What Happens When You Stop Washing Your Hair

I'm the first person to admit, no matter how gross it sounds, that I don't wash my hair very often. Part of this is laziness, while the other part of this is that my hair is long and takes for-freaking-ever to air dry or style. There's also the part about how not washing it seems to make my hair healthier. And if it ain't broke, don't fix it, right? While I've been doing this for several years, if you suddenly stop lathering up on the regs, you're definitely going to notice some things that happen when you stop washing your hair. So if you're ready to make a change for the lazier, then you might want to prepare yourself for what could happen.

First things first — I'm not going to say that it's better or worse for you to not wash your hair every day — I'm just saying it's better for me. Because I have wavy hair (and wavy/curly hair tends to naturally be drier than straight hair), my hair needs the extra, natural oil it gets from going longer between washes. The best thing I can advise to figure out what works for your hair is just simple trial and error. Go a few extra days longer than normal, or even a week between washes, and see if it's better or worse. Whatever your outcome, be prepared for these eight things to happen when you don't wash as frequently.

1. You Will Become Obsessed With Dry Shampoo

Klorane Dry Shampoo with Oat Milk, $20, Amazon

If you don't know what it feels like to be seriously dependent on a beauty product, you're about to.

2. It Will Be Easier To Style

Remington Studio Salon Ceramic Curling Wand, $25, Amazon

You know how you always go to the hair salon with dirty hair the day of an event? Yeah — that's because dirty hair styles better. If you stop washing, you'll probably notice that your hair will hold curls better.

3. It Will Feel Greasier...At First

It's going to feel dirty, that's inevitable. But eventually, your hair will adapt and stop producing as much oil. And then it will feel healthy, shiny, and moisturized!

4. You'll Start To Experiment With Other Hairstyles

If you want to go more days between shampoos, you aren't going to wear it down every single day.

5. You'll Have Less Split Ends

You aren't roughing up your hair cuticles by washing so frequently, so say goodbye to split ends.

6. Your Hair Will Have More Body

Shampoo strips your hair of its natural oil, which reduces thickness and body. If you want your hair to bounce and look "voluminous" and all that jazz, breakup with your daily shampoo and see what happens.

7. Your Color Will Last Longer

The more you wash, the more color fades.

8. Washing Your Hair Will Seem Like A Chore

If you're used to washing your hair every day, it's probably second-nature to you, but if you stop washing as frequently, you'll realize how much time you're saving. The result? You're going to want to try to go even longer between washes. Luckily, here are some tips to help you go a week+ without washing your hair.

Want more beauty tips? Check out the video below, and be sure to subscribe to Bustle’s YouTube page for more hacks and tricks!

Images: ChrisJoelCampbell/Unsplash; Piotr Marcinski/Flickr; Unsplash; Pexels; Sephora