Has anyone had to deal with something like this? It’s so awful!! I have [B]very[/B] thick longish hair, and this past weekend (in the middle of a record breaking temperature August):hot:, hubby and I were outside doing a [U]LOT[/U] of manual labor. I had the hair in a pony with a cap on. Of course I was wringing wet when I went in to take a shower. A few days later, I notice my scalp itching and burning like crazy. I had hubby look last night and he says there is a rash. The only thing I can think of is from the heat. Does anyone have any suggestions? I can’t really use any powder or cream, because I can’t get it to my scalp. I will get some medicated shampoo, if that might help, but wasn’t sure what to try…
Guys have it so easy. If I was a guy, I would just shave my head!! Or, even if I was a woman who would look cool with a shaven head, I would still do it. This is miserable!!! And it’s torture to not scratch constantly, but who wants to be clawing at their head in public?
Given there also many have been humidity, despite the flaking you may have the beginnings of a fungal issue. A friend of mine had everything you describe (small flakes also) but had to use a preparation for fungal skin problems - it was a liquid and was a shampoo. I would talk to your chemist or druggist about a suitable product. Others may know brandnames there for this sort of thing. A medicated shampoo as such could be too harsh because of the alcohol base that exists in many of them.
Oh…just remembered…do you have this product there?
Ketoconazole shampoo? This works v. well on fungal issues but will not do a jot if its isn’t fungal. I would again ask my chemist to look and ask if s/he thinks Ketoconazole or similar topical preparation would be suitable.
If you hadn’t had a cap on I would have thought sunburn btw.
In Canada, the shampoo you might need is called Nizoral. I think in the US, it might be marketed as Nixoral.
I used it on my guinea pig a while back when one of them had some skin issues. It does the trick, but it’s not super harsh. It will sting a bit if you have scratched open any of the rashy bits though. (It is a people shampoo though, and not a pet shampoo.)
Definitely talk to the pharmacist to see if that’s the right stuff. I’m pretty sure that’s what you want for a fungal issue though.
Nizoral is the shampoo I found when I searched on the ingredient Susan P. mentioned. I’ll probably get some this evening…
So, you haven’t had any experience with it on your own head, huh? How’s the odor? Some of these things smell like flea dip!!
I’m not convinced it is fungal, because it really seems to be better today than yesterday. When I finally realized I had to stop scratching, it seems to have eased off some.
I hope it isn’t fungal, but if it persists, I will see the doctor. Yuck…a fungus among us…
I get this all the time with my thick hair and propensity for wearing ball caps - I just use neutragena T-gel and let it sit on my hair in the shower for a few minutes (it tingles) and then rinse and condition. I also have a “tonic” that was given to my by the girl that cuts my hair and I rub it into the back of my scalp once a week during the summer and it works wonders.
I wonder how a tea tree oil shampoo would work? I know tea tree oil is an antiseptic/antifungal. Paul Mitchell makes a shampoo with it in it. My hubby uses it and I use it occasionally. It tingles and smells nice too.
I never noticed any particular odor with the shampoo when I used it on my guinea pig. She came out of the bath super soft though.
Is there any chance you might have been having an allergic reaction to something? Some kind of pollen or tree/shrub or even a bug? It would be easy to come into contact with anything while outside and doing yard work or manual labor. Maybe an anti-histamine might help with the itching, if it is an allergic reaction.
Thanks to everyone for your input…I actually bought the Neutrogena t-gel. The Nizoral specifically said not to use on irritated skin, so I didn’t want to take any chances. I think after one shampoo, it is better. Of course, I have to be out in the heat again this weekend. I’ll be sure to shampoo promptly with the t-gel and maybe I won’t have the same reaction…again, thanks to you all!!
Oh yeah! I learned that the hard way when I put pure tea tree oil on a zit. It got rid of the zit and dang near burned a hole in my face too.
The Paul Mitchell stuff is pretty mellow though, but if you have sensitive skin it might bother you.
At any rate, hope the heat rash clears up, that stuff is miserable.
Susan, thanks for the suggestion about the ventilated hat - I was actually just thinking of wearing a sweat band since I’ll be mostly in the shade anyway.
Stitchwitch - thanks for your well wishes!! Once I get over this, I’m sure I will be much more careful in the future!!!
And it’s torture to not scratch constantly, but who wants to be clawing at their head in public?