No shampoo

[kirstkat]

Right, so as of January 1, 2008 I haven't used shampoo in my hair, instead rinsing with a baking soda solution and/or an apple cider vinegar solution more or less as recommended by Natalie. Late in week two of the experiment my hair was almost unbearably waxy and stiff feeling, but after a couple of days it settled into its current state, which is

Comments

[kirstkat]

At the time I was definitely thinking that it might have been easier to adjust first to shampooing every other day or every three days rather than going cold turkey. But then again it's definitely a time of year where I can just pull my hair back and not care no matter how gross I feel like it is, so I think I'm glad I did it the way I did. It was more in the spirit of experimentation rather than a gradual change that I might have just given up on. There were definitely two different changes for me, the first was the "eww gross my hair feels oily" which was me adjusting to fewer washes, then there was a distinct separate extreme waxy feeling, which I think was the variously defined "detox" of getting all of the shampoo/conditioner residue out of my system.

Definitely don't keep using the conditioner, really all it's doing is trying to balance out the shampoo, so you really shouldn't need it if you aren't shampooing. I've read that ACV can also make your hair feel greasier, because it makes it smoother, allowing scalp oils to coat it better. No matter what you do though, make sure to always massage your scalp while you're getting it wet, and always start with hot water and end with cold water.

I'd be curious to see how this goes for you, as I know we have pretty different hair.

[shrinni]

I think if my hair were longer I'd go cold turkey, but I still can't quite pull it all back yet. My goal is to not buy any more shampoo, I've still got half a bottle left so I should be able to stretch that for a gradual lessening. Or something. Plus I already have baking soda and ACV, so laziness (not buying more shampoo) should help me there. :)

[topaz]

i did cold turkey, but i've read about people gradually diluting their shampoo (filling the bottle up the rest of the way with water every time they use some), and supposedly it works? i can't speak from experience, though.