Since the age of fifteen I have searched the Internet for ways to make my hair either more healthy or longer. I have followed the advice of many a YouTube beauty guru and fashion/beauty blogger when it comes to my hair, and upon my most recent exploration I came across something I had never heard of before. The 'No Poo' Method.
The 'No Poo' Method essentially means 'no shampoo' and is supposed to eliminate the use of chemicals on your hair. As I investigated this further and saw the different shower routines and results of many different people's experiences, I eventually found one I felt so confident in that I immediately wanted to try it. After hearing many a blogger and/or YouTubers' 'no poo' techniques where by they used alternative products such as baking soda or apple cider vinegar, I found a series of videos by YouTuber Tara Creel that took this method to a level I found a lot more natural and understandable. Basically, upon starting the 'no poo' method for herself Tara cut out all hair care products from her life, and I really mean ALL! The only thing she used on her hair was warm water and water alone, and she has recently exceeded the milestone of a full year of only using water to wash her hair, which I found amazing.
Now, you may be thinking that this sounds disgusting, but hear us out. Since the beginning of human existence we have kept healthy and strong hair without the use of hair care products, and it wasn't until recently that shampoo and conditioner were even introduced to us! So doesn't it make sense that humans still have the natural ability to maintain healthy and, essentially, clean hair without these chemical-ridden products? Yes.
So, the lovely Tara used YouTube as a way to document her 'no poo' experience, uploading update videos every month for an entire year so her viewers could easily see how her hair was looking and hear about how the method was working for her. After watching all of these videos (the first of which you can find here) from start to finish I decided to set myself the same challenge and not use any products on my hair for an entire year.
As I am writing this it is the 24th March 2015 and I started my 'no poo' method on the 14th of March, which means I have been completely product-free for 10 days. During this time I have soaked my hair with warm water in the shower whilst I have washed, shaved and rinsed my body according to my usual shower routine, proceeding only to massage my scalp and the roots of my hair under to spray.
I know that it is only early days, but all I can really say right now is so far, so good. Now, the greasy stage of the transition from using products, to no products is definitely to be expected, and this is something that Tara explains very well in her videos. At the moment I am still transitioning so I am experiencing a more frequent occurrence of greasy-looking hair as my scalp and fair adjusts to the new way of becoming clean. Right now, as I run my fingers through my hair it feels not particularly greasy, but the best way I can describe it is 'waxy'. It feels like you're stroking a candle more than your hair, which I know can be very off-putting and can definitely make you want to run under the shower and scrub away with your shampoo. But seeing the positive, healthy results that Tara has experienced because of this, I am encouraged to carry on with this method. Essentially, I know that in the long run this will be a good thing and will help my hair become more healthy, and I know that my body will soon adjust and produce the natural oils that will help protect my hair instead of making it look greasy so soon after washing. For the time being I have to stay positive and carry on tying my hair up more than usual to go to school and work, and perhaps not having as many good hair days as I'd like. However, ultimately I am very excited to see the results.
Something else that I am going to try and take from this experience is attempting to document my experience the same way that Tara has, but in blog form instead. I realise that it has been months and months since my last blog post and that I only ever posted five, but due to the demands of Sixth Form and as a result of an unorganised schedule, I never found time to even think about possible content for a blog, let alone sit down and write one. But now I feel as though I have created a system of work that provides me with enough time to fully fit in all my revision, as well as giving me time for work, relaxing, and even blogging. So, I'm going to try give this thing another shot and I feel that my starting the 'no poo' method is an excellent re-entry point for me.
Getting back on topic before I finish, here are some 'before' pictures so you know what my hair looked like before I started the method.
As you can see, I tend dye my hair a lot. I don't do this incredibly often and try to leave a lot of time in between dying, but I think it's important to note that I haven't dyed my hair since starting the 'no poo' method. For the health of my hair I am not going to dye it again for a very long while, especially whilst I am experimenting with this method, so as not to hinder any results. When I get to a point where I feel that my hair is relatively back to normal and can deal with it (and providing I actually want to at the time) I will then attempt to dye it a new colour.
If any of you guys have any questions about what I do with my hair or have any experiences of your own concerning the 'no poo' method, please share these in the comments as I would love to read them.
Thanks for reading.
Eleanor :)
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