(no subject)

[the_rck]

The handbook they gave me for radiation therapy says that the place is a scent free zone. I'm hoping that's just for the patient areas because asking the folks giving me rides to switch shampoos and all of that seems quite a lot. People coming in to get radiation for themselves normally walk in, check in at a computer terminal, go change, and then wait in a separate, patients only waiting area.

I am looking into unscented shampoo and conditioner. I already use unscented soap, and I have unscented deodorant (which I can currently only use on my right side. I need to find out if baking soda is okay for my left since I'd like to use something). I'm just hitting a bit of sticker shock on the hair care products. I'm used to spending $1.50 for a 12.5 oz bottle of shampoo and the same for conditioner. For a bottle of unscented product roughly the same size, I'll end up spending, at minimum, $10.00 and more likely $15-$20. There are also enough different products that choosing between them is hard.

Has anybody out there used unscented shampoo and conditioner and have any recommendations? My hair is pretty middle of the road in terms of oiliness/dryness, but it is very long, so I need something that goes a fairly long way. I also prefer not to wash my hair more than three times a week (It takes three to four hours to dry).

Comments

[minim_calibre]

If I need something unscented, I'll grab the Whole Foods 360 unscented shampoo and conditioner. It's okay. When my hair was really long, I was still doing the baking soda washes, so I can't say how well it stretches.

[the_rck]

Thanks! That's easier to come by than any of these brands I'm finding online, so I'll try that first.

[minim_calibre]

NP! I hope it works for you!

[iamshadow]

You might find just baking soda on its own irritates your skin. My partner and I make our own deodorant. It's made of baking soda, tapioca starch/flour (arrowroot), coconut oil and olive oil, with some lavender oil in there for scent (which you can leave out, of course.) We mix it up in a large jar or container that we can fit our hands into, and if it's warm enough to be liquid, you stir it up a little immediately before using to get a balanced mix. A fingertip's worth will do for one armpit, and you rub it in like lotion until it's absorbed into your skin. (If it's really super runny, you can keep it in the fridge, but just make sure it's not firmed up into layers before using it. You don't want an over-abundance of one ingredient over the others.) I have strong BO, and this is the only thing I've ever had that works, especially in an Australian summer, and it doesn't give my partner migraines or rashes like commercial, scented products do. The only times we've had trouble with irritation is when it's separated and we haven't stirred it up and its been too heavy on the bicarb, hence my advice not to use bicarb on its own. The pH is too alkaline for your skin without the other ingredients balancing it out.

Recipe
1/4 cup bicarb
1/4 cup arrowroot/tapioca starch/flour
7 tablespoons coconut oil
4 tablespoons olive oil (or other oil - sunflower, avocado, sweet almond, apricot kernel)
Mix together in a large jar or container big enough for your hand. (You may need to warm the coconut oil beforehand, so that it's liquid.)
Clean your jar between batches, as old remnants may spoil or harbour bacteria and contaminate your new batch.

[evalerie.livejournal.com]

To me "scent-free zone" just means "don't wear perfume or after-shave here," not "change all of your products to unscented ones." Did they give any more detail about just how scent-free they want you to be?

For shampoo and conditioner, I use Desert Essence fragrance-free. The tubes are expensive, but they changed my life, so I keep on buying them. But I think we've talked about this brand before and there was some reason why it wouldn't work for you, so I'm not sure that this is helpful.

[the_rck]

They specifically mention scented deodorant as a problem. They don't specifically mention shampoo and conditioner, but they do mention other hair care products and soap.

[evalerie.livejournal.com]

True -- I've occasionally run across people with scented deodorant that can fill up a room with *way* more perfume than the average perfume-wearer ever wears.

[anderyn.livejournal.com]

I have had good luck with suave kid's unscented shampoo and conditioner. It is cheap and works for all of the hair types in our family (we have super oily and dry hair). If you can use a combined shampoo-conditioner, the kid's one is nice. I like it because it is only one step.