Just tired of my scalp...

[Bellechevelure]

Hi everyone! :D

I really need some advice because i'm strating to get REALLY desperate of my scpal and my hair. Before I start, i want to tell you that I have fine i/ii hair and i am a 2a. I never use heat tools.
Okay, now let's jump to the whining!

I always remember having a itchy, sore and greasy scalp (but with dried ends). All my life... With shampoo, 5 hours after a wash, my hair was already greasy. I tried cheap and expensive brand, shampoo for greasy hair or for balancing them. For 3 years I tried stretching washes, obvisously it never work. Then I start co washing. It got better, I can make the day before having greasy hair. But co wash make my scalp even more itchy and flaky. It's been one year that I co wash and I love it. But my scalp doesn't. I don't know what to do anymore, since that CO, CWC and WC doesn't work...

At this moment I am looking at some other methods. Like washing your hair with eggs or BS only. Maybe with rhassoul... Do someone have tried some of does methods on the long term?

Thank you and sorry for the bad structure... I love this community so much so I really wanted to ask for your advice even if i don't write in english very well... :o

[meteor]

If it's been bothering you so much for so long, why not get a doctor's diagnosis: a family doctor or a dermatologist can really help with this. The thing is: itch can be symptomatic of many conditions, and the diagnosis will drive the solution. But a solution for one diagnosis could potentially make another problem worse: for example, oils rich in oleic acid can help with xerosis but would make seborrheic dermatitis worse. So the diagnosis would be quite helpful. In the meantime, some things that you could try pretty safely and that could give you relief are: - aloe vera - honey washes/rinses - neem oil - well diluted tea tree oil - well diluted ACV - chamomile tea rinses They are somewhat anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and anti-inflammatory and should help your scalp's acid mantle normalize. But I'd really recommend showing your scalp to a doctor. Good luck! And I hope your scalp will get better soon! :)

[Bellechevelure]

Thank you meteor for your quick reply!

Actually, I have hyperthyroidism and since my doctor couldn't find it and then belive it, he made me pass a lot of different test. It's the only thing that are not ok with me. But it only start a year ago... My doctor said I have really oily scalp and I should wash it with a clarifying shampoo. But do you imagine my ends? Wash once and sometimes twice a day my hair with a clarifying shampoo!

I have also a oily skin and a lot of breakouts and the solution was scrubs with EVOO and brown sugar. Sometimes honey and eggs mask. Maybe naturels products are also the solution for my hair. I mean, shampoo only exist since 1920!

[meteor]

Thank you meteor for your quick reply!

Actually, I have hyperthyroidism and since my doctor couldn't find it and then belive it, he made me pass a lot of different test. It's the only thing that are not ok with me. But it only start a year ago... My doctor said I have really oily scalp and I should wash it with a clarifying shampoo. But do you imagine my ends? Wash once and sometimes twice a day my hair with a clarifying shampoo!

You might benefit from scalp-only washes to prevent your length from drying out too much. Wrap your braided or bunned hair with a couple plastic caps and wash your scalp with diluted shampoo, rinsing well afterwards with water or water + a bit of ACV/lemon juice.
LauraLongLocks has a very helpful tutorial on scalp-only washes:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VBOVM-dHlc
Another thing that can help protect your length during frequent clarifying washes is oiling the length with something like neem oil, castor oil, coconut oil + tea tree EO... something a bit anti-fungal/anti-bacterial.
Oiling helps dramatically reduce keratin loss from frequent exposure to surfactants and from hygral fatigue and damage from wet manipulation.

[Zebra Fish]

First, I am seconding (or thirding) to go to a dermatologist. If it is some kind of condition, after you treat it, there might be less greasiness.

I can't really help you, as I haven't tried it all and I wash my hair once a week and don't have problems with greasy scalp. As CO wash, I tried it, I love the idea, but my scalp doesn't. I never had flakes before, but over a year ago I got them for first time (little bit) from CO wash. I am pretty sure it's from it, coz when I went back to S&C they went away (no special treatment). What I do is cover ends in conditioner and wash scalp with diluted mild SL(e)S free shampoo, then condition again. This works wonder for me. Every now and then I do a CO wash in between.

[Dreams_in_Pink]

Have you tried going water-only or sebum-only? Those two methods are reported to decrease the greasies.

By the way, next time your roots get oily, try applying honey to it. Straight up honey, apply with a hair dye brush on greasy areas. Massage and then rinse with water (no shampoo needed, honey rinses out completely under water). It works very well for me and does not dry the hair :)

[Zebra Fish]

Dreams_in_Pink is this with honey like an alternative to washing or like a treatment? And wash after?

[Nimia]

I'm going to approach this from a completely different angle.

Have you had your hormone levels checked? Women with PCOS (polycystic ovarian syndrome) often have trouble with oily skin. I don't have PCOS, but my dermatologist said my skin was over-sensitive to androgens (male hormones), and androgens set off oil production. I ended up taking spironolactone (an anti-androgen; it's sometimes called aldactone) for several years, which dried up the oil on both face and scalp. I also took a birth control pill that helped lessen the oil.

I got tired of all that, though, and have since found some non-medical ways of coping. Not perfect ways -- they're not as effective as the spironolactone was -- but they keep things under control as long as I behave myself, and these ways have some scientific research to back them up.

Diet: low-glyceamic (low-carb, no sugar, no bread or noodles); no dairy protein (no cheese or milk; but butter and cream are ok as they're mostly fat); and low-moderate meat protein (the idea is to get enough protein for health, but not too much). If I eat ice cream, I'm rewarded with a monster pimple. Here's a difficult article on the topic:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22870349
But you can Google acne + dairy or carbs and find some easier-to-read research.

What this comes down to is that I try to eat mostly vegetables, fat (butter, olive oil), and a bit of meat. Of course I still have some carbs, but I try to limit them.

Spearmint tea: two strong cups a day, sipped slowly; you can upset your stomach if you down it all at once. You can try peppermint tea if you can't find spearmint. Yes, there's actual research on mint tea reducing androgen levels in women: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17310494 I don't know what the long-term effects might be. I don't drink it every day, but if I have an event I want to look nice for, I start drinking it a couple days in advance and it makes a difference in my skin.

So, this is what has worked for me. It may not work for you, but at least it is another avenue to explore.

[Dreams_in_Pink]

Dreams_in_Pink is this with honey like an alternative to washing or like a treatment? And wash after?

It's an alternative to washing. Apply, massage and rinse without waiting. It worked great for me :)

[Mya]

IMO it's not a problem of WHAT you do, it's a problem of ingredients!

For years I had flaky, itchy scalp and greasy hair, while using a normal shampoo from L'Oreal, washing every other day. Then I switched to a more natural brand, and luckily I found my ideal shampoo at the first shot. My scalp changed immediately: it looked very clean, I could wash my hair every 4th day (now I do once a week), not even one flake, not an itch. Yes, it happened since the first time I used the new shampoo. Also, new hair started growing back.

I found out that almost all other shampoos (even ones that claim to be delicate) give me an allergic reaction that expresses itself with: greasiness, itchiness, flakes, dandruff, sore scalp, hair fall.

I tried CO too, but it just made me lose a lot of hair (it clogs pores, I believe, so I never put it on my scalp. I only use it on my length).

I know only two shampoos on the market that will not give me a bad reaction. Here are the ingredients:

1) Aqua, Ammonium Lauryl Sulfate, Disodium Cocoamphodiacetate, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Chamomilla recutita Flower Extract, Glycerin, Guar Hydroxypropyltrimonium Chloride, Citric Acid, Salicylic Acid, Sodium Benzoate, Sodium Chloride, Parfum, Linalool, Caramel.

2) Aqua, Cocamidopropyl Betaine, Lauryl Glucoside, Cocoglucoside, Glyceryl Oleate, Glycerin, Ammonium Lauryl Sulfate, Panthenol, Chamomilla recutita Extract, Sodium Hydroxide, Parfum, Methylchloroisothiazolinone, Methylisothiazolinone, CI 47005, CI 16255.

You may want to search for similar ingredients in a shampoo. Don't get discouraged if those ingredients don't work for you: every head is different!
If your case is like mine, you simply need to find what works for your head. Dermatologists will not help you (their shampoos are way to aggressive and scientific knowledge about scalp/hair/skin problems is still very little). WO and CO won't help you. You don't even need to spend a fortune if you are lucky. Those two shampoos are respectively 2,90EU and 0.99EU.

I recommend to go for shampoos that are delicate (possibly natural), don't have SLS/SLES and don't have cones, and possibly that have as little ingredients as possible (less ingredients = probably less junk).

You also may want to try cleansing oils. I bought one today (for my mom's very dry scalp) at the organic food store, but I have not tried it (and I don't know if I will dare). It only has oils, vegetable stuff and a few emollients, no sulphates or other -ates at all.

If you need help with ingredients, go here: ingredients (www.tightlycurly.com/ingredients/).

Good luck. :blossom: