Hello,
My hair is about 28" long, and I am 15 years old.  My hair has never been any longer than this, and I've never cut it except for occasional trims of split ends.  I just discovered this site about a week ago, and I don't understand why my hair isn't longer.  I am nearly 100% Irish, with dark brunette slightly thick hair. I've been drinking coffee my whole life, and I've been getting perms once a year every year for all my childhood.  I've always wanted long hair ever since I was very young and I still want knee length (hopefully floor length!) hair.  Could anyone help me understand why my hair is not longer?  I really think I need hair therapy!

Hi and welcome!  I moved your question over here so others can jump in with their suggestions.

Growing long hair takes patience.  28" is already long by most people's standards, but if you want even longer hair, you must understand the basics.  Each hair comes from a single follicle.  A follicle will grow a single hair for 7 to 10 years, depending on your genetics.  Once the cycle is complete, the hair will fall out, the follicle will rest for a while, then grow a new hair.  Most people get about 1/2" of growth a month.

If a hair is damaged before it falls out, it will never reach its maximum length.  Things that can damage the hair include chemical processes (perms, straightening, coloring, bleaching), use of heat (curling irons, flat irons, hair dryers), abuse (combing/brushing when wet, using combs or brushes that damage the hair).  Hair can be lost earlier than the expected rate due to stress, health, or nutritian. 

Not everyone can grow extremely long hair, such as to their knees.  Most, however, can grow hair to their waist, if they work at it. 

Hopefully some of the suggestions you will read on this site will give you some ideas of things you can do help you reach your goals.

That would explain why all my friends who had long hair in the 80s and then cut it claim they cannot grow it long again.

In my opinion, it is never too late to grow long hair.  You just have to understand what it will take for it to grow to its longest lengths.  Hormones play a signigicant factor in the growth rate with the highest rate usually in the late teens to mid-twenties.  Women during pregnancy will also frequently experience a high grow rate (and reduced shed rate).

At 15, you still have a lot of growing years ahead of you.  If you start paying attention to how you care for your hair, limit the damage you do to your hair, then I am sure you will see improvements in the condition and length of your hair.

Welcome, Ursusem!

I don't think it's too late for you.  I started growing my hair at 30.   Have you looked at this page yet - there are a lot of helpful tips here:

http://www.longlocks.com/how-to-grow-long-hair.htm

Once you get the basic hair-care down, then you can experiment with some of the different methods of washing, conditioning, oiling, etc.  But the main thing is, it takes patience.  Don't try to change everything about your hair habits in one day - try changing a few things at a time so you won't feel overwhelmed.

Cynde