To not get this not washing your hair thing?!

[BarbieBarbieBaa]

Recent trip to the hairdresser resulted in me getting told off (gently) for washing my hair every day. Post pregnancy my hair is a lot thinner and prone to breaking, and in the last few months I’ve had the nastiest greasy roots. I mean proper crispy hair, it’s grim!

I’ve always washed my hair daily since childhood, but now I’m told I shouldn’t.

Problem is by the end of the day I haven’t washed I look a mess! My fringe looks like a oil slick, it is horrible.

Do I go back to daily washing and just go bald? Or am I missing a trick that everyone else knows and I don’t?

Sounds like it dowager!

By no means have I got the most sensitive nose. Not the sort a perfume designer would use. But I have smelled stale hair and old earwax on people. They could be talking to me, standing at a normal arm’s length distance or sitting across the table. Obv, I would never anything say in rl. As you don’t.

You really don't need to wash your hair everyday, it will increase breakage if it's already fragile.
However change will not work overnight.
I wash mine once a week plus if I get it dirty (swimming, exercise, baby vomit), the week before my period I tend to wash it twice as it gets a little greasier.
I found I needed to change my shampoo & conditioner after pregnancy as the one I used before didn't work as well after. You might want to try changing your shampoo and then washing every other day and seeing how it goes, then if that's ok you could extend the period.
I tend to avoid anything with silicon (Pantene) in it as I found it builds up on my hair and makes it lank over time.

But I have smelled stale hair and old earwax on people

You think you have. Doesn't mean you actually have.

You have not smelled ear wax, don't be daft!

I don't even know what ear wax smells like.

The fact that you do is ... odd.

Earwax smells?!

Ok........... :o

Earwax does not smell. And no way could you smell it emanating from random people.

I can go 2-2.5 weeks without washing my hair, it doesn’t get greasy that easily... it’s very thick though and in a pretty good condition. I don’t have to buy shampoo/conditioner!

That often anyway :)

JustWondering
Possibly you've noticed more coming out because you're only washing it once a week, so it seems like a lot, where as if you were washing it 2 or 3 times there wouldnt be so much coming out.

Plus never have i ever smelled dirty hair. Ever

Daily washing is causing your hair problems. You are breaking and weakening your hair shaft plus stripping your hair and scalp of the oils and nutrients it desperately needs in order to grow long and healthy.

I'm sorry but the only thing you can do to save your hair is to start taking good care of it, that includes promoting new healthy and strong re-growth while also taking very careful and special measures to keep what's left of your hair on your head while it grows out, and it's going to have to be drastic. Here are a few tips

Take hair vitamins (B vitamins are your friend)

Use a non sulphate shampoo (sulphates are very drying)

Condition from the mid lengths to the ends only, take a few minutes to massage the ends of your hair each wash

Get regular trims (on average a woman needs a hair cut every 6 weeks, but speak to your stylist and they will give you a more personalised time frame)

Same goes for condition treatments - speak to your stylist - also ask if they do olaplex, if not, find somewhere to do it

Buy a wide tooth comb and brush from the ends down and work your way up to the scalp

Absolutely zero heat styling (YouTube have amazing tutorials on heat free hairstyles)

Drink water and eat veggies (you are what you eat and all that)

Silk pillowcase to minimise breakage and damage on your already fragile strands

Sleep in plaits to also minimise breakage

Don't overload with products

Oil oil oil oil oil!!! All over your ends, every single day. They will be very porous and any moisture will just leak back out, making the hair shaft more prone to breakage.

I have thick waist length healthy hair and wash mine every other day as I really really hate the feeling of unclean hair! I wash it with fairy liquid abt once a month to rid it of build up and although its time consuming to dry it. I couldnt leave it dirty.

Daily washing is causing your hair problems

It's not. RTFT.

Daily washing is causing your hair problems. You are breaking and weakening your hair shaft plus stripping your hair and scalp of the oils and nutrients it desperately needs in order to grow long and healthy.

You get that there is natural variation in people's hair - right..? Mine will not grow long, there is not enough of it. Tbh it isn't really something I would describe as a problem anyway, I just get it cut into a style that works.

Prosecco- if I did what you suggested I'd look like someone stuck a chip pan on my head

@Ambonsai

Yes because daily washing tricks your hair into thinking it has to overproduce oils. Once you keep your hair and scalp well moisturised you hair follicle will naturally stop overproducing oils because the moisture will always be there (so there will be no need to 'replace' natural oils excessively). The longer you leave your hair in between washes the healthier it will be. But what do I know, I'm just a hairdresser

@Increasinglymiddleaged

Unless you have a medical disorder that is preventing your hair growing healthy then it is always possible for it to grow longer.
Read up on the hair growth cycle, as long as the hair shaft is well looked after it will grow to its full potential.
And yes I do understand there are different types of hair, I spent years learning about them and years styling them so I have a pretty good idea on how to look after each hair type.

I washed my hair every single day for years, but have only recently started trying to leave it a day or two between washes. My hair was always really healthy and looked good with the daily washing but I'm just tired of all the time consuming grooming that I've always done. I'm sure I've lost years with it all.

Anyway, my question is: has anyone else started to get a flakey scalp if they stop washing daily? I've never had dandruff in my life til now.

I washed mine every day for years and recently started using dry shampoo and can go to 3 days with it looking great. Also discovered reverse conditioning - put conditioner on gutsy then rinse out with shampoo - fab! Strangest of all was my most recent discovery. Ran out of shampoo and washed my too thick hair quite coarse with dp's cheap Wilkins face wash (£1) produces hair like silk

First autocorrect not gutsy that would be yuk!

Yes because daily washing tricks your hair into thinking it has to overproduce oils. Once you keep your hair and scalp well moisturised you hair follicle will naturally stop overproducing oils because the moisture will always be there (so there will be no need to 'replace' natural oils excessively). The longer you leave your hair in between washes the healthier it will be. But what do I know, I'm just a hairdresser

your scalp doesn't think, you can't trick it in anyway. Your follicles do not know when you last washed your hair. Some people need to wash their hair more than others, and washing it less frequently makes no difference at all.
Hairdresser or not, you are simply repeating utter rubbish you have been told is true. It's not.

I can't get dry shampoo to work. Not sure what I'm doing wrong but it ends up looking lank and still greasy

Another vote here for dry shampoo

existential you are talking crap.

Hair follicles are glands and like all other glands in your body they sense their conditions and respond. They don't know how many days since your last hair wash but they can sense when they have been contacted by the chemicals in shampoos and respond by producing more oil to compensate.