A Natural Hair Trim Gone Wrong

I finally trimmed! I Realized I have a problem…. (in two parts)

On November 5, 2011, I gave my ends a very light trim. In the past, when I have trimmed, it was a serious disaster. I usually killed most of the length I gained and I would tend to trim on a schedule since that is what the hair magazines said. “Trim your hair every 4 to 6 weeks.” Little did I know, that advice was not in the interest of growing longer hair.

However, yesterday, wasn’t so bad, I actually have retained my length and was able to finger comb without hitting knots at the end of my strands. The knots really are the biggest reason for me to trim.

Now, I know I said I would never trim, but the knots and the breakage were getting crazy. Even with carefully handling my hair, I would see the ends of my hair in the sink. Now this is without combing my hair or roughly styling it. So I thought if I could cut off the weak ends, the breakage would stop.

I trimmed my hair dry, which is something I was concerned about because what may look like a trim may turn into a cut. Knots are just a part of natural hair, but how many knots you have can be dependent on how you care for your hair. The more opportunities your hair has to tangle the more knots you will have. Now the knots are called trichonodosis and can really cause problems when you are detangling.

Listen to your Hair!

What I realized about natural hair, especially kinky, coarse, 4B type hair is that you have to treat it as it speaks to you. You have to assess daily what it needs. For example, I don’t think I will trim until my hair becomes knotted again to the point where I can’t finger comb through it easily. That may be six months from now or next year. Yet now I need to be very conscious about the ends of my hair so I will moisturize them and preserve my ends and keep them from tangling around the other strands. So when my hair feels dry, I will moisturize it. That means I have to feel my hair and evaluate how straw like it feels since coarse hair is dry.

Also my hair does grow since I’ve seen it, but it just grows super duper slow. On top of that, I have severe shrinkage, so when it does grow, you will not see the length immediately, but you do notice the hair as fuller. If it was straight, I could see the growth immediately, but since it coils, the growth is not so noticeable until I stretch it, which is what I have been doing lately. I use Curlformers and I braid it frequently to stretch it out. This has helped my hair tremendously and also has allowed me to see it in its stretched state which is psychologically more fulfilling since the hair actually looks fuller. I got this tip from a Mom featured on BGLH online.

Update – November 19, 2011

It is November 19th and what the H – E -- Double hockey sticks was I thinking? I think I took off at least a 1.5 inches. I don’t know why I didn’t notice it before. I think I need someone to take my scissors from me.

I guess I thought it would be a good idea to trim, since along with length, I would like thick ends. Yet I went too far. So, now I am about six months delayed and lost length because of something I did. I have no one to blame but moi!

Ladies, old habits are very hard to break. Be mindful of that when growing longer hair; Because while it is an exercise in trial and error, do not make outlandish mistakes that you already know are crazy, but perhaps might work “this time.” Don’t do it. That’s the definition of insanity.

Your Assistance Please

I’ve noticed that I have a cutting issue, but I knew that already. I knew before I trimmed, that I really can only do so if my hair is stick straight and that would be because of heat, which I’m not going to apply to my hair. When I was trimming, I really tried to get the ends, but I didn’t. I got the ends and the length. My hair is way too curly to trim in its natural state. It’s just a fact.

Please help me. I can’t be allowed to trim my hair anymore. Send me some tips on how I can stop this madness!!! I’ll post them here. Not only might they help me, but another scissor happy soul as well.