For the past 4 weeks I have been skipping shampoo. That isn't to say I don't wash my hair, just that I don't use commercial shampoo anymore. My hair has always been problematic; it's super thick, wavy, has a tendency to poof, is dry/coarse, and I have lots of it. I started dying my hair 18 years ago, so that hasn't helped. Its been stripped, permed, relaxed, heat treated, you name it-it's probably happened. My mom happens to be a barber, so I have access to professional grade shampoos, conditioners, and deep treatments, but nothing made my hair behave in a desirable manner. I have read about the "poo free" routine a few times, and figured I didn't have anything to lose. I've been on a leave of absence from work, so I wasn't concerned with the dreaded "transition phase" which makes hair seem greasy while it continues to overproduce oils. Traditional shampoos strip all of the dirt, grease, and natural (healthy) oils from your hair and scalp. That's where conditioner comes in to restore all the lost moisture. With this method, hair is cleansed and the dirt is removed, but the scalp's natural protective barrier remains intact preventing overproduction of oil. My routine is simple. I take an empty water bottle and add 2 table spoons of baking soda with a few drops of tea tree oil and 16 ounces of water. I shake it up and that's my shampoo. For the conditioning rinse, I use 4 tablespoons(usual recipe calls for 2, but my hair is parched) apple cider vinegar with some more tea tree oil and 16 ounces of water shaken together. In the shower I wet my hair as normal, shake the "shampoo" bottle once more, and carefully pour a small amount over my scalp. I use my fingertips to massage the mixture around. You won't get a traditional lather, it will feel mostly like a slippery water consistency. Upon rinsing, however, you can feel the "squeaky" clean. I follow up with the vinegar rinse. Some people only apply it to the ends, but with my dry scalp I pour it all over. I leave that on while I proceed with the rest of my shower tasks, rinse it out thoroughly and that's that. The vinegar smell is dissipated by the tea tree somewhat and the rest of it evaporates as your hair dries. I was never a daily shampooer, since it's detrimental and drying to the scalp and hair. With this method I usually shampoo on the 3rd or 4th day. Eventually some people wean off to using only water to "wash" their hair and scalp. I'm not sure I'll get to that point, but I have seen a definite change in my hair for the better. Here are some photos of my hair raw and un-styled to illustrate that point.
Here is a close up of my "curls" as they stay together without being poofballs.
This is my hair just a few days ago after air drying.
Edging out the trainsition phase you can see that my hair is starting to calm down.
during the transition phase I actually experienced "greasy" hair for perhaps the first time ever. This was on day 4
Here is my hair at the starting point. thick, Dry, poof
