By Jc of The Natural Haven Bloom
Does your hair appear to be stuck or stagnant at a particular length? Some people with natural hair can continuously gain length but for others it can be tricky. A hair plateau is basically a point where your hair breaks at the same rate as it is growing. The length therefore appears static and this leads some people to incorrectly say ‘my hair is not growing’.
Getting over hair plateaus requires some understanding of your hair. There is no straight forward and simple route for everyone, the real remedy lies in finding out why your hair is breaking. This is my experience and observation:
1. Necklength Plateau (4-6 inches)
It may seem quite odd to some but for hair that has a lot of kinks or hair with small curls, the fact is a necklength plateau is very possible even with the most gentle care. The reason is that the curls are very small and the kinks within the hair add continuous points of stress which break with handling. My observation is that neck length plateaus tend to be related to combing and brushing.
People with thicker hair strands (individual) tend to fair quite well with gentle combing but if a fine tooth comb is used, then breakage can arise. For some, changing from dry combing to conditioner combing is a remedy rather than changing from a fine comb to a wide comb.
However, for fine and kinky hair, combing and brushing is sometimes just not an option. Some naturals can only progress from a necklength plateau by eliminating combing and brushing. The finger detangling method is indeed slow and painstaking for some but is a guaranteed way to ensure that the comb does not rip through the complex tangles in kinky hair. Feeling these tangles out with fingers is usually ideal.
The general measure I would use to determine whether combing is suitable to your hair is to first finger detangle your hair and follow up with a wide tooth comb. If the comb persistently gets stuck in your hair and you cannot run the comb from root to tip AFTER detangling, then combing is probably not something your hair likes.
2. Midlength plateaus (shoulder to armpit length – 9-12 inches)
If you got over an early plateau or were lucky enough never to have one, it is still possible to experience another stagnant phase. Some naturals spend ages at shoulder to armpit length when they would like their hair to grow longer. My observation is that mid length plateaus tend to be related to styling and/or trimming schedules.
Protective styling is a guaranteed method to get over plateaus. However the protective styling method has to be productive. This means it has to reduce knots, tangling, splitting, breakage due to handling and importantly you must not lose hair when undoing the style. Not all protective styles are suitable for everybody. For example, if your hair easily tangles up when free, a bun which is considered a protective style may not be suitable for you. If your hair easily untwists or strands tend to mesh when twisted, then a twist style which is considered protective may not be for you. If you are not patient enough to take down minibraids, then this style is not ideal for getting over a plateau. The bottom line is that you must pick a protective style that you can keep for a significant time (3-4 weeks) and rest your hair for a few days in between before reinstalling the style. Make sure it is a productive protective style.
In regards to trimming, you have to bear in mind that hair at 12 inches is old. It is 2-3 years old depending on your growth rate. The cuticle layers gradually deplete and this is what causes split ends to form. If you find several split ends on your hair, the answer to your plateau problems may lie in establishing a trimming routine. This can mean a search and destroy where you find and cut split ends only or a regular cut every few months . Ideally you should not need to cut your hair more often than once every 2-3 months. If you are exceeding this level then you need to look at ways to protect your ends (See protective styling above).
3. Hair strengthening
For some naturals products and routines make a real difference to hair and help them either get over or not experience plateaus. As always, there is no set formula, the guide for what you use to strengthen your hair is what your hair itself responds to. This is what I have observed from natural blogs,vlogs and forums
- alternating with a protein conditioner or adding hydrolysed protein to conditioner (for others though eliminating protein is useful when they find that it makes their hair hard/stiff and therefore easier to break)
- using a preconditioning step to protect hair while it is washed
- washing hair in braids or twists or using section clips (i.e making hair more manageable when washing, reducing shrinkage and therefore possible knotting)
- choosing to either deep condition or to eliminate deep conditioning (for some, deep conditioning is a must and users say that it makes hair softer and more manageable, for others it makes no difference and is unnecessary time spent with wet hair).
- stretching hair gently (i.e using twists, braids etc to stop the full effects of shrinkage and therefore reducing tangling and knotting).
Ladies, how do you get over hair length and strength plateaus?
This is a sign that I need to go back to my protective styles. I’ve been trying to do the Cg method; and while I don’t use silicones, sulfates, etc., I don’t like wearing my hair down. Yup, back to those trusty twists and braids until I get over this plateau and my hair is on my waist!
I don;t think I’ve ever had a growth plateau. With that said, some of the techniques in this article help me lessen tangles/breakage and increase length retention–finger-combing/pre-conditioning,
washing hair twists.
Like many have already said, I think an important factor is knowing what your hair likes and doesn’t like, which can be very hard if you are a new natural or used to a certain routine. I have about the average growth rate, but my very fine, 4b, CBL, coils and curls make it appear as though no growth has occurred! Also I get tons of ssk… I’m like the queen of those bad boys lol! I tend to have my hair in protective styles the majority of the time i.e. kinky twist extensions.. but a few weeks back I was missing my hair so much that i took out my twists and for 3 weeks wore my hair naturally. I know it sounds ridiculous, but 3 weeks was a milestone for me and I was so proud. But I learned a few hard lessons during those weeks. For instance, although I don’t use heat and I finger detangle 99% of the time, I was getting crazy knots and breakage cause my hair DOES NOT like being in a braid out, twist out or any out hahaha. Although I loved the look (and compliments from this, that and the next were gasin’ my head up lol) and I was rocking my styles with confidence I’d never had before in my life, I realized that for the sake of the journey I’m on and trying to achieve healthy, strong and yes long hair, I need to wear my hair in braid or twist extensions. CO-washing and washing my hair (when out) in 8 to 10 twists is very integral to my hair staying on my head lol. That’s just me! For many women, wearing our hair out is a “treat” so don’t feel less natural cause you know you achieve growth when your hair is in a weave or braids or twists. There are so many factors that aid or inhibit growth and what we did with our hair when it was 3 inches long may not work when it’s 10 inches long. Natural hair is definitely a patience lifestyle. Best of luck to everyone at overcoming plateaus!
my hair just sucks at growing :( . i am trying to hold on but this twa has major shikage
Just stick it out — you just started. I assure you it is growing. Don’t despair, it is only the 1st year phase, we all went through it ;) In a year you will look back and be like…’Wow! I guess it really was growing, despite the general appearance.’ Just mark my words.
can someone suggest help for me in finding a good routine to get past APL with no setbacks this time? i tried doing a minitwist regimen. which was going good at first for about a week and a half. i was aiming for two weeks. but i kept finding that my frontmost hairs, which hang straight due to heat damage, would not stay in the twists, so i’d constantly have to redo them several times a day, whereas my hair in back would not unravel. eventually i gave up and took those down. i don’t think i have patience enough for minibraids. i tried, and it took a lotta concentration for me to take the few i’d managed to install back down. i couldn’t imagine putting my whole head through that. and buns. they do work…so i guess i could bun. but i guess i’m mainly looking for style suggestions that would work with my hair. i’ve noticed that rolling styles and bantu knotouts don’t work because they curl my ends, which makes them more prone to tangling. and i like twists but whenever i wear my hair out (unless curlformed or flat ironed) my hair, without fail, tangles. so i guess out styles are out, unless you have a method for conquering this irritating aspect of my hair. the only time outstyles don’t promote tangling is when i comb my hair dry. but that’s out because that action in and of itself promotes breakage. so i’m really just frustrated. so far i think i’ve found something that has worked today. that is twisting my hair in like 10-12 chunky twists and styling the twists as though my hair is loose. i’ve put those into two micky mouse buns on my head, and i like it. does anyone have any other ideas? leaving my hair in the twists so far has reduced manipulation and thereby breakage, but i figure one day i’m gonna tire of the buns. :/
thanks!
for reference, my hair is creeping past APL again since my last trim 4 wks ago. my first goal is BSL. and i have 3b-3c texture, that’s actually bone straight in front, and kinky 3c in the middle. extremely high porosity, due to bleaching, and my hair LOVES water…a lot.
very tangle-prone hair, even in length mostly…and what else. in recovery mode, essentially. :)
i forgot to add i’m trying to find a low manipulation style that would last me for at least a week at a time.
Dors anyone know why my hair is growing crazy long in the crown head I’m not angry but I want the back my hair to grow long my mom takes good care of my hair I use relaxers in my hair but it helps for growing hair the front and crown of my hair is about 10-12 inches seriously =D I bet after the school year is over the crown of my hair is going to be a 6-10 inches =)
Usually in the crown the hair tends to grow faster than the sides and the back due to genetics. Usually the crown grows faster by 1 inch or rarely sometimes by 2inches, faster than the sides and the back. The average person, regardless of race has hair that grows between 1/4-1/2 per inch each month. However, some people can get 1 inch to 2inches per month; however, it is EXTREMELY RARE! But no hun, the crown always grows faster than the sides and the back. My hair does the same thing, the crown of my head is 8 inches long, the back and the sides are 7 inches long, the baby hairs on my nape are 6 inches long. SO MY HAIR HAS VARYING GROWTH RATES ALSO.
actually all my sides grow faster than my crown
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