I went no-poo. After lots of trial and error, internet misinformation, and dumb mistakes, here’s how I finally settled into a groove.
1. Weeks 0-8: I stop washing my hair. It gets horribly greasy. I use baking soda (about a tablespoon mixed with some water) in my hair about once a week to cut the grease. My hair looks fucking fantastic after the baking soda, but most of the time I keep my hair in a ponytail. My hair begins to adjust, slowly.
2. Weeks 8-16: I read that baking soda damages hair over long-term use. I decide I want to go water-only. I stop using baking soda, but now true terror reigns. Every morning I wake up feeling like I’ve been swimming in a bath of oil. I can’t handle this and do more research.
3. Weeks 16-24: I order a boar bristle brush - a natural brush with soft bristles meant to redistribute the oil from the top of my head down. I spend 15 minutes brushing every strand of my hair, every day. I wash the brush 2x during uses because it gets so coated with grease. I also start taking hot baths (2x/week) where I vigorously rub my scalp in an attempt to break up and redistribute the oils.
3. Weeks 24-40: I start using white flour to lightly dry-powder my roots in order to absorb any excess grease left over from the baths and brushing. I do this once every 2 weeks, gradually moving to 3 weeks. I change from white flour to rye flour after some time; the grains are bigger and it’s easier to brush out of my hair.
3. Week 40b: I’m traveling and run out of flour. I try using powdered face paint to see if it will absorb the same. Spoiler: it doesn’t. I spend two weeks trying to clear the greasy goo out of my hair. I try to comb it all out and have to wash my brush 8 times in one session.
4. Weeks 40+: My hair finally adjusts after the facepaint incident, and I can now go weeks without any noticeable difference in grease levels before I have to use rye flour.
Final Results: My hair does not feel the same as when it is shampooed/conditioned - it is slightly greasier at all times (but only slightly; it’s not visually noticeable and I really like the feel, and it keeps the body of my hair much healthier-looking). My hair is MUCH thicker. Seriously, like twice as thick. I did end up shampooing a few weeks ago when I was attempting to bleach-bath my hair, and I was shocked by what shampoo-conditioner did to my hair in comparison. It felt slippery, like silk, and super thin and stripped. I hated it. It took about 7 days for my hair to return to normal after that.
I will never return to shampoo. My hair is now fucking glorious. I get comments on it all the time. It holds curl better, it dries much faster, it doesn’t tangle as easily, it’s easier to manage, and I don’t have to even think about it and it looks fantastic.
I haven’t shampooed my hair since I first read this post over a year ago
I guess without ever hearing “nopoo” I had done the early stages on my own, stepping down to every-other and then once-weekly shampooing in the previous years cause I liked the effect on my hair but by a week, or certainly two, it got too greasy
The boar bristle brush was the key, now even that’s down to like 30 strokes on every strand each 2 weeks, and a few swipes of a wide-tooth detangling comb every day
My hair has the luster and body it never had, and the texture and style I could never properly create by putting product in it, it’s got a neutral smell that picks up fragrant scents like smoke or flowers for an hour or two, or you can work perfumed powder through it
