Going No Poo with Seborrheic Dermatitis?

**Soullurre** · September 12th, 2014, 12:38 PM

So, I've been using Walgreen's Scalp Treatment with 1% Hydro-cortisone everyday for 6 days now and it's been helping keep the intense itching down a lot. I was wondering is there anyone here with Seborrhea that has gone no poo like no shampoo just straight water rinsing. I know my flakes and stuff flares up bad the longer I go without washing but I seriously want to have self cleaning hair and scalp and not depend on medicated shampoo's. Any help here? My hair journey has started off very chaotic. I have a long way to go to get to my desired hair length.

**lapushka** · September 12th, 2014, 01:03 PM

I've tried to go no poo without any success whatsoever. My hair also *needs* to be washed in time. CO washing just doesn't work. My SD needs a harsh cleanser (that's why we do WCC, double conditioning, see signature).

**Anje** · September 12th, 2014, 01:33 PM

I know we have a member or two here that found that CO worked great on their SD. (GRU, perhaps?) But I think most do better with a frequent, harsh wash schedule.

**meteor** · September 12th, 2014, 01:59 PM

Honestly, I don't know if "self-cleaning hair and scalp" is even possible, soullure...

Usually, with SD people need to wash oils off more rather than less, because Malassezia fungus feeds off human sebum or natural oils (esp. rich in oleic acid).
Can you find any fragrance-free, non-irritating mild cleansers where you live?
I heard some great stuff about Moo Goo haircare line, but I'm sure there are lots of others: http://moogoo.com.au/seborrheic-derm...1973021507c606
And we have an SD support thread on the LHC: http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/...ad.php?t=54045

**McFearless** · September 12th, 2014, 06:09 PM

If you want to attempt WO I think it should be after a slow transition. Maybe start with leaving your medicated shampoo for a gentle sulfate free shampoo with tea tree oil or neem. Once your scalp is stable you can go further by using slightly less product with each wash and doing occasional ACV rinses until your scalp is consistently clear. Lightly scratching your scalp in the shower with a comb will remove dead skin before it hardens and flakes. If you're worried about frequent use of shampoo damaging your hair, oiling your length before washing can help.

**ladyfey** · September 13th, 2014, 04:42 AM

I know that with my SD, I need to wash every other day. I haven't been able to move washes farther apart than that. I can't imagine that anything else would work for me, but that is me. I have been able to stop medicated shampoo, I use Earthly Delight shampoo every other day and just recently started using Malibu C hard water wellness shampoo once a week.

**Soullurre** · September 18th, 2014, 03:03 PM

Originally Posted by lapushka

I've tried to go no poo without any success whatsoever. My hair also *needs* to be washed in time. CO washing just doesn't work. My SD needs a harsh cleanser (that's why we do WCC, double conditioning, see signature).

Hmmm, that's interesting. Never heard of that.

Originally Posted by Anje

I know we have a member or two here that found that CO worked great on their SD. (GRU, perhaps?) But I think most do better with a frequent, harsh wash schedule.

No conditioner for me. Conditioner always makes me itchy. I only have a buzz cut so no need for conditioner yet.

Originally Posted by meteor

Honestly, I don't know if "self-cleaning hair and scalp" is even possible, soullure...

Usually, with SD people need to wash oils off more rather than less, because Malassezia fungus feeds off human sebum or natural oils (esp. rich in oleic acid).
Can you find any fragrance-free, non-irritating mild cleansers where you live?
I heard some great stuff about Moo Goo haircare line, but I'm sure there are lots of others: http://moogoo.com.au/seborrheic-derm...1973021507c606
And we have an SD support thread on the LHC: http://forums.longhaircommunity.com/...ad.php?t=54045

Yeah, I tried something out. I used my Dermarest Shampoo let it sit then washed it off. Then I used Dr.Bronner's Unscented Baby Mild liquid soap. It felt very nice and I applied apple cider vinegar full strength no dilution and it was a miracle. It's day 4 or 5 and I have no flakes, no greasiness, rare itching. I think this might work. We don't have hard water. That's probably why a lot of shampoo's made my hair feel so...stripped but with Dr.Bronner's and ACV it seems to have calmed everything down. I'm no longer frustrated and my hair is growing fast. I'll be shoulder length in no time. My mother even told me my hair felt nice and wasn't dry and is shiny, which is surprising with my texture hair.

Originally Posted by McFearless

If you want to attempt WO I think it should be after a slow transition. Maybe start with leaving your medicated shampoo for a gentle sulfate free shampoo with tea tree oil or neem. Once your scalp is stable you can go further by using slightly less product with each wash and doing occasional ACV rinses until your scalp is consistently clear. Lightly scratching your scalp in the shower with a comb will remove dead skin before it hardens and flakes. If you're worried about frequent use of shampoo damaging your hair, oiling your length before washing can help.

Thank you. ACV is working and I only used it once.

My scalp and what little of hair that I have is nice and soft. I'll stick to Dr.Bronner's and ACV then slowly wean off. No oiling for me.

When I get to bra strap length I'll start oiling my hair. I got a while to get there though. Sporting a buzz cut.

Originally Posted by ladyfey

I know that with my SD, I need to wash every other day. I haven't been able to move washes farther apart than that. I can't imagine that anything else would work for me, but that is me. I have been able to stop medicated shampoo, I use Earthly Delight shampoo every other day and just recently started using Malibu C hard water wellness shampoo once a week.

Ah okay. That sounds good. I looked at this girl and she inspired me to use Dr.Bronner's and ACV full strength except I use the regular ACV in grocery store not the one with the mother in it cus for some reason that one bothers me.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K0UAv3Blung

She helped quite a bit. I will leave the oils out though. And I use a small comb and comb my hair everyday so that doesn't tangle so bad. I remember when I was growing my hair out last time I never combed and by the time it got 2 inches it was mega tangled. So I'm doing things a bit different. Thank you everyone for replying. I hope my hair journey isn't a pain in the butt this time. I wanna make it to shoulder length without having to chop it all off. Been like 13 times now I think.

**brickworld13** · September 18th, 2014, 03:09 PM

I'm glad you started this thread and have gotten some useful replies. It's always so frustrating to have an itchy head.

**Soullurre** · September 20th, 2014, 06:17 AM

Yes it is and I'm so happy I have no more itchy head. I think it was coming from all the different shampoos I was trying out over the months. Then when I shaved it, it got worse and my whole head was filled with white flakes and was so itchy. It's day 7 and I haven't washed my head yet. No greasiness still. I would've had greasiness by day 3.

**Saldana** · September 20th, 2014, 07:43 AM

It wouldn't hurt to try......but for me (with lifelong chronic SD), WO definitely did not work. In fact, my SD flared up so bad it almost frightened me. I have found that my best regime is to S/C every 2-3 days with an SLS-free, unscented, high quality shampoo and conditioner. Also, I have to be careful to keep the conditioner off of my scalp.