Has anyone given up washing their hair with shampooentirely?

lazygal

I dip in and out of the blog Paris to Go and she has given up shampoo. I am a little tempted to try this but I'm worried I'll have to wash if the grease becomes too much. Anyone gone this route?

flikflak

What has she replaced it with? Not washing your hair is as bad as not washing your body in my book.

lubie76

You aren't not washing your hair if you are talking about the 'no poo' method also called the 'curly girl' method. You are just using natural products like bi soda and apple cider vinegar which are natural cleansers and moisturisers for the hair instead of chemical shampoos.

I have tried the method in the past and while there is a transition period where your hair needs to adapt to the non stripping of oils without using your detergent/ chemicals in shampoo, the hair will revert to its natural state after a while and will be the best condition it's ever been in. Not washing your hair is not bad for your hair as it is not meant to be stripped of its oils but it may be bad for your image if you like to have squeaky clean hair and aren't prepared to do the work to get it back to its natural state. I have seen bloggers and two friends who have amazing results with this method because they stuck with it for a few weeks.

The reason it didn't work for me was I have highlighted hair so obviously shampoo is needed to take out the bleach at the hairdresser so even that one thorough shampoo every 8 weeks set me back to the initial transition stage every time so was a bit of a Groundhog Day situation. I didn't do it for environmental reasons or anything but because my hair was so damaged I knew it would benefit from it and it did but in the long run I think,it would be better for curly girls who either don't dye or people who can use non permanent colours in their hair.

kandr10

The theory of 'stripping oils' with shampoo sounds like it could nearly be a thing but I'm skeptical when you say you're back to square one after just one wash. Why would one wash undo the effort? What's the science behind that?

lubie76

Tbh there is nothing really scientific about it- the transition period is just allowing the hair to get back to its natural state and start producing oils which are meant to be on the scalp/ hair. You can encourage this by using a brush normally a boar bristle brush to distribute the oils throughout the hair. You can use natural cleanser like b soda to gently clean the hair when needed and acv/ honey etc for conditioning.

Obviously if your highlighting the hair, you're going to disrupt this natural process as you are stripping the hair of its natural oils . Anyone with highlights will tell you after getting them done the hair is normally dryer and needs to be washed less often anyway. I'm not saying it is totally reversing the process but will certainly set you back a number of weeks as the oils need to start been reintroduced to the hair and just as you get it back to its best condition, damn roots need to be done again.

I really do believe this will work for the majority of people if they are willing to put in the work, just look up the no poo/ curly girl movement.

lazygal

Update on this!

I'm about six weeks into water washing only. I'm using a brush with bamboo bristles and massaging my scalp twice a day.

So far, I like it. I'm still in a transistion phase, I think, as my hair doesn't feel great but it looks healthier. I have highlights and they're growing out, so I have to live with a bit of a root situation, but I can deal with that. I'm kind of over the time and expense of highlights for now anyway.

ratmouse

This sounds interesting and almost worth a try .For anyone who has tried it/is trying it, does your scalp feel clean or does it have that itchy feeling like it needs a good scrub?

Chuchote

I knew someone who didn't was her hair for years, but she brushed it and brushed it for about 10 minutes a couple of times a day, and she washed the brush. She had long, glossy, beautiful, pleasant-smelling hair.

lazygal

ratmouse wrote: »

This sounds interesting and almost worth a try .For anyone who has tried it/is trying it, does your scalp feel clean or does it have that itchy feeling like it needs a good scrub?

I thought it would but I've been massaging my scalp twice daily and no problems at all.

ratmouse

lazygal wrote: »

I thought it would but I've been massaging my scalp twice daily and no problems at all.

That's good to hear. Maybe I'll give it a go! Would be great to get my hair in good condition.

lazygal

I used to wash my hair at least every second day. Now it's a water only wash once a week. I was expecting to feel really gross but I'm happy enough. It is definitely not for the impatient, I'm still in the greasy transition phase.

we'llallhavetea

this sounds manky to me, you wouldnt wash your body with water only so why would you do it on your head? the smell of scalp after a day or two is stomach churning.

intheclouds

we'llallhavetea wrote: »

this sounds manky to me, you wouldnt wash your body with water only so why would you do it on your head? the smell of scalp after a day or two is stomach churning.

Would you not? I used swim and after an hour in the pool I'd be squeaky clean and I'd just stand under the shower to rinse the chlorine off. I've noticed same on holidays when I've been in the water a lot.

I'm sure if you soaked in a hot bath you'd feel clean too. You're just conditioned to think you need suds. How do you think humanity survived for thousands of years before suds?

we'llallhavetea

intheclouds wrote: »

Would you not? I used swim and after an hour in the pool I'd be squeaky clean and I'd just stand under the shower to rinse the chlorine off. I've noticed same on holidays when I've been in the water a lot.

I'm sure if you soaked in a hot bath you'd feel clean too. You're just conditioned to think you need suds. How do you think humanity survived for thousands of years before suds?

water alone doesn't break down the oils on your skin and theres bound to be dirt in those oils. after you use the bathroom you don't just wash your hands with water, the germs would still be there if you did. could be wrong! i like smelling clean and soapy!

intheclouds

we'llallhavetea wrote: »

water alone doesn't break down the oils on your skin and theres bound to be dirt in those oils. after you use the bathroom you don't just wash your hands with water, the germs would still be there if you did. could be wrong! i like smelling clean and soapy!

Sure you could smell squeaky clean and still be germy. Germs don't smell, you pick them up off door handles, money etc...

I don't think breaking down the oils in your skin is a good thing. I can't use shower gel etc daily all over or my skin goes very dried out and nasty.

we'llallhavetea

intheclouds wrote: »

Sure you could smell squeaky clean and still be germy. Germs don't smell, you pick them up off door handles, money etc...

I don't think breaking down the oils in your skin is a good thing. I can't use shower gel etc daily all over or my skin goes very dried out and nasty.

yeah me too, but i just use a rich body lotion after every shower and it keeps my skin as soft as a babys arse.

intheclouds

we'llallhavetea wrote: »

yeah me too, but i just use a rich body lotion after every shower and it keeps my skin as soft as a babys arse.

See I just see that as rubbing dirt in (cos I'd get spotty if I did it).

I genuinely can't see why hair washing with water only wouldn't work.

bee06

I was at the hairdresser yesterday and had a random thought about this thread when the girl was washing my hair ... what happened when you go to the hairdresser? Do you ask them not to use shampoo when washing your hair or wash/wet it yourself and go in wet?

we'llallhavetea

intheclouds wrote: »

See I just see that as rubbing dirt in (cos I'd get spotty if I did it).

thats mental!

I genuinely can't see why hair washing with water only wouldn't work.

well people say it does work, but i just think its mank! :P

intheclouds

bee06 wrote: »

I was at the hairdresser yesterday and had a random thought about this thread when the girl was washing my hair ... what happened when you go to the hairdresser? Do you ask them not to use shampoo when washing your hair or wash/wet it yourself and go in wet?

I'd like to know this too. Mind you I only go to the hairdresser once every 12-18 months so it'd probably be grand.

I want to know why one shampoo wash sets the whole process back though, that just sounds wrong.

intheclouds

we'llallhavetea wrote: »

thats mental!



well people say it does work, but i just think its mank! :P

I see make up as dirt too. Put your make up on your arm or leg and you'll see what I mean. If you got a black smudge on your cheek it'd be bad but it's ok on your eyelid. Mental!!

we'llallhavetea

intheclouds wrote: »

I'd like to know this too. Mind you I only go to the hairdresser once every 12-18 months so it'd probably be grand.

me again! :P loads of clients come in with their hair already washed so thats not a problem. now if you were having colour done theres no way to avoid shampoo, that stuffs not coming out without it.

I want to know why one shampoo wash sets the whole process back though, that just sounds wrong.

because the whole idea is that the natural oils in your hair remain there and after a certain length of time it starts washing itself i think. one wash with shampoo strips all the oil away so you have to start the process all over again.

lazygal

bee06 wrote: »

I was at the hairdresser yesterday and had a random thought about this thread when the girl was washing my hair ... what happened when you go to the hairdresser? Do you ask them not to use shampoo when washing your hair or wash/wet it yourself and go in wet?

I haven't needed a cut but I'll get a dry cut or tell them to skip the shampoo.

lubie76

You could always do a conditioner only wash at the hairdressers if ur just getting it cut- some of the formulas such as Wen or I think palmers do a good one are cleansing conditioners so they clean the hair without producing the suds that strip your hair.

Victoria.

I tried using conditioner only - it was a disaster.

Now I use conditioner and then shampoo on my scalp and just allow the suds to go down the length of my hair when I rinse. I basically reverse the 'normal' order these are used. Never been happier with the condition of my hair. It's long and extremely healthy (down to the small of my back) and doesn't feel weighed down.