Fact or Fiction: Does doing the BC make your hair grow faster?

Hi CN Community!

I am a newbie....actually very new, I'm only 5 weeks into my transition, but nonetheless very excited!! First, I would like to thank all of the ladies who have been instrumental in my hair care world over the last couple of weeks, with answering my millions of questions and offering advice and support (shouts out to MzBush!). Secondly, I am wondering if doing the "BC" promotes faster hair growth? I read somewhere that relaxed ends weigh down your natural new growth. Of course, I had to bring it back to the very knowledgeable members of CN.com for confirmation :-). I've rocked short and long hair and am quite comfortable with either, so doing the BC isn't so scary for me. At this point, my reasoning for waiting 6 or 7 months would be, because I think we in North Carolina have a long, cold, winter ahead of us. I'm also still in search for someone in this area who could do the cut for me. In retrospect, if I thought shaving my head would get me on the right track as far as healthy hair growth, I'd cut it tomorrow! To my vets and fellow newbies, what has been your experience as far hair growth during transitioning?

Thanks in advanced for your comments!

I can't say that the BC make it grow faster but for me I have worn my hair short(relaxed) and it never grew this fast before.

What part of NC are you? When I cut off my hair I went to my stylist and got it cut. I also had some color in my hair prior BC so I wanted that color toned down back to my original color. Some ladies have gone to the barber shop to have it cut. You have options. If you are cool with the BC I say go for it!!

yeah, go for it!! i never had the chance to do the BC and really embrace the opportunity to have a twa. its so ironic because i try to do more styles that make it look like i have short hair. i think those rocking the BC cut look really sophisticated. nonetheless, the quicker you get rid of the permed hair, the better off your natural hair will be. there are no short cuts. patience is key.

I'm gonna go with "no" to answer your question. Your hair will grow at the same rate it grew before. The different this time around will be you aren't fighting against your hair by using chemicals or (hopefully) heat, which should lead to retaining the hair that has grown.

I transitioned for 10 months. I did the BC last month. I don't know if it's just my imagination or not, but I have definitely seen a difference in just 4 weeks. Now, I've never had a problem growing my hair long so I've never paid much attention to the rate at which my hair grows. So this could be normal growth for me. Or, it could be that my hair is better moisturized, so it just appears longer. :?:

To show the difference, I've attached two pics. The first one is the day I did the BC. My hair is wet and it has conditioner in it. The second pic is my hair today, 4 weeks later. It's wet and has no conditioner in it.

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Whatever it is, I'm just happy my hair is looking better! Doing the BC is helping me to focus more on healthy hair vs. how to cope with two textures.

Thanks ladies....NaturalNixon, I am in the Raleigh/Durham area. Do you know someone who is could successfully do my big chop for me?

Traveljunkie08....your curls are beautiful!

I also think doing the BC could help you retain more growth, especially if you're constantly fighting with the two textures. I transitioned for 6 months, but I had no idea how to handle my new growth. I would wash and condition it, and then it would be impossible to comb through. I didn't know anything about co-washing, washing in braids, detangling in the shower, twistouts, braidouts, etc, so I would just pull it back into the same ponytail every day.

Eventually my relaxed hair broke off at the site of that ponytail! Who knows how much of my natural hair it took with it or how many split ends migrated down to my natural hair? After I BCed, my hair was so much easier to co-wash, finger detangle and go. If I were to do it all over again I would BC as soon as possible. It really is the easiest time in your natural hair journey. You can learn what your hair likes and doesn't like and how to take care of it when it's so short that it's almost impossible to mess up!

Thanks MrsLambsWool!