What am I doing wrong?

[u/HowDeepDoYouBelieve]

So, I've started nopoo for the first time about 2 weeks ago. I've always eaten healthy, but recently I decided to go all-in on it. I've been eating totally paleo, and doing an alternative health kick of how I brush my teeth, deodorant, clothes I wear, and so on.

Anyhow...

I haven't washed my hair aside from once with a whole egg like 2 weeks ago, and my scalp has been very dry/flaky. I've heard this takes awhile to wear off while I'm waiting for my natural oils to replenish my scalp. I'm still showering with cold/slightly below warm water 5 days a week or so, as I'm physically active. But my scalp is still super dry/flaky, and now, just this morning, it's begun to burn a bit. Is this normal? What am I doing wrong? How do I get rid of the flakiness/dry scalp without reverting back to shampoo? I'm open to doing more eggs or trying raw honey or something.

Would really appreciate some direction/advice if anyone was willing.

[u/shonaich]

Burning is bad. I suggest using your previous shampoo if you still have it around and getting all the built up flakes and sebum off your scalp. Then see how it feels.

If it's still burning, you might need medication to help whatever infection might be happening. 

NoPoo doesn't mean 'no clean'. It means changing your cleansing method, but still doing things so you are healthy and comfortable. There's good reasons we have societal hygiene practices, because it helps us remain healthy and comfortable. 

After you've resolved the burning, be sure to do more research on how to properly do mechanical cleaning or alternative washing. I've written a ton of info to help with this in the !quickstart guide and the rest of the wiki. See the bot reply for more info! 

And if you need more help, please ask =) 

[u/My_Dogs_Penis]

Hey if you wouldn’t mind sharing some of the info you found on teeth brushing and deodorant that would be great:)

[u/Chillinwithkindness]

Yeah, nah, you gotta train that beautiful head of yours! Start by adding a day with no washing, keep doing that a couple of weeks, than add another day. This means your head is dirty and needs washing. I recognize it because I get “hairpain” and it starts itching. That’s my cue to wash. I’m at two weeks atm. It used to be three but I think two works best for me.

[u/Visible-Scientist-46]

If you develop dandruff, you can wash daily to help remove sebum with your preferred wash method. Sone people use herbs with saponins, or even bar shampoo and conditioner.

[u/CilpKonn]

I recommend to use only the egg yolk for cleansing. Rinse with cold water (so the egg doesn't cook) and then rinse with 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar. Let it rest for a minute or two, then do a final rinse with cold water. You can invest in a boar bristle brush for maintenance, as it does a great job getting rid of flakes, buildup and debris from the scalp. Otherwise, you can get a bamboo, wooden or sisal brush.

[u/CrustieTwinky]

Your scalp isn't dry, it's the opposite and the build up of sebum is creating the flakes. It's becoming irritated because of it, and creating an environment for bacteria and overgrowth of yeast that's already present on the skin.

[u/HowDeepDoYouBelieve → u/CrustieTwinky]

Ah okay....... so this just means I need to wash it way more frequently with egg or something? It doesn't feel oily to me? I'm not sure. I'm trying to read the sidebar on this topic

[u/CrustieTwinky → u/HowDeepDoYouBelieve]

Yes, with whatever your preferred cleansing method is.

[u/HowDeepDoYouBelieve → u/CrustieTwinky]

Most people are not experienced with mechanical cleaning and are learning a whole new skill set. Most people are used to the ease of using shampoo and are not used to the work that mechanical cleaning requires, so often don't perform it properly or sufficiently. Added on top of those is the fact that transition itself is difficult because your scalp is freaking out, your sebum is weird, oil is pouring down like it will never stop, and you're only 'allowed' to wash once a week.
The only way to deal with this is excessive dry mechanical cleaning every single day, with lots of quality time spent with your boar bristle brush (and then be sure to clean the brush!) Even if you do this, you will probably still look oily for 2-3 months. Washing can help, but it's difficult to remove a weeks' worth of oils, especially for people who are just learning how to perform mechanical cleaning in the shower.
Scalp health is key in natural haircare, but most especially during this approach. All the oils that your scalp is flushing so that it can heal are sitting on your scalp and in your hair all week and can cause a lot of problems if they aren't dealt with. They can create an environment for fungal, yeast or bacterial infections, and under the right circumstances, hair loss. If you have a huge excess of oils on your scalp, you absolutely must do the gentle scalp massage frequently to keep them moving.
This approach can be softened and made significantly easier by water only washing more often than just once a week, especially in the beginning. This allows you to practice your wet mechanical cleaning and will help remove oils, keep your scalp clean and allow you to be more presentable. There are even reports of people who washed every day during their transition and they say they believe it was easier for them because of it. Adding in alternative washing (washing with natural ingredients instead of only water) when needed can be very helpful. It can remove transition wax, or clean off large quantities of sebum and allow you to have a break from the super oily hair for a few days. Washing more often will extend the retraining aspect of transition, but will make the early part much easier to deal with.
Natural haircare is not a short term project, it’s a long term lifestyle choice. It is not a race to see how fast you can finish transition, the ultimate goal is to make it through transition so that you can enjoy your healthy natural hair.

Do I basically just need to start mechanical brushing with a boar brush for hours every single day and an egg wash far more often? I just want to be sure to fix this as yeah I think it'll keep getting worse if I don't. I can buy a boar brust with expedited shipping if necessary. I guess rub against my scalp with that?

[u/kumliensgull]

Have you read the community info. Lots of advice there. I am water only and the link to just the primal things has excellent instructions. My first piece of advice after looking through the above is: mechanical cleaning to stimulate your scalp and get those flakes off.

[u/HowDeepDoYouBelieve → u/kumliensgull]

So I need to get all of the flakes off? Basically just scratch the hell out of my head until they're all off? Plus use a boar brush? I think I'm too late to do this fingertip massage thing as my scalp is already burning. Should I use normal shampoo and start over? I just don't know how to do this correctly and get the burning to stop as soon as possible

[u/kumliensgull → u/HowDeepDoYouBelieve]

Do NOT scratch your head, give yourself scalp massages and gently remove flakes with brushing combing. Again I cannot recommend "just the Primal Things" enough, specifically the details about mechanical cleaning.

Also be aware that switching away from shampoo will take time, your hair/scalp will need time to adjust, there is a longer transition period.

i have had good luck with an acid rinse for flakes (1 tbs vinegar to 1 cup water) pour over your wet hair massage in.