scalp build-up while stretching washes...

[skydancer7]

Hello everyone,

My hair has been shedding horribly every time I wash it, because I am on accutane. So, I have been avoiding washing it. I wash once or twice a week, with diluted SLS-free shampoo (kiss my face "Miss Treated").

Problem is, if I go too long (4-5 days) I notice a thick, waxy, nasty yellow buildup under my fingernails from gently scratching my scalp while washing. It seems to happen mostly around the crown area. This is accompanied by moderate itching the longer I go without washing.

Stretching shampoos would be working great except for this problem. Hair does not get too greasy.

Any idea what is going on? Is this waxy buildup just sebum, or some sort of dermatologic problem?

Thanks in advance!! :D

[pinchbeck]

I don't know what that is, but I get a similar problem if I go too long without washing my scalp. It always itches in the same areas which is my body's cue telling me, "Help me!".

If your hair is shedding due to medication than there is nothing you can do to stop this process. Washing your hair infrequently is only going to hide what is really going on. You need to wash your scalp more often and maybe add essential oils to your shampoo to help your scalp such as rosemary and cedarwood oils.

I feel badly that you have such intense shedding and I hope this side effect stops once your body is able to get used to your medication hoping that is possible.

[chrissy-b]

My hair does this too if I go too long without washing. My sebum is off-white and thick and sounds similar to yours in that it makes my scalp itchy. I can't go for longer than three days without washing and actually have gone back to daily washing recently because the itching got so bad when I moved to a new climate.

It's never a bad idea to get it checked out by your doctor if you're concerned, but it sounds like natural sebum to me.

[Heidi_234]

I get this stuff too, I think it's dry sebum. It does not worry me. If I can I make sure to brush the scalp when I brush my hair, and doing little scalp massages from time to time, and spread that sebum little down the length that way.

I don't think it's a problem actually, I much prefer it to the actual oiliness other experience. At least I can stretch washes for as long as I please (last wash occurred...hmmm let me think.... more than a week ago? :wink:).

[spidermom]

I've got a nice hardwood comb with blunt teeth that I use against my scalp for itch/sebum buildup between washes. It helps a lot, also hanging forward and brushing (very carefully).

There's not much point in stretching washings; when your hair/scalp is dirty, they should be washed. Be gentle about it. The washing in and of itself is not causing the shedding, which I hope resolves soon. I've been shedding more than usual lately, too, but I think it's the change in season.

[ravenreed]

I get that build up too, and I have found that I can go four days, max, without washing before the itching drives me mad. Which is fine, because by that point, my hair is too greasy not to wash it anyway.

Two things are really helping me. One is ACV rinses. It seems to calm my scalp down. The other thing is I have been doing a scalp oiling with coconut oil and castor oil once a week before I CO. Not only is it helping with the itchies, but I have been noticing tons of new growth since I started. I was looking at my hair the other day thinking, "Why does it look so frizzy today?" Then I saw all the little sproingy new hairs sticking up. I have not changed anything else and not had a big shed, so nothing else explains it. Perhaps it might help you get new hairs going to at least replace the ones you are shedding?

[skydancer7]

Wow, thanks everyone! I feel much more at ease. I guess I will just wash more often, but also try coconut oil scalp rubs. I was worried it was some form of cooties ;)

I get to stop the accutane in 5 weeks, then the shedding should stop and it SHOULD all grow back. Lucky for me, I started with very thick hair so it could be worse.

[Wicked Princess]

This happens to me too, if I try to stretch my washes too long. Now I usually wash 3 times a week and my scalp loves me for it. I, too, would recommend ACV rinses...it helps my scalp feel considerably less itchy on the rare occasion it itches at all now.