Thin locks-Permed edges coming back to haunt me!

Not sure if ya'll remember or not, but a year ago to the day (1-6-05) I posted a question about my locks in Lockitup. I had a few thin locks along the front hairline. I didn't have the problem anywhere else except right along the edges of the front of my hair.

I posted these pictures for folks to take a look at and provide feedback:

Maryee's Thin hair photos

For those of you who are members of Lockitup, you can check out the archive here and here with everyone's feedback. That will cut back on me having to cut and paste and "retype" stuff in my blog. A few group members, consultants and all sent me questions and inquiries about my eating habits, shampooing techniques, and a whole bunch of other stuff. The locks looked brittle and thin and for the most part "eaten" off. Well just the other day I found another one of those locks up front on my head and half of the lock was missing. Well, I thought,there's nothing I can do about hair that fell off "I don't know when". About a week ago I was up late updating my blog with photos from the beginning of my journey and then it occurred to me. My hair is damaged from the dreaded "perm" along my edges back in the day. As off is it seemed, I still couldn't reconcile having synthetic or human hair braided into my hair with my "nappy roots" showing. So for the longest, I would perm my hair all around the nape so it would be "straight" and "match" the "other people's hair". The rest of the hair remained in it's natural state. Well about a month ago my mom and I read all the way through Sandy's journey on her website (me trying to convince her to get Sisterlocks) and saw the part where Sandy showed damage from having perms and the affect it had on her having healthy mature locks in some spots. The light went off in my mind and I remembered reading her story. My hair is suffering from the damage of perming my edges.

*The above was written a week ago. The below was written today. Same story, but written differently.

Well here it is. The damage from me perming my edges because of my past insecurities with having "nappy" edges. I had a whole head full of good and nappy hair, but I'd perm the edges so my "synthetic or human" hair would match when I got my hair braided, crocheted, weaved, etc.

Now after trying my level best to figure out why my hair up front was so ratty and damaged it came to me after reflecting on a journal entry Sandy made on her website. I posted my questions to the group a good minute ago and everyone from fellow SL'rs to consultants quizzed me on my diet, my care techniques, the type and amount of water I used, etc. trying to help me figure out why my hair was damaged.

I then reposted my epiphany moment a week ago about what the problem was. It wasn't my diet, the type of water or amount I used, or any "care" I was taking. It was the residual effects of having permed roots. Oh the grief!

Well now I know and I can show all those who may have to same problem and can't figure out what the deal it, what it is. For those who are still living the "lye", you will find that when freedom comes, you will still have a price or two to pay. The photo above on the left is a picture of one of my damaged lock. Poor baby. It must have broken off, "I don't know when." The lock photo (top right) is a little bit healthier and of course longer. The two photos below with the towel covering my forehead show you the difference/damage clearer. For now, I'll just watch the damaged locks die a slow death and hopefully healthier chemical free locks will replace them.

The deepest part about the photos and what my hair up front has experienced is the fact that the photos you see of the damaged lock has absolutely no dye. It's all "my" natural hair. This means that the hair you see now is 100% new growth from when I got my locks put in and the new growth has had to suffer under the "lye". There's something to learn about that. Even when you break from from slavery, that doesn't free you from still suffering in one way or another from your past.

Importance of Check-ins

Post from Ve in lockitup:


Well I'm at it again. Pondering world peace and my beautiful
sisterlocks. It was Maryee's email a while back that solved an
issue I had with a few spindly looking locs. Turned out that over
styling via (braid-outs, twist-outs) was the culprit. I've been
free styingfor the past few months and all is well.

Now I've been back in the mirror examining my beautiful locs and
noticed "gaps" or "loops" in my locs. No real pattern per se, some
are close to the new growth and others are in the middle and some
are 3/4 down the length of the loc. I remembered a sister posting a
long time ago about this problem so I knew this was not a issue I
should shrug off.

I've taken the retightening class so I've been doing my own hair
since June last year. I see my consultant about every 8 weeks.
I had my consultant check out my hair on Friday during my
retightening session. It turns out that again (I) am making fatal
errors during the retightening rotation. I am following my loc
pattern (basic 4) but I have been inadvertently inserting the loc
tool in the same hole. My consultant showed me how avoid this
problem going forward. She's also repairing the problem locs and
showed me how to do it was well. I'm going to let her do the repair
because you really need to see the loop in order to fix it and it's
hard to do looking in a mirror. If I had not caught this error I
would undoubtedly have broken locs down the line. This is not a set-
back just another wrong turn on the journey. I am still enjoying
the love affair with my hair.

Just pointing out the importance of examining your locs and periodic
check-in's with your consultant.

Ve
SL 17 months

Hey Ve,

I have laid low on even touching my hair since I had those "thinning
strands" and all seems to be well. I'm in my "whitegirlitis" stage,
shaking my head and feeling my hair swish on the back of my neck and
ears. It's such a funny feeling. Having all this body and no perm
to give it it's fullness and beauty. It's really growing and I
ain't complainin'. I hope to take the retightening class this month
some time, so I'll keep the group posted on that as well. Checking
in with our consultant is very important. Keep us posted on
your "looping" findings. Take care!

Maryee

Thin locks Question (Thanks Everybody for your replies)

Posted in Lockitup:

Hey Luvi, Sandy, Jeri, Maranndme, Jennifer & Debbie,

Thanks for all your feedback. I really appreciate all that you
shared. I'll definitely have to check out the Wheatgrass. I've had
some before at good ole' Jamba Juice, but I'll head by Trader Joe's
to see what they have.

I do not eat beef or pork, so it may be protein that I am low on. I
drink plenty of liquids (mostly water) and don't drink soda and eat
junk. I mostly wear my hair "free-style" (with little fuss) and
when my consultant retightened my hair before Christmas she didn't
say the thinning was all that bad.

I was just wondering if anyone else had seen this kind of thinning.
It's only 2 strands, so it's not a whole head full of problems,
Thank God!!! Well, I'll keep ya posted. I'll send the pictures to
my consultant and see if she has any other feedback.


Q & A from a consultant:

Re: Thin locks Question (Alandria)

My answers are below Alandria's questions.

My name is Alandria Clarke and I am a Sisterlock Consultant in
Miami, Florida. After reviewing your locks, I thought that I should
respond to you. First, Questions and reasons for you to consider:

Q. Are you wearing a band across the front of your head?
Reason: Bands worn constantly may cause breakage at the scalp and in
the middle of the locks.

A. Nope, rarely if ever.


Q. Are you wearing your hair pulled back in ponytails?
Reason: Sometimes, unknowingly, the hair maybe strained and is
weakened which leads to breakage.

A. Nope, Not long enough yet.


Q. Are you wearing a cap during Showers and baths?
Reason: Constantly wetting your hair (like daily showers) will dry
your locks which lead to breakage.

A. Yes- That may be the culprit. I have/use the SL reconditioner,
but I have always had a "dry" head of hair. My consultant knows
about that.

Q. Are you maintaining your retightening schedule (i.e. not
missing or prolonging appointments)?
Reason: When you think that you are trying to save a few bucks by
trying to extend your appointments the new growth (baby) hair in the
front of your hair is not as thick as at the crown and therefore can
be strained which again will lead to breakage.

A. Yes, every 7-8 weeks.

These are just a few of the questions that should be asked. Discuss
your daily habits with your consultant and I am sure that together
you can rectify the problem.

I haven't heard back from my consultant yet, so hopefully I'll share
her feedback with the group. Thankfully it's only 2 strands, so I'm
not tripping. Before I had sisterlocks, I cut my hair down to a
fade, so losing hair or cutting off one stand ain't no big deal.

Also, don't stress... that doesn't help.


These are just a few of the questions that you should ask yourself
and discuss with your consultant.

Thanks Alandria!