Monday, August 11, 2008

Braids don't GROW your hair!!!

If I hear that one more time, I'm going to scream! Braids DO NOT grow your hair...Braids DO NOT promote hair growth...

Braids are a PROTECTIVE style...That's it...

Protective styles are styles that basically keep YOU out of your hair and keep your hair away from the elements (weather, heat, etc...). Protective styles can be braids with or without extensions, wigs, weaves, twists, buns, updos, etc.

I think where people get it wrong is that after they've taken these protective styles out (or off) growth is usually noticed. It's not the protective style that "grows" your hair...It's the sheer fact of leaving it alone that gives your ends the rest and protection from breaking off. So the growth that you see is actually a maintaining of the length.

So braids and other protective styles help to maintain the length by protecting the ends that usually bear the brunt of the abuse (heat, elements, poor combing/brushing habits, etc.)...

With that said, protective styles are great! I wear my hair in protective styles in the winter mostly. When transitioning and after I chopped, I didn't wear protective styles because I wanted to learn how to work with my texture, and honestly consistently using braids or wigs or weaves, wouldn't have given me that opportunity. Once you take the braids out, then what??? And even more, using protective styles to soley grow ones hair out can have limited results. I've talked to many women who have used protective styles to grow their hair out, but once the braids came out, they went right back to the same hair care that kept their hair broken off in the first place...Unless you're learning how to care for those fragile ends, find the best conditioner and moisturizer for your hair, learning how to use little or NO heat, you may find yourself right back where you started...

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

i think that braids give one a chance to get their hair to a healthy state. I use braids because I do not have the time or patience to deal with my hair in this cold winter weather. Although I wear braids, I know how to take care of my hair perfectly fine when it is not braided, which is why i am 1.5 inches from my bsl goal. I guess i don't understand the just of your post, are you saying not to get braids or that braids damage the hair?

ChariseRaynee said...

The jist of my post is in the title. Braids DO NOT grow your hair. Wearing braids to "give one a chance to get their hair to a healthy state" is not growing your hair. It's giving your hair rest...It's a protective style...I'm not saying don't get braids..I'm saying braids don't grow your hair...Get your braids...Just don't think getting braids grows your hair...It's impossible for it to actually "grow" your hair...That's all...

I'm sooo late on responding to this...