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SlightlySoprano
February 12th, 2010, 07:45 AM
So this morning, getting out of the shower, I realized that LHC has totally changed the way I think "clean" hair feels like!

Before LHC and back to my days of SLS + Cones + heat torture, if my hair didn't feel stripped to the bone in the shower, I couldn't deal with it. I've finally come to terms with CURLY HAIR NEEDS HYDRATION! And CO washing really works for me, even if my hair doesn't feel chemically stripped, it's still clean!!

:cheese:Thanks LHC!

Tangerine
February 12th, 2010, 07:47 AM
I'm glad to hear you've found a routine that works for you! Yay :D

Merewen
February 12th, 2010, 08:27 AM
Yeah, on the rare occasions that I clarify with my old SLS shampoo, I find I can no longer stand THAT feeling.

bumblebums
February 12th, 2010, 08:28 AM
I have discovered that there is an inverse relationship between how squeaky clean and slippery my hair feels in the shower and how soft it is when it dries. Now that I don't use either shampoo or conditioner anymore, my hair feels pretty much like wet fiberglass in the shower, but it dries soft and slippery. I don't understand it, but I certainly like the results!

GoddesJourney
February 12th, 2010, 10:10 AM
I have discovered that there is an inverse relationship between how squeaky clean and slippery my hair feels in the shower and how soft it is when it dries. Now that I don't use either shampoo or conditioner anymore, my hair feels pretty much like wet fiberglass in the shower, but it dries soft and slippery. I don't understand it, but I certainly like the results!

That's exactly what I'm noticing now that I'm trying this CO thing. It's weird, it feels greasy and waxy in the shower, but when it dries, it just feels soft and like I put some light, expensive oil in and brushed it through. My scalp and hair are still adjusting so my hair still feels a little weighed down and grungy, but I hear that passes. For the moment, it looks a little dull and without shine further down the length. I can't wait 'til it adjusts.

ericthegreat
February 12th, 2010, 10:38 AM
You know what's really weird? When I used to shampoo regularly ohh around 4 years ago, my scalp would feel completely clean for just one day. Within two days, my scalp would get super greasy. Plus, my ends kept getter drier and drier so I had to compensate by piling on a conditioner loaded with silicones. It just became a vicious cycle of an ever oily scalp and dry, crunchy ends.

Now that I CO every single night with just warm water and my conefree, Suave Coconut conditioner, my scalp is very clean and fresh smelling. And my entire head of hair from my roots down to my ends feel very silky, smooth, and not dry and crunchy at all. And my hair became ultra shiny! Even though my hair would feel a bit slimy after I rinsed the conditioner from my hair, after my hair dries it actually feels cleaner than when I used to shampoo! And the clean feeling is also not a dry clean feeling, its both a clean and very silky and moisturized feeling!

ohiofritty
February 12th, 2010, 10:39 AM
My perception of 'clean' hair has really changed as well. I hate my hair right after clarifying now (I've been doing this about once a week with BS/ACV...which makes my hair feel just like it used to with my old shampoo/conditioner) ...it sticks out everywhere and won't stay put..and its not even curly!

SlightlySoprano
February 12th, 2010, 10:55 AM
I think that's a big part of the hair care issue. We've been so brainwashed to think clean hair feels like this (stripped, dry) that if there's even the slightest bit of sebum, we panic and have to wash it again the very next day! This has been ingrained in our society, but I wonder, from what? And since when?

MandyBeth
February 12th, 2010, 11:06 AM
I'm on the CWC cycle - as my scalp has decided that from years of abuse, the only functional way it will work is by producing lots and lots of thick sebum. My hair, being of the cat fine type, does not spread this sebum very well. I was used to the squeaky clean hair feeling.

Now, my ends when wet feel like it's slick, but there is still something there - vs the stripped dry feeling.

My scalp - with it's CV shampoo bar - after washing, before conditioner does feel very gooky for lack of any better idea. It feels like I've got wax coating my hair. I take it to be that I've gotten the sebum off, but now it's sticking to my hair like it wants to. Alas, my sebum does not exactly agree with my hair yet. So load up the conditioner, give it a nice lime juice rinse (I hate the smell of ACV...), and pat and baby it while it's wet, plus giving my dry and cranky ends the jojoba oil that they currently are trying.

I will say I've lost the coney super shine that came from putting a coat of gloss varnish on my hair. But I'm noticing a lot less breakage now, and for all the stomping and foot dragging my hair did to try to not go along with a no cone system, it's now catching up and it's getting better. My sebum and my hair still do not want to be friends with each other, but now I can get rid of the sebum, and still give my hair the oil it wants. I'm now more into the satin sheen look - it's not super glossy like some people here have, but it's not the fried and dyed frizz it could be either and it's looking reasonably healthy.

The results are going to be slow here. I know I've got a lot of damage that does eventually need to be cut off. But as long as I'm not making the new hair freak out with loads of scrubbing bubbles and no moisture, I think I'll eventually get to something I like.

Roseate
February 12th, 2010, 12:49 PM
This has been ingrained in our society, but I wonder, from what? And since when?

Washing hair more than once a week wasn't common until the second half of the 20th century. (And still isn't common in many parts of the world!)

In the US, from the 20's-60's women would usually wash and 'set' their hair about once a week and then preserve the style with sleep caps or dry sets until the next wash.

Prior to the 20's when long hair was the norm, it was wet-washed with a soap-based cleanser anywhere from once a week to once a month or less, then maintained with brushing to distribute sebum, sometimes using hair powder to soak up excess oil until next wash.

Why did it change? Probably just changing styles, like anything else. Long hair in updos needs different care than mid-length, layered cuts designed to be blowdryed with styling products.

howsitgrowin'87
February 12th, 2010, 01:05 PM
I totally agree with all of these comments. I've seen the success of changing my mind about what "clean" hair means too.

I have just made it over the transition to CO totally and my hair is SO SO SOFT! and CLEAN! It never felt clean with shampoos and silicone conditioners because it always felt like I was hiding under a filmy goop, now my hair can breathe! I actually tried to use only a nickel sized amount of shampoo last week, and instantly my hair freaked out and was dry like straw. So I had to compensate using it with loads and loads of conditioner to get it back to normal. My hair HATES shampoo.

So my advice to anyone reading this looking for answers to their dry hair problems is give Conditioner Only a try! If you stick with it, and deal with the transition, it's a beautiful outcome :) you'll be happy you did!

Thanks LHC! You've helped me learn to love and care for my hair!:cheese:

funnyface
February 12th, 2010, 02:44 PM
I'm just switching over to CWC and I think the hardest part is when you're IN the shower and have just shampooed and it's that worry of "will it look clean?!" once I've washed the second conditioner out I feel fine- but we have been totally brainwashed into thinking stripped is clean when it isn't!

My mum once taught Chemistry for hairdressers, and explained to me how shampoo strips hair of it's natural shine, thus making the scalp go into overdrive to compensate leaving you with greasy hair. Far better to just let it do it's own thing! On holiday I never wash my hair and that's always when it looks its best!

xxx

Bellalalala
February 12th, 2010, 05:33 PM
Absolutely!

Regular SLS has always made my hair feel completely frazzled!
Not clean, just frazzled and weak.

Now, my hair feels like hair again, without piling on the conditioner and leave-in conditioner (which never helped much anyway).

Fractalsofhair
February 12th, 2010, 05:36 PM
I actually find with shampoo bars, I need that squeak for them to be clean. However, it's a strange feeling, my hair will feel rough and oily at the same time, but squeak. Then once my hair is dry, it's bouncy, filled with life, but not puffy or dry at all!

Jordan S.
February 12th, 2010, 05:42 PM
My hair HATES shampoo. I hated that clean feeling that a lot of people for some reason like. My hair feels totally stripped. My mom thanks it's unsanitary ...:rolleyes: but I know what my hair likes :)

my2cats1
February 12th, 2010, 09:47 PM
For those of you who CO, how long did "the transition time" last? How long should I hang in there before deciding if it is for me?

AmericanWoman
February 12th, 2010, 10:09 PM
For those of you who CO, how long did "the transition time" last? How long should I hang in there before deciding if it is for me?

I didn't have a transition time. It's differant for everyone. My hair just lay down and said "I love it. Keep doing that and I'll be you BFF!"

ericthegreat
February 12th, 2010, 10:36 PM
For those of you who CO, how long did "the transition time" last? How long should I hang in there before deciding if it is for me?

Its different for everybody. For some people like AmericanWoman, they didn't need anytime at all to adjust, their hair and scalp responded right away.

For me personally, it wasn't really actually a transition period that I needed to get used to because I also didn't have a transition period. As I said before, I had to actually change my whole idea of what defines "clean". Before, I believed what everyone believed, that you need to shampoo your scalp twice in order to keep it clean. I now know that conditioner can do the same job, but I do need to rinse my hair out my thoroughly.

I would suggest to you to keep trying the CO method for 2 weeks straight at least. That way, you will be able to determine if COing is the best routine for you :).

Natalia
February 12th, 2010, 10:52 PM
I totally understand, pre-LHC i would never had considered doing WO unless i was stranded camping or forgot my S&C for ONE night much less regularly. Now i do it all week or maybe 2 then do an SMT or CO then back to it again. Once i learned the techniques my hair was plenty clean enough for me :). Now I only S&C when i need to clairify or i have gotten into something particularly gross. I love that it works for me and i feel good doing it :)

SlightlySoprano
February 15th, 2010, 07:08 AM
I think a big part of why we can go a long time in between washes is because we have accepted and realized that SEBUM DOES NOT EQUAL DIRT! Yay!

countryhopper
February 16th, 2010, 05:48 AM
I haven't used shampoo or conditioner since Nov 1,09.

It took my hair 2 weeks to get over the waxies and greasies, and even so, there were a few bad hair days after that, but now I only wash my hair twice a week using dilluted baking soda and rinsing with tea.

I love the way my hair feels: much more obedient, wavier (used to be stick straight), and soft.

I think the thing I love the most is that no-poo has allowed me to avoid spending so much time washing (DAILY) and my hair feels so much more natural.

pepperminttea
February 16th, 2010, 10:43 AM
Congrats! :D

I gave my mother some CV shampoo bars for Christmas; she's all into the environmental movement but hadn't taken a look into the bathroom cabinet with that in mind yet. After the first time she used them, she mentioned to me that she wasn't sure she'd gotten it clean - it turned out she thought hair was meant to squeak when it was clean! :doh:

bumblebums
February 16th, 2010, 10:45 AM
Congrats! :D

I gave my mother some CV shampoo bars for Christmas; she's all into the environmental movement but hadn't taken a look into the bathroom cabinet with that in mind yet. After the first time she used them, she mentioned to me that she wasn't sure she'd gotten it clean - it turned out she thought hair was meant to squeak when it was clean! :doh:

Yeah, you really have to shift into a different mindset about this... Hair just doesn't "squeak" in the wild, wet or dry!

Tutti_Frutti
February 16th, 2010, 12:28 PM
I think I'm really used to this 'clean' feeling. When I try to CO wash, I always decide to wash is with shampoo, because my hair feels still very greasy when wet. I also have this weird dandruff problem on the top of my scalp, near my side part. It sticks to the hairs and feels also very greasy. The rest of my scalp is free from dandruff.

Maybe someone has a solution for this? I can't wash it away. :(

Madame J
February 16th, 2010, 12:29 PM
Yeah, you really have to shift into a different mindset about this... Hair just doesn't "squeak" in the wild, wet or dry!

Um, my hair "squeaks" when I rub a finger over it when it's wet. It can be totally sebum-y, and when I get in the shower, wet it down, and rub a finger down the length, it'll squeak like I've washed with shampoo. There are places on my scalp that don't always squeak, but it's not a sign of being stripped for me. No, I'm not "in the wild," but I don't use much in the way of products, so it's not stripped from sulfates or detergents.

Like Fractalsofhair said, I'm one who need the squeak to know that I've lathered enough with shampoo bars. I only recently experienced a need for moisture, and it was from protein overload, not actual dryness or stripping.

For my2cats1, my hair hated CO washing. I only tried it a few times, but my scalp freaked out and I shed like mad. It turns out my scalp hates conditioner. Now, if I condition, I make sure to keep it off my scalp and do a dilute vinegar rinse afterwards. If you're having unusual shedding or scalp aggravation, you don't need to give it a whole two weeks to decide that you were happier with some other method. CO can be a miracle for some people, but doesn't work for everyone.

MandyBeth
February 16th, 2010, 12:48 PM
Yup, if I don't wash my scalp with some form of shampoo, it freaks out and I notice shedding. I can stretch it to two days if I'm careful, but more than that, and ick.......

Getting my hair off SLS was the hardest part tho. Cones, fine. But if I use cones, I had to use SLS to get the cones off. But if I used SLS, my hair demanded cones to be shiny and behave. So I washed the cones off with SLS one last time, sucked up my nerves and didn't let the cones near my hair. Had a freak out session of 2 weeks and my hair was furious at me, it wanted it's cones!

Grumbling along, it's stomped over to my idea that it will get all the oil and condish it wants, but it will not get cones.

bumblebums
February 16th, 2010, 12:49 PM
Um, my hair "squeaks" when I rub a finger over it when it's wet. It can be totally sebum-y, and when I get in the shower, wet it down, and rub a finger down the length, it'll squeak like I've washed with shampoo. There are places on my scalp that don't always squeak, but it's not a sign of being stripped for me. No, I'm not "in the wild," but I don't use much in the way of products, so it's not stripped from sulfates or detergents.

Like Fractalsofhair said, I'm one who need the squeak to know that I've lathered enough with shampoo bars. I only recently experienced a need for moisture, and it was from protein overload, not actual dryness or stripping.


No quarrel here, as far as I can see. As long as you use a surfactant on your hair, it will "squeak" when wet. The surfactant can be a detergent such as SLS, or it can be a soap (such as a shampoo bar or castile soap), but it is still a surfactant. I haven't used a surfactant on my hair in a while, and it does not squeak anymore.

My guess is that the WO people have the best idea of what wet hair feels like "in the wild."

Benjamin_T
February 16th, 2010, 12:57 PM
My hair is always stripped & squeaky clean, considering that I wash it daily. However, I'm beginning to realize that it is unnecessary.

JamieLeigh
February 18th, 2010, 11:27 AM
Same here!! I now consider what I used to see as *clean* hair to be *dry and in need of TLC (and LHC)* hair. :D

bumblebums
February 18th, 2010, 02:38 PM
Yup, if I don't wash my scalp with some form of shampoo, it freaks out and I notice shedding. I can stretch it to two days if I'm careful, but more than that, and ick.......


Do you have a hair trap in your tub drain, or does the hair just disappear down the pipes? I ask because it is easy to not notice how much hair you shed when you shampoo it. For me, most of the hair I shed is during a wash (and more so with shampoo than with other washes). You shed throughout the day, as well, but maybe you notice that you shed more on "dry" days because the shed hair is not washing down the drain?

redneckprincess
February 18th, 2010, 02:49 PM
I agree with you 100% I dont know how I ever lived without TLHC

Katurday
February 18th, 2010, 02:55 PM
I never transitioned to CO, only to Sulphate-free and cone-free.
I still get that same clean feeling (without the slimyness of the cones). My hair is pretty happy with this system, so why mess with a good thing?

Kya
February 18th, 2010, 04:00 PM
I think it changed with shampoo manufacturers.

Kya
February 18th, 2010, 04:04 PM
My last post was in response to a post I read (up a bit) about why people clean their hair more often these days. I believe it is because of the manufacturers creating product "junkies" and the myth that hair needs to be washed more frequently. I used to be product junkie (I stopped watching television and that changed quick).;)

countryhopper
February 19th, 2010, 06:05 AM
I think that it's very interesting that other countries seem to have much different shampooing frequencies than others. A lot of the time, the ones that shampoo more infrequently seem to have the healthiest, shiniest hair (at least that's what I've observed).

It seems like many seem to think that if they DON'T shampoo at least once daily, then it's automatically dirty, even if it doesn't LOOK or FEEL dirty.

Another way in which the media controls us...

Sissy
February 19th, 2010, 06:31 AM
My scalp - with it's CV shampoo bar - after washing, before conditioner does feel very gooky for lack of any better idea. It feels like I've got wax coating my hair. I take it to be that I've gotten the sebum off, but now it's sticking to my hair like it wants to. Alas, my sebum does not exactly agree with my hair yet. So load up the conditioner, give it a nice lime juice rinse (I hate the smell of ACV...), and pat and baby it while it's wet, plus giving my dry and cranky ends the jojoba oil that they currently are trying.

I will say I've lost the coney super shine that came from putting a coat of gloss varnish on my hair. But I'm noticing a lot less breakage now, and for all the stomping and foot dragging my hair did to try to not go along with a no cone system, it's now catching up and it's getting better. My sebum and my hair still do not want to be friends with each other, but now I can get rid of the sebum, and still give my hair the oil it wants. I'm now more into the satin sheen look - it's not super glossy like some people here have, but it's not the fried and dyed frizz it could be either and it's looking reasonably healthy.

Yeah, hair will feel waxy after using CV bars until you apply the ACV rinse or conditioner.

Also, I too used to varnish my hair with high alcohol leave-ins. I don' think it was the cones that were damaging in my Biosilk, but maybe the alcohols? I still haven't made up my mind on it totally and will probably still use it from time to time because oh the shine! :D

Benjamin_T
February 19th, 2010, 06:53 AM
I think that it's very interesting that other countries seem to have much different shampooing frequencies than others. A lot of the time, the ones that shampoo more infrequently seem to have the healthiest, shiniest hair (at least that's what I've observed).

It seems like many seem to think that if they DON'T shampoo at least once daily, then it's automatically dirty, even if it doesn't LOOK or FEEL dirty.

Another way in which the media controls us...

I agree, it's certainly true that long hair is healthier & shinier (edit: just nicer overall) when shampooed or washed infrequently. From what I have been observing, most (if not all) of the great long hair people I've been seeing around; they don't wash & shampoo their manes on a daily basis.

For my case, I've been washing & shampooing my long hair everyday because I'm always sweating most of the time in this hot & humid climate in my country, as well as frequently being active outdoors in the blazing sunshine. (That's why I really hate this hot climate - it forces me to wash my hair daily.)

I would not recommend washing/shampooing long hair everyday. My hair does get dry like weed.. (If it was shorter, it would have given me hell.)

Regards.

trolleypup
February 19th, 2010, 08:50 AM
For my case, I've been washing & shampooing my long hair everyday because I'm always sweating most of the time in this hot & humid climate in my country, as well as frequently being active outdoors in the blazing sunshine. (That's why I really hate this hot climate - it forces me to wash my hair daily.)
When I've been in that position (rarely, mind...we just don't have many consecutive warm days in San Francisco), I just water rinse if I've been sweating and all. Interestingly, those conditions are when WO works the best!

Note: I am mostly WO, but my schedule is more weekly.

Benjamin_T
February 19th, 2010, 09:10 AM
When I've been in that position (rarely, mind...we just don't have many consecutive warm days in San Francisco), I just water rinse if I've been sweating and all. Interestingly, those conditions are when WO works the best!

Note: I am mostly WO, but my schedule is more weekly.

trolleypup, thanks a lot for your advice. :)

I'll keep it in mind. (One day I shall try it out.)

:cheese:

heidihug
February 19th, 2010, 10:25 AM
I love my hair to feel clean - not oily - with a modicum of body, if possible. Not always possible on my very straight and flat hair, though. Since coming to LHC my conditioner use has skyrocketed, and shampoo use has plummeted.

Past the ears, it looks and feels fantastic after two or more days without washing. The scalp and next 6 inches or so, however, is another story. Oily, piecy, cleavage-y. When I am going to be out and about, I wash my scalp with diluted shampoo every other day. If not for the fact that I am an oil derrick, I would only wash once a week, at most. Probably less. I don't care much for society's demands regarding hair care, but I do care when it looks greasy (which grabs onto dust and such, so it's dirty, too).

ArienEllariel
February 19th, 2010, 11:05 AM
My notion of clean hair has definately changed since joining the LHC. I've gone off SLS and cones and switched to CO most days and the once a week CWC. I have to say it's been interesting to get used to. My hair doesn't look as shiny as it did when I used SLS shampoos and the like but neither is it dry as straw all over and ubber ubber oily at the scalp (I still get the scalp oilies but not quite as bad). SLS also made me shed like crazy. I didn't realize that was what was causing it until I switched to CO for a week or so. Now I barely shed at all. The one thing I've noticed since starting CO is that my hair is a little limp near my scalp, but I'll trade dry as straw hair for slightly limp any day. :P And my hair is actually growing now instead of perpetually breaking off at shoulder length!