Benefits of Water Only?

[kissedbyfyre]

There is the obvious, savings and less of a dependency on commercial products but what other benefits are there? I'm considering giving water only a try after I purchase some scarfs so I can do head wraps. I'm past the itchy stage of oily hair and into the simple, it doesn't look pretty stage. I've been shampoo free for over 4 years now and I've been no poo, off an on for a year and a half now, with the rare CO days when I'm out of baking soda. I "wash" my hair once every 7 or so days, although I've noticed I've dropped to 5-6 days at my new place. I blame the water.

Since going more and more natural, my hair has gone from straight with a slight body wave to wavy (it turns into a red curly afro when short) so I'm curious to see how totally natural would effect the texture. So far, signs are showing it's happier and happier the more natural I go.

And yes, I've checked out the Water only threads. :)

[Aronomy]

Less frizz.

[rapunzhell13]

I find it easier to put my hair up when it's not freshly washed. :)

[mellie]

Since going more and more natural, my hair has gone from straight with a slight body wave to wavy

That sounds awesome! I want that! :-)

Do you use just baking soda then every 5 days?

[Shanarana]

There is the obvious, savings and less of a dependency on commercial products but what other benefits are there? I'm considering giving water only a try after I purchase some scarfs so I can do head wraps. I'm past the itchy stage of oily hair and into the simple, it doesn't look pretty stage. I've been shampoo free for over 4 years now and I've been no poo, off an on for a year and a half now, with the rare CO days when I'm out of baking soda. I "wash" my hair once every 7 or so days, although I've noticed I've dropped to 5-6 days at my new place. I blame the water.

Since going more and more natural, my hair has gone from straight with a slight body wave to wavy (it turns into a red curly afro when short) so I'm curious to see how totally natural would effect the texture. So far, signs are showing it's happier and happier the more natural I go.

And yes, I've checked out the Water only threads. :)

With your hair type, I would be very curious how water only would be for you. My hair is pretty thick and I can't image trying to comb though it without some type of conditioner or oil.

[Anje]

Less frizz and very manageable hair are big points. I also loved being able to travel without bringing along a huge bottle of conditioner, when I did WO. Many people have scalp benefits and report greatly reduced shedding as well.

Depending on your oil production, you may find you still need to oil your ends a bit even while doing WO.

[embee]

I found I had no trouble combing out my hair after WO "washes" - which really surprised me. I expected a tangled mess without conditioner, and that never happened. My hair also dried much faster. Other folks have found the opposite on drying. There's less "fallout" in the shower - my little drain strainer has only a few hairs in it with WO, but many more when I did full shampoo and condition.

Strict WO does not work for me in summer when I'm busy outdoors in my garden. Too much sweat. So I do *very* dilute shampoo, just enough to cut that sweaty greasy stuff: put a *tiny bit* in a big cup and fill with water... then pour it slowly over my head and do some gentle scalp massage followed by lots of rinse. Oddly enough I've not needed conditioner at all this summer, very strange.

[kissedbyfyre]

That sounds awesome! I want that! :-)

Do you use just baking soda then every 5 days?

Baking soda and an acv rinse once every 6 days or so, depending on how annoyed I get looking like a grease monkey or if I plan to wear my hair down (which almost never happens). :)

embee: I experienced less shed when washing as well when I switched to No Poo. Now I see a few strands when I wash, if that. The only time I notice shed is when I comb out my hair. Makes me wonder about shampoos....

Shanarana: I haven't used conditioner in about 9 months and I have no problem getting a comb through my hair. I'm actually rather surprised.

I think I will give WO a try. Might as well right? Thanks for the feedback! :)

[mellie]

Thanks, I must try this! How much soda do you use?

[trolleypup]

I don't think WO made a great deal of difference to the condition of my hair...but my scalp is way happier now (much less itchiness and buildup). With WO, my hair is a bit wavier than with S&C. I always preen before washing, so the shedding is then, rather than in the shower. I do a vinegar rinse at the end for scalp happiness too.

If I'm being lazy and going off my regular schedule, I'll do a very dilute shampoo on the canopy to cut the oiliness.

I find that WO after heavy exercise/sweating actually works better/makes my scalp happier than when I go in cool!

[thankyousir74]

I always preen before washing, so the shedding is then, rather than in the shower

Excuse me for being a n00b but what is "preening"?

[trolleypup]

Preening = detangle and comb out, using tools that tend to move the natural oils down the hair. In my case, finger detangle followed by using a fine toothed wood comb.

[Shina]

Wow Trolleypup your hair is gorgeous! Glad I found this thread. I hit my seventh week of WO. When I first tried it I could really tell on my first day that my hair was alot less frizzy. That is a big deal for my curly mess of hair lol. So I was very excited. And I noticed the top of my hair was alot smoother too.

And I agree, it was actually pretty easy to comb (wide-tooth) in the shower than when I shampoo'd and conditioned. But I am a little worried about the ends. I forgot whose post it was but one of you said to oil the ends even with WO. Which oil, how much, and how often? Do you oil when it's dry or wet? I'm kind of wondering though if I should occasionally condition though since my hair is really dry and curly. If so, which conditioner (without sulfates and cones and whatever else is bad lol) would you guys suggest? Any advice?

Oh and I have a random question. One of my friends' hair grows really fast, I asked her what she does. And she says she trims like 2 inches each month which makes it grow much faster. Is that true? But then again, her hair is a teeny bit wavy as opposed to my curly hair. So would that work for me? I never have gotten past shoulder length but then again I always cut a bit every few months all my life. Any suggestions?

[danacc]

She trims 2 inches a month? :shocked: The average hair growth is 1/2 inch per month... She has super-fast growth if she can cut 2 inches every month and still gain length!

The technical answer to your question on whether trims make the hair actually grow faster is most likely: no. There is no known signal between the ends of the hair, which is made up of dead matter, to the live hair follicle which is responsible for hair growth.

From a practical perspective, though, freshly cut ends tangle less, are less likely to break, and are less likely to cause damage to neighboring ends. So many here have posted that frequent (8 weeks to 3 month) and small (1/4 inch to 1/2 inch) trims result in faster increase in length.

[Shina]

Thanks danacc. Sorry I've been so busy with school haven't been able to check. Yes her hair grows really fast! That makes sense. Thanks for the clarification! I was really confused about that.

[Slug Yoga]

Are people thinking that WO somehow actually decreases the amount your head sheds, or is it just that you lose comparatively less shed hairs on wash days (but shed the same total amount)? Because if it somehow made you shed less, that would be awesome, although I don't understand why that would be the case. :hmm:

[Faepirate]

I dunno about other people, but I am pretty sure I don't shed any less hair with WO than with other wash methods. :shrug: