I had chunks of it raining down if I scratched and yes, call the hair and scalp police I scratched. I had what I thought were sores in various areas of my scalp, flaking around my edges, and rashes breaking out front and back. The sores turned out to be chunks of shed skin that clumped together. How is that different from dandruff? I'm glad you asked. Dandruff is usually dirt, oil, and some dead skin cells which becomes trapped on your scalp. It is usually small and thin not large and thick like what was in my head. I was embarrassed to say the least. I didn't want to go around anyone and I didn't want to blog about healthy hair when I was suffering the worst setback ever. My hair didn't seem to be growing, and washing my hair only helped for a day. This agony lasted for about a month.
Now, let's talk about skin. My regular readers know this, but my new and equally appreciated readers may not. I have really sensitive skin, so I have to be careful what I use. That's why I either use or recommend either homemade hair products or all natural ones. I've been burned too many times. That's why when a persistent rash appeared on my upper back and in between the *ahem* girls that I started giving everything I used the side-eye. I mean I use an all natural soap bar with no preservatives and at the time moisturized my skin with whipped Shea Butter. I've been known to experience Irritant Contact Dermatitis from using the wrong products which resulted in an itchy burning rash and weeks of agony, but the symptoms didn't match. Further research brought me to the conclusion of Seborrheic Dermatitis. The symptoms matched at least, but I still wasn't sure what to do. I didn't want to use the awful smelling tar shampoos of my teenagehood. So, I ended up settling for a cleansing co-wash and cleansing every other day as recommended. I still shampoo once a week. It seems to be working with the occasional application of a hydrocortisone cream to affected areas.
I might have over shared but I hope by my doing so that I might help someone else who might not be dealing with dandruff either. The moral of this story? There will be obstacles at times in the journey to healthy hair, but keep your head up. This too shall pass...
Later Days,
~PJ