At this point, I'm getting a little annoyed with how my sensitive scalp is constantly preventing me from being "green" when it comes to my hair products. I was determined to solve this flair-up with natural methods. A friend reminded me that tea tree oil and olive oil are both great for scalps. I've tried a ton of "natural" and "organic" tea tree oil shampoos and they never work at all. However, I had some actual therapeutic grade Melaleuca Alternifolia (tea tree) oil from Young Living, and I always have olive oil.
Here's what I did.
Tea Tree & Olive Oil Mask
tea tree oil
olive oil
shower cap
I put a few drops of tea tree and a few drops of olive oil into my hands, rubbed them together, and massaged the mixture directly into my scalp in the affected areas. Since it absorbed rather rapidly, I re-applied multiple times to the same areas until they were saturated. I also dropped tea tree oil directly onto some of the more severe areas. I did a really good scalp massage with my fingertips. Then I covered my hair with a plastic shower cap and wore it for about an hour, possibly more. I actually fell asleep so I am not sure how long it was on.
I tried as best I could during the application of the oils to avoid getting the oils in my hair and focused on my scalp, but of course there was a good deal of oil in my hair. I have oily tendencies with my hair as it is, so I wanted to make sure all the oil was removed and my hair was still shiny and free of buildup. For this, I followed my regular hair washing and conditioning with an extra rinse with apple cider vinegar.
Apple Cider Vinegar Hair Rinse
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup water
I put this mixture into a plastic squirt-style water bottle so that I can squirt it directly onto the ends of my hair while I'm in the shower. I rinse the ACV out of my hair - there is a slight odor but it goes away shortly.
This treatment was super effective - my itchy scalp was gone, the flaking was gone, and I got several random compliments on my hair that day including "Wow, your hair looks really amazing" and "Your hair smells really good!" (from my husband).
If you're struggling with a sensitive scalp, I'd highly recommend this treatment. I did it again about 4 days later to continue healing whatever damage I'd done and it worked just as well. Of course, you know where you can buy the tea tree oil!
