Washing hair once a week... (I need advice)

[krispie]

I want to start washing my hair once a week, but it gets greasy so fast.. it's really frustrating! I guess I'll have to buy dry shampoo, but does it ruin your hair ? (The only one's available for me is either the Kisby dry shampoo powder or Batiste dry shampoo...)
Will washing once a week make a difference or is it fine if I only wash it twice a week ?
Anyways, thank you for those who'll give me some advice, I'm still so new at this:doh:

[hayheadsbird]

How often are you washing your hair at the moment? If you want to try stretching washes, I'd start with just a day at a time and see how you get on. It's only been the last month or so I've made it to a week. I wash washing twice a week, then realised I could push it an extra day or two, and suddenly it was easy to get to weekly washing. I suspect a lot of it is due to recent hormone changes for me more than anything else though!
I can't advise on dry shampoo as I've never actually used it!

[samanthaa]

My advice is go slow. Don't expect change to happen in a couple weeks, or even in a couple months. For me, it took about 12-18 months to have satisfying results. You will find yourself doing away with things like extra washes and dry shampoo slowly and naturally. It's only been in the past half-year that I haven't found myself needing to do a mid-week water wash or use dry shampoo toward the end of the week (I use a very natural dry shampoo from Chagrin Valley Soap and Salve). My goal has always been to move away from dry shampoo, because stretching washes equates to the scalp producing less sebum, and whether it's water or dry shampoo, you're still washing away or absorbing and brushing away the sebum. Dry shampoo is obviously less harsh and less effective, and I think it's a great in-between tool to get you through the less-than-pleasant overly oily phase.

For me, stretching washes is totally worth it. I would never go back to less frequent washes. My hair looks really, really good for the first three days of the cycle, whereas previously I was washing every day and, by the end of the day, my hair was already starting to look flat and greasy.

[Dendra]

I'd echo the others and say be careful. I tried to stretch washes from every 4/5 days to once a week and beyond and my scalp hated it. It took me ages to get the itching and shedding to stop. Now I happily shampoo every 5 days, which really isn't that often anyway.

Saying this, I was living in a very hot climate whilst I made this change so that could have contributed.

[akurah]

Your hair will be fine if you wash as frequently as daily. Is there a specific reason you want to stretch your washing?

[lapushka]

Take it a day at a time. If you are now washing every day. Try once to stretch one day longer per week, then the next week, do it 2x and then keep that routine until it turns out fine (no flaking, no itch). If you do get flaking or an itch, then please return to what you were doing before and all along; there is nothing wrong with daily washing.

[Cherriezzzzz]

I thought it would be impossible to stretch washes, but yes, slowly over time, I did it. I would be a grease ball every morning. I can go easy 3 days, 4th day dry shampoo to get to 5th day in public lol! Something else I did was strip off the silicone off my hair. I had been a daily user for decades without clarifying. Then I just switched to no sulfates, no silicone. Made my grease nearly disappear as far as I'm concerned! If I do occasionally use silicone for special occasions I use a water soluble kind and I stay far away from my root area!

[Rustam]

Yep it just takes time for your scalp to adjust but eventually you realize you can go longer between them.

[wannabe-rusalka]

My scalp is very dry so I've been weekly washing for a long time but be careful because if your scalp builds up too much gunk over time you can get dandruff or other yucky stuff. I found this out the hard way a couple years ago. If your scalp is getting itchy and gross, just wash and you will eventually be able to stretch your washes. Using a sulfate free shampoo helped a lot too because that helps decrease sebum production by A LOT (at least it did for me). Good luck :)

[Natashap]

I have tried dry shampoo but it never helped .I have extremely greasy scalp.I tend to overwash too but my scalp hates strong sulfate shampoo .I have given in and try to stretch a day or so .Try dry shampoo and see if you agree with results as it varies individually.

Good luck.

[Ophidian]

Yes to all of the above. You can also experiment with scalp-only washes which cleans your scalp but leaves the length dry. My length loves it when I stretch to a week but my scalp doesn't like being washed less than twice a week, so often I'll do a full wash on the weekend and a scalp-only wash using this (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VwREj8Kadlo&t=294s) method mid-week.

[Simsy]

Like the others, I would caution against switching straight to washing once a week, especially if you are washing far more frequently at the moment. The only suggestion I would add to the above is be comfortable in updos. Any products you use through the week will have an effect on the state of your hair; and things can start to get a little gross after a few days. Any updo (buns, braids, braided buns) will keep your hair fairly tangle-free and less damage. As a bonus, it will also keep you from fiddling as much with your hair, which will reduce the amount of grease on your hair overall and should make stretching a lot easier.

[MusicalSpoons]

Scalp washes are an excellent tool for stretching washes! I also find now that due to the pattern in which my hair gets oily, I can do what I term a 'hairline' wash - diluted shampoo on just the first inch or around my hairline to keep it looking presentable. (The annoying thing for me is on day 3 my hair down looks great, but the top layer of hair when I put it up is a bit oily - but I really can't wear it down!) So as your scalp adjusts, there might be just areas that need a weak wash or dry shampoo. I use cornflour as dry shampoo, but I hear arrowroot powder or cocoa powder is better for darker hair. Sulphate-free also helps if your scalp can deal with it.

But the main thing is to stretch gradually, and be patient. It took me such a long time to get beyond desperately needing a wash every other day! As someone said above, you'll naturally leave out dry shampoos and extra washes as your hair and scalp adjust, so just take it as it comes and don't feel any obligation to have to stretch by a certain time or even to have to stretch anyway!

[PixieP]

I've ended up being a weekly washer, not by choice, it just happened :P Due to depression I didn't manage to wash my hair as often as I liked. So now I've ended up washing weekly / week and a half. But it's taken me over a year to get to the point where I don't look like a complete greaseball after a week. And I still prefer to use a bit of dry shampoo to make my hair look more presentable if I need to go out after day 6.

However, as others have said, you absolutley do not need to be a weekly washer to have long healthy hair. There are lots here who wash daily or every other day!

[nycelle]

I find that when using sulfate free shampoos, I can go longer in-between washing as my scalp doesn't start to itch, or flake by the second day. Currently I wash every 4 days.

[lapushka]

I find that when using sulfate free shampoos, I can go longer in-between washing as my scalp doesn't start to itch, or flake by the second day. Currently I wash every 4 days.

That is so individual. :) Some people fare better with sulfate-free, others need the sulfates. I'm glad you found what works for you. :)

I'm glad we still have both choices on the market and that not every company jumped on the sulfate-free bandwagon!

[nycelle]

That is so individual. :) Some people fare better with sulfate-free, others need the sulfates. I'm glad you found what works for you. :)

I'm glad we still have both choices on the market and that not every company jumped on the sulfate-free bandwagon!

Oh, I still use both. I just happened to notice that I always tend to go back to the same sulfate free shampoo. I never even realized it was sulfate free until I started reading this forum.
I agree about choices, definitely need them.

Many here are silicone free, and when I think about the conditioners I've used over the years, there were two that were just horrifying on my hair. Left it a tangled mess. One from Phyto, the other Aveeda. I
checked, and both are silicone free. I wouldn't even attempt to try another -cone free conditioner.

[hayheadsbird]

Oh, I still use both. I just happened to notice that I always tend to go back to the same sulfate free shampoo. I never even realized it was sulfate free until I started reading this forum.
I agree about choices, definitely need them.

Many here are silicone free, and when I think about the conditioners I've used over the years, there were two that were just horrifying on my hair. Left it a tangled mess. One from Phyto, the other Aveeda. I
checked, and both are silicone free. I wouldn't even attempt to try another -cone free conditioner.
Def need choices!
If I use a silicone conditioner first wash is lovely, then second is build up and a dry mess. If I sulphate every wash in order to use silicones, my hair gets over stripped. Sulphate and cone free is my best choice for easy of routine.

[T0n1c]

I've ended up being a weekly washer, not by choice, it just happened :P Due to depression I didn't manage to wash my hair as often as I liked. So now I've ended up washing weekly / week and a half. But it's taken me over a year to get to the point where I don't look like a complete greaseball after a week. And I still prefer to use a bit of dry shampoo to make my hair look more presentable if I need to go out after day 6.

However, as others have said, you absolutley do not need to be a weekly washer to have long healthy hair. There are lots here who wash daily or every other day!

Same here, Pixie. Between depression/anxiety and chronic illness, I noticed one day I had become a weekly washer. That was before LHC, so I did some research, confirmed it was fine and there was no reason (science/medical-wise) to wash more often. That was the one habit I didn't have to change when I came to LHC, lol.

[Dark40]

I agree with akurah. Your hair will be fine if you wash it daily. I was mine daily. Or, whenever I can do it. Because, of busy schedule.

[Deborah]

Some of us don't use conditioner on our hair. In this way the hair is not weighed down, and it stays cleaner a lot longer.