No Shampoo Since Last Year

This is so unlike me. I typically shampoo my locs every two weeks, but sometimes life be life’n. And already in 2022, life is trying to take over habits that I know serve me well. It has officially been 3 weeks and 6 days since my last shampoo and I refuse to say 4 weeks. That means I have some serious life decisions to make. But first let me tell you how I ended up here— less than 24 hours away from “a month since my last shampoo”.

No Shampoo Since Last Year…

The last time I shampooed my hair it was in December— when I refreshed my hair color. During that shampoo session, my sister stepped in to help me. She applied my hair color and rinsed it out AND shampooed my hair— it was wonderful! Much like when you have someone else clean your house, why would I then choose to do manual house labor?! And yet, there is no regular Loctician or replacement to shampoo my hair. Just me. But for some reason it felt like if I waited long enough someone would come to save me from the task. Spoiler Alert: they never came. The reality is that I purposefully mark on my monthly calendar when I shampooed my hair and when it’s shampoo time again. This helps to hold me accountable. Since I am a visual type of person, seeing it hanging on my bathroom wall every day is the gentle reminder I need.

Where did the time go?

Now let’s fast forward to the part where the gentle reminder turns into a reality check. When I took that check to the bank I earned a valuable lesson. I learned that when your practice involves a PRINTED wall calendar you should order a new one at the beginning of the month, NOT December 31st— to maintain said practice and commitment. Who would have thunk it?! Many people I’m sure, but this self-inflicted accountability is a new space I am growing into. I’m at a point in my life where I am aware of how keeping commitments to myself is one way that I show respect for myself. How can I expect other people to uphold commitments to me, or to themselves, if I don’t also practice and show self respect?!

So, if you’re like me, and your life be life’n sometimes too, I encourage you to build a practice that fits into your lifestyle and by default will hold you accountable. For me, that looks like shampooing every two weeks, because my scalp and hair deserve the cleansing, but also marking it on my calendar so I don’t forget or find myself at 3 weeks and 6 days wondering what happened with my life. With that said, I am going to go shampoo my hair now. I’m also going to try a new hair style (yikes!) —wish me luck!

In the comments, let me know how you keep yourself accountable for regular shampoo sessions!

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Jocelyn Reneé

Jocelyn Reneé is a Licensed Cosmetologist, Loctician and Textured Hair Educator. She was born and raised in the Washington DC area and is a graduate of the Aveda Institute Cosmetology Science program. With over 14 years in the Hair Care Industry, from Salon Assistant to Natural Hair Blogger to Professional; Jocelyn is passionate about cultivating healthy hair.

Blog Comments

Great post! Prioritizing that self care is so important. You had mentioned on your live not to compromise health for a style (maintaining color) so I will adopt the washing every two weeks as well. Happy New Year!!

Thank you for reading the article! And yes, prioritize your scalp health! And regarding the fading of the color (depending on which brand you use) I have found that leaving the color on for a few hours instead of 30-45 minutes allows the pigment to last a little longer through the frequent cleansings.

That’s good to know. I plan to put it on before I head in for my next interlock retie, which includes a wash, that way I can kill two birds with one stone. I have some disposable shower caps that will help with that purpose. Good to know leaving semi permanent on longer won’t hurt my locs.

I try to mentally keep track of whether I didn’t wash my hair last weekend. This usually keeps me on track, but, sometimes life be life’n and I get off track by a week or two.

LOL! Yeah its those times when a week or 2 turns to 4 that makes me question my mental capacity lol

I wash every 2 weeks it’s easier to keep that commitment because I’m retired. I have time to now to focus alot more on myself.

YES! YES! YES! I love to hear it, focusing on self is so necessary!

I have worn the locs hair style for fifteen years & use my calendar to note my Shampoo Dates. So happy with my hair & hairstyle!

Yes, tracking it on the calendar is a true life hack!

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