Too much sebum/ scalp grease.

Hey all, new here. I'm looking for some help with a big problem I've been having off and on since I started dreading.

First off my dreads are about a week away from 5 months. They were crocheted (not looking for a method debate). I washevery 5-7 days.
The problem I'm having is my scalp seems to want to get really greasy with dreads and I feel it's slowing down the locking process for me considerably.
For the first month, my scalp was really greasy and I was using a Knotty Boy bar that wasn't fully washing out. I started washing with just baking soda and no ACV to get the Knotty Boy out and not become even more greasy from the ACV. 
For about two months the baking soda mixed with a little bit of dreadlockshampoo.com's tea tree shampoo seemed to do the trick and chilled the greasy out a bit. During that time knots were exploding everywhere and they were really locking up fast and everything was great.
At some point, however, the grease returned and is worse than ever. All the progress I was making has slowed down a lot.

I stopped with the baking soda, as I thought maybe that was over-drying my scalp and started using just the tea tree shampoo, however, when I use the tea tree shampoo in a larger quantity than just a couple drops in baking soda water it doesn't wash out just like the Knotty Boy and it also leaves my hair way too soft to where the dreads feel super loose.

In the last couple of weeks, I've switched to Chandrika Ayurvedic Soap on the recommendation of a friend and this has been the best soap I've used thus far. It lathers well and rinses clean without softening my hair too much but hasn't done anything to help with my grease like I had hoped.

The grease is really bad. Sometimes it's large chunks of white sebum and sometimes it's just a thick grease that literally saturates my dreads. I wake up with my pillow looking like a fast food bag most days I can squeeze the grease out of the locks.

I've tried putting coconut oil on my scalp and all that did was make the grease worse for me. I've also tried rinsing with just water but there's so much grease and sebum that just water isn't strong enough and all the grease just runs into my locks and stays there. I've completely cut out salt spray and essential oil spray hoping that might stop my over-grease production but neither have helped.

Also, this isn't just my scalp adjusting to dread shampoo or not being washed as often. I've used dread shampoos for over a year before dreads and I relaxed my washing routine for about three months before dreads. 
Today was wash day, I just washed about 9 hours ago and as I sit here typing this I can touch my scalp and forehead and they're soaked with a wet sweat like grease. It feels like I just ran a bunch of laps but I've literally just sat here in a room that's on the colder side. Can't figure out a reason for it to be this bad. Any help greatly appreciated!!

 

updated by @mg1134: 01/22/20 09:33:16AM

wash more often, like every 2-3 days and rinse with cold water the shampoo out. it closes the pores and that will help.

that and i had to remove 1 link that was to a hack site (think you used the wrong domain)

most here recommend dreadlockshampoo.com 

if very greasy you can wash hot to get the grease out.. but rinse cold as you can stand.. start to graduate to just cool to cold as you get less greasy

no wax was used right?

its good they are loosen8ing and softening that will help the crochet recovery speed up

but this excessive oil is bad

we do not recommend baking soda or acv anymore!

i would check your waters ph.. it might be extra acidic..

i get sebum but after like too many days

you might need to  wash every 4 or 3 whatever the scalp tells you but if its bad in just hours that's..odd

i'll ask panterra

i would think a thyme tea sprayed onto the scalp after washing or poured over .. tip don't buy spice rack thyme  buy herb supplier thyme

the diference is i dunno i at a guess 6 bucks an oz vs 200

find an herb store or order online  bulk thyme make a strong tea 

its supposed to over time (or thyme) adjust and regulate oil production

--
My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1

Yes, dreadlockshampoo.com is what I've been using but I can't get it to fully wash out and it seems to leave my hair feeling conditioned. I have the Vicki's Just 4 Dreads Tea Tree Shampoo.

I actually do start hot then gradually move to cold water as I rinse. I read that on a website and have been doing it for a few months but it hasn't seemed to help any.

No, I've never put wax in my hair.

Yes, it's bad after just hours. Today I woke up and could squeeze the top dreads that were against my scalp all night and have noticeable grease coming out of them onto my fingers and I just washed yesterday.
I don't think it's my water as I've never been this greasy before dreads and even in that first month where I had some grease it was never as bad as these last two months have been. While things were going good I had a ton of knotting going on in my roots and all this grease has undone most of it.

I've tried washing more a few times but it doesn't help. Lately, I've been trying to go as long as possible between washes hoping my scalp would adjust itself to no avail. It seems like my scalp just decides to pump out a bunch of grease once or twice a day. I can feel it when it starts. It feels like I'm sweating but what comes out of my pores is this thick grease that ends up saturating my locks. It sucks because my hair seems to want to lock up fast but my scalp doesn't seem to like dreads at all.

I have not tried thyme. I'll have to find some and give it a try.

let me try to get panterra in on this  this is unusual

no meds no diet changes  hormonal changes  or anything?

what you eat affects the body ph wich can affect the oiliness 

but lets see what panterra  can offer

--
My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1

if you are washing enough..thpouroughly enough..rinsing enough  and hygenes gooid .. check your diet  but she said this is highly unusual wants some photos

the charcoal detox might be good to get super clean

--
My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1

do you swim alot or is your home water somewhat chlorinated  that can cause it o feel that way

--
My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1

Nope, no meds. I rarely even take things like aspirin.

My diet is mostly vegetarian/ vegan foods. I've been reading up on diet a bit but my diet hasn't changed since getting dreads at all.

Haven't gone swimming the whole time I've had locks. I'm unsure of how chlorinated my water is, but again I never had this problem before.

Here are a couple photos:
































My dreads. So much unravelling has happened from all the grease as of late, especially at the roots. They pretty much stay soggy with grease now.




































Greasy sebum scratched off my scalp from just minutes before this post. It's definitely getting worse. This is barely two days after a wash. I usually don't pull chunks this big out until 3-4 days.

mines getting worse with the season i think 

umm

last possibility which i know next to nothing about.. well water  vs water supply water  i think its the hot water heater or water tank 1 or the other has some sort of rod..ionizes or removes something... i have no idea just reremember 1 very perplexing problem turned out to be something so odd as the wrong rod being put in after a water heater repair or something

that is a lot  for 3 days but that might mean 3 days is the time to wash..or 2 even

u use liquid or bar?

--
My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1

they are thick so when you wash really get in there at the scalp let your nails grow a lil (sucks when they start to break and snag in dreads though0    scrub that scalp clean  thouroughly if you notice it act up at 3 wash the next morn

that is a lot though it would take me a long time to get that bad..oh .. are you using a high pressure hand held  head that you can rinse with some blasting power?

email vicki too she might have to make a prototype for you

 

--
My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1