Forum Activity for @katie2

Thank you.

Yeah, we have aloe plant, but I wasn't sure whether you use straight from the plant or it comes in some processed form (gel, liquid, etc.). Okay.

Thank you. What are your suggestions for use of these products? Whenever the dreads feel super dry?

Thanks.

Any suggestions for where to buy it and in what form and all that jazz? Is it just oil?

Also, I don't even know what overly dry would be like since I have nothing to compare it to.

I posted a few weeks ago regarding giant dandruff chunks and itchiness that drove me mad!

Since using dreadlockshampoo.com's Tea Tree/Rosemary Shampoo bar, per SE's suggestion, it has improved SIGNIFICANTLY! No crazy flakes, and itchiness has diminished dramatically.

But I still struggle with dryness. Or, maybe I don't, but I don't interact with anyone with dreads, face-to-face, so I'm not sure what the texture is supposed to feel like. All I know is that my scalp produces NO oil...and if it does...it is not visible or felt.

Is this normal? I used to be so greasy two years ago. I know the scalp adjusts to not washing everyday with miserable shampoos...but I'm wondering why my scalp doesn't produce it's own oils and why I feel like I need to apply Shea Butter every once in a while to feel like my dreads are soft and not brittle.

Thoughts?

Ok...so I used my tea tree/rosemary dread bar today. I really liked the way it felt to wash with it. But, I still have major chunks of my scalp coming up and it's disgusting. It's weird...it's not my whole scalp, just spots like every other dread...but super visible and white, so it's totally obvious because it contrasts with the color of the spots of my head that are chunky. I know that I have to be patient...but Soaring Eagle, about how long do you think of using before my scalp begins to improve?? Also, I am using lavender, rosemary, and tea tree oils on the spots : ( I'll be stoked if the itchiness stops...but I also don't like walking around with chunks of my head falling off all over my clothes.

Sounds easy. I was just thinking that I was supposed to use water from my filter downstairs since our tap in the shower is super hard water that produces mega build-up. And our tap water is EXTREMELY chlorinated here. If you take a bath, you smell like you've been swimming in a pool. Sorry, I wasn't very clear about that : )

I'll try it.

Tied up in knots said:

Just bring one jug upstairs with the bs and acv. Make the mix in the shower. Why would you bring water from downstairs when you will already be bathing in water?

Do the proper measurements once if you aren't comfortable with eyeballing right away. Then next time just try to approximate the same amounts in the bathroom. I doesn't have to be exact in the slightest. I've actually never measured my own mix. I just pour out what looks right.

I have a jug that lives in my bathroom just for my bs and acv. I make the bs mix. Pour it on my head. Use the jug to rinse it out. Make the acv mix. Dump it on. Use the jug to rinse.

My bs, acv, and oils just live in the shower like other people store shampoo and conditioner. Easy peasy.

Thank you! Bought my teatree rosemary bar and just got back from buying my rosemary oil.

When I do a BS/ACV rinse, do I scrub my scalp? I'm always terrified to do the BS/ACV. Not sure why. Maybe I have done it wrong because it is associated with bad in my mind. : (

Do you use purified water when you do it? We have hard water. I wish someone could tell me like literally step by step what they do. Do I bring pitchers into the bathroom with the solutions? Is there an easy way to do it? It just seems like so much freaking work to wash with that stuff, having to measure out stuff and make sure the mixture is right and bringing jugs of water upstairs to our bathroom. Just seems like high maintenance? Am I being ridiculous???

What is the dreadlock shampoo you use and I will buy it.

Aubrey Organics does not use sls. That is one reason I began using it years ago. But, I do not doubt that it leaves build-up.

I will use the dreadlock shampoo you tell me. And is it okay then to put tea tree and rosemary on my scalp at times?

I love the smell of patchouli. Is it good for anything?

Thank you.

I have had dreads for almost 2 years, the last two months have been hell with itchiness and giant flakes. It becomes painful (because sometimes I can't help but scratch) and embarrassing. I read what you find below. Is this true?

"Dandruff is a common scalp condition marked by white flakes on the scalp and itching.

It appears to be caused by a yeast-like fungus called malassezia, also known as pityrosporum. Malassezia is normally found on the scalp without causing problems, however, if it grows unchecked (possibly due to hormone imbalances, stress, immune suppression, infrequent shampooing, illness, or increased oil production), there is mild inflammation that produces dead skin cells. The dead cells mix with oil and clump together, making them appear white and flaky."

Gross. Do I have a freaking fungus on my head????

I do not wash with BS/ACV. I use Aubrey Organics Honey Suckle Shampoo. I have used it for 4ish years. The first year I used a lot of tea tree oil as a spray, but it was drying out my dreads, so I stopped. I use patchouli and orange blossom as a spray and shea butter to moisturize.

Thoughts?

Okay, so since reading your post, I have been really pissed! Not at you...at me. I think I'm doing something right, and then someone else tells me otherwise. And then I start doing something different, and I'm told that what I'm doing is bad.

So, tonight, I started looking through some stuff, somewhat related to the oil, written by SE and it was confirmed that tea tree dries out hair. I'm so pissed! For almost 8 months I've been using tea tree oil, not sparingly either! Now what do I do!? What do I do to counteract the damage I've caused my hair? It's so damn dry and I'm only contributing to it's dryness! It's so hard to know what to ask on here, wait for replies, and then have to write messages back and forth to be able to know stuff! I wish I had like a next-door-neighbor to ask every time I have a question. Makes me so mad! So, then if I'm going to use soaps to wash again...how? How does one wash with soaps and be sure to get all the crap out? And I understand the whole pollutant in the air is in my hair idea...but now what? I feel like someone has to actually see, feel, smell my hair to know how to help because the advice you give someone else, and what you would do yourself can't be the same for me because my hair is going to be different, I live in a different climate, my body will produce different amounts of oils, my diet is different, my daily activities are different, the pollutants in my area are different, etc... so how can anyone know that the advice they give me can really be good for me? Does that make sense? What are your thoughts?

I'm frustrated. And I feel pissed that, as you have said, I have been doing whatever to my hair for almost a year now...so whatever damage I have begun...I'm hoping that it has not ruined my first round of dreads. The friends who started my dreads have given me, as it appears to be, bad advice...every last bit of advice...all bad. Pisses me off.

Thanks for letting me vent. *Sigh*

What do you think I should do now?

Panterra Caraway said:

I just looked at your page and you are using water only to cleanse...so I assume your scalp is itching...probably alot. Here is a sure, fire way to stop the itching....wash your hair ! And use some shampoo! I don't know where everyone keeps getting these crazy ideas to only use water! It is not healthy or sanitary and it does not help your hair dread. Dirty hair will take way longer to progress...you need to wash your hair. All damage and problems with hair and scalp is cumulative, so the longer to do not wash and cleanse away the dust and polution...not to mention the natural oils from your head...the more problems you will have. Do you realize that every pollutant that is in the air is also in your dreads and you are bringing them into your home and bed every night? Please limit the Tee Tree and increase your use of soap.