Every time I have my hair cut the stylist wants to know if I need any “product” today. No, I don’t. The reason used to be because I have allergies so I didn’t want to buy anything that sets them off. Now it’s because I no longer need those things because the following people convinced me to try doing without them.
“I haven’t used soap or shampoo anyplace on my body for six months, save hand washing in advance of food prep.” Richard posted on December 28th, 2009, on freetheanimal.com
“Having no water hook-ups, I bath in the ocean, fully clothe[d], without soap/etc, using the mineral rich sand to wash my skin and hair. I live on the beach, obviously.” Eelkat posted August 6, 2011, on rvnetwork.com
“I haven’t used shampoo in over four years…Going shampoo free allows us to just rinse or dampen our hair daily to pull a brush through it, and then do our no-poo routine [baking soda and apple cider vinegar] a few times a month. With no bubbles to rinse out, I use very little water even on my washing days.” Cherie posted on Jan 19, 2012, on Technomadia.com
I’m preparing to move back into a very tiny motorhome. It has not a lot of space nor a lot of weight capacity. My new motto is: Every ounce counts.
So I’ve been experimenting with using no soap or shampoo. I simply get in the shower and scrub myself with a soaking wet washcloth from the top of my head to the bottom of my feet. No need to rinse and no old soap buildup turning pink along the edges of the shower.
Here’s my picture shortly after my shower from day one of this experiment, January 20, 2012:
I felt clean and I think I looked clean.
And here’s one from today, February 17, 2012.
Still using no soap or shampoo nearly a month later. I still feel clean and think I look clean.
I do wash my hands with soap several times a day. No point in taking a chance on making myself sick. And I do still use deodorant. No point making my friends and family sick. 🙂
It turns out that body soap and shampoo are things marketers have taught us we need. In the future I will be saving money as well as space and weight in my RV.
And for those of you who noticed, yes, my hair is longer than I normally wear it. No, I haven’t decided to grow it out. I just haven’t decided to get it cut either. Which means no one has been pushing product at me for quite a while now.
Another advantage of not getting it cut is that I can now tuck it behind my ears.
Look how much skinnier that makes me look! 🙂
TTYL,
Linda
This is the first picture I have seen of you with your weight loss. I had to look twice to be sure it was you and not someone else. You look great…shampoo or no shampoo!
Looking good!!!
Linda,
It feels as if I’m missing something. I read the last post about visiting the RV show, but did not see that you were going back out on the road. Glad to hear it. I read the comment about the designityourself Sportmobile and somehow it didn’t sink in; my parents had a Sportmobile that they were very happy with. They are not gone (6 yrs) and we are still trying to get our home sold so we can get out there fulltime.
Like yourself I’ve gone poo-free and have been very happy with the new me. I use soda/vinegar about once a week and have been quite content with the way my hair feels and handles.
There is so much that marketers have convinced us we “need” — but just as the most basic concepts in a society do not even have words to talk about them — sometimes we are so accustomed to doing what we’ve always done that the idea we could do something differently never even enters our mind.
Learning to think new thoughts is always a challenge.
I
You look wonderful! I have trouble giving up my shampoo – I don’t use much (not much hair) but I still want to wash it. I watched a couple in a Class B wash their hair outside using the baking soda and vinegar.
You look fantastic, Linda …. no soap or no soap!!! Way to go, girl!
I’ve been soap and shampoo free now for about 5 months. My hair is actually easier to deal with, I don’t notice any dandruff like before, I don’t feel any dirtier, and I save a few bucks over the course of a month. I keep some handsoap and use deodorant when I expect to be in close quarters with other people. Beyond that, I’m seeing no need for all that smelly soapy stuff.
Capt. Fritter
I haven’t used shampoo in ages – not by conscious choice, but because there’s not much left to shampoo. I shower maybe once a week using Dr. Bronner’s but hadn’t given much thought to eliminating soap entirely. It certainly makes sense, though. Soap is really only necessary for grease and oil, and once we stop stripping the oils of our skin with soap on a daily basis (as most folks do) the oil situation self-regulates. I’ve noticed this is true with my infrequent (by most peoples’ standards) bathing. I think I may just take that next step and stop using soap unless actually necessary (been working with greas, oil, or paint or whatever that water alone just won’t remove). THANKS!
Will this be the rig that you travel solo in to avoid the next Minnesota winter? 🙂
Interesting. Soap and shampoo are not the only things that marketeers have imbued us with need. I think, for my Self, as with the consumption of such staples of The American Way of Life as meat, coffee, sodapop, designer jeans, and water usage, my present usage is way – way below the average. As it is I rarely use soap except when Iwash hands /before/ toilet or food, and when I shave and often I shave dry. So I think I’m doing pretty good. Perhaps I use more soap in my once-a-month laundry than my body uses between laundry times.
The point I would take issue with is the part about deodourant.
I should like to write that rather than making use of masking agents one need only shave pits and pubes and there will be no odour to rant about as it is the hair on those areas of the body which provide the substrate upon which happens the growth of the bacteria which produce the smell of human to which humans take such offense. Shaving dry once every 3-4 days is sufficient.
As it is also the dark moistness of pits and pubes under clothing which engenders such bacterial growth another alternative to deodourant is to not wear any clothing. Or at least wear only clothing that is lose and flowing and well ventilated.