Clarifying shampoo once VS 2-3 rounds of sulfate free shampoo?

[millyaulait]

Okay, here's my newest problem.... :lol:

So, for at least two years now I've struggled with sulfate-free shampoos & cone-free conditioners.

I have tried a lot over this time frame & I've yet to find either that really work for me.

Lately my hair has been left feeling gummy, sticky & unclean after shampooing. This is just on a regular basis, on every wash day this happens even if I don't oil my hair previously.

I've of course clarified, but it seems that I need to clarify every single wash day, which I'm a bit scared of.

I don't want my hair to hate me, it is already quite dry and a bit frizzy. I've tried a bunch of different shampoos and conditioners but none seem to do the job.

I can't CO-wash no matter how hard I try, I found a conditioner that actually worked and I loved it for a few months & then all of a sudden it stopped working, even after a clarifying wash & a break from said conditioner. I wish I was in the US so I could try out Suave stuff! :mad:

So, basically I have been having to shampoo my hair 2-3x to get it clean enough, OR use a clarifying shampoo once. This is at every wash, though. I don't use any misters or oils right now because I thought it could be build-up or something, but no. I even stopped conditioning for a bit in case it was that!

I guess my question is: Which is better for my hair?

I am almost at waist and still having so many problems, I thought I would have a healthy, happy hair routine figured out by now. :lol:

I suppose I could go back to using shampoos with sulfates, but I just want to do right by my hair. I want it to be healthy, y'know?

[starlamelissa]

Sticky gummy hair doesn't sound like happy hair to me. I am a laureleth sulfate girl, with coney condish and coney leave in following. My hair is down my my rear end, and happy.

[Vivalagina]

You can still have healthy hair with sulfates. If your hair was happier with them, then go for it.

[starlamelissa]

Also, I wanted to add, I'd be more concerned with mechanical damage from shampooing 3 times in a row versus once with a sulfatey poo.

I recently started using a good sized palm full of conditioning cone shampoo on washday, instead of the quarter size I was trying to rub through my whole scalp previously. So even though I am using more shampoo I am getting far less tangles, and breakage. This is with a sulfate shampoo!

[Anje]

I'm currently a sulfate user, and my hair's quite happy. (Scalp's producing more oil than when I COed, but for me having bangs makes shampoo a necessity.)

If your hair is gummy, you're clearly not using the right products. Try something with sulfates in it for a shampoo. Try a different conditioner that doesn't leave your hair feeling sticky. Something. Hair products are DEFINITELY NOT one size fits all.

[ghost]

I had similar problems when I was going the no sulfates, no -cones route. Switching back to sulfates and -cones was the only thing that really made a difference for me, and once I found the right combination of shampoo, conditioner and deep conditioner, my constantly dry hair started to feel tons better. No stickiness, gumminess, or feeling coated. If I'm trying to take the edge off of using sulfates I'll sometimes use coconut oil as a prewash treatment or dilute my shampoo a little bit.

[earthnut]

Have you tried protein treatments? When I first started trying conditioner-only, my hair would slowly get worse until I clarified. After I tried different protein treatments and found one I liked, my hair needs shampooing much less often. 2-4 times a year maybe rather than 2-4 times a month. My favorite protein treatment is GVP hair reconstructor, which is just a cheaper version of Joico K-Pak. Protein strengthens your hair and helps it be able to handle more products.

[Panth]

Sulphates are not the devil. You can have perfectly healthy hair and use sulphates.

I'm a very big believer in 'if it aint broke, don't fix it'. If your hair was ok with sulphates, why change to something that causes more fuss, more fretting, more annoyance, more tangles and ultimately (because of the tangles and multiple shampooing) more damage?

[Nini]

It could also be an idea to go without conditioner for a while. I hardly ever use it.

[faellen]

I'm a big believer in doing what actually makes your hair happy, not what you think should make it happy.

- signed, a sulphatey coney waist lengther

[patienceneeded]

I use sulfates and cones and my hair is almost to hip. I do occasionally take a break from sulfates, but use them most of the time I wash. You can dilute your shampoo if you're concerned about the sulfates, but I would't worry overmuch. Use what makes your hair happy.

[Natalia]

Im not a sulfate user but from my point of view 2 things. 1 more manipulation is worse on your hair then using sulfated as long as they dont give you a negative reaction and 2 do what maked your hair happy. If your worried try to compensate in other ways a few more DT's, more updo's instead of down, ect...

[bunzfan]

I'm a big believer in doing what actually makes your hair happy, not what you think should make it happy.

- signed, a sulphatey coney waist lengther

This ^^

I did cone free co washing for my first 2 years here and then one day my hair started coming out in hand-falls it was pretty scarey like you i though SLS free shampoos were better but my hair never really felt clean so i went back to sulphate shampoo and it was happy but not quite right but, very recently i've actually found my hair also likes really coney conditioners and this was my routine pre LHC obviously my hair prefers them so i'm just going with it. Why not try washing with a gentle sulphate shampoo there are some out there and see how you get on ...the thing thats rings bells for me is you say your hair only feels clean with a clarifying wash well, as far as i know all clarifying shampoos are sulphate ones.

[millyaulait]

Thanks for the help everyone! :flower:

I have bought myself a SLS shampoo & a little sachet of cone-y conditioner to experiment with.

I suppose I can't really choose what my hair likes, no matter how much I want certain products to work. :)

[nobeltonya]

After much experimentation, I have found that low or no-sulfate shampoos are horrible for my hair.. they make it dry, straw-like and it looks flat. I shampoo with regular old sulfate shampoo every morning, use tons of a moisturizing conditioner [currently herbal essence's hello hydration] and also add a leave-in to scalp and length before combing with a wide-tooth comb. Wet bunning for several hours afterward has also lessened the dryness and frizziness after it completely dries. I oil liberally every other night with regular coconut oil, and this is the routine that works best for me. However, it only took me 1.5 years or so to figure that out... XD Maybe your hair likes sulfates and/or cones.. :disco:

[renia22]

Lately my hair has been left feeling gummy, sticky & unclean after shampooing. This is just on a regular basis, on every wash day this happens even if I don't oil my hair previously.

I've of course clarified, but it seems that I need to clarify every single wash day, which I'm a bit scared of.

I don't want my hair to hate me, it is already quite dry and a bit frizzy. I've tried a bunch of different shampoos and conditioners but none seem to do the job.

I can't CO-wash no matter how hard I try, I found a conditioner that actually worked and I loved it for a few months & then all of a sudden it stopped working, even after a clarifying wash & a break from said conditioner. I wish I was in the US so I could try out Suave stuff! :mad:

So, basically I have been having to shampoo my hair 2-3x to get it clean enough, OR use a clarifying shampoo once. This is at every wash, though. I don't use any misters or oils right now because I thought it could be build-up or something, but no. I even stopped conditioning for a bit in case it was that!

I guess my question is: Which is better for my hair?

I am almost at waist and still having so many problems, I thought I would have a healthy, happy hair routine figured out by now. :lol:

I suppose I could go back to using shampoos with sulfates, but I just want to do right by my hair. I want it to be healthy, y'know?

I think you answered your own question! If your hair is gummy, sticky & coated feeling then probably what you are using isn't the best for your hair. For the longest time I had the same problem and was using sulfate & silicone free because I thought it was somehow better, but all I ended up with was a dry, matted, tangled mess that I couldn't comb through. Going back to sulfates was the best thing I could have done, I can't believe it took me as long as it did to realize sulfate and silicone free wasn't working. I even now use a couple conditioners that contain silicones (which I thought I wouldn't ever go back to because of fine hair) & so far, so good. Hope what you purchased works for you & that you like your hair again!

[starlamelissa]

Update with your new products!