Sudden hair disaster??

[Konstifik]

Hello lovelies!

I have stayed away from the forums for quite a long time now, trying the benign neglect (+ I'm not gonna lie, all the lovely hair toys you all enabled made my wallet cry ;) )

And it went really well! I found a regime that even my cranky, stubborn and bitter scalp liked. But several days ago, something happened and I'm not sure what it is or why. My hair got that super-coated feeling, like it was very greasy even directly after shower and it looked damp even when dry. At first I thought I had somehow overoiled with my coconut oil, but it didn't go awy after the second, third or fourth shower either! While it looks much better now, it still got that greasy feeling and it tangles super easily. It's not it's teflon-like sleekness nor shiny as it used to be. Scalp is rebelling again and everything is dry and hay-y. :( I have tried two Hair Doctor (from Lush) treatments, washing with different shampoos, no conditioner and a light leave in conditioner spray.

The incident happened about 2 weeks ago now. Could it be a protein overload? It all happened so fast! I don't think I used any new (to me) products, but I think some have proteins in them.

And most importantly: How do I fix this?

[GrowingOut]

I think you should clarify with Chleating, and check for both protein overload and moisture overload

[Sarahlabyrinth]

I got something similar with my hair and the only thing that worked for me (a recommendation from a hairdresser) was to soak the dry hair in undiluted dishwashing liquid for several minutes, then wash out and don't put any conditioner in or any product.

I had to do this about 3 times before my hair came back to its normal happy self.

Try it once, see how you go, and repeat if you need to.

I know how you are feeling, I was in a real panic over it and it was several weeks before I found out what to do about it. Wishing you lovely hair again! :)

[Arwenlily]

I second the clarifying with chelating and afterwards check your strands for moisture and protein balance. What someone has told me before was if you can stretch a strand of hair and it bounces right back, then the protein moisture balance is even. If you stretch a strand and it doesn't bounce back but keeps stretching, there is too much moisture. If you stretch a strand of hair and it snaps, then there is too much protein. This same thing happened to me, and someone recommended I clarify and chelate, and it definitely worked. I hope it works for you!

[Anje]

Joining the chorus. Start by clarifying with a real clarifying shampoo (SLS is good for this, even if you normally avoid it). Make sure you get your ends. Good luck!

[meteor]

Clarifying and chelating should reset it. Also, maybe rotating your products a bit. I can't get any products to work for me absolutely consistently for more than a few months. I think almost anything can build up after a while.


I got something similar with my hair and the only thing that worked for me (a recommendation from a hairdresser) was to soak the dry hair in undiluted dishwashing liquid for several minutes, then wash out and don't put any conditioner in or any product.
Hmm, I'm curious why this worked better than soaking hair in a very clean (without any conditioning agents) clarifying shampoo... Was it some unusual, extreme build-up that even targeted shampoos can't handle?

[Konstifik]

Thank you everyone for your responses!

I just bought a "harsher" shampoo than I usually use, maybe it will do a reset. I think it's a protein overload that caused this, somehow. I'll try that before the dishwashing liquid, it sounds kinda scary to use on the hair :D

[Arwenlily]

You may need a true clarifying and chelating shampoo. A harsher shampoo may not be enough. In my experience, it is usually necessary.

[Konstifik]

You may need a true clarifying and chelating shampoo. A harsher shampoo may not be enough. In my experience, it is usually necessary.

Uhm, I have never seen a shampoo marked as clarifying here, it's not even a concept here so. But I use the clarifying method (letting the shampoo sit in the hair for a minute or two) which works just fine with any harsher ordinary shampoo. :)

In this case I got the Cynthia Sylvia Stout from Lush and clarified my hair and it seems to have done the trick! My hair is now back to the softer, teflon-y state, albeit a bit dry. :)

Thanks everyone!

[Sarahlabyrinth]

Clarifying and chelating should reset it. Also, maybe rotating your products a bit. I can't get any products to work for me absolutely consistently for more than a few months. I think almost anything can build up after a while.


Hmm, I'm curious why this worked better than soaking hair in a very clean (without any conditioning agents) clarifying shampoo... Was it some unusual, extreme build-up that even targeted shampoos can't handle?

I don't know why that worked but I tried one clarifying shampoo which didn't work, then I tried Joico clarifying shampoo which didn't work either. I then tried the dishwashing liquid, which did work. The hairdresser who gave me that advice said that they use it themselves as a last resort when nothing else will work.