No 'Poo

Let me start by saying I hate the name "no 'poo."  It reminds of a little conversation I once had with my niece.  She and my son were snuggled in a double stroller under a Winnie-the-Pooh blanket as we were about to take a walk.  The blanket was white with brown outlines of Pooh Bear.  Near the edge, the outline got cut off and it just looked like a brown smudge.  She looked at me and said, "Auntie, there's dirt of this blanket."  I said, "No, that's just Pooh."  She said, "EWW! Why is there poop on this blanket??"

So that's what I think of every time I hear "no 'poo."

But, unfortunately, that's the name of this hair cleansing method...and I can't change it.

Going no 'poo is fairly straightforward, though some people have not had much success with it.  I seriously wonder if the success of this method is tied to your particular body chemistry or if people did it wrong or gave up too soon.

Here's the thing with natural solutions, they tend to take a bit longer to kick in than commercial/mainstream methods.  But we do them because we want to avoid the chemicals and possible carcinogens that are rampant in those mainstream products.

So what do you need to go no 'poo?

• Baking soda
• Apple cider vinegar

That's it.  Assuming you already have water and measuring devices.

Here's what you do. 

Mix a tablespoon of baking soda with a cup of warm water.  Stir the BS so it dissolves.  Pour that over your head in the shower and massage it into your scalp.  You're really only concerned with your scalp and roots because that's where the oil comes from.  Leave it on for a minute while you soap your other body parts.  Rinse it out.

Make sure you rinse it really well because next comes the vinegar and you want to avoid having your head become one of those fifth grade science volcanos. 

Now mix a tablespoon of ACV with warm water.  Pour that over your head.  This time, focus more on the length and ends of your hair than your scalp/roots.  Rinse that well.  You will smell slightly like vinegar until your hair is dry.  Once it's dry, the vinegar smell evaporates.

Could it be any easier?

You shouldn't use this daily and you shouldn't switch between regular shampoo and this method.  I do this every other day.  My hair does tend to look a little "unwashed" on my in-between days, but I'm hoping that once my scalp adjusts its natural oil production that I can skip two or more days between washings. 

The argument for going no 'poo is that regular shampoos strip the natural oils (aka sebum) from your scalp and hair, and your scalp goes into overdrive trying to replace those lost oils.  That's why we end up looking like grease-balls between shampoos and using conditioner to replace the lost oils.

Now, some have said that there is a bit of an adjustment period.  It may take a week or two for your scalp to like this new method and as a result you may look like a frizzy/greasy mess for a little while.  But supposedly, after you've worked through that period and retaught your scalp and hair how to live in synergy with each other and reap the benefits of natural oil production, you will have glorious,  frizz-free hair with lots of body and shine.  Plus you save money (not buying expensive shampoo and conditioner plus other styling products), and you keep all that toxic junk off your body.

For your in-between days and the possible adjustment period, plan on lots of ponytails, hats and other such bad hair day strategies. 

• If your hair feels dry using this method, try the following.
• Allow your hair to dry naturally
• Apply a very small amount of olive or coconut oil to the length and ends of hair
• Deep condition with a mashed banana or beaten egg
• And make sure that you are rinsing the baking soda out thoroughly

• If your hair feels oily, try the following.
• Use less ACV
• Use more baking soda
• Switch to white vinegar
• Keep the vinegar off the roots and scalp
• Make sure you are rinsing really thoroughly!