DD aged 6 super slooooooow hair growth

[Lollypolly]

DD is now 6.5 and her hair is just below her shoulders. It's fine and curly but looks straggly and I've only cut it twice in her life (probably no more than an inch each time). She's always had very slow growing hair - neither DH nor I have this although she has the same hair type as me. It doesn't bother her but she hates that it never looks tidy. We wash her hair with kids shampoo (normally organic) about twice a week, she swims a lot (but hasn't always done so), eats a balanced diet, is otherwise healthy, smart and gorgeous. Any ideas on what could be going on or any solutions?

DD1 was the same. Although her hair was incredibly thin as well and it was awful!! I was reluctant to have it cut at all, too as it had taken so long to get past her neck. We were advised to have her hair cut into a bob style and I have to admit it not only looked really good but it was the turning point and from then her hair grew and got a lot thicker.

She is now 19 years old with thick gorgeous flowing hair all down her back!!

Thanks PositiveAttitude (great name btw). Can you remember how old your DD was when you cut her hair and it got thicker? I will see about cutting a couple of inches off (although it will take some persuading). The problem is that her hair is curly so without the little weight she has, it looks "crazy" (in her words). Reassuring words though!

It was the summer of her going from year 2 to year 3, so she must have been 7. We had it done in the holidays because she was worried it would make things worse!! However, as soon as it was done she loved it and then regularly had it cut as it grew. I was also told to go to a good hairdressers so that it was cut really well. I baulked at the price at the time, but it was worth it!!

Before she had her hair cut she had what I called "baby hair". Could you persuade your DD to have a look through some hair magazines and show her the sort of hair style she could have done? It might help her feel really trendy!

My friends girl had really curly hair and she is a hairdresser herself. When she washed her girls hair she would comb in conditioner, then leave it. She never brushed it as that made it frizzy. She would "encourage" the curls while it was wet and then leave it alone. Her DD always had lovely curly hair and it always looked good. (I did see it once when the DD had brushed it and oh my, it was frizzy!!)

Another tip I was given by my hairdresser at the time was to use adult shampoo and separate conditioner. I was using the toddler stuff still and also used the 2 in 1 for quickness (especially after swimming), but apparently this was a huge no-no.

HTH

Hello!
Interested in this thread, as my daughter is almost 2.5 and doesn't have a full head of hair yet (!). It is certainly growing but she is years away from a hair cut. It's also very fine and wispy. She's the only girl I know her age with such short/lack of hair, but I also think it's fairly "normal"?!

Thanks again PositiveAttitude - suggested a quick cut to DD1 but she's dead against it. I must admit that I normally trim it myself (and I'm not too bad) but a flick through hair mags and a big girl's trip to a hairdresser might make her feel special. I use separate shampoo and leave-in conditioner as two rinses are a nightmare with a toddler in the bath too. Might see if a hairdresser can recommend a shampoo for her hair type. We used to use shampoo bars from Lush (for very fine hair) but can't get it where we live so use organic kids's shampoo. We have to brush it in the morning as it's normally sticking up on end but very very humid here so the curls settle in again as soon as she goes outside.

Some good tips, thanks again.

I can sympathise OP my DD who is now 4 also has super slow growing hair. I've trimmed it a grand total of 3 times in her life and it still barely touches her shoulders. It is thick and curly, but not tight curls and TBH it's just a mop. I do get a bit sad when I see little toddlers running around with much longer flowing locks. However DD is a tomboy so she wouldn't put up with long hair or bunches/clips/bows/bands so maybe it's just as well. I just can't see what we can do with it to make it reasonably presentable without actually giving her a boys crop - it wouldn't go into a bob for example because the sides are actually still very short and curly and the top is much longer and straighter

She starts school in Sept and I think we'll need to do something before then to get it under control - I just don't know what!

Think I'll try the suggestion of adults shampoo and conditioner though to see if it helps with the 'moppyness'

Pagan, my DD normally just wears a plastic hairband for school (easy to do, keeps hair off her face and doesn't stress the hair like a ponytail would - last thing we need is the little hair she has breaking off). Can you clip your DD's hair back at all? I figure for primary school the main point is that it doesn't get in the way of PE, painting etc etc

My DD, aged 5 is similar, we have had the ends trimmed slightly a few times but it was still a straggly mess, short curls underneath, long straight stuff on top, with a pronounced double crown making it all go forward.

We have just ahd all the straggly ends cut off and into a bob shape and it looks far neater than I thought it would. She likes it because her best friend has a bob too. She wears plastic hairbands sometimes, otherwise just has to keep pushing the long front bit off her face, but it doesn't seem to bother her. It looks much thicker and more like adult hair in the bob cut.

My DD, 5, also has the same, I keep it in a hairband for school as the cips made her haid break easily. All our family have thick hair, and the wee soul gets so frustrated that my niece, 3, has hair half way down her back. I just tell her it's like your teeth, (yes they were slow to come in too :) ), the longer it takes to grow, the stronger it will be when she grows up - lets hope it's true.

I regularly get the ends cut off as after years of experimenting, it never grows any longer if I leave it and looks a lot tidier when it's had a trim, hers is also in a bob now.

I've read up on this quite a bit and apparently it is to do with the lifespan of the hair before it regrows and should adjust itself in future.

Fingers and everything else crossed or we can have a chat again in 5 years time about inventing some new trendy haircuts!

Pops - DD1's hair is now gloriously thick and long after having "baby hair" for the first 7-8 years of her life, so I am sure you have told your DD the truth.