I understand now why the “mom chop” exists. It’s not for ease, like I originally thought. It’s because of postpartum hair loss. I did the opposite of most and grew my hair out after having my son. Or, rather, I was in the middle of growing my hair out when I got pregnant/had my son.
I had no idea what to expect postpartum. I knew people had some shedding, but my hair loss was next level. It wasn’t until I went to my first appointment post baby that the dots connected.
“You just had Covid,” my stylist explained. Which was true, I had covid 5 weeks before I delivered. (Yes, it was scary. Yes, we were okay.) “You’re not just experiencing postpartum hair loss, you have post-covid hair loss, too.
Damn. Double Whammy. Awesome.
But I was not to be deterred. I’d rocked (and loved) a bob for years prior to making my decision to grow out my hair. And I was committed to the change. (Or rather, I was desperate for the change), so I stayed the course. We’re growing it out.
My hair grew. And grew. I had to snake the drain weekly but still, I wasn’t changing my mind.
Fast forward to November 2023. My hair had been long(ish) for about a year. And it didn’t matter what layers I added or how many trims I got, I just couldn’t get my hair to look as full as it once was. So I went to visit my friend who is a stylist.
“I can get you the fullness you’re looking for, but it’ll require more than a trim.”
Alright. Whatever. Do it.
She gave me a gorgeous haircut that did exactly what I asked: she was full. But for me, she was also short. So short.
After growing my hair out for so long, I’ll admit that I was sad. It looked healthy and full, but man. I missed my long hair.
So I made the decision to use it as an opportunity to transform my hair. I wanted long hair, yes. But I also wanted beautifully healthy hair. So thus, I started a journey.
How to grow hair fast
I researched. Like crazy. In the past whenever I wanted to grow out my hair I would just switch my shampoo and conditioner to Mane N Tale. Yes, the horse shampoo. And yes, I did notice a difference when I did that. But I haven’t used that method in about 15 years.
Instead, this go round, I paid attention to the science of things. Disclaimer: I’m not a scientist. And I wasn’t even good at science in school. But I did find some helpful information line.
The long and short of it is: you want to stimulate your scalp and you want to keep your ends healthy (so they don’t break off).
Hair exists in a cycle; and anagen is the hair growth phase. So we want to keep the hair in the anagen stage best we can. That’s where the stimulation comes in. You can stimulate your scalp with massages and certain oils like:
Jojoba oil
Cedarwood oil
Clary sage
Rosemary oil
Peppermint oil
Products to help grow your hair fast
I’m first going to share the products I bought/use and then I’ll get into what I did. My total haircare routine includes:
- This scalp massager
- This stimulating hair growth oil by Fable & Mane
- This Jojoba oil by Kate Blanc Cosmetics
- Function of Beauty Shampoo & Conditioner (not sponsored — I’ve used this same formula since 2020 and I love it. I have it in the peach scent).
- This leave in conditioner by Earthly Body
- This hair elixir by Earthly Body
- This Raw Sugar Healing Power deep conditioner/hair mask
- This clarifying shampoo by Herbal Essences
What I did to stimulate hair growth (and to grow my hair out fast).
I decided to overhaul my hair care routine. Not only do I believe this helped with growing my hair faster, but it transformed the health of my hair.
I’m a low maintenance girly through and through (as mentioned in this 5 minute face blog post). But I missed my hair so much that I figured I could do anything short term. Turns out, introducing a true hair care routine doesn’t require as much effort as I expected and it actually makes a difference.
Here’s what I do:
I wash my hair every 2 to 3 days. On the days I don’t wash my hair, I use Batiste dry shampoo — and something new I started was putting this serum on my ends before going to bed.
I oil my hair. On hair wash days (or the night before), I’ll put the Fable & Mane oil in my roots and the jojoba oil throughout my hair. Sometimes I use this massager when the oil is in my hair but honestly, I didn’t always make time for it.
Hair wash routine. I shampoo twice. First with this clarifying shampoo and then with the Function of Beauty shampoo. I rinse with cool water. Then I apply the Function of Beauty conditioner through my mid-shafts and ends. I know this isn’t the right way to use this product, but I then add this hair mask over the conditioner and let both sit for about 3-5 minutes (However long it takes me to wash my face/body/shave/etc). I rinse with cool water.
After shower routine. I apply this leave-in conditioner, this elixir and this heat protectant. I also use a few other products that have nothing to do with hair growth or protecting the ends.
Scalp massage routine. I got the scalp massager for Christmas, and initially I was using it every day for 15 minutes — usually at the end of the day while I was reading in bed or first thing in the morning while having my coffee & scrolling the internets. Sometimes both. I’d say I kept that up for a good month but then just sort of fell out of any sort of regularity with it. I’d say as of now — late April — I use it at least 3 times a week.
Did I try the inversion method? I did. Kind of. I’ve used this method in the past (remember that bob I mentioned? Well there was one time it got cut a leeeeeeettle too short. I did see quick growth). I only used the inversion method once this go round (you can technically use it once a month for a week at a time). I’m sure it works, but I really don’t like the feeling of having all the blood rush to my head and no matter which position I laid in, it kind of hurt my neck and back.
Vitamins. I did also take the centrum women’s health multi-vitamin, but that was more for health benefit than hair growth. I have no idea if it had any impact or not. When I first started growing my hair out, I used the Halo Beauty Hair Skin & Nail booster — and I did feel like I saw a difference with it — but it seems to be off the market now.
Things to keep in mind when you’re growing out your hair
If you’ve recently gotten a haircut that went a leeeeeettle (or a lot!) too short or you’re just ready to grow out a bob, I get it. I do. There’s no regret quite like the omg all my hair is gone feeling.
Stay consistent. I know it feels like time is moving in reverse and your hair is never going to grow. It will. Be sure to stay hydrated and eat a well balanced diet. Those things actually matter more than you might think.
Lastly, and I know this isn’t what you want to hear, be patient. Your hair will grow. In the meantime, commit to taking really good care of it so that when it does grow, it’ll be gorgeous, healthy hair!
Good luck, friend! Until next time. XOXO
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