Nix the Rogain: Or how to naturally grow your hair (faster)

Two summers ago, I made the worst non-male-related decision of my life.
I cut all my hair off.
I'd had long hair since a similarly unfortunate hair cut in the second grade.  Time healing all wounds didn't help in this case because I forgot that short hair made me look like a punky boy child and was seduced by Emma Watson's pixie cut into chopping my long locks into a chunky square mess.
Thankfully, it's grown out a lot in 2 years, and is now almost as long as it was before.
But how did you get it to grow so fast? you ask.  Did you buy ridiculous $60 vitamins and sacrifice a lamb to the pagan hair gods during the new moon?
No, gentle readers.  I did no such things.
But here is a list of what I did do:

1. Nix the heat.  I know this can be scary because most of us rely on our heated styling magic wands to make us pretty, but try embracing your natural texture a few days a week.  I pretty much only style my hair when a special occasion calls for it.  Plus there are so many cute things you can do to your hair that don't require straightening or curling, and tons of ways to curl your hair without the aid of an iron (see Pinterest).
2. Take vitamins. Not the super-expensive kind, either.  I take a vitamin-B complex and a biotin supplement that I got from Dollar General, and they work!  I also took vitamin-E for a while, but I recently ran out of it and have been too lazy to get more.  Also make sure that you're eating a balanced diet - spinach and other leafy greens are full of vitamins that aid hair growth, and eggs and lean meats contain the protein that hair is made of.  Good nutrition basically fixes whatever ails you, including (with time), a bad haircut.
3. Stay active. Exercise increases blood flow to everywhere, including your scalp, which stimulates hair growth.
4. Sleep on satin pillowcases. But really, I'm not kidding. Since satin isn't as rough as cotton, it's easier on your hair, making it tangle less while you sleep.  Less tangles = less breakage. Plus satin pillowcases are pretty cheap at Walmart, and they come in leopard print.
5. Get dirty.  And by that I mean don't wash your hair everyday.  Shampoo strips the oils from your hair, which it needs to stay moisturized and grow.  When you wash every day, your scalp starts overproducing oil because its being stripped away, upsetting the pH balance of your hair and actually making it more oily over time. I only wash my hair twice a week.  On the in-between days I use a dry shampoo so that my hair doesn't look oily (my favorite is No Drought from Lush). This one has probably made the biggest difference for me; my hair feels so much healthier now.
6. Drink water. I drink a ton of water already, but I upped my intake from 8 glasses to about 12, and it makes a big difference in how fast I notice my hair growing.  It helps with skin issues (which I have many of) as well, and it makes you feel full so you don't swallow a cupcake whole. All in all, water just rocks at everything.
7. Use natural products.  It's unrealistic to go natural for everything, because that crap is expensive.  But just switching to natural shampoo can make a big difference.  I use this natural shampoo bar that I got from an apothecary at a craft fair, and I love it.  If its natural, it doesn't contain the harsh chemicals that some store-bought shampoos might, and it's much better for your hair and just you in general.

This is when I got my hair cut:

Chunky and awful and ugh.
Here's two years later:

(also that's my handsome fiancee, like how I threw one of my engagement pics in there?) :)
I'm pretty pleased with the rate my hair is growing, though I would like it to be MUCH longer for the wedding.  I have til August. We shall see.