 - measured about an extra 1-2 cm of growth, 26 inches 1 cm.
august 26 - measured 27 1/2 to 28 inches, but it grew out very thin so I just clipped off the straggly ends to 27 inches. started ghe & inversion method.
september 3, today - almost measured 29 inches, but the ends grew out straggly again. I trimmed more thoroughly this time and accidentally trimmed to 25 inches 1 cm, but I don't really mind it. especially now that I know the key to growing my hair faster! I'll be starting bamboo tea in conjunction with the ghe method today.

Here are some pictures, sorry that I didn't take a picture for everything.

I'm pretty sure I've said it before, going to say it again, my ends have been growing out thin after being handicapped by a protein overload about a year ago now. It is also possible that these growth practices are only affecting parts of my scalp, but I'm 70 percent sure it's the former reason.

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So what exactly is the ghe and inversion method? Learn more here and here:
the green house effect method
the inversion method

growth aid exams ( how much growth will I get? )

MEASURING

summer is a time for testing growth aids!

lately when I use growth aids I've been using more than one and so am unable to know what is really contributing to my growth. for example, in my crazy growth overload challenge I got an inch a month, but did not know what was contributing to it. so since it's summer and I have more free time I will be taking advantage of it by testing and recording my growth aids separately, one at a time. I've already experimented with taking zinc supplements for 3 weeks. taking zinc was what I thought contributed to my rapid increase in growth in my recent growth challenge, but surprisingly I did not notice any increased growth rate. I might test it again in the future, but not this summer.

so here is my planned testing schedule (most of them are 3 week long periods):

• june 20 - july 4 ) cayenne pepper
• july 7 - 14 ) inversion method
• july 15 - 29) bamboo tea
• july 30 - august 13 ) sulfur mn mix
• august 14 - sept 4 ) green house effect method & natural dry shampoo
• september 5 - 15 ) cowash, oil rinse, & no manipulation

another reason I'm choosing summer is because hair usually grows a little more in summer weather. hair grows better in warmer seasons because cell division, the cause of hair growth, increases due to increased circulation.
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listed here are my updated growth exam posts
update 1
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CAYENNE PEPPER

cayenne pepper oil is known to work as a growth aid by increasing the scalp's circulation. there are two chemicals found in the pepper that are thought to contribute to this: capsaicin and quercetin. capsaicin stimulates the follicles, while quercetin brings blood flow to the scalp. girls who have tried it report tingling/burning sensations when they use it, while others report barely feeling anything. most times that I have used my cayenne pepper oil, I also barely feel anything. from what I've read, however, whether you feel stimulation or not the cayenne pepper is still working. this is most likely because the increase in circulation is actually due to the two chemicals present in the pepper and not just the tingling. this looks like a great option if you're too lazy to massage your scalp to increase blood flow like me!

there are some bad reports about very itchy scalps by some healthy hair journey girls, but these reports seem to be from girls who used it too often or were allergic. some people let it sit on their scalp for a week, crazy people that like to live life on the edge! sorry bungee jumpers out there, but I'm pretty sure-footed. to be safe I use it before washing, usually while I prepoo/hot oil. I haven't had any bad reactions.

I've already used it a week ago and had it on my scalp for about 30-60 minutes before washing. I'll be applying again after posting this and will be letting it sit overnight since I haven't noticed much burning, or even tingling all the times I've used this. the oil mix I've used until now was very simple, just cayenne pepper powder and olive oil. but tonight I'm going to add a little more to give it a boost.

MY RECIPE

1 CUP olive oil

2 TBSP cayenne pepper

5 DROPS peppermint oil (optional)

1 TBSP jamacian black castor oil (optional)

note that after mixing your vegetable oil and pepper powder you have to let it sit for a week for it to fully infuse. though I use olive oil, any vegetable oil can be used. I good idea would probably be to use castor oil as the base as it's a growth aid by itself. the cayenne pepper will act as a catalyst, helping the castor oil penetrate the scalp better. if I notice an increase in growth, in the future I'll probably try cayenne pepper powder mixed with jamacian black castor oil. but for now, it's just a tablespoon. 

crazy growth overload!

this is a recording of my hair growth for the past several months. recently I was participating in a hair growth challenge, well actually, I started it rather then being just a participant! it started the first of january and ended the last day of march, lasting 3 months. it was called 'The Super Ultra Crazy Growth Overload Challenge,' awesome name right? each participant had to do a certain number of hair growth practices, as the goal was to reach 3 inches in 3 months. for those of you who don't know, the average growth rate is 1/2 an inch per month.

when I started my hair length was 25 inches, reaching waist length. and my usual growth rate is 1/2 an inch every 5 weeks. on february 10, however, I measured my hair and it had reached to 26 inches. in 5 weeks! and double my normal growth! my hair didn't grow evenly though, but it still looked acceptable.

usually my hair grows pretty evenly, but it's been handicapped due to the protein overload I went through about half a year ago. usually girls that go through this lose a lot of inches, I'm just grateful I only lost one inch of predicted growth.  I didn't lose any inches I already had, my hair still grew!

although my end were evened out after a little trim, the thickness in my ends were gone. you can see how my hair looked below...



and the regimen I followed that lead me to gaining an inch was...

• use sulfur/jbco (jamacian black castor oil) mix twice a week
• mini scalp massage after applying growth aids
• use cayenne pepper oil 30 minutes before washing
• wash/co-wash every once a week
• bun whenever at home and baggy for at least an hour
• ghe method (green house effect) two times overnight
• dust hair once a month 
• daily multivitamin, garlic, fish oil, and zinc supplements

as it became the middle of my semester, however, I started slacking on this schedule. the only things I continued doing was dusting, taking my supplements, bunning, and sometimes using cayenne pepper (I would forget x p). but somehow, when I measured my hair on the last week of the challenge, my longest hairs reached to 28 inches. that was a big surprise as I wasn't even following my regimen anymore. I had gained an inch and a half in 7 weeks! my hypothesis is that it was the zinc. looking it up, zinc is suppose to benefit hair growth, but I never see many health hair journey girls talk about it. I'll be testing this soon though, by using just zinc and seeing if I see a difference.

by the end of the challenge, my ends were so stringy I trimmed an inch, but accidently trimmed two off. oops, oh well. my hair needed it though. so currently I'm back to 26 inches, with 3 inches of new growth. the picture right above is the same as the one with the purple shirt below, but I stretch my hair out so you can see the length better as my hair wasn't perfectly straight. because my hair isn't flat ironed like in the first collage, you can notice my thin ends better.