Non - Shampoo Days

[pixietail]

What do you do with your hair in the shower on non-shampoo days? I find that that I cannot allow my hair to get wet unless I'm shampooing it. It becomes weird and gross - super oily at the roots, dry and brittle at the ends and tangled all over. Shower caps don't help because water sneaks in through the edge and bits of my hair still get gross.

What I've had to do is, on non-shampoo days, either soak in the tub if I have the time, or else carefully pour water over my body being careful not to wet the hair.

Does anyone have this problem? And how do you deal with it?

[caadam]

With my experience and some others, that kind of reaction is in response to hard water, and water in general tends to dry hair out at times, causing tangles, brittleness, and dryness.

What I've done to counter this so far is to do lemon juice rinses and mineral oil. For one, lemon juice is a citric acid, and citric acid helps to remove minerals from the hair (I don't have a shower filter so this has been my one option); for another, after my hair is damp and combed, the mineral oil helps to keep moisture on the hair shaft, keeping it quenched. In the mornings, my hair is shiny and moisturized, and when I brush with a BBB, my hair is like silk.

I'm sure others can give you some suggestions, but that's what has worked for me. :flower:

[lirael]

I never wet my hair without putting something in it. I agree with you, it feels weird even after it's dry. If I want to get it wet, I will use a light conditioner on it. If I don't want to get it wet, I just put it in a really high bun and try to keep my head out of the water. My hairline gets a little damp, but when it dries it feels fine. It looks like your hair is long enough to put in a bun on top of your head, pixietail, have you tried that?

[excentricat]

If my hair gets wet in the shower, I pretty much have to wash it, but a little dampness around the hairline doesn't cause problems for me so a shower cap works. Do you have the ability to trade out your shower head for a handheld one? That might be nicer than pouring water on yourself but give the same effect.

[BrightEyes]

I've been using a shower cap for years. I might get a little damp in the temple area, but that's not a big problem for me. I did find that I had to spend a little more money and get a shower cap that is sturdier. Mine is lined with satin inside and the elastic around the edges is tighter and thicker than the cheaper ones. I think the brand I have is Andis and I got it at Sally's.

[Long_hair_bear]

I have a shower head extension and just spray my body with that and not my hair.

[Kelikea]

I just put mine in a bun. I don't see what the difference between getting my hair a little wet while showering and misting it with water in a spray bottle to style it is. What do you do if it rains? Does your hair get all "weird and gross"?

[ravenreed]

I bun my hair and use my hand held shower head. I haven't yet figured out a way to wet my hair without washing it.

Wetting it seems to make it more oily and lank, even if it looked alright before hand. Even with vinegar or citric acid rinses, my hair still feels awful if I just wet my hair. I don't typically get my hair wet in the rain so I am not sure that rain water would be different. However, our water is very hard here, so it might. As for misting it, I don't usually use water, I use rose water. I don't soak my hair, so it isn't really the same.

[augustashes]

i just put my hair in a high bun. i don't ever seem to have a problem with any water getting on my hair. if your hair is too short may try pinning it back off your face or put it in a high ponytail.

if none of that works, maybe its the way you are showering? or do you have one of those directly above your head rain shower heads? i don't know what i would do if i had one of those.

[patienceneeded]

I put it in a bun/top knot and then put a shower cap on. Yes, the very edges of my hair may get a tiny bit damp, but barely. I do make sure that I don't stand with my head under the shower. I don't let the water from the showerhead go any higher than my neck. I wash my face by cupping water in my hands and using that for my face. I have never had a problem with getting my hair too wet while using a shower cap.

[Anje]

Well, most days are non-shampoo days (I'm a CO washer when I wash my hair, and that's only about twice a week), but since you're talking mostly about wetting the hair, most of the time I simply bun it and keep my head out of the water in the shower. I have a shower cap which can be useful too, but I usually use that to cover my conditioner-slathered hair so that it doesn't get soapy or rinsed out early while I wash the rest of me.

[ladylowtide]

When I shower and don't shampoo, I let just the ends of my hair get wet and condition them.

[longhairedleah]

maybe try putting a really wide headband around the edges of the showercap/your hairline?

I also would recommend the handheld shower head if you can get one

[pixietail]

Thanks for all the feedback. I'm glad I'm not the only one who can't get hair wet.

I do bun my hair up under a showercap, but the seal is pretty loose and water gets in.


I've been using a shower cap for years. I might get a little damp in the temple area, but that's not a big problem for me. I did find that I had to spend a little more money and get a shower cap that is sturdier. Mine is lined with satin inside and the elastic around the edges is tighter and thicker than the cheaper ones. I think the brand I have is Andis and I got it at Sally's.

Maybe that's my problem. I've always used the ones from the drugstore. They're cheap, but Im guessing not very good? I didn't even know there were better ones. I'll go by Sally's and see if I can't find something with a tighter seal.

About rain - I usually try to stay out of it. I'm a bit of a cat, I guess, I hate being cold and wet LOL. The few times I have gotten rain wet though, my hair has been slightly oily, but nowhere near as bad as showering. Maybe it's the tap water here?

[MaryMarx]

You don't have a hand held shower? Where do you live?

[schweedie]

What do you do if it rains? Does your hair get all "weird and gross"?
Mine does, yeah. I try to cover it up when it rains. *g*

Pixietail, I have the same problem, and I know what you mean about the shower cap being loose and water getting in. I solved that (kind of) of by cutting about an inch off the lining of an all-silicone swimming cap, which got me me a decent rubber band - I use that around the shower cap, and that keeps it tighter.

[sfgirl]

I just put mine in a bun. I don't see what the difference between getting my hair a little wet while showering and misting it with water in a spray bottle to style it is. What do you do if it rains? Does your hair get all "weird and gross"?

ooh ooh mine does! It's usually windy when rainy, and I usually don't have a comb to detangle with me, so it dries in one, big, matt. (I now have the common sense to put it in a braid though, when I know it's going to rain)

[julliams]

I put mine up in a bun. Now it's getting long enough that I can actually tie it in a knot that stays for my complete shower. I would say that my hair does get a little wet at the nape of my neck but for the most part it stays dry.

[Pierre]

If I'm not washing my hair, I might get a bit of water on my buns. Sometimes I have to rinse sweat off my scalp, but don't have to detangle, so I leave it up and get it wet.

[Amanah]

I have a shower cap, but I'll be honest, there is such a temptation to get my hair wet when showering that it's hard to resist. Now I'm CO washing so I just wash it every day. I'm sure when it gets longer that is going to change.

[Carolyn]

Why not put your hair in a bun and take a bath? I don't have the option of a shower since I only have a tub with a hand held shower spray thingie. So it's a bath for me unless I am away from home. I usually wash my hair every other day. On the off days I either do a quick sit down bath so I can shave my legs or I do a sponge bath.

One suggestion I have for you that hasn't been mentioned is to do a high bun and then put a wide stretch terry cloth headband around your head right at your hairline. Then put your shower cap on. Get a good, well fitting shower cap.

[Jesabel]

My showerhead is adjustable so I just angle it toward my shoulders and downward, missing my head all together (and of course my hair is piled on top of my head haha) :D then I can splash water up to wash my face with only minimal water touching my nape hairs and the wispies on my forhead.

[torrilin]

Are you sure it's you can't get your hair wet without using shampoo? My hair does what you describe, and always has, but I do not see an improvement if I get my hair wet and shampoo every time. In fact, that makes it worse.

However, if I use conditioner every time I get my hair wet? Massive improvement.

And if you've never used either shampoo or conditioner by themselves... try it. Some people do actually like a shampoo only routine, and others like one where they use conditioner by itself.