I'm going ahead with the whole no 'poo thing. Under normal circumstances I would have washed my hair today but instead I gave it a rinse, so I suppose today counts as day 1. When it gets disgustingly greasy I'll get to grips with bicarbonate of soda and I might go to see if Holland and Barrett have any cider vinegar (though I'm not getting my hopes up since I live in one of the most un-healthfoody places in the country. In fact it's a wonder that our local one makes enough money to pay the rent, let alone make a profit).But why, I find myself wondering, do I want to ditch the shampoo? What's my motivation? You see I'm not really your typical crunchy attachment parent (if there is such a thing). I'm not really very crunchy at all. Well, maybe just a little bit.
I think different people do crunchy things for different reasons. Some, like the blogger Maman a Droit, have found that religion has led them to live more in harmony with nature. In her profile she explains:
I try to do things naturally 'cause I think that's the way God designed them to run, so I come to a lot of the same conclusions as my liberal sisters!
Others might be motivated by general respect for nature and concern about the impact humans have on the planet.
Personally, I think I come from a more scientific angle. I want to live in the manner that my body is biologically adapted for. I just think that my body was designed to work a certain way and I will feel mentally and physically better if I allow it to live in that way. Furthermore, I am instinctively thrifty and I love any opportunity to save money. Crunchiness and frugality seem to go hand in hand.
Speaking of hair in particular, I look around at the other hairy animals that inhabit this planet and they all seem to have lovely coats despite not lathering themselves with detergent every two days. I'm pretty sure that humans haven't been doing it for more than a few hundred years either. I have no doubt that human hair can look good without being drenched in harsh chemicals on a regular basis so goddamn it, I'm going to give it a go.
This train of thought has got me wondering what motivations other people have for doing crunchy things. What's your story?
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Hi There :) I think I'm a combination of all the aspects you mentioned. I think it's our responsibility to preserve, protect, and enjoy what God has given us- both our health and our environment. Our bodies are miraculous and capable of awesome things, like nursing our young with perfect nutrition. When our natural balance is upset, we end up having to work really hard to do what should come naturally. I'm just striving to stay balanced and protect what's around me. And when you do less, it's often cheaper, which doesn't hurt!
My motivation is that I'm a big hippie: I like to have my body and my surroundings be relatively "natural", I seek simplicity and joy in my life, and I'm a bit lazy. For instance, I switched to reusable menstrual products, cloth in the kitchen instead of paper towels, and bathroom cloth, because they're comfortable and enjoyable for me and mean there are less things for me to buy. I could make an environmental argument, but mostly they feel good and I don't like shopping! I stopped shaving my legs out of a desire to let my body be natural, but I love it because I'm lazy and don't want to shave.
Not using shampoo was similar. When I first heard the idea, I thought, "Oh, one more thing to cross off the to-do list and the shopping list!" Interestingly, then I got dreadlocks (just because I like the look) and now I wash my hair *way* more than I did before!
Science. And also I love the Earth.
I like living my life the way nature intended humans to live. Naturally. Although I still haven't tried the no 'poo thing. (I'm scared - also my hair looks really gross when it isn't washed at least every three days). I also think that God or the Universe made our bodies the way they are to be used the way they were intended and to be left alone. Like hello, why do so many people feel the need to wax off their public hair? Isn't it there for a reason? A friend of mine disclosed that the one time she shaved her pubic hair she ended up getting herpes and thinks if she left it she might have been protected. Same goes for underarm and leg hair. These days I choose to shave them but in the 20's I didn't. I changed my mind because I didn't like the way it looked but I do think it's likely supposed to be there to keep us warm.
Saving money. While I do love to shop (at yard sales and thrift stores mostly) I really hate to see money being frittered away on useless things like paper towels and bottled water. If I can get out of buying one of these non-fun items, I will save money AND feel good that it's better for the environment.
But the no-poo was because my hair never looked very good and was frizzy, and I thought I'd try to improve it. Plus it's cheap, like you said.
I have been poo free for 11 days now. Like you, there where a laundry list of reasons that led me to make the plunge. It seems that everyday is a struggle here in the beginning and every day the motive is different for staying the course.
Good Luck! I've been keeping a daily no poo log and I would love to hear how you fair day to day as well.
I'm crunchy for all the reasons you mention and more. Sometimes it's about the environment, and sometimes it's about health, or saving money, or reducing clutter, not buying into commercialism, trusting God's design, or simply that I just plain like it better.
I'm currently working on reducing my need to shower, and my reason is because it makes my life easier to not shower every day. I want to do no poo because I think it would be healthier for my hair, reduce my need to wash as often, and get more products out of my house. But mainly it is just to save myself some time.
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