What I Have Discovered about No Poo

On my No Poo journey I have discovered many things but the most shocking one to me is that No Poo, to most and now me, is not No Product!

Thinking over my struggles, research and the bicarb rinses of others it dawned on me that I may have actually been walking around with soap in my hair, soap that had reacted with the minerals in the hard water the pours through my taps each day and this hard water, I have read also encourages the scales of your hair to stand up thus making your hair rough and prone to breakage. Soft water does the opposite and smoothes your hairs scales flat encouraging soft, shiny locks.

Maybe this was the reason my hair felt so Shit and was ruining my confidence.

It was breaking point for me a week ago. How can I start college or go to work like this? Hair must be washed. But how and what was the plan ahead?

Seeing as I cannot afford a water filter system for my home I decided to make a compromise. Wash with a normal shampoo which I read is a detergent and not a soap?! What's the difference? I read that detergent reacts much less with the minerals in hard water creating less reaction and buildup than regular bar soap.

I used the smallest amount of shampoo possible to ensure my hair was clean but no conditioner, I did not want build up from that.

I was happy, I felt fresh, I felt confident, I felt acceptable but what to do between now and the next wash which I intended to drag out as long as possible?

Rain water! Collect rain water. But how? A saucepan will do. Luckily this is England. We have lots of rain! I placed my sauce pan outside and managed to collect enough water to half fill a spray bottle. I noticed more water collecting on my garden bench so decided to harvest that too.

With my full spray bottle the plan was to spray and brush my hair each evening which I have been doing up to this day. That makes one week so far. My hair has looked and felt great all week, slowly becoming more shiny but not greasy. Today I feel it may be starting to turn and I have run out of rain water so will see what the morning brings.

If no rain appears I will use the softest water I have found in the super market, Morrison's own that had a dry residue of 37, which basically means its low in minerals compared to other brands but not pure like rain water. I may try a spray and brush with this. If no luck it will be a wash and start the cycle again.

If I can go at least a week between washes I will be happy :)

I also discovered how soap was made in the good ol days. That's a post for another day!

Farvel..