No shampoo??

auturmnsolaris

What about trying shampoo alternatives such as rhassoul mud (used in Morocco I believe) or mushed up lentils. I've not tried either of them myself, but I believe the mud is great for balancing out oils as well, while the lentils are full of protein which is always good for hair.

culpepper

My daughter tried raw egg to wash hers.You massage the white into your hair and leave for a little while then rinse it out with cool water so you dont cook it on your hair.You can add lemon juice too.
She prefers shampoo but it did look as clean as usual.

tiredwithtwins

hiya,
for many years i have had problems with using shampoos and conditioners - im very sensitive to ANY product with perfume in it.....make up, soap etc.....and now just use simple shampoo and conditioner (i usually wash my hair every other day), with a once a week hair wash with Tgel therapeutic shampoo. Its a coal tar based shampoo, but works extremely well at curbing the itching and resultant flakes,grease/miserableness!!!
I can occasionally use a conditioner such as pantene but i have to use the tgel a couple of days in a row to get back to normal.

If your doc has given you a steroidal lotion for your hair, its safe to use when pregnant, and you may find you only need to use it once or twice to get rid of the itching.

good luck, i know how miserable this can make you feel - i put up with it for years before i got settled into this current regime

sue

Tightwadways

Thanks everyone for your posts on this - I've tried witch hazel and calamine lotion on the irritations (not at the same time, lol, and not on my scalp) and they made it flare up worse - just tried Shea Butter and it's bliss, so might have a go at trying that on my scalp as it's very moisturising. The walk in centre I went to before visiting the drs suggested using aqueous cream but then changed their minds after they realised that my hair is far too long. I like the Lush suggestion, as I went a bit mad in their New Year giveaways last year and found the joys of their soap and bath bombs - but I'm currently using a red soap from them and it's not helping the itchyness in my hands, so I stopped (

leonie_2

Its likely that the Lush 'soap' you are using isnt actually soap at all. Most of their bars are a detergent base that they simply add different ingredients to. You could always try making your own soap! I use my homemade soap on my hair and the hairdresser said she couldnt believe how much body I manage to get into my stupidly fine hair!

Shea butter is brilliant on the scalp. I usually melt a bit of shea and cocoa butter with a bit of coconut oil or any liquid oil and use it on my hair at least once a week as a treatment.

Tightwadways

Leonie - I'd love to know more about soap making etc, as I've dabbled in bath bomb making. I've just found someone on ebay selling a pound of Shea Butter for £3 plus £10 in shipping from Africa. I'm just rummaging round to find the best places to buy decent stuff from....

ancasta_2

l'occitane is a widely availably brand carrying shea butter lines.

leonie_2

Hi Freecycle

Well I just started looking at more natural products to put on mine and the childrens skin. I discovered fresh aloe vera, then went on to exotic butters such as shea and cocoa butter and before it knew it i'd become a soap maker lol!!

Ancasta, yes L'occitane do shea butter, but its not how I want it. If you notice, it is white and odorless. This is because it is refined by bleaching and deoderising it. By subjecting it to these processes, you are going to lose some of its healing and nutritious properties. Unfortunately, people want a white product, but by bleaching it we are losing out on a lot of its wonderful properties!

The shea I buy is a creamy yellowish/greyish colour and has an earthy aroma. It is simply extracted by hand, with no chemical processes whatsoever. I use it in everything, even on my daughters delicate skin (she is undergoing chemotherapy at the moment)

Have a look around the internet for the basics on cold process soapmaking. Its not as simple as giving out a recipe because there are basics you need to know about, but im happy to write out a recipe (I think I have every book on the subject lol) and help where I can.

I cant go back to using normal soaps or showergels now. Its really worth giving it a go!

Loadsabob

I would suggest shea butter to sooth your skin back to normal. Perhaps applying it to your scalp and affected nexk area at night. I use Akamuti, they have organic fair trade stuff, in a jar or bag (the good quality stuff described by leonie above - lovely earthy smell), and I find the price is good, as it lasts me a long time. They also do totally natural soaps, including African black liquid soap that can be used as a shampoo on dry hair. I think that may be my next hair purchase. Nothing chemical or petroleum derived (and as mild as Johnsons baby shampoo is, it's still a petroleum by-product).

I tried using shea butter as a conditioner for my hair, and though it did condition deep, it needed a lot of shampooing out on my fine hair, or my head looked like an oil slick. Now I only use it occasionally, as I used to use a hot oil treatment.

I can't even go in Lush, I can't breathe in there. I find their things SO highly perfumed, all with the vague "parfum", a non-descript, most likely chemical cocktail of fragrances. Ick.

npsmama

I've been trying No Poo for 2 weeks with great results!
Yesterday I was too lazy to go get the bicarb downstairs so I used shampoo again and now my scalp is all itchy and horrible!

So it's definitely bicarb and citric acid rinse for me from now on!

ETA: also thought I'd mention that I have VERY greasy hair and sensitive scalp