My was so brittle & thin – it’s now down to my waist thanks to an unspoken rule I always break when it comes to washing
GROWING out your hair can often feel like a tedious and time-consuming task.
However, one woman had the opposite experience, revealing that she was shocked to see long her locks had become.
In her Reddit post, user Solid-Obligation-620 showed a side-by-side comparison of her hair length.
Her locks in the first picture reached just below her shoulder blades while the next image showed the hair growth progress.
In the final picture, the poster’s long tresses almost reached her tailbone.
“[I] just wanted to share my progress!” the Reddit user explained in the caption.
She revealed that her goal was to reach “tailbone length,” which she has almost done.
“[I’m] basically there but [I] want to improve thickness at bottom,” she explained.
The Reddit user added that her hair had previously been damaged from colouring it before she began growing it out.
She revealed the exact haircare steps she has taken in the past five years.
Before she broke them down, the Redditor admitted to not being the most careful with her haircare.
“Honestly, I’m not the BEST with my hair, nothing in comparison to others on this [haircare] sub,” she explained.
“Mainly I do not use heat tools on my hair except [for] occasionally blow drying [it].”
She explained that she usually leaves her hair down and doesn’t style it.
“If I have to put it up, I’ll use a silk scrunchie and a low ponytail,” she revealed.
The Reddit user added that she also sleeps on silk pillowcases to reduce frizz.
However, it’s her hair washing routine that is perhaps the most controversial among haircare fanatics.
The 4 stages of the hair growth cycle
Hair experts at Philip Kingsley shared the four stages of the hair growtn cycle are: Anagen, Catagen, Telogen and Exogen
Anagen Phase: Also known as the ‘Growth Phase’ or ‘Active Phase’, is when the cells in the root of your hair are most rapidly dividing so more new hair is formed.
During the Anagen Phase, hair grows around half an inch a month [about six inches a year], and faster in the summer than in winter.
This phase of the hair growth cycle lasts an average of three to five years.
Catagen Phase: Following the Anagen Phase, your hair cycle enters a short transitional phase known as the Catagen Phase, which signals the end of active hair growth and cuts individual hairs off from the blood supply and from the cells that produce new hair.
Approximately three percent of all hairs are in this stage at any time and it lasts for around 10 days.
Telogen Phase: The third stage of your natural hair growth cycle is the Telogen Phase, a resting period when strands remain in their follicles but are not actively growing.
An estimate of 10-15 percent of your hairs are in the Telogen Phase at any given moment.
The Telogen Phase lasts around three months or 100 days.
Exogen Phase: The final stage of the Hair Growth Cycle, when individual hair strands are released from their follicles and fall out.
Now the whole process begins again.
She revealed that she washes her locks on a daily basis, a universal no-no according to hair experts.
“When I wash my hair I put it up in a microfiber towel and make sure not to move it around too much and create friction,” she explained.
The poster shared that she uses the Briogeo Cherry Shampoo and Conditioner, available as a combo for £36.05 from Sephora.
She also uses the Neuma Repair Leave-in Conditioner, which retails for £26.
Finally, she revealed that she oils her hair “on occasion” with rosemary oil.
Reddit users shared their thoughts on her hair growth in the comments section.
“Gorgeous! I have such a long way to go,” wrote one impressed reader.
“I’m at your 2019 length and [I] feel like it’s been in my chest area [and] not going past that for the past year or two, my goal is also tailbone,” shared another person.