I’m always looking for a way to get high quality beauty treatments for next to no money. I do this because I have a very sensitive face/body that breaks out if it gets anything less than quality. This extends, by the way, to my hair.
I discovered in the last several months that I can’t use sodium lauryl sulfate or anything related to it. It makes my scalp itch so bad I have, if I wasn’t paying attention, scratched it until it bled. So, I’ve been trying various products that don’t use it and trying not to cringe each time I look at the price.
I thought I’d found a solution with “no poo”. It’s a simple process; Google it and you’ll see it’s not only simple, but cheap. To sum it up, you wash your hair with either separate dilutions of baking soda and apple cider vinegar, vinegar alone, or plain water. I tried plain water and my hair didn’t clear up. It was just too oily and I was actually getting depressed by it. I tried apple cider vinegar and though I could tell some parts were better, around my scalp and on the back of my head the oil was still very thick.
I thought I’d figured it out with the baking soda/vinegar combination. There were problems from the beginning, but I was willing to overlook them. Not that they were small problems. The first time I used the baking soda dilution, I felt my hands coated in hair after I’d applied it. When I rinsed it out, I saw a disturbing amount of hair in the drain trap. Maybe, I thought as I applied the vinegar dilution to the ends of my hair, it’s just part of the transition. I mean, my hair felt great afterward. And it looked fantastic!
Two weeks later, I found myself with hair that obviously looked broken in spots. And it didn’t look soft, shiny, and manageable. No, it looked dull, stiff, and dry.
The worst part is that I seem to be a rarity based on what I’ve seen online. Even my husband hasn’t experienced this. He tried this the same time I did and his hair still looks fantastic. Stronger, even. Plus, it got rid of his dandruff. Go figure.
So, I broke down and spent $20 on a natural hair care product that seemed to fit my hair perfectly (oily scalp, dry hair). I love it! It’s the best shampoo I’ve ever had. The best part is it takes about half of the amount I used with other products to do the same job.
I guess this is one of those times when spending a larger than usual amount now ($20 shampoo/conditioner) will save me in the long run (whatever a therapist will charge me once I come to her sobbing from having to cut off all my damaged hair).
Amy Keeley 