TMI scalp question

[Chamy]

Im a CO'er and my hair is loving it. My scalp on the other hand has started to produce something white that comes of when i scratch my scalp. It isnt dry, nor is it "dandruffy", is it just sebum or what?
I might add that since starting with the CO i have been stretching washes to about twice a week.

Have any other CO'ers(or anyone) experinced anything like this?

[Ravenne]

I think we're experiencing the same thing. I'm not sure if it's something that needs to be fixed or what...:confused:

[OhioLisa]

Sounds like sebum to me. You're going longer between washes, so what is normally being washed away is now noticeable. No worries.

[GoddesJourney]

It sounds like you're not scrubbing your scalp well enough in the shower. It's easy to do with shampoo, but CO requires some extra work, first with the conditioner, then add water and do it again, then when you're rinsing it out. Make sure you're really getting every part of your scalp. I have to part my hair in a couple of places or I miss the scalp right at the "point" at the top/back of my head and I get that sticky patch you mentioned. Also, I get dandruff at the very front of my head because I ignore it for some reason. Once I started paying attention to that, it all got better and is more or less gone unless I get lazy. Stretching washes just augments the issue.

[Chamy]

Sounds like sebum to me. You're going longer between washes, so what is normally being washed away is now noticeable. No worries.

Sebum was my first guess :). Thank you for the reasurance :flower:

[Chamy]

It sounds like you're not scrubbing your scalp well enough in the shower. It's easy to do with shampoo, but CO requires some extra work, first with the conditioner, then add water and do it again, then when you're rinsing it out. Make sure you're really getting every part of your scalp. I have to part my hair in a couple of places or I miss the scalp right at the "point" at the top/back of my head and I get that sticky patch you mentioned. Also, I get dandruff at the very front of my head because I ignore it for some reason. Once I started paying attention to that, it all got better and is more or less gone unless I get lazy. Stretching washes just augments the issue.

Oh, but does your hair feel greasy right after you wash it, or is it just the scalp?
I will try to scrub more next time i wash and see what happens!

[Igor]

I wanted to give a :thumbsup: to what has been said so far. Also, don’t forget that even though you want to CO, don’t see it as a defeat to have to reach for the shampoo or another cleaning agent. Getting used to CO took me well over a year and I still have times where I’ve had to shampoo. It happens and its okay :wink:

[Chamy]

I wanted to give a :thumbsup: to what has been said so far. Also, don’t forget that even though you want to CO, don’t see it as a defeat to have to reach for the shampoo or another cleaning agent. Getting used to CO took me well over a year and I still have times where I’ve had to shampoo. It happens and its okay :wink:

I have been CO for about a year, and i use shampoo occasionaly when i feel like i need it. I have'nt thought about how it felt when i shampooed since starting with CO. We'll see the next time i use poo. :)

[countryhopper]

Could be sebum... or maybe conditioner buildup?

[Aer]

I think it's build up too. I don't see how your question is TMI though?

[naereid]

I too have noticed white flakes on my scalp yesterday, after using SLS-free shampoo for the past three weeks. I don't know if that's dandruff or what. Anybody have an idea what's up with that?

[Aer]

Could it also be a hard water issue? The reason I asked is when I stopped using commercial shampoos (SLS), I suddenly had crazy dandruff, and then I moved to a place that didn't have hard city water, and my scalp was happy again, but when I went back to the town that I previously lived in, to visit relatives, after showering and washing my hair there again, I had immediate irritating dandruff. I can't really explain why this is, but I thought maybe it could be something you looked into. Good luck, and you probably already know this but don't pick at your scalp,no matter how itchy or uncomfortable it becomes, because it will only make it worse.

[naereid]

Could it also be a hard water issue? The reason I asked is when I stopped using commercial shampoos (SLS), I suddenly had crazy dandruff, and then I moved to a place that didn't have hard city water, and my scalp was happy again, but when I went back to the town that I previously lived in, to visit relatives, after showering and washing my hair there again, I had immediate irritating dandruff. I can't really explain why this is, but I thought maybe it could be something you looked into. Good luck, and you probably already know this but don't pick at your scalp,no matter how itchy or uncomfortable it becomes, because it will only make it worse.
Hmm. My city has hard water, so that could very well be it.

[Anje]

I think it's just sebum. I got even more of the same stuff when I was doing the water only thing, so at least in my case it wasn't buildup. It's more noticably present when you've stretched washes, though, compared to daily shampooing.