Caring for and Re-growing Your Edges

Edges. We really can’t live without them and if you wear your hair naturally curly then you might be a little obsessed with them. Obsessed with growing them, keeping them, slicking them, not breaking them, because really, the most terrifying thing about edges is not actually having them, but having them and losing them. Styling becomes a lot more challenging when your edges are missing, breaking, or thinning adding stress to an already stressful situation. Then you become obsessed with hiding the fact that you’re losing them. It’s a vicious cycle but you have power in the battle for your edges.

The good news is even if your edges have abandoned you, if you take the right steps to provide a healthy environment for them to grow, they’ll most likely come back and come back looking better than ever. It’s not an overnight process but with time and patience and barring any serious medical conditions, you can definitely reclaim your edges, and if you are already blessed with healthy edges that’s half the battle. The rest is keeping them so. Let’s discuss how.

Here are some easy tips for re-growing and caring for your edges.

Moisturize

There are a few hair issues that cannot be at least partially improved by making sure the hair is properly moisturized. Give your edges a lot of TLC and ensure that you give it all the moisture it needs so that breakage due to dryness is eliminated as an issue for your edges. Making sure you moisturize and seal is even more important if you use edge control and gels that can make your edges stiff and brittle. Stiff hair is susceptible to breakage so make sure to avoid that at all costs.

Change it up

We all have a style we rely on. Whether it’s because it’s quick and easy or makes us cute or is best suited to our lifestyle, we will go back to it often. That’s great, but it can also stress your edges to keep pulling them in the same position over and over. Changing up your hairstyle and making sure there is no tension on your edges regardless of what style you wear, will go a long way to preventing damage or making existing damage worse.

(Deep) Condition, condition, condition

Deep conditioning helps hair to maintain its moisture and elasticity, two things that are key for preventing damage and breakage. Deep conditioning should be done at least once a month but can be more frequent depending on the needs of your hair. Using a heat cap or steam will boost your deep conditioning results by helping the product to get within the hair strands to work its magic on your hair from the inside out. Regular deep conditioning will improve your hair’s manageability, shine, and softness and will reduce the likelihood of your hair and edges breaking.

Strengthen with Protein

Dryness is usually the culprit when it comes to breakage, but if a lack of moisture isn’t the cause of your breakage then your hair could just be in need of a bit of fortifying. This is done with protein treatments. Protein treatments vary in strength so if your breakage is in the early stages or not very severe start with a mild protein treatment. Giving the hair too much protein can exacerbate the problem so start mild to moderate and go from there if you need to, paying close attention to how your hair responds.

Massage your Scalp

Scalp massages encourage blood flow to the hair follicles. A good blood supply to the scalp is needed to maximize growth and even if you think massages won’t help your hair, they will definitely help your mood. Win-win!

Be Patient

As much as we all wish it were not so, re-growing hair takes time. It’s not an instant process so you’ll need a healthy dose of patience. It helps to take photos of your hair so you can track the improvements over time. Sometimes pictures make clear the progression that we can miss because we are trying to see a change from one day to the next. Seeing your progress in photos is a great way to keep motivated.

Turn Down the Heat

Ideally, you should avoid using any heat at all when your hair is struggling. Using heat dries hair out and can also potentially weaken the hair increasing the likelihood of breakage. It’s best to avoid heat or reduce the frequency with which you use it if at all possible. It’s also necessary to take all the necessary precautions such as using a heat protectant, using the lowest temperature possible and deep conditioning, and using protein treatments to keep hair strong when you heat style.

There is no miracle cure. No instant fix and any product that appears to be too good to be true is most likely so. But improving the state of your edges is not a lost cause. These tips can help so start today and in no time, you see how full your edges can grow.