2026 Hair Growth Challenge: May recap & results!

May 31
4 min read

And as of the end of May 2026, 8 months nearly to the day from the Big Chop, I'm officially back to the length I was able to achieve and maintain during Natural Hair Movement v.1 in the 2010's. It's not a surprise why it's the length I could maintain, particularly when I mostly wore my hair down in wash-and-go's... this is about the point where ends meet clothing fabric, and I lose all retention thanks to friction. My ends are far thicker and more even this time around. I haven't even had to pull out the shears in a couple of months to catch the pieces growing faster than others.

To compare to April's results:

Hugely noticeable growth this month!!

I'm also just to the length where I can wear my hair in a bun... not the ends tucked "messy bun" topknot, but an actual twist around the elastic to make a complete circle kind of bun. It's teeny-tiny, but my hair is really fine, it's always going to be teeny-tiny, no matter how many times I'll be able to loop it around 🤣🤣

As for routine, my little last-minute experiment turned out to be just what my scalp needed for the more humid months (I mean, obviously, look at that length gain up there!) - I did modify the ingredients a little when I filled the bottle, so my official hair serum recipe is:

1 6 oz bottle with an applicator tip (and preferably measurement markings on the bottle, but not necessary)
1 oz papaya seed oil
1 oz hyalauronic acid serum
4 oz vegetable glycerine

The rest of this is not essential (heh) to the recipe, and entirely up to you. Why am I using essential oils? First of all, because I have them. I've always enjoyed using them, so I have them. Here's a little Auntie Lore for you - my mother's friend from the local homeschool co-op was one of the very first Young Living Essential Oils consultants, she studied the Raindrop Technique with "Dr." Young himself. Which means I was using essential oils for all kinds of things as a teenager, and this was after a pre-teen hyperfixation on herbal medicine. I don't use MLM oils anymore, of course.

Secondly, convenience. I could infuse the papaya oil with fresh or dry herb, yes, but the point of this was the ease of preparation, and not having to set up a bain mare.

I'll tell you why I chose to use the oils I did. You may choose different oils, or choose to leave them out entirely, and that's fine.

Of course, research around things like natural health and essential oils is weird, so all physical benefit "claims" are alleged. And all the spiritual claims take personal belief, so do what you will with those.

40 drops lavender EO
- A natural anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory, as well as energy clearing and refining frequency, synced to the crown chakra.
40 drops rosemary EO
- Legendary herb for hair growth and scalp health.
25 drops frankincense EO
- Also naturally anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory. Incredibly high, purifying energy, which is why it's traditionally been used as incense in religious ceremonies across multiple belief systems and for millennia.
12 drops peppermint EO
- Incredibly stimulating oil. If nothing else will wake your scalp up, this will.
12 drops cedarwood EO
- Another anti-microbial, anti-inflammatory, and has an energy very similar to frankincense - as a matter of fact, Cedar is used in Indigenous American religions similar to how frankincense is used in religions on the Silk Road.

As for where I source my essential oils, I prefer the NOW Brand, same as I prefer for my nutritional supplements. Which happens to be a great segway into my next hair health update - as of my writing this (May 27, actually), I've started adding Selenium supplementation to my daily routine. Considering large amounts of fat loss depletes Selenium, and the number one food source is Brazil Nuts... I thought I should probably add more to my diet than the 100mcg I get from my daily flax seeds (which is daily value, but on the low end according to my internet research). I'm starting with 200mcg supplemented for the first two or three weeks, see how it goes, and then back down to 100mcg tablet along with my usual flax seed consumption for maintenance. Apparently, this should further improve my rate of hair and nail growth, so let's see...

To recap, here's the current routine:

Internal:

Hydration: I average around 110oz per day of flat water, not including any additional sugary, caffeinated, or carbonated drinks I may have.
Nutrition: going strong on avoiding the food allergens, for the most part (I did go out for ice cream on Memorial Day, and had pizza for dinner last night...). And I'm keeping up on my prescription medications, to reduce any further stress on my body, especially as the cottonwood just started flying, yuck.
Daily Supplementation: electrolytes, bovine collagen, Omega 3-6-9 oils, iron, vitamin C, and now Selenium.

External:

Scalp scrub with Kojic acid soap.
Scalp serum (recipe above), applied with a scalp massage.
Leave-in creme conditioner on wet hair.
Chebe butter followed by a steam treatment.

Protective:

Nightly wear of silk sleep bonnets.
Covering loosely braided hair with hats or headwraps when outside/in public, using silk wig caps or durags to protect the hair from the fabric of the hat/headwrap.
Wearing hair up in a high ponytail around the house, to keep it off my clothes.

Speaking of headwraps, I didn't leave the house a lot in May, so not a ton of reasons to practice 😅😅 But I have found my go-to chiffon style!