“The Best Supplement for FASTER Hair Growth? " ANDREW LESSMAN’S Hair Skin Nails.

It had been two weeks since I last washed my hair---and today I finally mustered up the courage to do it. I am shaking my head at publicly admitting this bit, but it’s the truth. Six months have passed since my last relaxer, and my cornrows are looking rather bedraggled beneath my wig.  My husband has now begun to ask me when he will next see my hair…my real hair (see photo of me on my wedding day---with my real hair---no weave/tracks/pieces or whatever you may call them). I have to preface this post by saying that I believe we owe the texture, length capabilities and natural colors of our hair, to genetics. Certain aspects of our hair’s structure is simply genetic, but there are things that we can do to help maintain its length and improve its health---just like our systems at large! I have to admit, I am not the best go-to person for hair care tips, but ladies…I can tell you a thing or two about hair growth. There isn’t really a science to this---or maybe there is, but in addition to the gifts that your particular gene pool may boast, there are a few products out there that are time tested and proven, worthy of their merit for aiding in the growth and maintenance of more beautiful, stronger, and faster growing hair!
So here is my official two cents on a few of them…


Let me start off by saying that my hair is relaxed. It has been relaxed now for 17 years (read my blog’s tag line for my age). I don’t really subscribe to that “good hair”, saying. Good hair is healthy hair! Each and every single type and texture can be good hair…if it is healthy! I also do not put much weight in those hair typing charts (mostly because I don’t really understand the purpose of them) but I believe I have normal, healthy and beautiful hair [4a-type classified…unofficially]. Giving credence to the genetic link behind my story, I have had long hair my entire life (read: mid-back length by age 3, bra-strap length up till and beyond my first relaxer.) I have attained waist length hair time and time again, but I also have a rather frenzied love affair with the Scissors. Plus, as mentioned before, I have lost length due to major neglect but alas…it always comes right back.

There are numerous products on the market that make grand promises that include growing your hair, strengthening your hair, improving its “texture”, etcetera etcetera. I am here to share my time tested (2 YEARS IN THE MAKING) review on a few products. And the first of the lot in my Hair Giants series is:

ANDREW LESSMAN’S : Hair Skin Nails Supplement.

One night back in 2010, weary from work, I let the TV rest a bit longer than it should have, on HSN. (I try not to let this happen as unnecessary purchases may ensue.). This particular night they had a TSV (Today’s Special Value) from Andrew Lessman (Hair Skin and Nails formula with EGCG and Bioflavonoids) and well…I wanted it.

I called my boyfriend (now husband) and we both decided to get ourselves a bottle. I don’t/didn’t have an issue with hair growth but my skin was (and still is!) in an absolute state of distress, and my nails were worse for wear. J wanted to try it as well, as he had been experiencing thinning hair and major nail breakage. We decided to purchase the largest value size for myself (600 capsules) and J decided to get a 90 day supply. My mother (who was in her early 50’s at the time) also decided to try it out, and she ordered the 250 capsule size.

So…what happened?

1 Month in:

HAIR: By this point, I hadn’t really noticed much change. I had been taking 2 capsules per day, as suggested on the bottle. In addition, I had continued to take my regular multivitamins (Equate multivitamin for women from Walmart, my fish oil supplement from Vitacost.com, a Chlorella supplement and a fiber supplement.

NAILS: Though I noticed a marked increase in the growth rate of my previously gnarly nails, much to my dismay, they began to become much harder---to the point of being brittle. My nails were no longer as “pliable” as they had been before, and oddly, they began to crack in odd places.

SKIN: I wasn’t surprised that my skin had made no noticeable changes at all…

6 Month Mark:

By this point, I was very pleased as I could note a much more accelerated growth rate of my hair! My hair had also become thicker. The downside however, was the marked increased in coarseness of my hair. I had never had particularly hard to manage nor coarse hair before. So I can only assume that this vitamin played a role in changing the overall texture and manageability of my hair. My skin had also gone through a startlingly embarrassing cycle of increased breakouts (blackheads and cystic acne….all over!).

After a bit of research, I decided that I was not tolerant of the levels of biotin in the hair vitamin at all. Like many others before me, it was singularly responsible for the acne breakouts and I chose to decrease my dose to one tablet per day. At the one year mark, I also chose to purchase Andrew Lessman’s : Essential One Multivitamin and Mineral Supplement (which also featured an additional 500 mcg of biotin) and added that to my daily regimen.

So What Happened Two Years Later…to date?

My husband didn’t reorder the Hair Vitamins, despite having wonderfully accelerated growth of his previously stubby fingernails. He also did not see an improvement in his skin, but noticed that the hair that he had on his had had also begun to grow much faster! (He didn’t care for that fact as it caused more frequent haircuts, and it didn’t cause an area of thinning on his scalp to change much). He did however purchase the Multivitamin and still uses that to this day.

My mother also achieved an accelerated rate of growth in her over processed (permanent dye damaged) hair. Her hair also became much thicker! She too reported that her hair texture became coarser, though she happened to appreciate that particular side-effect.

As for me, and at that dose (1 tablet per day) used in conjunction with the multi vitamins, and a balanced diet, I retained a healthy hair growth rate that seems to exceed the average of ½ inch per month. The skin on my body has been softer as a result of this vitamin regimen. My nails remained strong until mid 2011, when my hand washing got a bit out of hand at work (leading to regular broken bits)---they still grow rather fast though! My skin is still intolerant of high levels of biotin. I sometimes skip the Hair vitamins for several days (and this practice also seems to reduce/eliminate the coarseness that I had previously experienced).  By finding the right dose for you, I would say that this vitamin is a great choice! Amongst other vitamins and minerals, it features hair health champions like: Silicon, MSM, Gelatin, and the afore mentioned Biotin. Do note however, that the Andrew Lessman hair/skin/nails vitamins seem to go through reformulation often.

He tends to do upgrades, but each seems better than the last.  Though it was a bit pricey ($89 for my 600 capsule buy) mine happened to have lasted a long time! Especially since I did not maintain the suggested 2/day dosing, and ultimately would skip several days at a time after a year had passed. Do make sure to purchase while this item is on sale though...as is stands, it is priced lower on Andrew Lessman's direct website at procapslabs.com.

As this may be rather expensive for some people, stay tuned for the next blog post about other Hair Growth Supplements & Products that may suit your needs as well!

WHERE TO BUY:

- Hsn.com

- Amazon.com: Women's Multi

http://www.amazon.com/Equate-Womens-Daily-Multivitamin-Tablets/dp/B00134L9DE/ref=sr_1_1?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1331856437&sr=1-1

- Hair Vitamins

http://www.procapslabs.com/Products/SearchResults.aspx?input=hair

Multivitamins and Hair Skin Nails Vitamins from Andrew Lessman

http://health-fitness.hsn.com/andrew-lessman-essential-1-360-capsules_p-6340950_xp.aspx?cmsstr=120652&webm_id=10056244&web_id=&sz=3&sf=HF&dept=HF0035&cat=HF0085&o=&ocm=seis

- Vitacost.com (offers 300 capsules for less than $9!)

http://www.vitacost.com/Vitacost-Fish-Oil

"The Bouquet Toss."

***THANKS FOR READING***

AFTER THE FINAL ROSE: He Chose COURTNEY---the Blindfolds fell off, Now what?

Photo Courtesy of ABC

Ok...I am done gasping in non-shock.
I was sincerely hoping that this would turn out differently! I am such a sucker! Despite everything I was hoping that ABC had somehow managed to dupe us all---and that he was really waking UP at the last minute--- and that yes, Ben had indeed chosen Lindzi (or even better yet! Ben places a call to Courtney B, as he leans dramatically over some random, windy ledge there in Switzerland and says he never meant to let her go and that it was her all along that he's loved and that his heart was finally speaking louder than his ADDLE BRAINED PECKER and....ok...I truly digress).
So we may as well face it: ABC is doing this purely for entertainment purposes right now. You are more likely to "find love" if cast on the next season of MTV's: The Real World or better yet, first round of auditions during American Idol or X-Factor...if you are lucky! (I actually still have hopes that my first message to ABC's producers will actually get through to them, because I do think they seriously need to switch it up!)

And everybody out there that has complained about the Bachelor not even being worthy of watching? Well, it sure was! Weren't you entertained tonight? Come on...be honest! I have to admit that 1/2 hour in, I actually even started liking Courtney (eternal optimist here, hoping that yes...she is totally a wonderful girl and everyone else was wrong!). I mean, people! I expect anything at this point! They could be married by next week and pregnant already! Who knows?? That girl has certainly got a way about her! But man oh man, when it all came crashing down, and Ben's eyes finally saw the light, it still left me feeling bad for him,  and for her...because really, they are "just ordinary people". (Cue Mr. Legend...). Lets just hope they know which way to go...since at this point, as of 3/12/2012, they are "together".

If nothing else, you turned the TV off feeling blessed to be YOU, feeling better about your own life! I know I did! Yes...I am disappointed in yet another season's ending. Yes, I wanted a shocking Fairy Tale ending (despite the loudly buzzing rumour mill, the tabloid stories and the obviously worst kept secret in the industry of him having picked Courtney!), but instead I got some shockingly black finale dresses! Seriously...aside from my flimsy wishes for this dude, who died?! And yes, I even ---sort of--- told myself to to tune out right after Casey B's vote-off! But yes...just like everyone else who stayed to the end to watch the show's finale tonight, it was still wildly entertaining! And I will be back for more next season.

Yup, I am a sucker for this show!
And ABC...if you are listening (which I know you are not! LOL) time for a remix please.
Also...please do a return of a dashing foreigner then...or at least, a handsome man with a kind heartAnd a clear head! And real true, honest intentions! Then again, those sorts of men are probably down at the grocery store, happily tossing steak and a choice bunch of kale into their trollies.  Or probably he is a click away on Match.com and this type of man would most certainly want nothing to do with the likes of the Bachelor so...yeah.  Just another gripe from another fan...who is still hoping for Change.

PS: Congrats to JP and Ashley! They have set a date! Ok...a timeline! Lets hope they make it! Cheers!
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/23/ashley-hebert-wedding_n_1168071.html
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If Only ABC Network Would: "RE-FORMULATE THE BACHELOR!"

I am a hopeless romantic at heart.No matter what has transpired in life, nor how many sordid tales of cheating and heartache I may hear, I will forever believe in Love. There is a well known  Jamaican colloquialism out there: "Every hoe have him stick a bush"...literally translated as " Every hoe has its stick out there in the bush".....for every person, there is a perfect match. I happen to think so too! And somewhere along the line, 10 seasons ago, I started watching ABC's The Bachelor; got sucked into the swirl of glitzy dresses, and the starry eyed beaux of their adoration, watching raptly each week as they tearfully get sent home one by one till the fated proposal at the very end...and the last dazzling plump red rose.

But see...though this TV program is my guilty pleasure ( I also am still inexplicably tuned in most weeks to the Real World/ Road Rules Challenges) , it doesn't stop me from wanting at least ONE of these guys to wind up happy in the end! And every season so far, I am left disappointed! (I have to admit my hopes are presently low for this season's Bachelor as well...)
"So, stop watching then!", you may say.
But thats the thing...I can't help myself! And I have a theory that I really wish ABC's producer's would look into.


THE NUMBER ONE REASON WHY "THE BACHELOR" HASN'T WORKED:

• (I am not man-bashing here,but...) It is my sincere belief that men are incapable of choosing a life long mate in such a capacity. 25 pretty girls all vying for his attention all at once is bound to (and proven to!) confuse and render senseless, MOST men I know!

And so here's my proposition to ABC. (Not as if they will ever read this, but I am just saying...its food for thought. Plus, after all these failures, I think a revamped script/blueprint is LONG overdue!)

• Have a "Mole"! So I know this would work for only a couple of seasons until the new applicants figured it out, but I think the guy would really benefit from hearing the true low-down about his prospects, from a female friend or relative that is allowed to do the show with him, posing as one of the contestants.  Now, I know another show in the past had employed this strategy but I am pretty sure that having a leg up may produce some more favourable (lasting) results.   
• Allow Wingmen! Now here is where this may get a bit sketchy. Allowing The Bachelor to do the show with 2 of his best male buddies may only work if his two buddies are in strong marriages, or are in no way vying for the attention of any of the women. Men tend to think alike though, and the pack mentality may cloud his vision even further. But, I see where this arrangement may actually work!
• Have an Ex-girlfriend or His mother do the show with him! Yes...I know this arrangement is dependent upon sooo many other factors falling into place, and an ex of any sort can definately complicate matters...but hey, it would at least provide a MUCH needed dash of spice into the old show-recipe, if nothing else.
• Have a 2nd Chance/ Callback/Wildcard option! Now, I have seen Chris Harrison allow girls that have been booted off the show to come back for numerous reasons, but really...they should do this every season! Allow the Bachelor to bring back one girl he feels he may have mistakenly voted off. Of course, the lady of choice may feel like she is being served a dish of frigid sloppy seconds, but really....I see where this could work...(anyone still gunning for "Casey B" on her return to the show this week?) Hey, if the Wildcard pick is anything like the grateful American Idol prospects who are called back for a second chance....then there is hope yet!
• Try a BLACK BACHELOR!  Now, I am not pulling the race card here...and this really should have its own sub topic, but sheesh! Am I the ONLY one wondering why there hasn't in all these seasons been a black Bachelor? Come on people! Spice it up! A lovely hispanic, a dashing Asian, a sultry Indian! Please----try something new on for size!

So I am just tossing ideas out there. And I know there are so many ways my suggestions may actually even make the situation worse. But hey readers, let me know what you think! Leave a comment below! Make your own suggestions! And maybe just maybe someone out there in cyber land may get the message over to ABC Network afterall. 

*** THANKS FOR READING!***

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