How to Grow Your Hair Fast and Healthy

As y’all know, I like to color my hair a lot. I’ve been multiple different colors since November of 2017. My hairdresser has actually told me on numerous occasions that she is surprised at how well my hair is taking all of this, and how shocked she is at the condition my hair is in compared to when we were younger. We’ve been friends since 2005 so she’s seen my hair at it’s worst when it’s been fried from too much bleach and too much at home coloring. In today’s post I wanted to talk about a few tips and tricks that have worked for me to keep my hair growing, and healthy even after all of the abuse my hair has gone through. Now, just so everyone knows, I’m not a Cosmetologist, but this is just what worked for me, and what I’ve read.

Vitamins

Sugarbear hair (the blue gummy bears all over Instagram) did not work for me. I used them for 3 months and didn’t see a difference whatsoever. As soon as I started taking regular biotin or Hair Skin & Nails vitamins (even the generic brand) I saw a difference in the quality of my hair, and the length. My hairdresser even noticed and said wow your hair is growing really fast and healthy, even with all of the coloring and bleaching. I personally don’t think Sugarbear Hair vitamins work, and it makes me sad to think that these Influencers are getting paid for these sponsored posts and not giving honest opinions, unless if I’m the only person in the universe that those particular vitamins DIDN’T work for. I personally didn’t like how sweet these vitamins were either.

Stop teasing your hair

Ok, so my hairdresser told my mom and me that teasing your hair is just as damaging as using heating tools. So, my mom and I took a step back and stopped doing it. Although our hair is lacking in volume, it looks SO MUCH BETTER! It was totally worth losing a little bit of volume in our hair.

Chi Straightener // Chi Keratin Mist // Chi Silk Infusion

Stop using heating tools as often

We all know heat is bad for our hair. That is a no brainer. However, many women out there are still take heating tools to their hair. Now, if you really have to use those tools every day, make sure you use some type of protection against the heat. I personally use Chi products, and they have worked for me. I use this spray, and this serum second before I use my straightener.

Don’t color it

I went a year without coloring my hair. I wanted to give my hair a nice and long needed break. I cut it short, and then let my natural hair grow in while rarely applying heat to it or styling it like crazy. Then I started coloring it again, however, I made sure I wasn’t coloring it as often, and I would let my roots grow as much as I possibly could without looking bad.

Don’t use at home dyes

I know that paying for a salon can get really expensive, BUT, using at home dyes that you buy from the grocery store are terrible for your hair. I’ve spent quite a huge chunk of change over the years of visiting a salon, and I know that it’s so easy to buy that box dye and do it yourself, but there is a reason why they are so cheap. They ruin your hair. I read a huge long post from a hairdresser one day talking about all of what is wrong with box dyes, and I wish I saved it so that I could upload it here. She explained how those dyes melt your hair. That’s why when you have a mishap with a box dye and try to get it fixed at a salon it might not work. You might have to walk around with crazy hair for a little bit before it gets fixed. Trust me, from someone who used to use box dyes like nobody’s business, save money and go to the salon.

Hair Ties: Invisibobble Pink and Black

Don’t tie your hair super tight

I found out last year that using a regular hair tie is actually very damaging to your hair, but I found hair ties that aren’t as bad. I found them on Amazon and they have worked SO WELL for me. Another issue from tying your hair super tight is not only the breakage of hair, but you can also give yourself headaches.

When going to sleep

Take your hair out of the hair tie and let if lay lose. I read that you shouldn’t use cotton pillow cases for hair, but quite frankly, I never tried this. I usually make sure I go to bed with my hair brushed, dry, and no hair tie. I know it can be uncomfortable if you’re used to wearing it up, but trust me this will help.

Brushing

Brush from the bottom up. I also try not to brush my hair when it is wet because you can cause a lot of breakage brushing it while it is wet. If you have to brush it, then brush from the bottom up. That’s actually how you should brush your hair because you usually have tangles at the bottom. Hold your hair while you brush or comb through the bottom and then work your way up to the roots.

Deep Condition

Make sure you deep condition, especially if you’re hair is damaged. Next time you are at the salon ask your hair dresser what is a good deep conditioning product. I’ve also used coconut oil in my hair, but I’m not entirely sure how effective it is.

Invest in GOOD shampoos/conditioners

There are a lot of shampoos and conditioners that you can buy from the grocery store that actually cause more harm than good. They cause too much build up and dry out your scalp which causes dandruff. I personally invested in Sebastian shampoos and conditioners.

Don’t use hot water

You should be using cold water on your hair, and I know that this is really difficult because we all love a nice hot shower, but your hair will thank you for it.

Don’t wash your hair often.

I know this will sound gross, but I only wash my hair once a week. I’ve trained my hair to be able to go a week without washing. It doesn’t get greasy as often as it used to, and I like giving my hair that nice break. However, I did stop using dry shampoo as often because this causes a lot of build up.

Stimulation

Ok, now I’ve never done this before, but I read somewhere that if you stimulate your scalp a specific way, this helps with hair growth because it gets everything flowing.

Trims

I hate cutting my hair. I absolutely despise it lol. However, getting your hair trimmed helps with all of your split ends. It doesn’t help your hair grow faster like the old saying goes, but it will help your hair be healthier which gives the illusion of it being longer.

Calm it down with the extensions

I noticed at one point that after several hours (not even a full work day) when I would wear my extensions I would get the worst headaches, and my scalp would just hurt. I noticed how thin my hair had gotten, and how damaged it was. I stopped using my extensions and noticed how much fuller my hair had gotten. I’m assuming that all of the tugging right at the roots (because for clip ins, that’s where they have to go) was what was making my hair fall out in clumps. I haven’t worn extensions since.