Photo by Element5 Digital on Unsplash
As school, work, and other activities pick up momentum, I’m always looking for ways to simplify my daily routine. Most recently, hair care products have been my main focus.
I had never really been satisfied with my hair care routine, so when I heard about so many people rave about the so-called “no poo” method, the dirty hippie inside of me came to life. After all, shampoo wasn’t a hygiene staple until around fifty years ago, and people had other ways of washing their hair before that. It’s easy to be skeptical of commercial haircare products when they make such lofty claims, too. Curly, blond, dry, damaged, dull—you name it, there’s a product out there that promises to be the antidote to your hair problems. Shampoo isn’t all bad, but I would argue that it’s usually unnecessary.
When I tell people I haven’t shampooed my hair in so long, the look on their face usually betrays their confusion, like they half expect me to live in a van or something. Then they realize that my hair actually looks pretty good, and I proceed to ramble on about how and why I wash my hair sans shampoo.
I was tired of most commercial shampoos doing the same thing. My hair would get extremely greasy less than a day after I washed it, thus locking me into a cycle of washing my hair every single day.
So, I excitedly began the “no poo” journey. Cutting out shampoo seems simple at first—just stop using it, right? Well, you have to find something to replace the shampoo of course, and there are a lot of opinions out there about what works best. The vast majority of testimonials on the “no poo” method swear by a two-step regime of baking soda and apple cider vinegar. I was surprised to see the amount of people who claimed to have success with that method, because my first thought was that it sounded extremely damaging. It didn’t take long to find pretty convincing evidence that this was, in fact, not something that you should be doing to your hair—at least not on a regular basis. So I decided to avoid this method altogether.
Once that was out, I was back to square one. It all seemed more complicated than it was worth, and I wanted to quit before I ever really got started.
About a week in, I really was starting to look like I lived in a van. Though I had been warned that quitting shampoo cold turkey would cause your scalp to overproduce oils, I didn’t want to believe it. But oh, was it true. Nothing I was trying in place of shampoo was really cutting it—aloe vera gel, some concoction of rice flour and jojoba oil. I tried some pretty weird stuff that a lot of people swore by.
Fortunately, I did find something that worked for me. I started using an organic shampoo bar from a brand called Trés Spa. I know, I know, it’s not technically “no poo,” but the bar has no detergents or sulfates like most shampoos and it’s extremely gentle. Though it’s not quite as impressive as not using anything at all, I’ve found that it is a good middle ground for me. I’m not completely sold on this product (sometimes it leaves a bit of residue), but overall I really like the changes I’ve seen in my hair since my last “real” shampoo six weeks ago. The longevity of each wash is up to almost a week now, which was unheard of when I was using commercial shampoos. Also, my hair is so much softer and easier to manage now, though I do still use conditioner.
It’s certainly not for everyone, but if you’re feeling a little adventurous, give it a try. Slowly weaning yourself off shampoo, or simply using it less frequently, would most likely have similar results. The idea is to not constantly be stripping away oils from your scalp. If you decide to try it, just be prepared to mess around with it for a bit until you find what works best for you. In the end, you’ll be glad you did.