September 8th, 2009
As a teenager, I had really long and full hair. Several years ago I cut my hair above my shoulders and I have never been able to grow it out since. Once it gets to a certain spot on my shoulders, it looks damaged, dull and lifeless. I have wanted long hair for a couple of years now, but I don’t think I would be able to grow beautiful long hair again.
But recently I found an article that says I can grow long hair again and permanently. Ok, this is what I learned, step one, cut off all the damaged hair. Step two, keep trimming your hair. About a half of an inch needs to be trimmed once a month to keep healthy hair growing. If it is not trimmed, the damaged hair will just continue to just get worse over time. Step three, make sure the salon you go to knows how much to cut off.
Some salons get scissor happy and cut off much more than you want. Have the stylist show you how much they will be trimming. Step four, and this one is hard for me, do not use any heating tools – blow dryer, hot iron, curling iron, etc. If you must use one of them, completely dry your hair and use a protection substance. Step five, no harsh chemicals like dye, chlorine, peroxide, perms, etc. With these few simple steps, I am on my way to long and luxurious hair!
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September 7th, 2009
One of the most embarrassing things I have encountered as I get older is the thinning of my hair. Sure, my laugh lines are more visible and my crows-feet are more defined around my eyes, but my thinning hair is what bothers me the most. I have looked into this and have wondered why this is happening and if there was something I could do to stop this or to reverse the damage.
One very interesting thing I found was that hair loss can be connected to faulty digestion associated with lower than normal stomach acid and pepsin production. Now why would that be related to hair loss? Well, the main reason is that the proteins aren’t properly digested and the body doesn’t get the essential amino acids and minerals needed for hair growth.
This process can be stopped by taking minerals and essential amino acid supplements along with a digestive enzyme to help improve my digestion. Other vitamins and minerals that can be useful in hair growth are the B vitamins, especially vitamin B-12, zinc and copper. I haven’t had this happen yet, but the medical sites I researched warned to see a doctor if your hair is falling out in clumps. I have been taking supplemental vitamins and minerals for about a month now and I have seen a difference in the shine of my hair and the thickness.
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September 6th, 2009
I have been thinking of switching to natural shampoos, but was a little wary that they wouldn’t work well with my hair. My sister is a beautician and she has said that she has found it difficult to find good natural shampoos that leave hair feeling soft, silky and still containing volume. So, I turned to my trusty companion, the internet, and here is what I found:
Even when thinking about using natural shampoos, there are still some ingredients to avoid, and here is a list: avocado, balm mint, balsam, essential oils, eucalyptus, grapefruit, horseradish, lavender oil, lemon, lime, menthol, orange, papaya, peppermint, rose, sage and thyme. Although these ingredients are rarely used in normal shampoos, they are still good to avoid in hair products.
Drug store shampoos, with the right ingredients can be great on the wallet (especially in today’s economy) and great for the hair. I have’t noticed a difference in the high priced salon shampoos with the right ingredients verses the three dollar shampoos at the drug store. So, if it makes you feel better by spending more on your hair care products, then go for the salon natural selections, or if you get a thrill by getting more for less $, then give Garnier Fructis a try. All in all, natural is good with the right ingredients.
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September 5th, 2009
With all the hype these days about organic foods and natural products, I decided to research about what exactly is in my shampoo and conditioner and I was surprised at what I found. When I read the back of the bottles, I only understood a few words, I mean, who knows what all those scientific names mean or what they are? I obviously am not a scientist, but I would like to know what I am putting onto my scalp and in my hair and find out if the products are potentially harmful or not.
In doing my research, I was shocked! I had no idea that the ingredients in shampoos are so potent and damaging. One major ingredient that is in most of the shampoos is Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES) which is a washing detergent. It was described to me likening it to a car polish that shines by removing the top layer of paint. I found it is also in toothpaste and can cause canker sores and irritation to people who frequently use products that contain SLES. I can’t believe it! I am so going to start reviewing the ingredients in the products I use daily in my life.
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September 5th, 2009
It is so cliché to say that once upon a time I had long luxurious full hair, but it was true. I even have pictures to prove it. But, as I get older and assume more responsibilities, stress inevitably follows and I have lost a significant amount of hair. I know that extreme can causes hair loss and so “they” tell you to get control of the stress in your life. I think that is a very contradictory thing to say. I value my appearance and naturally I think full hair is beautiful.
Therefore, when I have issues with my hair it causes me stress. The stress comes from my hair loss and my hair loss comes from my stress. This seems to be a vicious cycle and one in which I feel trapped. Perhaps I should take up something like tai chi or meditating, or get a new job, or come into money to relieve the stresses in my life and perhaps my hair will grow back in its usual thick, wavy strands. But those are not realistic options; they seem nice, but not realistic. So, I think I will do some research and see if hair loss shampoo really works and find one that is right for me. I have enough to stress about in my life and the added stress of hair loss is too much.
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September 4th, 2009
When I was younger, my hair was full and thick, and for the past several years it keeps getting thinner and thinner. I am a woman in my mid twenties and I have noticed a significant loss in my scalp area. This is so embarrassing and it makes me not want to do the things I love, like swimming, and running because I am in fear of my hair getting ruined and my scalp showing. I first turned to Nioxin, after I had been advised by family and friends and found it disappointing.
I have always loved my hair, and felt that hair was a huge part to a person’s style and personality, therefore I have always used the best products in my hair. When I switched to Nioxin I was excited to see and feel the difference in my hair. Within a couple of weeks, there was a difference alright, but it wasn’t the one I wanted. Instead of fuller, more beautiful hair, my hair felt dull and constantly tangled. The little volume I have didn’t last longer than fifteen minutes, and I felt that my hair was worse than before using Nioxin. I have since switched to other brands known for their excellence in normal hair cleaning and conditioning and I love the texture of my hair. However, I am still on the look out for a conditioning and hair growing shampoo.
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July 30th, 2009
White hair has many symbolic meanings in literature and religion. White hair can mean wisdom and knowledge comes from being old enough to have white hair. It may also mean being innocent and pure in old age. Our older men have white beards that symbolize being a magician, shaman, or wise man or prophet. These white locks can be portrayed as beams of light and a halo around the men. White hair can also mean the onset of maturity and growth of the person that has white hair. White hair used to have very good connotations for the male member of the human race.
Recently, white hair has been a symbol of old age and being put out in the field. It has had negative connotations of aging and becoming weak and decrepit. In our culture, we extol youth, vitality, and beautiful hair, but the old are not vital anymore and white hair symbolizes that demise. White hair also symbolizes worries that a mother has for their children that comes from the quote:”You will give me white hair, because you make me worry!” White hair also symbolizes ghosts too. Boo! Maybe when our society has matured a little bit, white hair and age will become elevated to it’s past distinquishness and wisdom.
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July 23rd, 2009
When I was young and all so wild, my hair used to grow in long and luxurious strands.It was very thick and usually had a lot of oil in it as well as dandruff. I lived in Ohio for ten years while my hair grew very well and I was very young. The hair had a certain smell that was repugnant to some of my close friends, but shampoo helped it a little. My hair changed with time especially in patterns of growth.I used to have a swirl on the top that was very small. When I moved to Ohio and then to Arizona, my hair is getting thinner and balding in spots. My hair is shorter in the front and thicker in the back. I was wondering if this was due to the dryness of the weather in Arizona. My hair is less oily and it is drier, but less dandruff and less smell. I am about 49 years old and I was curious if this is due to age or climate. My father used to have very nice hair and my mother did too when they were middle age. So I don’t believe it is genetics.
So my issues are why is my hair getting thinner and less smelly?
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July 8th, 2009
Now if you have lost your hair, let me recommend something. While you definitely don’t want to go along wearing bald, drop the wig or toupee. If you have an amount of money, you can afford what they call “real hair” wigs, which essentially come from hair shops and so on woven into wigs for you that look more natural. They generally do this with locks of love, and they do this only for children who happen to be cancer patients until they can grow their own real hair back. Most likely, you are not going to get this, and no matter how descent you think a fake wig looks, trust me, it never looks good.
My aunt for one spent quite a bit of money getting her last wig, thinking that if she spent more, even though it wasn’t real hair, it would still look better. No, it looks worse actually. And then there was a teacher I had in 4th grade. I don’t know if it would be worse for him to do that teaching elementary or if it were junior high or high school. But we had plots to see who would be brave enough to grab his toupee. Even kids know this difference and see the way it looks. So the best suggestion, either wear your baldness as it is, wear hats or otherwise which don’t look quite as conspicuous, or get a real hair wig.
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July 6th, 2009
It was more of a scare tactic than anything, because at the time I was dying my hair about every month, sometimes twice because the hair-dye for whatever reason didn’t get it all the first time. I was going through different colors, sometimes sticking to the same color for a few months at a time, and I was really damaging my hair. My dad first went on the crusade of you’re not allowed to dye your hair. That doesn’t work with a 12 year old let alone a 14 years old that I was. So he gave up on that one after a few tries and moved onto the scare tactic, which was actually quite effective.
One day he brought up a fact actually, but still. His best friend at the time had a kid of his own who was doing the same thing I was doing. Except in her case, apparently my hair was more resilient, because after just a few months of doing this, her hair had actually started to fall out in clumps, at which time she of course stopped. My hair was fried. But at some point, it would’ve had the same problem. So this I bring up in the interest of things. Depending on the fragility of your hair in general, just remember not to dye it too often. Definitely don’t go twice in one month, wait a month or two in between, etc.
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