An Instructable on making deodorant out of corn starch, baking soda, coconut oil, with optional additions for smell and skin care can be found here.
I've been wondering about this for a while. Deodorant and toothpaste are the only commercial hygiene products left in my arsenal. Switched to Tom's of Maine but... this is cheaper.
Showing posts with label good-for-you. Show all posts
Showing posts with label good-for-you. Show all posts
June 25, 2009
April 9, 2009
Hair Removal with Thread and Dexterity, etc.
If sugaring is the alternative to waxing, then threading is the alternative to tweezing. Threading was mentioned repeatedly in my search for alternative hair removal methods, but I never thought to look at how it was done because the general consensus was that "the ancient art of threading is difficult to learn." But this week, in my Instructables Weekend Builder, there was this article: How to thread eyebrows. With a little practice, it's not that difficult and seems less time consuming and tedious than tweezing. If you've got a foot of thread lying around, give it a try!
I washed my hair on Thursday morning last week with baking soda and apple cider vinegar. Over the following weekend, I didn't even do water-only washes. By monday, it was starting to get greasy, but with brushing and a few water washes, itchiness is completely under control. Dandruff is starting to be noticeable, so I'm trying a method my mother recommended: pressing a piece of gauze into your brush before brushing. It seems to attract a lot of excess bits of things and also makes your brush easier to clean afterward.
Something else I tried this week was corn starch to cut down on greasiness. When I put it in initially, starting from the back of my head and brushing it through, my hair felt very not-greasy but it had a theater-old-person, grey and powdery look to it. I could have probably brushed it out (with a brush first, followed by a dry washcloth) but decided to wash my hair instead. That restored some of the greasy feeling but I think it's better than it would have been without the corn starch treatment. (If you have corn starch, you should also use it to make oobleck.)
The last thing on my initial list of life changes has finally been put into effect. That routine is oil pulling, which is not as terrible as it sounds. It involves putting a tablespoon of oil in your mouth (sesame or sunflower oil is recommended) and swishing it around, drawing it through your teeth, chomping, swishing some more for twenty minutes or so. There are all sorts of theories as to why this works as a detox—the oil bonds to phlegm, bacteria, viruses and doing this in your mouth clears your entry-orifice, receptors on your tongue that are connected to different body parts, etc.—but apparently it does cure and prevent a wide spectrum of ailments. It also makes your teeth whiter and stronger, prevents dark circles around the eyes... the list of potential health benefits is long. I figure it probably won't do any harm and we'll see if it helps anything. This, like nasal irrigation, is a remedy of Indian origin; Ayurveda or some such.
I bought a bottle of unrefined sesame oil at my local organic food store. The sites I read recommend untoasted, unrefined, cold-pressed sesame or sunflower oil for best results. Right after waking up, before eating or drinking anything, put a tablespoon of oil in your mouth and swish it around for twenty minutes. I decided to start waking up a little earlier and reading the news and checking email while doing this. Don't swallow the oil, because apparently it get increasingly bacterial and nasty as you swish. Either practice responding to the swallowing reflex without actually swallowing (probably something you do naturally when brushing your teeth) or spit out the oil and finish the routine with a new tablespoon. At the end of twenty minutes, spit the oil out into the toilet (it should be white), rinse your mouth well with water, and drink two or three cups of water. (I brush my teeth afterward and do my morning apple cider vinegar drink, followed by an extra cup of water.)
I've been really phlegmy since starting this yesterday, but according to practitioners of oil pulling, the first few days may see symptoms of illness worsening as the detox starts. I am getting rid of a lot of phlegm, which strikes me as a good thing. The first time, not gagging was a bit of a struggle and I felt pretty gross afterward, but apparently that's expected the first time. Doing it again this morning was a lot more pleasant and I don't feel nearly as weird as I did after the first time.
Here's the EarthClinic page on oil pulling with instructions and user feedback. Please do some outside research before starting this. I'll report back with results if and when they show.
I washed my hair on Thursday morning last week with baking soda and apple cider vinegar. Over the following weekend, I didn't even do water-only washes. By monday, it was starting to get greasy, but with brushing and a few water washes, itchiness is completely under control. Dandruff is starting to be noticeable, so I'm trying a method my mother recommended: pressing a piece of gauze into your brush before brushing. It seems to attract a lot of excess bits of things and also makes your brush easier to clean afterward.
Something else I tried this week was corn starch to cut down on greasiness. When I put it in initially, starting from the back of my head and brushing it through, my hair felt very not-greasy but it had a theater-old-person, grey and powdery look to it. I could have probably brushed it out (with a brush first, followed by a dry washcloth) but decided to wash my hair instead. That restored some of the greasy feeling but I think it's better than it would have been without the corn starch treatment. (If you have corn starch, you should also use it to make oobleck.)
The last thing on my initial list of life changes has finally been put into effect. That routine is oil pulling, which is not as terrible as it sounds. It involves putting a tablespoon of oil in your mouth (sesame or sunflower oil is recommended) and swishing it around, drawing it through your teeth, chomping, swishing some more for twenty minutes or so. There are all sorts of theories as to why this works as a detox—the oil bonds to phlegm, bacteria, viruses and doing this in your mouth clears your entry-orifice, receptors on your tongue that are connected to different body parts, etc.—but apparently it does cure and prevent a wide spectrum of ailments. It also makes your teeth whiter and stronger, prevents dark circles around the eyes... the list of potential health benefits is long. I figure it probably won't do any harm and we'll see if it helps anything. This, like nasal irrigation, is a remedy of Indian origin; Ayurveda or some such.
I bought a bottle of unrefined sesame oil at my local organic food store. The sites I read recommend untoasted, unrefined, cold-pressed sesame or sunflower oil for best results. Right after waking up, before eating or drinking anything, put a tablespoon of oil in your mouth and swish it around for twenty minutes. I decided to start waking up a little earlier and reading the news and checking email while doing this. Don't swallow the oil, because apparently it get increasingly bacterial and nasty as you swish. Either practice responding to the swallowing reflex without actually swallowing (probably something you do naturally when brushing your teeth) or spit out the oil and finish the routine with a new tablespoon. At the end of twenty minutes, spit the oil out into the toilet (it should be white), rinse your mouth well with water, and drink two or three cups of water. (I brush my teeth afterward and do my morning apple cider vinegar drink, followed by an extra cup of water.)
I've been really phlegmy since starting this yesterday, but according to practitioners of oil pulling, the first few days may see symptoms of illness worsening as the detox starts. I am getting rid of a lot of phlegm, which strikes me as a good thing. The first time, not gagging was a bit of a struggle and I felt pretty gross afterward, but apparently that's expected the first time. Doing it again this morning was a lot more pleasant and I don't feel nearly as weird as I did after the first time.
Here's the EarthClinic page on oil pulling with instructions and user feedback. Please do some outside research before starting this. I'll report back with results if and when they show.
March 20, 2009
Nose Breathing
This is kind of a mini-routine, but it has led to a bit of a change.
There is a lot of information out there about the superiority of nasal breathing to mouth breathing. Your nose regulates the air passing in and out of your body, warming, filtering, and dehumidifying it. Breathing through your nostrils allows your lungs to absorb 10-20% more oxygen than when you breathe through your mouth. And mouth breathing can cause or exacerbate asthma, high blood pressure, heart disease, and, uhh, snoring.
Now I'm no mouth-breather, but there are times that I don't really have any control over how air is going in and out of my body. When I sleep, for example. After reading about people using Chin-Up Strips to keep their mouths closed while they sleep, I've been taping my mouth shut before I go to sleep (not tight; just enough to keep my lips from popping open) and have been sleeping more soundly since. I haven't put many controls on any of the changes I've been making, so I can't be sure about the effectiveness of any single method, but I think that the first night I used the tape was a better night of sleep, even before I started taking ACV internally.
If you have trouble sleeping, snore, wake up with crap-mouth, or have a more serious problem like asthma, give it a try.
There is a lot of information out there about the superiority of nasal breathing to mouth breathing. Your nose regulates the air passing in and out of your body, warming, filtering, and dehumidifying it. Breathing through your nostrils allows your lungs to absorb 10-20% more oxygen than when you breathe through your mouth. And mouth breathing can cause or exacerbate asthma, high blood pressure, heart disease, and, uhh, snoring.
Now I'm no mouth-breather, but there are times that I don't really have any control over how air is going in and out of my body. When I sleep, for example. After reading about people using Chin-Up Strips to keep their mouths closed while they sleep, I've been taping my mouth shut before I go to sleep (not tight; just enough to keep my lips from popping open) and have been sleeping more soundly since. I haven't put many controls on any of the changes I've been making, so I can't be sure about the effectiveness of any single method, but I think that the first night I used the tape was a better night of sleep, even before I started taking ACV internally.
If you have trouble sleeping, snore, wake up with crap-mouth, or have a more serious problem like asthma, give it a try.
Face Care Simplified
Facial care products cater to a vast array of specific consumer needs: sensitive skin, anti-wrinkle, acne reducing, pore refining; the list goes on. I was yet to find a commercial product that works for me and, as my cleansers, washes, toners, creams, and ointments were getting down to their last few applications, I dreaded going shopping for a new series of expensive products, which were likely to leave me disappointed again.
My skin is fairly unusual. I have really defined pores, which mean chicken-skin spots on my arms and legs, and clogged pores, blackheads, whiteheads, zits, and general roughness on my face. Until recently, I was buying anti-acne products thinking that the cause of my skin problems was primarily chemical rather than physical: bacteria, hormones, grease production, what have you. But I've realized, years of unsolved skin and hundreds of dollars later, that it's more about the size of my pores and their tendency to get clogged with dirt, debris, oils, etc. I was investigating pore-refining washes, toners, and moisturizers before my "no 'poo" adventure led me to EarthClinic, where I have been reading about the many, many uses of simple household products to cure various ailments.
I still don't understand how exactly the site is organized. It's driven largely by user input and you can browse it by looking for a certain ingredient or a specific ailment. Some pages have concrete information published by the site; others are just compilations of people's experiences, experiments, successes, and failures.
In any case, I've found a few tricks for facial care, all of which I tried today.
The first is using baking soda as a face wash. It removes facial grease and exfoliates gently. I used really warm water to rinse and thoroughly wet my face in hopes that open pores would react more effectively to washing. I made a small mound of baking soda in one of my palms, added enough water to make it into a paste, and massaged it into my skin. Keep it off your lips if you don't want to taste baking soda afterward and don't get it too close to your eyes. When you feel sufficiently exfoliated, rinse it off. I noticed a significant difference in my skin after one wash: my pores looked smaller and my face felt smoother.
Another thing that acne-prone people recommend washing your face with is honey. You might wonder "how the hell," but it ended up being less messy than I expected. You can either dilute it a little with warm water, rub it all over your face, and rinse it off, or you can apply a thin layer over your whole face, leave it on for ten minutes, and wash it off with warm water. I tried the latter, and not only was it the most delicious facial mask I've ever used, but it washed off really easily. Honey is naturally antibacterial and antiseptic, which presumably prevents acne. It is relatively acidic, which might balance the effects of the baking soda a little. Aside from these characteristics, I have no idea what the benefits are. After the honey mask though, my skin continued to feel good.
In the massive list of uses for apple cider vinegar, I found a lot of people using it as a toner and taking it internally, which benefits your skin as well as other functions and organs. I took my first two doses of apple cider vinegar today (one tablespoon of vinegar diluted in two cups of water. I add a spoonful of honey to improve the taste.) and applied undiluted apple cider vinegar to the acne prone areas of my face—cheeks, forehead, temples, and jawline—with a cotton swab. It burned initially but the unpleasant sensation went away after a few minutes. If it's too abrasive, you can water it down. People claim that they apply apple cider vinegar to zits before going to sleep and wake up to find them gone without a trace. We'll see how that goes.
These processes can be pretty drying, but no more than their commercial counterparts. I'm waiting for a pound of shea butter to arrive in the mail, which I bought for my lips but is a good natural moisturizer for faces, especially for people with acne problems. Until then, I might use some commercial moisturizers that I have left over.
It's awesome when your all-natural cosmetic ingredients are cheap and come in bulk. I bought a four pound box of baking soda for $2.79 and a gallon of apple cider vinegar for $3.99 today. These are going to last me a while and I can use them to solve an endless variety of problems. Bath scum? Not a problem. Yeast infection? How about a vinegar douche. (That takes a brave and desperate woman.) Heartburn? Don't mind if I do. High cholesterol? Hit me with the ACV.
My skin is fairly unusual. I have really defined pores, which mean chicken-skin spots on my arms and legs, and clogged pores, blackheads, whiteheads, zits, and general roughness on my face. Until recently, I was buying anti-acne products thinking that the cause of my skin problems was primarily chemical rather than physical: bacteria, hormones, grease production, what have you. But I've realized, years of unsolved skin and hundreds of dollars later, that it's more about the size of my pores and their tendency to get clogged with dirt, debris, oils, etc. I was investigating pore-refining washes, toners, and moisturizers before my "no 'poo" adventure led me to EarthClinic, where I have been reading about the many, many uses of simple household products to cure various ailments.
I still don't understand how exactly the site is organized. It's driven largely by user input and you can browse it by looking for a certain ingredient or a specific ailment. Some pages have concrete information published by the site; others are just compilations of people's experiences, experiments, successes, and failures.
In any case, I've found a few tricks for facial care, all of which I tried today.
The first is using baking soda as a face wash. It removes facial grease and exfoliates gently. I used really warm water to rinse and thoroughly wet my face in hopes that open pores would react more effectively to washing. I made a small mound of baking soda in one of my palms, added enough water to make it into a paste, and massaged it into my skin. Keep it off your lips if you don't want to taste baking soda afterward and don't get it too close to your eyes. When you feel sufficiently exfoliated, rinse it off. I noticed a significant difference in my skin after one wash: my pores looked smaller and my face felt smoother.
Another thing that acne-prone people recommend washing your face with is honey. You might wonder "how the hell," but it ended up being less messy than I expected. You can either dilute it a little with warm water, rub it all over your face, and rinse it off, or you can apply a thin layer over your whole face, leave it on for ten minutes, and wash it off with warm water. I tried the latter, and not only was it the most delicious facial mask I've ever used, but it washed off really easily. Honey is naturally antibacterial and antiseptic, which presumably prevents acne. It is relatively acidic, which might balance the effects of the baking soda a little. Aside from these characteristics, I have no idea what the benefits are. After the honey mask though, my skin continued to feel good.
In the massive list of uses for apple cider vinegar, I found a lot of people using it as a toner and taking it internally, which benefits your skin as well as other functions and organs. I took my first two doses of apple cider vinegar today (one tablespoon of vinegar diluted in two cups of water. I add a spoonful of honey to improve the taste.) and applied undiluted apple cider vinegar to the acne prone areas of my face—cheeks, forehead, temples, and jawline—with a cotton swab. It burned initially but the unpleasant sensation went away after a few minutes. If it's too abrasive, you can water it down. People claim that they apply apple cider vinegar to zits before going to sleep and wake up to find them gone without a trace. We'll see how that goes.
These processes can be pretty drying, but no more than their commercial counterparts. I'm waiting for a pound of shea butter to arrive in the mail, which I bought for my lips but is a good natural moisturizer for faces, especially for people with acne problems. Until then, I might use some commercial moisturizers that I have left over.
It's awesome when your all-natural cosmetic ingredients are cheap and come in bulk. I bought a four pound box of baking soda for $2.79 and a gallon of apple cider vinegar for $3.99 today. These are going to last me a while and I can use them to solve an endless variety of problems. Bath scum? Not a problem. Yeast infection? How about a vinegar douche. (That takes a brave and desperate woman.) Heartburn? Don't mind if I do. High cholesterol? Hit me with the ACV.
March 19, 2009
A Life Without Shampoo: Introduction
The decision to try to live without shampoo was the only one so far that I didn't find on the internet. It is also the decision that led to my current attempts to eliminate other commercial cosmetic products from my routine, which in turn inspired me to launch this blog. My muses in this effort were two male friends of mine who, I recently found out, are fully adapted to "no 'poo" lifestyles. (It's an unfortunate name, I know.) Their hair is soft, beautiful, healthy, and clean. You would never suspect that they haven't used shampoo in months.
While most people's initial reactions are of disgust and disbelief, the concept makes sense with a little thought. Using shampoo daily, as most Americans do, strips your hair of its natural oils (known less pleasantly as sebum) and, in an attempt to maintain a balance, your body compensates by producing tons. Your hair gets greasy, so you wash it again. Rinse, repeat. This vicious cycle is one that shampoo manufacturers have decided to take advantage of. Selling shampoo also means selling conditioner. Convincing consumers that they need to wash their hair daily to smell and look good means selling more of both products. This is another example of a product that doesn't seem like a financial drain but that you will spend hundreds and hundreds of dollars on in a lifetime.
The truth is, you don't need shampoo. Even if you think you do, you definitely don't need to use it daily. Shampoo as we know it didn't exist until the 1930s. It is a glorified soap that has been formulated to smell flowery, lather like a detergent, and rinse easily out of hair. A recent story on NPR put it nicely into historical perspective. In 1900, it was normal for women to wash their hair once a month. Ten years later, the New York Times published a column saying that it was okay (meaning they could, not that they should) for women to wash their hair once every two weeks. But even today, most Italians and Spaniards only wash their hair two to three times a week. Dematologists and stylists agree that shampooing your hair more than that is not good for your scalp or your hair.
Add to this that shampoos come in plastic bottles and contain all sorts of chemicals that you don't want in your body or in the environment. Bank/Earth/Self. Get it?
I have had a fairly tumultuous relationship with my hair. It is fine but thick, voluminous, and wavy. It's gone from shoulder-length to layered short to military sheared to long, longer, longer still to bob to mohawk and back to layered short. It's been bleached and dyed almost every color of the rainbow. The haircut I have now—which I got by pointing to a picture of Rihanna in a crappy fashion magazine and telling the stylist that I want it to actually be short—is the first haircut that I've been really happy with. In terms of bathing and shampooing, I realize in retrospect that I didn't start showering and shampooing daily until my junior year in high school. And since then, not surprisingly, it seems like my hair gets greasier much faster than it ever used to.
Adapting to a "no 'poo" lifestyle is something that a lot of people give up before reaching their goal. Since the glands in your scalp are used to overproducing sebum that you would usually wash away with shampoo, most people experience what "no 'pooers" refer to as a "detox" period, which is just a loaded name for a transition period. During this time, which seems to vary from person to person, your hair is greasy and unattractive. People formulate different methods to keep it from smelling, from getting overly greasy or dry, and it seems as though there's a lot of trial-and-error before a miraculous and natural balance is established on your head. But people who've made it work promise that your hair will feel and look great if you can tolerate this gross period.
At the date of this posting, I have gone a week and two days without shampoo. I was on spring break when this all started. Since my last shampoo two Tuesdays ago, I have experimented a little with the standard washing and conditioning method that you'll find all over "no 'poo" discussion boards: washing with diluted baking soda and rinsing with diluted apple cider vinegar (both in a ratio of one tablespoon to a cup of water). My hair was incredibly greasy by the time I got my hands on some baking soda three days after shampooing. I got into the shower, wet my hair, massaged the diluted baking soda into my scalp, rinsed it off, and followed with diluted rice vinegar, which was the only kind we had around. My hair felt great when each ingredient was in it, but when I rinsed them out, my hair became a wet, sticky, mat. I was worried that the process hadn't done anything. But once my hair air-dried completely, I realized both the baking soda and vinegar had done their duty. My hair was softer and fluffier than it ever was after being shampooed.
But this was only the beginning. Reading extensively about issues people were having with "no 'poo," I braced myself for battle. I returned to school two days after my initial baking soda, vinegar wash, carrying a sandwich baggie of baking soda. I worked in the dining hall on Monday evening and decided to wash my hair after the shift. It was far less greasy than it had become in the days after my final shampoo. I didn't have any vinegar, so I just used the baking soda. As expected, the results weren't as spectacular as they were with vinegar on a really greasy head. Rather than looking soft and fluffy, it looked weighed down and felt like it was covered with a waxy residue. I did the same thing on Wednesday with similar results.
Today, I finally got a chance to bike down to the grocery and pick up a big box of baking soda, a gallon of apple cider vinegar—which has a ton of other uses that I'll get to in another post—and lots of other heavy stuff. I was sweaty and gross after my strenuous bike ride back, so I figured it'd be an opportunity to try again with the vinegar rinse. The waxy residue is less extreme but didn't really go away.
Since being a little disappointed by what I expected to be a vinegar miracle, I've been looking around on the "no 'poo" LiveJournal community and now think that transitioning from shampoo to baking soda and vinegar to water-only rather than just dropping everything at once seems to only prolongs the process. People who have successfully transitioned to water only do occasional salt or baking soda washes and conditioning rinses depending on the state of their hair but don't have regular washes or rinses. Rather than changing things chemically, water-only washers do a lot of brushing, combing, and massaging, to physically distribute oils from root to shaft. They also use changes in water temperature to help alleviate greasiness and waxiness, which is something I've been playing around with anyway. (Again, for another post.)
Now that I think about it, my two muses didn't bother with baking soda, vinegar, tea, and other things. They just tolerated the greasiness while it lasted and celebrated when it was gone. I'm going to do some investigation of specifics and will report back.
This is much more complicated and experimental than anything else I'm attempting. I will be posting updates for a while.
While most people's initial reactions are of disgust and disbelief, the concept makes sense with a little thought. Using shampoo daily, as most Americans do, strips your hair of its natural oils (known less pleasantly as sebum) and, in an attempt to maintain a balance, your body compensates by producing tons. Your hair gets greasy, so you wash it again. Rinse, repeat. This vicious cycle is one that shampoo manufacturers have decided to take advantage of. Selling shampoo also means selling conditioner. Convincing consumers that they need to wash their hair daily to smell and look good means selling more of both products. This is another example of a product that doesn't seem like a financial drain but that you will spend hundreds and hundreds of dollars on in a lifetime.
The truth is, you don't need shampoo. Even if you think you do, you definitely don't need to use it daily. Shampoo as we know it didn't exist until the 1930s. It is a glorified soap that has been formulated to smell flowery, lather like a detergent, and rinse easily out of hair. A recent story on NPR put it nicely into historical perspective. In 1900, it was normal for women to wash their hair once a month. Ten years later, the New York Times published a column saying that it was okay (meaning they could, not that they should) for women to wash their hair once every two weeks. But even today, most Italians and Spaniards only wash their hair two to three times a week. Dematologists and stylists agree that shampooing your hair more than that is not good for your scalp or your hair.
Add to this that shampoos come in plastic bottles and contain all sorts of chemicals that you don't want in your body or in the environment. Bank/Earth/Self. Get it?
I have had a fairly tumultuous relationship with my hair. It is fine but thick, voluminous, and wavy. It's gone from shoulder-length to layered short to military sheared to long, longer, longer still to bob to mohawk and back to layered short. It's been bleached and dyed almost every color of the rainbow. The haircut I have now—which I got by pointing to a picture of Rihanna in a crappy fashion magazine and telling the stylist that I want it to actually be short—is the first haircut that I've been really happy with. In terms of bathing and shampooing, I realize in retrospect that I didn't start showering and shampooing daily until my junior year in high school. And since then, not surprisingly, it seems like my hair gets greasier much faster than it ever used to.
Adapting to a "no 'poo" lifestyle is something that a lot of people give up before reaching their goal. Since the glands in your scalp are used to overproducing sebum that you would usually wash away with shampoo, most people experience what "no 'pooers" refer to as a "detox" period, which is just a loaded name for a transition period. During this time, which seems to vary from person to person, your hair is greasy and unattractive. People formulate different methods to keep it from smelling, from getting overly greasy or dry, and it seems as though there's a lot of trial-and-error before a miraculous and natural balance is established on your head. But people who've made it work promise that your hair will feel and look great if you can tolerate this gross period.
At the date of this posting, I have gone a week and two days without shampoo. I was on spring break when this all started. Since my last shampoo two Tuesdays ago, I have experimented a little with the standard washing and conditioning method that you'll find all over "no 'poo" discussion boards: washing with diluted baking soda and rinsing with diluted apple cider vinegar (both in a ratio of one tablespoon to a cup of water). My hair was incredibly greasy by the time I got my hands on some baking soda three days after shampooing. I got into the shower, wet my hair, massaged the diluted baking soda into my scalp, rinsed it off, and followed with diluted rice vinegar, which was the only kind we had around. My hair felt great when each ingredient was in it, but when I rinsed them out, my hair became a wet, sticky, mat. I was worried that the process hadn't done anything. But once my hair air-dried completely, I realized both the baking soda and vinegar had done their duty. My hair was softer and fluffier than it ever was after being shampooed.
But this was only the beginning. Reading extensively about issues people were having with "no 'poo," I braced myself for battle. I returned to school two days after my initial baking soda, vinegar wash, carrying a sandwich baggie of baking soda. I worked in the dining hall on Monday evening and decided to wash my hair after the shift. It was far less greasy than it had become in the days after my final shampoo. I didn't have any vinegar, so I just used the baking soda. As expected, the results weren't as spectacular as they were with vinegar on a really greasy head. Rather than looking soft and fluffy, it looked weighed down and felt like it was covered with a waxy residue. I did the same thing on Wednesday with similar results.
Today, I finally got a chance to bike down to the grocery and pick up a big box of baking soda, a gallon of apple cider vinegar—which has a ton of other uses that I'll get to in another post—and lots of other heavy stuff. I was sweaty and gross after my strenuous bike ride back, so I figured it'd be an opportunity to try again with the vinegar rinse. The waxy residue is less extreme but didn't really go away.
Since being a little disappointed by what I expected to be a vinegar miracle, I've been looking around on the "no 'poo" LiveJournal community and now think that transitioning from shampoo to baking soda and vinegar to water-only rather than just dropping everything at once seems to only prolongs the process. People who have successfully transitioned to water only do occasional salt or baking soda washes and conditioning rinses depending on the state of their hair but don't have regular washes or rinses. Rather than changing things chemically, water-only washers do a lot of brushing, combing, and massaging, to physically distribute oils from root to shaft. They also use changes in water temperature to help alleviate greasiness and waxiness, which is something I've been playing around with anyway. (Again, for another post.)
Now that I think about it, my two muses didn't bother with baking soda, vinegar, tea, and other things. They just tolerated the greasiness while it lasted and celebrated when it was gone. I'm going to do some investigation of specifics and will report back.
This is much more complicated and experimental than anything else I'm attempting. I will be posting updates for a while.
Drain Your Nose
I read about nasal irrigation while researching menstrual cups. It seems like people who take the initial step of making one change in their personal care will likely find other ones that they want to try. I didn't actually start irrigating until the spring of 2008 because I was convinced that I needed to buy special equipment for it. Silly me-of-the-past. If only I knew then what I know now.
Unless you have chronic nasal congestion and are constantly popping Sudafed and blowing your nose, nasal irrigation won't replace a regular routine or product. But if, like me, you occasionally get stuffed up in the nose, it's a good, cheap, all-natural option. Your nostril cavities meet under your nasal bone at a mucus membrane. Proper nasal irrigation drains mucus and debris from your nasal cavity and moistens that membrane. A cleansed nasal cavity makes for better nasal breathing, so if you know a serious yogi, then you've probably heard about this.
The technique is simple. Fill a "neti pot"—which looks like the lamp from Aladdin—with a warm saline solution, lean over a sink, stick the spout into one nostril, tilt your head so the spout-plugged nostril is higher than the other, and pour. Repeat on the opposite side. Blow your nose.
It's easy to do and if you aren't all clogged up, you can breath through your nose, which, as the best yogis know, is far better for you than mouth breathing. (I'll be addressing this issue on its own in another post.)
I struggled at first to get the right salinity and temperature. If the water's too cold or too warm, it's really, really unpleasant and probably not very good that delicate membrane. Same goes for having too much or too little salt. According to the Wikipedia article on this, a solution of 9% salt is standard. (Note: Don't try pouring water through your nose if you don't have salt. Using water alone stings and will dry out the membrane in your nose. My neti pot arrived in the mail before I got a chance to buy salt and I couldn't wait try it out. Dumb, I know. Getting to the grocery store requires considerable effort when you live on an isolated campus and eat in a dining hall.)
The main reason it took me a while to start nasal irrigation is because I wasn't excited about buying a neti pot. I eventually bought the Himalayan Institute's overpriced plastic one on eBay for much less than the $30 they sell it for, but in retrospect, a teapot that no one uses would probably work just as well. I assumed that the official product was somehow special. It's not.
I don't irrigate regularly, but the process lessens the buzz-kill of nasal congestion, whether that's a problem you have often or occasionally.
Unless you have chronic nasal congestion and are constantly popping Sudafed and blowing your nose, nasal irrigation won't replace a regular routine or product. But if, like me, you occasionally get stuffed up in the nose, it's a good, cheap, all-natural option. Your nostril cavities meet under your nasal bone at a mucus membrane. Proper nasal irrigation drains mucus and debris from your nasal cavity and moistens that membrane. A cleansed nasal cavity makes for better nasal breathing, so if you know a serious yogi, then you've probably heard about this.
The technique is simple. Fill a "neti pot"—which looks like the lamp from Aladdin—with a warm saline solution, lean over a sink, stick the spout into one nostril, tilt your head so the spout-plugged nostril is higher than the other, and pour. Repeat on the opposite side. Blow your nose.
It's easy to do and if you aren't all clogged up, you can breath through your nose, which, as the best yogis know, is far better for you than mouth breathing. (I'll be addressing this issue on its own in another post.)
I struggled at first to get the right salinity and temperature. If the water's too cold or too warm, it's really, really unpleasant and probably not very good that delicate membrane. Same goes for having too much or too little salt. According to the Wikipedia article on this, a solution of 9% salt is standard. (Note: Don't try pouring water through your nose if you don't have salt. Using water alone stings and will dry out the membrane in your nose. My neti pot arrived in the mail before I got a chance to buy salt and I couldn't wait try it out. Dumb, I know. Getting to the grocery store requires considerable effort when you live on an isolated campus and eat in a dining hall.)
The main reason it took me a while to start nasal irrigation is because I wasn't excited about buying a neti pot. I eventually bought the Himalayan Institute's overpriced plastic one on eBay for much less than the $30 they sell it for, but in retrospect, a teapot that no one uses would probably work just as well. I assumed that the official product was somehow special. It's not.
I don't irrigate regularly, but the process lessens the buzz-kill of nasal congestion, whether that's a problem you have often or occasionally.
March 18, 2009
The Cup That Started It All
This post will benefit ladies only. If you don't have a vagina but have a lady-friend with menstrual problems, I invite you to read on.
People don't generally make small talk about how they deal with the menstrual menace. It is, after all, an unsavory topic. For generations, mothers and older sisters have quietly instructed blossoming young ladies about how to deal with this monthly occurrence. Typically, these instructions come with a sack of sanitary pads or a box of tampons. When my thirteen-year-old uterus decided it was ready to make babies, I was directed towards pads by an aunt, used them for a while, and then out of curiosity decided to give tampons a try. Unfortunately, a single attempt triggered my first wave of menstrual cramps. The whole experience turned me back to pads, which, as many people know have problems of their own: leaks, smells, discomfort, etc.
During my senior year of high school, I stumbled upon a LiveJournal community dedicated to menstrual cups. I looked at the websites of four-or-so menstrual cup manufacturers and found all sorts of reasons to buy one. On average, a woman spends upwards of $50 on feminine hygiene products per year for approximately forty years. At around $30, a menstrual cup pays for itself in less than a year. The ones made of medical-grade silicone are non-porous, meaning they won't harbor bacteria or viruses and can be sanitized by boiling. Tampons and pads are made of synthetic materials that will never, ever decompose, and contain chemicals that you don't want in and around your vag-hole or in landfills and water systems. So not only is a menstrual cup a money-saver, it is also better for your body and for the environment. Here are some visual comparisons (from the manufacturers of the Keeper), and a comparison chart and compelling advertisement (from the manufacturers of the Miacup). None of the data seems to match up, but you get the idea.
How do these things work? The bell-shaped cup is "folded," inserted into the vag-hole and pops open and into place just beyond the pelvic bone–the ridge at the front of the vaginal canal. (Here's a diagram.) Since the cup isn't absorbent like a tampon, it can be safely worn when you're anticipating your period but not actually menstruating, which takes away the anxiety of being unprepared for blood; say, in an airplane, on a dinner date, or at a concert. And when you start menstruating, you empty the cup as often as you need to by pulling it out, dumping the contents into the toilet, rinsing or wiping it off, and reinserting it. I have never had to empty my cup more than three times in one day. The only guideline that manufacturers give is to not leave it in for more than twelve hours, only because you'll forget where you put it if you do. Silicone softens as it warms, so when it's inserted properly, you can't feel the cup and you're free to swim, do extreme sports, go camping, and travel far and wide without wasting space in your suitcase.
The downside? I could tell by a lot of the posts in the LiveJournal community that using the menstrual cup takes a lot of patience and effort to get used to. It's especially hard for people who aren't familiar with their own genitals, but if that's the case, it gives you an opportunity to familiarize yourself. Women who made it work were confident that they would never go back to pre-cup products and routines.
I decided to buy the DivaCup—a silicone cup manufactured in Canada that seemed to be getting good reviews—the summer before I went to college. It definitely took a few cycles to find a method that worked well for me, but practice and patience were key. The LiveJournal provided a lot of helpful advice. Proper insertion was the hardest part of the process to master. Sometimes the top of the cup doesn't open fully. Other times, the cup creates a vacuum. When it doesn't work, you just have to take it out and try again. But remember, you can practice even if you're not menstruating.
The trick with insertion is finding the right folding technique. The fold you choose changes the ease of insertion and expansion once it's inserted. This illustrated page of various folding techniques is probably the most useful post in the entire LiveJournal menstrual cup community. I use the origami fold, inserting the cup with the folded side down/back and it usually works on the first try.
I haven't completely eliminated other feminine hygiene products from my life. For the first few days of each period, I us a panty liner for back-up. It adds up to about three panty liners a month: No big deal. If you're feeling more extreme, you can buy or make a few washable liners. I haven't ventured into that territory... yet.
An important thing to consider when deciding what menstrual cup to buy: Some cups, like the Keeper, are made of natural gum rubber. Natural rubber (latex) is a porous material and can harbor bacteria and viruses. They can increase the likelihood of yeast infections and other nasty thangs in your 'tang. There are also people with latex allergies. As a general rule, when it comes to genitals, always go with non-porous materials like silicone or, in other situaitons, glass and metal.
Also, some manufacturers will allow you to return the product within a certain time frame. The DivaCup used to have a policy like this, but doesn't any more. The manufacturers of Miacup, however, will let you return a cup bought on their website within six months if you decide a cup isn't working for you.
I got my period on vacation last winter when I wasn't expecting it and had to spend two days without my menstrual cup. It was hell. I had forgotten how much of a hassle menstruating is without my money-saving, environmentally friendly pal.
I highly recommend giving menstrual cups a chance and making this investment for the sake of your wallet, the environment, and most importantly, your own comfort and well-being.
People don't generally make small talk about how they deal with the menstrual menace. It is, after all, an unsavory topic. For generations, mothers and older sisters have quietly instructed blossoming young ladies about how to deal with this monthly occurrence. Typically, these instructions come with a sack of sanitary pads or a box of tampons. When my thirteen-year-old uterus decided it was ready to make babies, I was directed towards pads by an aunt, used them for a while, and then out of curiosity decided to give tampons a try. Unfortunately, a single attempt triggered my first wave of menstrual cramps. The whole experience turned me back to pads, which, as many people know have problems of their own: leaks, smells, discomfort, etc.
During my senior year of high school, I stumbled upon a LiveJournal community dedicated to menstrual cups. I looked at the websites of four-or-so menstrual cup manufacturers and found all sorts of reasons to buy one. On average, a woman spends upwards of $50 on feminine hygiene products per year for approximately forty years. At around $30, a menstrual cup pays for itself in less than a year. The ones made of medical-grade silicone are non-porous, meaning they won't harbor bacteria or viruses and can be sanitized by boiling. Tampons and pads are made of synthetic materials that will never, ever decompose, and contain chemicals that you don't want in and around your vag-hole or in landfills and water systems. So not only is a menstrual cup a money-saver, it is also better for your body and for the environment. Here are some visual comparisons (from the manufacturers of the Keeper), and a comparison chart and compelling advertisement (from the manufacturers of the Miacup). None of the data seems to match up, but you get the idea.
How do these things work? The bell-shaped cup is "folded," inserted into the vag-hole and pops open and into place just beyond the pelvic bone–the ridge at the front of the vaginal canal. (Here's a diagram.) Since the cup isn't absorbent like a tampon, it can be safely worn when you're anticipating your period but not actually menstruating, which takes away the anxiety of being unprepared for blood; say, in an airplane, on a dinner date, or at a concert. And when you start menstruating, you empty the cup as often as you need to by pulling it out, dumping the contents into the toilet, rinsing or wiping it off, and reinserting it. I have never had to empty my cup more than three times in one day. The only guideline that manufacturers give is to not leave it in for more than twelve hours, only because you'll forget where you put it if you do. Silicone softens as it warms, so when it's inserted properly, you can't feel the cup and you're free to swim, do extreme sports, go camping, and travel far and wide without wasting space in your suitcase.
The downside? I could tell by a lot of the posts in the LiveJournal community that using the menstrual cup takes a lot of patience and effort to get used to. It's especially hard for people who aren't familiar with their own genitals, but if that's the case, it gives you an opportunity to familiarize yourself. Women who made it work were confident that they would never go back to pre-cup products and routines.
I decided to buy the DivaCup—a silicone cup manufactured in Canada that seemed to be getting good reviews—the summer before I went to college. It definitely took a few cycles to find a method that worked well for me, but practice and patience were key. The LiveJournal provided a lot of helpful advice. Proper insertion was the hardest part of the process to master. Sometimes the top of the cup doesn't open fully. Other times, the cup creates a vacuum. When it doesn't work, you just have to take it out and try again. But remember, you can practice even if you're not menstruating.
The trick with insertion is finding the right folding technique. The fold you choose changes the ease of insertion and expansion once it's inserted. This illustrated page of various folding techniques is probably the most useful post in the entire LiveJournal menstrual cup community. I use the origami fold, inserting the cup with the folded side down/back and it usually works on the first try.
I haven't completely eliminated other feminine hygiene products from my life. For the first few days of each period, I us a panty liner for back-up. It adds up to about three panty liners a month: No big deal. If you're feeling more extreme, you can buy or make a few washable liners. I haven't ventured into that territory... yet.
An important thing to consider when deciding what menstrual cup to buy: Some cups, like the Keeper, are made of natural gum rubber. Natural rubber (latex) is a porous material and can harbor bacteria and viruses. They can increase the likelihood of yeast infections and other nasty thangs in your 'tang. There are also people with latex allergies. As a general rule, when it comes to genitals, always go with non-porous materials like silicone or, in other situaitons, glass and metal.
Also, some manufacturers will allow you to return the product within a certain time frame. The DivaCup used to have a policy like this, but doesn't any more. The manufacturers of Miacup, however, will let you return a cup bought on their website within six months if you decide a cup isn't working for you.
I got my period on vacation last winter when I wasn't expecting it and had to spend two days without my menstrual cup. It was hell. I had forgotten how much of a hassle menstruating is without my money-saving, environmentally friendly pal.
I highly recommend giving menstrual cups a chance and making this investment for the sake of your wallet, the environment, and most importantly, your own comfort and well-being.
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