My "No Poo" Journey

My “No Poo” Journey

I’ve told some of you, and my Twitter followers, that I have started the “No Poo” journey.  What is that?  Well, basically, I gave up my shampoo and conditioner… cold turkey, and I’ve replaced it with baking soda and vinegar.  Yep, you read that right.  I’ve been considering this switch for a little while, but I was trying to decide when would be a good time (since there IS a transition/detox period).  Well, I can’t say I picked the “perfect” time to start, because I’m constantly having things come up (meetings, live events for work, etc.).  I’m at the beginning of week 3.  Two whole weeks of no shampoo or conditioner.  And I will NOT lie to you… I have daydreamed about the rich, lathery (is that a word?) goodness of shampoo.  I even dreamt that I accidently used shampoo!  Haha.  Talk about weird!

Ok… so let’s start at the beginning.

May 20^th was my first day.  I had bought a condiment bottle for my baking soda mixture, and a spray bottle for the vinegar mixture.  I mixed my ingredients the night before so they would be ready to roll when I showered the next day.

I used 1 tablespoon per cup of water… although, I put 2 tablespoons in my bottle, and my bottle doesn’t quite hold 2 cups of water—so my first batch may have been too much baking soda.  In my spray bottle, I mixed 1 tablespoon of white distilled vinegar with a cup of water. 

Day 1 – I used the baking soda on my scalp, and massaged in with my finger tips, trying to get my entire scalp clean.  Rinsed thoroughly. I then sprayed the bottom half of my hair with the vinegar mixture, and rinsed well.  I did notice a bit of trouble with tangles, but nothing too major.  I blow dried and straightened my hair and it looked great!

Day 2—I just rinsed with hot water… blow dried and straightened.  It looked ok.

Day 3—I used the “conditioner” of vinegar.  I dried and straightened my hair, but wound up pulling up the front half because I was feeling a little greasy!

Day 4—I used the baking soda and vinegar (still the original batch, because I didn’t use all of it the first day).  Hair looked ok.

Day 5—I didn’t even wet my hair this day.  I straighten it a little in the morning.  By the time I got home from work, I was feeling pretty oily, and I was about to go to dinner with my parents.  I used some cocoa powder on my roots (You can use cornstarch, but on my dark hair, it makes me look like I’m really going grey!  The cocoa powder works pretty well, and smells good too). 

Day 6 – Just used the vinegar rinse.  I did dry my hair, but wound up putting it up before leaving the house.  Not too oily, but didn’t look great…

Day 7 – Washed with baking soda and vinegar.  Hair looked ok.  Feels very different!

Day 8 – No wash or rinse, just straightened! Easy enough, not too greasy.

Day 9 – Rinsed with water… pulled up… didn’t even dry it.

Day 10 – Baking soda and vinegar.  Hair look alright.

Day 11 – Rinsed with water, dried and straightened.  Looked a little oily.

Day 12 – Vinegar rinse… wound up using cocoa powder after drying and straightening.  Then pulled up the front part to try to cover some of the oiliness!

Day 13 – Washed with baking soda and vinegar… dried and straightened.  Hair looked ok until I got out in the humidity.  Got a little out of place and crazy some.  Also… I was around smokers, so my hair smelled terrible.  I made the mistake of redoing the baking soda and vinegar that night. 

Day 14 – Didn’t wash or rinse, just straightened.  Didn’t look too bad.

TODAY – Didn’t wash or rinse… just pulled my hair up.  My hair is oily, and my scalp has that “itch” to it.  It makes me feel like it’s dirty… but I’m trying to deal with it because I know my hair has to adjust… this is part of the process!

Ok… Hopefully I got all of the above info right.  I kept notes on my iPad about the first week, then the past week I haven’t really kept notes, so I tried to do all that from memory.

Some challenges I’ve dealt with:

-Static.  I read on one website that this meant I was using too much baking soda.  I’ll have to cut back and see how that does.  I do use a good bit of the bottle because I try to make sure to saturate my scalp, and massage my entire scalp to remove the oil/build-up.

-Oil/Grease.  This is, like I said, my hair’s response.  My scalp is trying to adjust.  I’ve been doing a lot of pulling my hair up, and using the cocoa powder to help.  I’m trying to stay at every third day (the longer I can go between, hopefully the shorter the transition). 

-Dryness.  I forgot to mention… Day thirteen, I tried using apple cider vinegar instead (one site I read that white vinegar was better for oily hair, while ACV was better for dry hair).  I think the ACV helped.  Oh… and one day I tried a tiny bit of coconut oil on the ends… and it wound up making it too oily!  I’ve been reading up on some conditioning masks that I can do… so maybe that will help.

I do have to say though… overall, I’m really liking the results.  My hair feels softer, less frizzy (I haven’t used ANY product on my hair since starting this!), more manageable.  And it definitely saves time on days I don’t have to even rinse it! 

I’m also excited because I’m saving money (baking soda and vinegar are CHEAP and you don’t use them up very quickly!).  I’m also not coating my hair in chemicals!  It’s amazing the difference I’ve seen in such a short time.  Yes, I am dealing with oily bouts, but I have to keep reminding myself that my body is just adjusting.

No poo isn’t for everyone… but I think it’s going to be good for me.

Another bonus—it supposedly helps with hair growth (I am desperately trying to grow my hair long enough that I can donate it… but still have some length when I chop it off!). 

It is definitely a journey.  It takes time and patience.  I am only 2 weeks into it… and yeah, I do think about lathering up with shampoo, but I am determined to stick with this! 

And just so you know…No, my hair does not stink.  The vinegar smell goes away completely when my hair is dry!  I am also considering buying a natural bristle brush, which they say is good for helping to distribute the natural oil throughout the hair.

I am posting the link to the site I used as my inspiration to start this journey.  I will continue to update you on my progress and answer any questions you might have!  I will also probably do more research when I have questions.  In the past two weeks I have read countless articles about the No Poo Movement… Mostly to encourage myself to keep at it! 

Websites:
http://coderedhat.com/no-poo-method/
http://ashleysgreenlife.blogspot.com/2012/12/how-to-wash-your-hair-with-no-poo.html
http://www.pistachioproject.com/2012/08/no-poo-faq.html

These sites go a bit in-depth on the reasons why it's good for your hair and such.  I didn't take the time to do all that... just wanted to give you my results/trials!

Have you ever gone “No Poo”?  Are you thinking about it?  I’d love to hear your stories/tips! 

I'll try getting some pictures added when I get them uploaded to my computer!  Thanks for reading!