new thread
Hi everybody!
The constant (and increasing!) hair-related annoyances i've been experiencing have forced me into finally posting. I should have said something earlier, considering i have lurked here for about a year, regularly reading the posts, but...what can i say, i'm lazy. So here's some info about me, my hair, etc. I am a 19 year old univ student in the US, and within a matter of days my hair will reach its 19-month "birthday." Thank goodness you guys have usually recommended against "maintenance cuts" as being rather counterproductive (and generally counterintuitive!) or else i might have given in and gotten a trim or two...but i have not. No undercuts or anything of that nature - my hair is generally the same length all over my head, meaning that (of course) the hair on the back of my head hangs down past my shoulderblades whereas my bangs ("fringe") hang about several inches below my chin.
Long story short - my hair is a "dirty" blond color (probably will just get darker as winter arrives and as i get older!) and generally straight, although as it gets longer, it gets a tiny bit wavier at the ends. I'd estimate the length at approx 11 inches when pulled straight, although i shall have to double-check this once i get a measuring tool in my possession! I guess you could say my rate of growth is slightly greater than normal, .5"+ a month, but noticeable growth has obviously seemed to slow seeing that my hair is considerably longer than it's ever been!
I would have to say i like Bill C.'s idea of a "born longhair" in explaining why i'm trying to grow out my hair. Still, i had suspicious circumstances which may have aggravated things a bit: most of the musicians (mainly in the metal genre) i've admired have/had long hair. Secondly, and unfortunately, i went to a private grade school and a private high school, meaning that i spent about 7 years of my life wanting long hair...but i had to keep it at the same annoying, short length. So I'm obviously thankful for finally getting a 4-year window of opportunity now to have relative freedom with my hair.
Yet i still have some more complaining! My main problem now, besides being in what i consider to be in the generally awkward stage of "not QUITE having what i'd consider as truly long hair," is this: i have some surprisingly dry spots on my scalp that get easily irritated and often flake what is presumably dead flakes of skin. This is damned unsightly to me. Add to this the fact that my hair itself is not at all dry or brittle - i cannot go for more than a few days without a washing, for my hair would feel oily to the extent that i'd call it "greasy." It's an interesting combination.
These somewhat itchy, irritable spots are most notably at the front-center of my scalp, where i part my hair - not very convenient, since i always become self-conscious that some flakes will be visible in my part. It's difficult to comb out these flakes or to simply brush them away with my fingers because many times they just get moved around on my hair rather than removed completely.
I would imagine there's a difference between dry, dead skin and dandruff, but would dandruff shampoo help at all? I think it would be even MORE abrasive to these sensitive areas of skin. In fact, i'm hesitant about shampoos in general, as their job seems to be removing oil and other moisture from the hair/scalp, so now i normally use a heavily diluted shampoo (Herbal Essences Replenisher for dry hair, mixed with plenty of water) anyway. Would it be helpful to use skin moisturizers such as baby oil or lotion right after i finish washing, so this skin doesn't dry out?
I try diligently to find the right personal hair care "policy," but i still don't feel i've gotten it right. Generally i seem to shampoo every 2-4 days, depending on how itchy my head is.
Can't really think of anything more to say, except that you guys have already helped me out with that two-week rule - sometimes a series of bad hair days can really kill a guy's morale! I just hope somebody around here can give a bit of advice on my current problem, as i feel rather self-conscious that someone will see some flakes on my head. I know this isn't a life-or death problem, but i would really like to be able to solve it and get back a little confidence! Still, rest assured that i shall not be pressured into cutting/trimming - i realize i've come too far to sacrifice valuable months of growth!
Damn, this was rather long. Hopefully it wasn't too convoluted. Now that i've taken the first step and posted, it shall be much easier to post again and again! Beware! :)
In closing, thanks for being there for the support of our long-haired brethren! Cheers!
Ken.
HI
I have them too, have ever since I grew my hair(8 years). The sun helps. AVOID hot water, use only as warm as you need to in order to wash out shampoo/conditioner. I had goodluck with t gel shampoo from neutrogena for a while, but I find no matter what dandruff shampoo I use it only works for several weeks then it seems to stop. Stress is also a trigger for them in me. But the hot water is definitely the worst. You may want to put a little aloe vera plant gel on them. I would avoid any oil base(such as baby oil or vaseline) as in order to wash that out you will need very hot water and that will only make things worse. Try getting some sun on them, see if this helps. I think the weight of the hair on the scalp may play a role as I never had any scalp problems before in my life til I grew my hair.
Ken:
I am a doctor. It sounds like you have one of several common conditions:i.e. excema, seborrhea etc. "Dandruff" is often related to a fungal infection and responds to nizoral, a medicated shampoo. I would suggest before you use snake oil or something else that may damage what sounds like really super hair to see a professional that really can zoom in on your problem and properly take care of it. Oh, by the way, I am also about 19 months stage with infrequent 1/4 inch trims and am really loving it.... JL
ken
Good input from the doctor.
I have this from time to time and when I grow a goatee it even crops up there. Fungus/bacteria are very comfortable in the areas covered by hair.
Now this is important...pay attention to see if this problem seems to happen the day after (or later that night) you go to the bar/concert where lots of people are smoking, or the day after (night of) intense physical excercise, like working out, where you sweat. Also, as was mentioned, after a few days of not washing the scalp.
All of these things give fungus/bacteria a great enviroment to grow in which is why I tell people to wash their hair everyday with a cream rinse (conditioner) every day which actually does lightly clean. For the health of your hairs you don't want to shampoo everyday (2-3 times a week is usually fine) but after smoky enviroments or sweating it's not a bad idea to shampoo to really clean the scalp (and to smell better). An aloe "flavored" shampoo has worked nicely for me when the scalp has got me itching like crazy in the middle of the night.
I've seen the posts by one person here that touts the evils of shampoo and says that you don't really need it, but this won't work for everyone as shampoo works nicely to clean the scalp of dirt/scum that allows fungus & bacteria to grow.
One other thing that is found to allow fungus a nice enviroment to live in is a sugar rich diet. You might experiment with greatly reducing your sugar intake and see if some of this clears up. It's a cheap and easy thing to try.
Hey Ken!
I've talked to a lotta people from Kerala, India-the spice capital of the world where coconuts are plentiful. They've told me that they grow up with their mom's putting coconut oil on their scalps and rubbing it in 10 minutes before bathing because this oil strengthens hair roots and is good for the skin. In fact, some people there even excercise after putting on coconut oil so that as the body sweats it absorbs the oil better. Here in the states I've been buying Parachute coconut oil from the Indian market near me and doing the same thing (applying a little bit to the scalp/hair is good for bad hair days)-however, because of the flucuation of weather here (it get's cold) the coconut oil turns into a solid above 60 degrees F....so buy a small container of it which you can easily heat up in hot water for 5 minutes or so before using it.
You'll find a lot of India sites that say coconut oil is good for the skin and strengthens hair roots.
BTW-19 months is great man!! Keep it long!!
I have found the following works for me, and from your description, you have very similar hair. I shampoo my hair about every 2 days or so. When I do, I shampoo just once with about a quarter to nickel size amount of shampoo. I don't use anything special, just FLEX extra body. When I shampoo in, I try and make sure that no shampoo gets on the hair going down my back. Since that hair does not contact my scalp, there is no need to shampoo it, and strip it of it's own natural conditioning oils. I shampoo only once. Your hair will not be "squeaky clean" but you don't want it that way. That means all the oils have been removed and your hair will dry out. I may sometimes put a little bit of conditioner in it too.
The best conditioner for your hair is your own natural oils. Although you don't want your hair to build up insane amounts of oil, keeping a little in your hair helps both your hair and your scalp stay healthy. Chances are the dandriff is coming from large swings in the amount of oil coming from your scalp. From being extra dry after washing to extra oily to just before.
About once a week, I would wash my hair through two rounds of shampoo, and wash all of it till it was squeaky clean, then apply large amounts of conditioner. It was always hard to comb out, and I had dandriff problems all the time like this. It was my girlfriend who "saved" me and told me the above method (she's got hair almost to her waist) And I have saves shampoo and conditioner as well!
Here it is in a nutshell:
wash your hair more frequently
use less shampoo
use only one "cycle" of shampooing and rinsing
don't shampoo hair not on your scalp