Dreads and major shrinkage!?

So i recently started dreading my hair a few months ago, and my dread has shrunk probably 6 inches from the rest of my non-dreaded hair. Why is this happening? Is there anything to speed up the growing process?

updated by @justine: 02/05/15 10:12:49AM

that's just what dreads do! My hair was to may bum 6 months ago now it's to my shoulders and still shrinking.

really wow i knew it was supposed to shrink but not as much as it has.

thats what dreads do , it has a lot to do with hair type and methord used to start dread. the shrinkage can last 12 months (again everyone is different) while your hair knots up

Happens to the best of us! When I started dreading my hair it was to the middle of my back... and now it hardly lays on my shoulders in some parts. Plus, I've noticed that my hair goes through periods of growth and shrinkage... it didn't stop shrinking after the first year! You just have to be patient with it I suppose. You can take a good multi-vitamin to make sure your hair is strong, but there's nothing that can speed up the growth of hair.

the shrinkage is normal and it's a good indicator that your hair is dreading and trying to mature. It will continue to shrink until the dreads fill up and tighten, and any new hair that grows will do the same so you will stay with very little or no length emerging until your dreads fully mature. for some people it only takes a few months and for some people it can take a year or even longer. it just depends on the person, no dread is the same. i'm a year into my dread journey and mine still haven't fully matured, though i have seen a tiny bit of length on a few dreads, while others are still shrinking.