Self-care is usually focused on your skin. Think about all the products you invest in to make it clear and glowing. You have your exfoliating scrub, moisturizer, essence, serum, and sunscreen. That’s not to mention the numerous professional treatments you get monthly. The same applies to your strands. Women are especially notorious for trying out hair products and treatments to get that long, lush hair worthy of a magazine cover.
But what about your scalp? For many people, the most it gets is a quick lather and rinse, and sometimes its issues are just left to resolve themselves on their own. What most people don’t know but must learn to embrace is an unhappy scalp leads to unhappy hair. If you want truly healthy hair, the only way to achieve it is to start taking care of your scalp.
PMS-ing? It’s Not the Time for Treatments
There’s a reason it’s always a good idea to keep a calendar of your monthly flow. It’s easier to anticipate the hormonal changes that come with ovulating and then menstruating, which has a huge impact on how a woman feels and performs menial tasks. While there are things you shouldn’t be doing on the days of your period, there are also things you should avoid before it. When you feel that your PMS symptoms are popping up one by one, it’s a sign that you should reschedule hair treatments. The relaxers, perms, and color services you’ve been looking forward to are best done once your PMS ends to prevent bruising.
Experts also recommend deep conditioning your hair at least a day before your salon appointment. This keeps your scalp’s pH in check to avoid issues arising due to grease and dandruff. The same is true if you DIY your haircuts and coloring. Set aside your expensive coloring products and impressive new shears. You’ll be in better health to perform them once your PMS symptoms fade.
When Was the Last Time You Exfoliated?
It’s a strange concept for some, but scalp exfoliation is a real thing you have to do to keep it healthy. Similar to how the skin on your face and body benefits from a scrub, your scalp, too, will look and feel better after having one. You can buy products for this purpose or add sugar to the shampoo you already use. A couple of spoonfuls should do to remove the dead skin cells from your scalp. Instead of your fingernails, use your finger pads to rub the solution around the roots of your hair. You don’t want to accidentally hurt yourself and form scabs.
Consider Taking Supplements
Your hair and scalp need vitamins to achieve optimum health. You’ll want a multivitamin that will give you a good dose of Vitamins A to E to experience the benefits. Boosting your intake of these will improve your hair’s texture and shine, prevent brittle hair, enhance follicle health, and encourage natural growth.
Supplement these by taking Omega-3 fatty foods, zinc, iron, and additional minerals that you can get from supplements and the food you eat. Make sure to consult your doctor first, though, to ensure that you’ll experience no complication with the brands you intend to use or side effects due to existing conditions.
Rethink Your Diet
That’s right. A bad diet isn’t skipping any organ or body part when making its effects known. Sometimes, your scalp and hair problems are direct results of the food you eat. That dry scalp you hate could be triggered by an insufficiency of omega-3 in your system. Vegans are at risk of not getting enough iron and protein, so if you’re one, you’ll want to research food options available to you that will solve this problem.
Have You Ever Conditioned Your Scalp?
There’s a misconception going around about how conditioner can weigh down hair or clog pores when used on the scalp. While it’s not entirely false, it’s mostly dependent on the type of conditioner you use. Opt for brands that are noncomedogenic so that they don’t block your pores when you massage them on your scalp. Treat it like you would the skin on your face. Just as it needs moisturizer, your scalp does, too, to stay hydrated to do its job.
Changes that Count
Now that you know these things, the only thing left to do is incorporate them into your daily routine. Making changes that count could feel overwhelming at first, but once you get the hang of them, they become second nature. It’s guaranteed that you won’t regret making this much effort for your scalp once you see just how much better your hair is turning out to be.
