I've always loved my hair. It's been one of those things that people complimented me on over the years, and it just made me feel good. 'Your hair is so shiny'; 'I love how healthy your hair looks'; and, my personal favorite, 'It grows so fast!' I mean, who doesn't want to hear good things about their hair?!
I thought my hair and me had a pretty good thing going, and I tried to show it some appreciation. When I heard that a cold rinse at the end of your shower helps to close the hair shaft, I did it. When I realised that sulfates were awful for your hair, I treated myself to a very well-known, very expensive brand of hair products, eliminating the sulfates. I only used heat on my hair twice a week, and I only washed my hair the same amount of time. I thought I was doing everything right... So why were my ends dry and splitting, even after using expensive Moroccanoil serum on them regularly? And my hair just didn't look shiny and full-bodied like it used to.
I was upset, and also out of pocket. Those hair products were costing me a small fortune each year, and now with not much to show for it.
Then one day, I was trawling the 'net for some advice on DIY natural deodorant (more on that another day), when I came across an article on 'No Poo', and how one lady was considering giving up shampoo. I raised my eyebrows, may have done a little eye- roll (I'm not proud of it), and moved on.
Still, that caption stuck in my head for the rest of the day, and by the end of it, I just had to know what on earth no-poo washing was, and how it was done. So I went back online, and found out that people were washing their hair with, not shampoo, but diluted baking soda and apple cider vinegar...!
Apparently, the way shampoo works is that it removes the dirt and grime from your hair, but along with that, the emulsifiers in it strip your hair of all its natural oils. I just think of the way I clean my mayonnaise jars; squirt some washing up liquid in there, add some warm water, lid on, and shake. The washing up liquid dilutes the oils, leaving the mayonnaise jar clean, sparkly, and grease-free. And that's what we want for our hair, right?
Wrong. Our hair needs oil. We were made with a body that produces sebum, a natural (and free) oil and hair conditioner. Again, it's natural, and the best oil for our hair. Shampoo strips all of the sebum from our hair, leaving it dry and frazzled. So then, in steps conditioner, to help soothe and condition the damage that shampoo has done. Conditioner adds oils back into your hair, but these oils are partly, if not wholly, synthetic... What was wrong with the sebum being in there in the first place? It just needs to be handled properly.
It was interesting reading, but I wasn't convinced. Baking soda on my hair... I was worried that it would just make it even more dry, and brittle to boot. And that's when I stumbled across Alex Raye, and this blog post. Here was a comprehensive, well-documented no-poo journey, photos and all. And the best bit? She used the Water Only method to wash her hair! Yup. Water Only; the clue's in the name.
I was fascinated by this set of articles; the thought of washing my hair with water was exciting, liberating and scary, all at the same time. But I could see that it could be done, and with great results.
Then the next day was wash day, and I decided, just like that, to stop using my shampoo. Cold turkey. Goodbye expensive, delicious-smelling Moroccanoil; hello, erm, water.
I found this brilliant article, which has a step-by step, water only hair washing routine that talked me through what I had to do, and (after deciding that the number 1 thing on my shopping list was a boar-bristle brush - more on this later) I jumped in with both feet (skipping the brushing until I had one).
So how was it? It wasn't bad at all. I 'scritched' and 'preened' before my shower, hopped in, separated my hair into sections, and scrubbed away at my scalp to get it clean, focusing the jet on the section I was scrubbing, and then did a quick rinse with cold water. It worked a treat! After my shower, I dried my hair with a t-shirt, and 'plopped' (this isn't what it sounds like - Google it!), using a tutorial I'd seen online. And what happened?
HERE'S what happened:
My hair curled!!! It was the most wonderful sight!!!
Despite what my hair straighteners have led others to believe, I've never had straight hair; it's always had a bit of a wave, and when I was a teenager it went through a stage of going curly, but the results were always hit-and-miss. And as my hair got longer? Forget it. My little sister's always curled beautifully and naturally, and she knew how to get it there, but mine would go sort of wavy, and look a frizzy mess by the end of the day.
But not that day! My hair just got curlier as it dried, and they were still there the next day:
So what swayed me? I have to admit that, while the thought of a chemical-free scalp was music to my ears as I try to be kinder to my body, the main reason I started on this journey was the promise of strong, thick, full, shiny, nourished hair. I just couldn't pass on that, and that's why I embraced the no-poo, Water Only (or Rinse Only Method - ROM) method for my hair.
As everybody who has tried no-poo has said, at first it's not easy. There is a transition period. During the transition period, your hair can be greasy and sticky as your scalp adjusts its levels of sebum production.
Thankfully, for me the transition wasn't too bad. I have thick (and curly, now, I realise) hair, only washed my hair a couple of times a week pre no-poo, and I'd already ditched the sulfates, so my scalp didn't have as much to go through. I probably transitioned in about 2-3 weeks, and that was with being really hard on myself and only washing up to once a week during transition. The fish-tail braid was my friend.
Now, just over two months later, how's it going? I can honestly say that my hair is full again, shiny, and my ends are soft and nourished feeling; no more dryness!
I have made some adjustments to my routine due to some troubleshooting (the hard water problem in London played havoc with my scalp), but that's for another post. But for now, my opinion on No Poo, Water Only washing?
I love it.
