The Truth About Natural Hair Shrinkage

Let’s get one thing straight: shrinkage is not your enemy, sis. In fact, it’s a good thing for your natural hair! We’ll never stop saying it—shrinkage is a sign that your curls are healthy and strong. But before you roll your eyes, hear us out.

Remember those old landline phones with the coiled cords? You know, the ones that could stretch across the whole room while you were chatting away? The minute you hung up, that cord snapped right back into its tight coil. That’s basically what’s happening with your curls! When your hair is in its natural shrinkage state, it’s essentially doing its thing—springing back, holding onto its elasticity, and maintaining its bounce.

Now, when we talk about manipulating your curls (you know, pulling, tugging, and trying to “stretch” them to show off length), think of that coiled phone cord after years of being stretched. It starts to lose its shape, get distorted, and eventually get damaged. The more we try to force our curls to elongate, the more we risk causing mechanical damage, breakage, and unwanted texture changes.

We totally get it, though. We all want those “elongated” curls or that extra volume, and there’s nothing wrong with wanting to show off your length. But we want to remind you that your curl pattern, elasticity, and overall hair health should always come first.

Elasticity is one of your hair’s essential elements—it’s the ability to stretch and bounce back without breaking. And when you’re constantly trying to pull on your curls, you’re essentially setting them up for breakage. We see this all the time in the salon: broken ends, altered curl patterns, and increased porosity. So, while elongation products and techniques may give you the temporary length you’re after, they can leave your hair looking worn out and damaged in the long run.

At the end of the day, we all want that dope hair, and we want to show it off. There are ways to achieve elongation in a way that’s kind to your curls—trust us, we’ve got a few tricks up our sleeves that help maintain your curl health while giving you the style you’re after.

Shrinkage is a sign of healthy curls, sis—don’t fight it. Embrace it, and treat those curls with love!

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