No shampoo 5 weeks and waxy

[Minette5]

Good morning,
Hope everyone is well.
I am after some advice / personal stories going no shampoo.
I have done 5 weeks and my hair has become very waxy, I wouldn't need any hair gel to style!!
I did some research online and seems it could be due to being in a hard water area. Near the beginning I did an apple cider vinegar rinse but that didn't do anything. Bit more research and an apple sauce mask is suggested. 2 of them done and again very little change. I also read about brushing your hair more so am doing that now.
As we are in lockdown and I am home with 2 children it doesn't bother me too much in fact it's an ideal time to try it but I'm seeing no progress and its rather frustrating.
Any ideas to help shift the wax or did your hair do this.
Thanks and stay safe.

What ??? You haven't cleaned your hair for 5 weeks and now wonder why it's looking grim ??

Hi OP, jo experience personally as I’ve always washed my hair every 2 days., but It takes about six weeks in order to ween your hair and re-regulate your hair oils for those natural oils to be fully balanced and restored. During this time,the worst of it will occur during weeks 3 and 4 where your hair will become very waxy. It’ll eventually start to wash itself in a sense (my friend owns a salon and I’ve asked her this before as I had another friend who didn’t want his hair for 6 weeks).

Honestly? I think I'd just wash my hair. But I don't really understand the "no poo" movement.

You might be better posting this in style and beauty rather than education...

And what has washing your hair (or not) got to do with education?

It's grim though. I wash my hair most days. 5 out of 7, at least.

If you’re in a hard water area you will find a shower filter makes a difference.

This sort of thing: www.amazon.co.uk/Shower-Filter-Universal-Chlorine-Replaceable/dp/B07TW365L5?tag=mumsnetforu03-21

Another thing some people use, normally before the Apple cider vinegar, is bicarbonate of soda mixed into a paste with water. This does a good job at cleaning but is a bit too strong for some people.

Also, ask @MNHQ to move this into “Style and Beauty” for you

OP what are you trying to achieve / accomplish?

I went down the route of using sulphate free shampoo as I do know that using sulphates regularly strips your scalp ( resulting in overly greasy hair & I was getting flaky type itchy scabs on my scalp ) and I noticed a huge improvement in greasy-ness & irritation ... I used Johnson's baby shampoo .... I still use it now although I alternate between that & regular shampoo now. I've noticed a huge improvement in my scalp health since using Johnson's baby shampoo as it doesn't contain the scalp stripping chemicals that regular shampoo contains.

That being said no way could I go 5 weeks without washing! Ugh. I don't think you hair will clean itself.

What is the point of this?

How do i request it gets moved? ARG I struggle with Mumsnet! I was in the health and beauty section

Thanks for the helpful advice.

Why do it? Well I have eczema and shampoo makes my scalp itch really badly I've tried many sensitive shampoos including the kids ones and they still cause itching. On top of that it cuts down on the plastic we are buying, also a lot of the chemicals in shampoos are ones I don't want to use on my skin.
Sodium laufeth sulphate dries your skin and my dermatologist said it can't be replaced properly.
I'm lucky, I don't sweat much even with exercise so I don't get that real sweat smell and glisten. My children don't have soap or shampoo used on their skin unless they need it, again due to sensitive skin, except soap with washing hands. They are also not bathed everyday and nor do I. My children's hair is lovely and soft and clean and their eczema is clear. Having said that all 3 of us have dry hands from all the hand washing, mine are cracking terribly. I have also never suffered with spots.
I think beauty routines are definitely a personal choice and I would never choose to be rude to someone who washes each day even though I think that's a silly idea unless sweaty and dirty as it strips skin of its essential oils and dries it out, with hair it also causes extra grease. It's what works for your body and your routine as we know everyone is different.

Yes everyone is different.
Some are bonkers and some aren't.

Op I'm not sure whether you can use this with your eczema but I would read the reviews to see if any other eczema sufferers have used it ...

www.thebodyshop.com/en-gb/hands/moisturisers/hemp-hand-protector/p/p000461

It's fab! I put it on at night before bed & it really does help replenish moisture back into hands overnight. That being said I don't suffer with eczema but I do know others that do & it's an awful nuisance trying to find products that don't irritate it further.

@lottieloop thanks, I shall have a look.

This is probably not what you want to hear, but I did 6 weeks without shampoo once (just rinsing my hair with water), and it did not start cleaning itself at all. It was greasy beyond belief.

I started on the shampoo again.

Tea tree shampoo is supposed to be good for that, if you google you'll see several - cheaper than on Amazon.

Oil of evening primrose shampoo is also recommended, here is one:
www.luxplus.co.uk/product/john-masters-organics-evening-primrose-shampoo-60-ml?gsmp=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI15nK2LT-6AIVweF3Ch3H4w_nEAQYBCABEgL8f_D_BwE

The things some soap-dodgers do to avoid washing, Jesus. I haven’t washed my hair for 5 weeks and I’ve put apple sauce in it, why is it dirty? Once your children reach their teens please don’t let them go out having not used any soap or washed their hair. They’ll be teased horribly.

OP, if you click "report" on your top post, and then "Report for other reasons" and put in the comment box that you'd like it moved, I think that should work.

Use the bicarbonate of soda with caution, but some people find it soothes their eczema if they dissolve 1/4 cup in their bath; so you could try a similar dilute ratio for your scalp. I do think the scrub/paste could be too abrasive for you.

Another thing some people try instead of the bicarb is

• 1 TBLS of Raw, Unpasturized Honey
• 3 TBLS of warm water

I did try the "no poo" method some years ago. After trying nothing at all, I did the bicarbonate of soda and apple cider vinegar rinse, never tried honey. A water filter made a big difference when I moved to a hard water area. My dandruff and eczema was fine during that period (but it might have just been chance that I wasn't having a flare-up then). I think I stopped because I found the bicarbonate of soda too harsh on my hair (my scalp was fine) and without it it got greasy at the top and a bit frizzy too.

I then tried unscented castile soap mixed with home-made coconut milk (the home made coconut milk creates a natural lather). It was a faff but it did work well! crunchybetty.com/not-ready-for-no-poo-try-sorta-poo-with-coconut-milk-and-castille/

For what it's worth, I still sometimes get bad seborrheic dermatitis and some eczema, and the best thing for me is occasional use of ketoconazole medicated shampoo to treat flare ups, and then I switch my shampoos regularly (NB although some people find it helps to do this but others find it makes it worse) and avoid any with SLS and generally avoid ALS too. (If you would like me to let you know which shampoos have worked better for me for future reference in case you stop trying "no poo", I'm happy to share!)

Your hair isn't waxy - it's dirty and oily. Get a suitable shampoo and use it , is my advice. And stop kidding yourself that you don't smell despite not using soap . Use sorbeline or aqueous cream instead of soap - your skin will thank you and you'll smell nice.

I remember watching a history programme on tv where they talked about ladies in Victorian times and before who were not able to wash their hair in the way we do now.
The “self-cleaning” only works if you thoroughly comb your hair every day to remove any excess oil, dirt etc.

My son has severe eczema and although some soaps and shampoos can aggravate it, not washing is not advised as dirty skin can become infected as you're not removing the dead skin.

@BoxOfShapes thanks I will do that and some good advice there I have always swapped shampoos as they stop working after a month or 2.
@stellabelle thanks for such a kind comment. I have had the aqueous cream before unfortunately it doesn't do anything for me. Not heard of the other but thanks for the heads up.
@abetteroblivion again thanks for such a helpful comment. My children will be able to make their own informed decisions just like any human being should be allowed to when old enough. I am also sorry you live in such a place that you feel children would be teased for making such decisions about their own body care.
@Crystal87 interesting, I obviously wash lol and make sure to exfoliate because of the dead skin cells. But different to what I was told. Thankfully mine isn't severe and only flares in places. Must be hard for your son at times.
@lynda07 thank you I've used tea tree but not evening primrose so will have a check.
@GigiLamour
Thanks for sharing, I tried it before when breastfeeding and it just got progressively worse lol, that was oil and I ended up shampooing it again. It's very different this time just waxy and when I put it up it doesn't look any different to before.

We're just moving this thread over to style and beauty for the OP.

Hi OP, re: the dry hands due to lots of washing: I have recently switched from liquid hand wash to Dove soap bar and have notice my hands aren’t so dry and don’t need the constant application of hand cream.

@BakedBeeeen Thanks yes that's what we use, it's definitely better than the others we have had and it lathers well which some bars don't.

Honestly? I think I'd just wash my hair. But I don't really understand the "no poo" movement.

Same here. My head gets rather sweaty so a regular clean is best.