FOR WOMEN ONLY: Do you 'poo

[SweetMarie1965]

I clean my hair with L'Oreal's Ever Strong sulfate free conditioner. It does a fine job on my hennaed hair. It's made with rosemary and mint - very refreshing! I've gone very short before;might do it again this week. Never had scalp issues, thank goodness. But I think we can shampoo too much and cause the scalp to over produce oil. Once in a while I'll rinse with tea if the conditioner builds up. But it's rare that I need to do it. My hair is very curly.

 

[angeli]

If anyone is interested, you can make a tea of Nettle and Rosemary to help your scalp and thicken your hair. It would go well with either the baking soda or no poo method. You know, just find some herb, both of these are easily found fresh. if not, any health food store should have them, they are pretty common. About a teaspoon of herbs combined in a cup, pour boiling water over and let it sit, covered with a hot pad or kitchen towel for about 20 minutes. Once it's cooled, pour it over to rinse the last thing, and let it stay in your hair. Both these herbs are full of minerals and will nourish your scalp and hair follicles. This combo has been used for hundreds of years - literally - to thicken and restore health to hair. You don't have to do it every time, but maybe after you use baking soda and are rinsing it out, then pour the tea on after and let it dry in. Just a thought.

 

[SweetMarie1965]

That sounds really good Angeli... I'm going to try that instead of regular tea. I've noticed my hair thinning a bit this past year. Anything that might help thicken it is a boon! I use henna, it helps to thicken, but I'm thinking of stopping it because I have to use it too dark in order to cover gray (white) hair that's beginning to surface. I'm naturally a red head. Henna covers the white nicely and it lasts a long time, but it lessens the curl - I'm not happy about that or about having to go so dark just to get the white covered - it turns Bozo orange if I don't use the darkest color. Baking soda is very hard on my hair so I don't use it at all.

 

[gypsychic]

SweetMarie,

How do you like the henna? My hair started to whiten when I was a teenager so I started coloring it back then. After 20+years of coloring I gave it up, grew out the color and it's now almost all white. I've been pondering using henna on it for a while now but I don't want to look like bozo. when you say dark, like an auburn? I'm trying to picture what you mean.

As for shampooing, I had really curly hair most of my life and was always told not use shampoo more than once or twice a month years ago. I tried to offer the advice to others but they thought I was dirty or something. Glad to hear some people are starting to realize you can be too clean.

I'll have to try the rosemary and nettles hair rinse. Too bad you aren't closer SweetMarie as I have way more rosemary in my organic garden than I can possibly use in cooking. I'll need to buy some nettles this spring at the farmer's markets. Thanks angeli for the tip.

Cheers,

GypsiChic

 

[SweetMarie1965]

Hi GypsiChic

White hair is the most difficult to henna. It takes several treatments to finally get the hair to a rich red; the henna has to build up in the hair. The white part gets redder while the hair that's still the natural color gets darker and darker and darker. Part of mine is almost black now; I don't like it. On Wednesday I think I'll get it cut short again, down to about 2 inches, just to get rid of the blackish. I'm trying to do my best until the white takes over. It's turning pretty fast now, although I haven't seen it as white except around my face. The white goes reddish, there's more of that now.

Using henna is a lengthy trial and error process; it'll probably be another year of henna every month and trims until it's the way I want it - a medium auburn. Although, to be honest, I've thought of going back to regular hair color just because the henna takes the curl out of my hair. But the regular chemical colors don't hold on the white hair very well. I really don't want to go white; it doesn't suit me.

If I stick with henna I'll have to keep my hair quite short; it's unmanageable longer because of the lack of curl from the henna treatments. I've read in different places that henna shouldn't be used on white hair, but that's probably because of the orange effect at first. Henna darkens, oxidizes in a few days after a treatment, so first you're a bit orange and then it calms down. Other than that, it's very healthy for your hair; my hair is very silky now, but it doesn't take well to the straightening effect but it's not very thick. I'd really do a lot of tests if you were going to try it - collect hair and try different formulas. YouTube has some great videos. There's also a very good site about using henna - the best on the web. http://www.hennaforhair.com/

---

The thing about henna is that it's really permanent; it's a drawback when things go wrong. It fades a bit, but the henna bonds to the hair. It's a boon as the color builds up and the hair thickens. It does have a smell that takes a few days to go away. I wish it smelled more like new mowed grass than the way it smells on its own.

 

[cherterr]

Been no pooing for ?? about 3 years now.. still love it. I have fine, waist length hair. I have noticed lately (not due to no poo, tho) that since I keep in 'pony tail' band and bun @ nite it's been breaking at that point. OOPS... guess I should have kept using the nice satiny cloth covered hair bands. *sigh*

The last couple of months tho.. I've been lazy and just grabbed the cheap shampoo and used the vinegar rinse still. Hm... wonder if that Suave is making my hair break? Oh well. Just reporting in! lol

 

[gypsyvioleta]

My Mom always kept our hair cut short but when we were teens we let it grow long & I kept my long for about 45-50 years. It was always so thick & wavy ( the weight pulled the curls down). Then I cut it short & the curls kinked up again, so about 7 years ago I took my clippers that I used on my son & his dad, put a #3 guard on & zipped it all off & I loved it!!! It is so much cooler & my arms (bursitis in both shoulders) don't hurt so much as I only have to have them up every 4 wks. I usually just stand under the shower every evening, run my hands over my head and let it dry on its own. Once a week I can use baking soda on it, rinse and let it dry on its own. Now that is what I call true freedom & at 70 yrs. old it feels so good & I don't care how others like it or not. My family just had to get use to it as life is about enjoying it not worrying about how I look. Anyway there are enough pretty, young, thin girls for them to look at, who cares what a fat, 70 yr. old looks like! Being old is the best time of my life & I love the freedom!!

 

[AD64]

I'm with you gypsyvioleta.

While I have not yet reached the esteemed age you have, I have found aging to bring great freedom and daily joy.

I stopped shampooing a few years ago. I use baking soda and apple cider vinegar, or just water. I like not having the chemicals on my scalp, I like not paying for more products, and I like the freedom.

 

[slynne]

I have been mostly no poo for the last few years. I keep a bottle of Trader Joe's Tea Tree Tingle shampoo because it doesnt have sodium lauryl sulfate in it. I only use it occasionally, mostly in the summer when my hair gets a little greasy.I hadnt thought to try baking soda but at the rate I am going through this bottle I bought three years ago, it should last for another six so it might be some time before I need to try that method. My hair has never looked better!

Oh man, I just realized that I am going to have to decide if I am going to bring my shampoo with me in the van. Maybe I'll just put some in a travel size container

 

[AmieW]

I want to no-poo so badly, and this thread is a good motivator for me. I have baby fine wavy hair, and I have at very lean times washed my hair with Dawn and used coconut oil as conditioner. Actually, my hair looked great back then. No buildup of any kind escapes Dawn! In fact, that's what they recommend you use to strip buildup out of your hair. Maybe I'll strip my hair tonight and try the no poo method, and use that tiny bit of coconut oil as conditioner on my ends. I do have a natural boar bristle brush, so I'm prepared. I'll let you know how it goes.

I've found that as I get older, my hair doesn't require as much washing, but then, I'm not styling it much or using anything other than shampoo and conditioner only on the ends.

 

[XFILE36]

I have fairly thick , long, wavy/curly hair naturally and straighten it sometimes with a hair dryer and/or straightener. When my hair dries naturally it tends to get tangled and look like a scarecrow a day later if I don't straighten it. Anyone else with that problem? Just because we live in our wheels doesn't mean we should stop looking and smelling lovely like we are. I don't want to live with a "bun" on my head. BTW, do you rinse out the vinegar and baking soda? Can you give directions someone? TY

 

[AD64]

I want to no-poo so badly, and this thread is a good motivator for me. I have baby fine wavy hair, and I have at very lean times washed my hair with Dawn and used coconut oil as conditioner. Actually, my hair looked great back then. No buildup of any kind escapes Dawn! In fact, that's what they recommend you use to strip buildup out of your hair. Maybe I'll strip my hair tonight and try the no poo method, and use that tiny bit of coconut oil as conditioner on my ends. I do have a natural boar bristle brush, so I'm prepared. I'll let you know how it goes.

I've found that as I get older, my hair doesn't require as much washing, but then, I'm not styling it much or using anything other than shampoo and conditioner only on the ends.

Hi AmieW,

Oh I'm with you and supporting you. I haven't used shampoo for a few years, and my scalp and hair are actually healthier. Do keep us posted on how it goes.

Best,

AD

 

[AnnieSantiago]

I am talking about shampooing your hair of course. Does anyone go no poo? If you have no idea what I am talking about&nbsp;<a href="http://simplemom.net/how-to-clean-your-hair-without-shampoo/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://simplemom.net/how-to-clean-your-hair-without-shampoo/</a>&nbsp;check this out.

When I first got bad with MCS, I did no-poo for quite a long time. 
I put a tablespoon of baking soda in a glass of warm water and poured it over my head.
I rubbed it in, then rinsed.

I followed that with a tablespoon of vinegar in a glass of water.
Then rinsed.

Hair was shiny and soft.

When I run out of my fragrance free shampoo, I may just do that again.