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View Full Version : Please help - Where are the flakies coming from?



Feli
March 24th, 2010, 12:27 PM
Really hope that someone here can help me, I just don't understand what's going on with my scalp. I have never in my whole life had dandruff or scalp problems. Two years ago, I swapped from using shampoos with cones and sulfates to natural, cone-free, sulfate-free shampoos and started to notice a slight flakiness which didn't bother me too much at first. However, three weeks ago, I decided I was fed up with the flakies and switched to a cone-free shampoo with sodium laureth sulfate in it. I now have serious scalp problems. My head is itchy and seriously flaky and I noticed two little red spots or blotches on my scalp. What is going on? Can anyone give me some advice or offer some kind of an explanation why my 30-year-old scalp has suddently decided to develop problems? What should I do?

Dreams_in_Pink
March 24th, 2010, 12:32 PM
i suppose once your scalp got used to chemical-free stuff, going back to them raised an irritation. My theory would be that once your scalp gets used to sulfates again it will be back to normal, but that's just a guess.

Maybe the sulfate shampoo has an ingredient in it that you're allergic to? (aside from sulfates)

2peasinapod
March 24th, 2010, 12:37 PM
I'm not sure either, but when I went cone free, sometimes I would get white flakes on the hair near my scalp, but as I started doing scalp massages (distributes the oils more evenly), they went away.

How long have you been cone free? Can you tell if the flakes are skin or sebum? Do you get the irritation when you go sulfate free? Have you tried clarifying?

I hope at least some of this helps.

Feli
March 25th, 2010, 04:03 AM
Dreams in pink: you may be right about the return to chemicals being irritating for my scalp. I washed yesterday with my natural shampoo and things seemed to have settled down again.

2peasinapod: I've been cone-free for two years. Do you think the lack of cones may have caused my flakies? That would be annoying because I really don't want to return to using cones.

The whole thing wouldn't be too bad if I was happy with my sulfate-free shampoos, but they were what started the flakies off in the first place - although only lightly in comparison to what I had when returning to sulfate shampoos 3 weeks ago. Now I'm in a real pickle because my scalp used to be great when I didn't pay any attention to what shampoo I used. When I used cones and sulfates things were fine. Then I went natural and got slight flakies, so returned to sulfate shampoos and got mega flakies. :(

Dreams_in_Pink
March 25th, 2010, 04:12 AM
how about trying another brand of sulfate-free shampoo?

2peasinapod
March 25th, 2010, 12:10 PM
I would recommend another brand, too. Have you tried clarifying? Sometimes my scalp gets more oily (and flakey) when I extend washes. I just use a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar to 2 cups of water. ACV helps remove buildup and restore your scalps natural PH balance.

Good luck! :flower:

Feli
March 25th, 2010, 12:29 PM
Thanks guys. I'll try both of your tips and let you know the results!

simplysnuggle
March 25th, 2010, 01:01 PM
Another thing too can be your diet or your climate that you live in. If you don't drink enough water your scalp can get dry just like the rest of your skin. Also if you live in a drier climate you naturally need to drink more water to make up for the climate. Hope things get better soon!