Hair dye irritation

[~landgirl~]

Hi all

I usually have my hair coloured in the salon with a semi but recently bought some schwartzkopf igora (permanent) and mixed it myself at home and applied. Couple of days later I developed a headache which I still have and the itchiest scalp ever! There is no visible irritation there, no scabby head or dandruff - it looks 100% healthy but SOOOOOO itchy! My dad reckons it may be the PPD that is in dark hair dye so I am wondering if this chemical may still be present in my hair a week later, and if so then how to get it out? Anyone got any tips??
I really regret dying it now, I want this colour out

 

[Polka Dot]

Hey Landgirl,

Yikes, that sounds painful. I've always heard that if you make a big error with hairdye to wash your hair with dishwashing soap. I don't want to tell you to do that, because you've got a skin reaction and the harsh detergents could make it worse. Honestly, I'd try to get in to see a dermatologist. And maybe take some Benadryl, because it seems to be an allergic reaction--the worst Benadryl would do to you is make you sleepy.

Good luck! Let us know how it goes.

-- Polka Dot.

 

[Nashoba]

I have had problems in the past with irritation but it always went away within a couple of hours. I would agree with Polka Dot, a dermatologist is probably your best bet. Let us know how you are

 

[~landgirl~]

I went to the doctor on tuesday and she has referred me on to the neurologist at the hospital (because of the sudden headaches), but i have to wait for them to write to me with an appointment. I know you can get neurotoxicity, I guess if you think about using a nictotine patch and how it is absorbed into your blood stream, the same can be said for any chemical that you put on your head also. The pain is espcially bad at night but am dosed up on paracetamol at the moment so it's eased off, the itching is driving me mad! There is no irritation on my scalp, nothing to be seen at all. I am never going to dye my hair ever again

 

[Girl Friday]

That is horrible! was it a pre-packaged dye or was it professional? I used to have my license the worse thing I ever saw was someone's hair melt off she had relaxed her hair (permed) and then wanted it colored, the lye from the relaxer combined with the dye literally melted her hair, it was horrible.

I really hope you feel better!

 

[~landgirl~]

That is horrible! was it a pre-packaged dye or was it professional? I used to have my license the worse thing I ever saw was someone's hair melt off she had relaxed her hair (permed) and then wanted it colored, the lye from the relaxer combined with the dye literally melted her hair, it was horrible.

I really hope you feel better!

I bought the professional stuff of an e-bay store and mixed myself. Never used a permanent before and didn't do a strand test - but seeing as I didn't develop the headache and itchy scalp until 2 days later, I don't think the strand test would have worked anyway.

Can you recommend anything natural to just ease the itching? Like olive oil or something? There really is nothing on my scalp - doctor looked and it's not dry or flaky, it is just itchy with no real reason why. It must be that I have just absorbed a nasty chemical into my blood stream - I also have thrush (too much information?) but again - i think it is linked!

Chemicals/schmemicals - NEVER AGAIN!

 

[Girl Friday]

Olive oil is good for your hair and your scalp, the Greeks have been using it for years!

I have been using this stuff for in between hair coloring, http://www.johnfrieda.com/products/lcg/index.asp?section=lcg

My hair is dark and I am covering greys, and it works pretty good. I know there are a lot of semi-permenant colors you can buy at the drug store or grocery, Garnier makes one (not strong enough to color my greys though). I would stay away from the professional grade stuff especially not knowing how old it is. I once left a bottle or peroxide in the trunk of my car and my trunk caught fire...I guess it was some sort of chemical reaction.

 

[~landgirl~]

I might try some of that gloss next time - I currently use the John Fredia shampoos and conditioners anyway and think they are great!

Is there any way this permanent hair dye is coming out, other then me growing it out? I really want to get rid

 

[Girl Friday]

I seem to rememeber that baking powder helps with build up, adding it in when you shampoo and leaving it for about 10 to 20 minutes or so, I think it helps with hair color too, if it is too dark. I found this thread on another site, they mention mayonaise which is also a good conditioner for hair. http://talk.hairboutique.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=47434

I would definately leave the professional products to the pros and buy beauty products from stores where you know they haven't been tampered with.

Good luck, so sorry you had a bad experience

 

[Nashoba]

oh landgirl I hope you feel better! yet another reason why I won't ever dye my hair myself again....I'm still growing out the black and it's been 2 years....

 

[~landgirl~]

oh landgirl I hope you feel better! yet another reason why I won't ever dye my hair myself again....I'm still growing out the black and it's been 2 years....

What colour is your hair naturally? Mine is medium to dark brown and I dyed it the darkest brown, almost black. I am hoping it won't look to bad when growing it out!

I put some olive oil on my dry hair for 30 mins and then washed it out using herbal essences shampoo, I haven't conditioned or put any products on it so hopefully it will ease off tonight. I felt like ripping my hair out earlier, I will never forget this itchiness for as long as I live! I have asked my other half to bring some Piriton antihestimine home with him tonight too.

 

[mysterygal]

If you go to a good salon, normally, you don't run into this sort of problem. I had the root problem too, so promised my hubby I would go and get it done back to my natural haircolor (I got a bit carried away there for awhile with all those great colors to chose from )
For scalp irritation: I would also try getting vitamin E cream or buy some in the soft gels. Break open the soft gels and put on head...vitamiin E is great for this.

 

[Nashoba]

What colour is your hair naturally? Mine is medium to dark brown and I dyed it the darkest brown, almost black. I am hoping it won't look to bad when growing it out!

I put some olive oil on my dry hair for 30 mins and then washed it out using herbal essences shampoo, I haven't conditioned or put any products on it so hopefully it will ease off tonight. I felt like ripping my hair out earlier, I will never forget this itchiness for as long as I live! I have asked my other half to bring some Piriton antihestimine home with him tonight too.

My hair shifts colors. In the winter it is a dark brown almost black but I have red undertones so in the Spring and summer my hair lightens up considerably on it's one with auburn and red highlights. The last time that my husband deployed I decided that it was a good time to experiment and dyed it jet black. It didn't look half bad, I'm part american indian so it suited me, but after a couple of months it started looking a bit harsh as I lost my summer tan. It cost me $300 for a color correction and 8 hours at the Salon. I guess I'm a bit heavy handed Now if I want to dye my hair, I let someone else do it....someone who KNOWS what they're doing

 

[AllaboutEve]

Oh Landgirl! that sounds just horrible!! Please keep us posted on how you are feeling.

If it's any help you may find that using a shampoo that has no Sodium Laurel Sulphate or Sulphate of any kind in helps. I have never had a reaction to hair dye like the one you have described, but using normal shampoo literally burns my scalp as I have a sensitivity to the above ingredients.
Things like Herbal Essences may be aggravating the situation even more as they are pretty harsh on sensitive skin.
Like the other girls I don't want to give any definite advice as you would need to consult a dermatologist, but this is the shampoo that I use (the Tee Tree one)http://www.quinessence.com/ranges/hair_shampoos-163-1.htm and it is really cooling and soothing as it has peppermint in it, you would need to check with your doctor etc first though.

I really hope that you get better soon.

Did you contact the Ebay seller? It may be worthwhile letting them know incase there is a problem with the batch of product they have.

 

[~landgirl~]

Thank you for the link AllaboutEve! Do you use the conditioner too?

I usually use John Freida shampoo and condition, but even that has affected things now, so just nicked my boyfriends herbal essences as thought it was *kind of* natural!

 

[AllaboutEve]

Yes I do the conditioner is gorgeous my step daughter uses it too and raves about it!

 

[fortworthgal]

I've been coloring my hair at home for nearly 10 years now and the only issues I've ever had are when I chose a dye that was just too dark. I've never run into anything remotely like what you described.

 

[~landgirl~]

I just ordered both! Free delivery too which is great. I will check the ingrediants with the doc before using though. Thank you for the recommendation

 

[AllaboutEve]

No problem!
Let me know how you get on.
I wish you better soon.

 

[mysterygal]

Sebastian shampoos and conditioners are great as well. They also smell great. After using this product, it took no time before I could see a dramatic difference in how my hair looked and felt.