Help for Burning Scalp?

[Paradox]

Hello, everyone! I've been lurking for a while and enjoying all the advice and lovely pictures of gorgeous buns and braids -- but now I need your help if I'm ever going to be able to grow my hair as long and lovely as yours!

As a child, I was incredibly "tender headed" and hair washing was always a tearful event, but I grew out of it. Now that I'm in my 30's, I've begun to experience the "tender headed" thing again. These past couple of years I've tried everything from neglect to kitchen remedies to complicated hair care regimens using über expensive products to no avail. Within the first month (sometimes even the same day!) my scalp begins to burn terribly. I've gone to the doctor, nothing is wrong per se, "I just need to find the right products". :confused:

So far, a concoction of egg yolk/honey/olive oil are my only twice weekly relief. But again, as soon as I wash it out with shampoo, the irritation and burning begin. I've tried the no-poo method but my scalp gets unbearably itchy after a week... :(

I need your help, please! Any advice or suggestions or insights would be greatly appreciated! TIA!

[Madora]

I'm wondering if the problem might be your hair follicles themselves and not the products.

If the follicles are directed in a different direction from how they usually lay, they will hurt and your scalp will tell you in no uncertain terms!

The follicles can be trained to be manipulated in different directions but it takes time and patience.

Perhaps some gentle scalp massage might alleviate the problem.

Good luck!

[jacqueline101]

I'd say I agree with Madora. If its not that maybe your scalp has an allergy to a product you're using.

[Paradox]

Hmmm... I think perhaps it is an allergy? I know I needed a little spritz of hairspray yesterday to keep the baby hairs at bay and my scalp nearly crawl off my head it burned do badly... I'm going to hit up the LUSH store on the way to work to see of maybe an alcohol/preservative free shampoo bar might help?

[mzBANGBANG]

I don't want to give bad advice especially when it could be an allergy, but do you ever do vinegar rinses? I'm a newbie to them, but get an itchy scalp in the winter. After a vinegar rinse, my scalp feels infinitely better. You could probably test it with a regular spray bottle, 50/50 water and vinegar. I also use this on my face because nothing clears up acne like this concoction! I did have to get over the smell though, lol.

I've also heard of (during searches for monistat and hairgrowth) that neosporin and monistat can help with scalp itchiness. This you may want to do your own research on, I'd be more likely to try the vinegar over the monistat/neosporin for what you are describing. But, I use monistat on my scalp and don't get any side effects. Like I said, I found it for searches for hair growth but I've also seen it for different scalp conditions.

edit: and anyone who disagrees, please correct me! I don't think any of these methods would be harmful since I use them, but I'm no doctor!

[Paradox]

I just picked up a shampoo bar at LUSH (Godiva -- smells lovely!) and will try it tomorrow even though it's not my "wash day" just to test it out. I'll report back and let you all know how that worked out! lol
@mzBANGBANG: I'll give the ACV a go, I'll try anything for relief, even --- wait, monistat?!? I'll have to look that one up! lol
Thanks for all the help and support! Much love! xoxo

[Anje]

Have you tried conditioner-only washing? It sounds like you're either reacting to your shampoo, or just have an extremely dry, irritated scalp. The fact that baking soda is also irritating makes me think it might be bad dryness, or maybe something like eczema. We have a gigantic thread on conditioner-only (aka CO) washing, but one of the major keys is to choose a product that doesn't build up too much. That often means using the cheaper conditioners like Suave Naturals and VO5, actually. I like Suave Aloe and Waterlily, but I know a lot of people get the best results with the Suave Tropical Coconut conditioner. Here are instructions. (http://www.longhaircommunity.com/forums/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=18)

ACV might be a good move too, though I'd suggest you dilute it further than mzBANGBANG does. (Different people with different water supplies tend to use different dilutions.) I think 1 unit of vinegar in 9 units of water is a good place to start.

[mzBANGBANG]

The fact that baking soda is also irritating makes me think it might be bad dryness, or maybe something like eczema.

If it is eczema, I have a hairdresser friend who gave the advice to make sure your shampoo is sulfate-free.

[sfgirl]

AW you poor thing. I don't have any advice but I hope something here will help! :hugs:

[Moonlake]

**********

[Paradox]

@mzBANGBANG: The past month or so I was using a sodium/sulphate free shampoo. I *thought* it was working for me, but recently started to burn my scalp, much like the other products I've used. Le sigh...
@Anje: I've the CO washes, but found my hair became very greasy very quickly. Perhaps I was using too heavy a conditioner? Hmmm...
Thanks so much for all the ideas and support! I'll report back as soon as I try a few things! ((hugs))

[Paradox]

UPDATE: I used the Godiva Shampoo Bar from LUSH this morning (even though it wasn't my normal wash day) and I'm pleased to say it felt really good on my scalp! It was easy to use: just a few passes left me lots of rich, thick, creamy goodness that got right down to my scalp with minimal effort. It rinsed clean, too -- like, SQUEEKY clean! I didn't realized how much goop was being left behind on my hair (and scalp!) by the othe shampoos I'd been using!

I also used the Jasmin & Henna Fluff Ease Treatment from LUSH, but I used it a regular conditioner on my wet hair and rinsed with cool water. Smells like heaven! Oh, and my feels nice, too! lol

I finished with a few drops of Moraccan Oil on my wet ends. My hair is now about 80% with no scalp drama! This feels so good, it's such a relief! I just hope my scalp continues to love it, because I really like how my hair feels right now! :)

[mzBANGBANG]

Keep us updated! I'm glad you got some improvement with the lush bar. I've never used them before but I've only heard great things about them.

I've been wanting to purchase moroccan oil but I can only seem to find it in hair departments and it's too expensive. Is there a certain one you use that is under 10 bucks? The ones I find at CVS/Rite Aid are a dinky bottle for $30.

[Anje]

@Anje: I've the CO washes, but found my hair became very greasy very quickly. Perhaps I was using too heavy a conditioner? Hmmm...
It's entirely possible. You need a fairly light conditioner that doesn't build up too much for you. (Strangely, some people notice buildup from a given conditioner where others don't.) Let it sit for long enough (3-5 minutes is enough for me, some get better results with longer soaks), then rinse a lot. And rinse some more after that -- insufficient rinsing is a major cause of problems with CO. It doesn't cleanse hair as strongly as shampoos -- for me that's a good thing, as harsher cleansers cause my scalp to get oily to combat the dryness if I use them repeatedly.

[Paradox]

@mzBANGBANG: I paid full price at the Dellaria salon in my local mall for the Moroccan Oil. It was expensive, but not as pricey as CVS in the same mall was charging forcthe same sized bottle. I've had the same bottle for almost 2 months and I'm only half way through it. But then again, my hair is collar-length and I don't wash every day. My coworker uses it (she has BSL curls) and she says 1 bottle lasts her a good while. I guess on a cost-per-use basis, it pays for itself.
@Anje: I also oil my hair with olive oil 1x or 2x per week. It's a habit from childhood, when I had TBL hair. So I guess I kind of feel like I *have* to shampoo the oil out... How would CO washing work in that scenario?
I wish I could stay home and play with my hair all day, but alas! There are errands to run! TTFN! Thanks again everyone, you've been wonderful! xoxo

[Anje]

CO washing usually gets oil out better than shampooing, many LHCers have found. It seems to emulsify the oil better. If it's really stuck in there, putting conditioner on the oily but not-wet hair works best. Article. (http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/vbjournal.php?do=article&articleid=222)

[Paradox]

I ordered some henna supplies from Henna Sooq over the weekend and included a sample of their cocoveda shampoo bar.
It's not that I don't like the LUSH Godiva shampoo bar -- it smells heavenly (I love the smell of jasmine!) and so far, so good... No post-wash burning on my tender scalp. But... I still have some irritation of the scalp. Not that I expected it all to go away overnight (not that I would have minded, though! lol) but it wasn't until AFTER I bought it that I realized there was SLS in it... I'm just a bit disappointed as I'm trying really hard to rid my routines of excess chemicals!
I do have a question re: washing and oiling -- I'm trying to stretch my washes to once or twice per week, but find that by Day 2, my scalp is itchy and irritated and I feel the need to CO wash at least... I'm concerned about drying out my ends (especially since I just trimmed!) and was wondering if it's possible to over oil them if I do a pre-wash treatment every other day?