HairVlog: How I Gained Thickness In My Hair

So looking back on childhood pictures, my hair was pretty thick as a kid! But as I grew older and started getting relaxers (around 5th grade) my hair started getting thinner and thinner each year. Along with the relaxers every 6-8 weeks, I was also using the blow dryer and flat iron every 2 weeks when my hair got washed. To make it even worse I wasn't moisturizing and sealing at all! Ever since I've started college, about 2 years ago, my hair has slowly but surely been turning around for the better. These are a few things that I've started doing to help my hair become thicker and healthier:

• Stretching my relaxers for at least 8 weeks (most of the time I shoot for 10 weeks minimum). The most I've ever stretched is 16 weeks.
• Deep condition as much as possible! Being in college my first two years I couldn't really DC because it was too much shower hopping. So I'd only DC when I came home and washed my hair which was roughly once every 2 months.
• Dusting monthly. I'm doing this mainly to get rid of my old, thin, overprocessed ends gradually instead of cutting them all off at once. This also lessens the amount my stylist has to trim when I actually get trims.
• Texlaxing. I wouldn't consider myself officially texlaxed but my hair has curls and texture when it's wet now and it never use to have that back in the day. Anyways this helps with my thickness because my hair is no longer bone straight relaxed.
• NO HEAT! Now I only use heat every few months and this direct heat is my flat iron. I make sure when I use it to use a heat protector. I no longer blow dry my hair because every time I do it makes my hair feel like straw.
• Castor oil. I swear I have to thank this oil for my newly found thickness! I oil my scalp 1-2x a week with this oil and my roots have become thick luscious healthy and just juicy!(:
• Moisturizing and sealing nightly. I'm not sure if this really helps with the thickness of my hair, but it definitely helps with the health of my hair.
• Protective styling. I do more twists and pinups with my hair and this helps to preserve my ends, resulting in less dusting and less trimming!