No 'Poo Hair Care & Hard Water
I haven't used commercial shampoo in over three years. So far this year I've been successfully living without commercial conditioners too as a curly girl. Naturally I've experienced transition periods with my hair. Throughout this process I've been using herbal hair cleansers with herbs, oils, butters, and other natural ingredients as conditioning moisturizers.
Although I've lived in the city this entire time, I had never understood the frustration of going no 'poo with hard water because of having a strong water filter in the shower. Somehow the filter hadn’t been changed in the timely fashion recently, and I was experiencing hard city water for the first time.
I stopped using store bought hair products to avoid toxic chemicals, and the cycle of stripping the hair of its natural oils then replacing them with synthetic conditioners.
Traditional store bought shampoos and conditioners contain chemical surfactants and detergents which remove the minerals which can build up on hair strands regardless of water quality. If you live in a place with hard water, your hair will feel as if it’s not coming clean unless using surfactants or detergents. Natural herbal hair cleansers obviously don’t contain synthetic surfactants or detergents. When using herbal hair cleansers especially if you have hard water, you’ll never feel as if your hair is ever getting clean. Instead your hair will have an unpleasant residue feel that will continue to build up and never fully rinse away.
I'm actually really happy that I've experienced what washing my hair with hard water truly feels like, or I wouldn't be able to speak on it. It's awful! If you’re someone interested in 100% natural hair care without any hidden synthetic ingredients, then I have two suggestions for you.
1. Get a good shower filter
Not only will your hair absolutely adore you for it, but your skin will too! One thing that stands out to me most of all is to keep the filter changed in a timely fashion. Shower filters remove chlorine, chemicals, and minerals from the water which sanitize water for safe use. Using a shower filter will further clean the water of the unwanted chemicals and minerals and make the water even better for your skin and hair.
2. Use an acidic rinse after cleansing your hair
Acidic hair rinses not only seal your hair cuticle after washing it, but will also help when dealing with hard water issues. You could use an herbal hair rinse, apple cider vinegar hair rinse, or an herbal infused apple cider vinegar rinse which is one of my favorites.
If you use a 100% natural hair care, and live in an area with hard water, what has worked for you?
Image by D Sharon Pruitt