Inositol: Month two

To repeat myself a bit:
Inositol or vitamin B8 or benosine monophosphate is no longer classified as a vitamin because it is synthesized by the human body, just like the other vitamin B's B4 (Adenine) and B7 (Biotin, also known as vitamin H).
It is necessary for hair growth to keep follicles healthy at the cellular level.

Inositol has showed beneficial effect in studies on dermotillomania and other OCD or anxiety issues.

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It has now been two months since I started taking inositol and as per the plan, I've been upping the dosage with 1 gram per week. Which means that as I write this, I'm taking 8 gram a day (4 x 2 gram).

And... Yes, I'm seeing an effect.
Definitely.

The last week or two, it has come to my attention that I have two kinds of picking:

• The conscious one: Something irritates or tickle my skin and when I move to scratch it, it turns into picking if I can get my fingers into something. 
• The unconscious one: I don't even know I'm picking because my attention is at something else. I don't even notice until I feel blood under my nails. 

The unconscious one is definitely the one I do the most: Maybe 90-95% of the picking happens like this.
My most common trigger for this behavior is when I'm trying to relax in a situation but I'm stressed or mentally occupied by something else. So I unconsciously pick to try to relax myself in the situation.

The last week or two, I haven't caught myself unconsciously picking. Like, at all.
If I do pick unconsciously, I don't pick to a point where I draw blood.

It might not sound dramatic to some of my dear readers, but this is an enormous difference to me. I've struggled with this for at least a decade, and inositol has really helped me.

So I'd like to officially recommend anyone who struggles with OCD and/or anxiety to give this a try.

New Nightblooming books coming out soon

The very awesome Melissa of Nightblooming garden is publishing not one, but two new books soon!

Rehabilitating Damaged Hair Naturally: A Guide is coming out on August 30th, 2016, so very soon.

Coloring Hair Naturally with Henna & Other Herbs: A Guide is coming out on September 27th, 2016

Definitely getting this one myself, probably, heheh...

Both books will be available on her the Nightblooming Etsy store.

Yoga for hair

The other day when I was rinsing conditioner out of my hair, it occurred to me that I was basically going through some yoga poses!
Of course mostly I will use my hands to scritch, massage and comb my hair while rinsing, so these aren't completely identical. But the realisation still made me smile.

Ardha Uttanasana

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This is usually the one I start off with: Bending forward, dumping my hair into the bath tub and using the shower head to rinse the length and scalp.
It's great for rinsing out the bulk of conditioner without getting wet all over, which can make me cold before I've gotten anywhere with the rinsing.

Uttanasana

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This is continued from the Ardha Uttanasana-pose above: I shift back and forth some to get to rinse the scalp and length.

Balasana

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When I get into the tub after rinsing the bulk of the conditioner out, I like having some water in the tub. I then switch back and forth between this position and sitting upright. It allows me to soak my hair in the water while using the flow of water to clean my scalp.
This is especially good for cassia-treatments where you want the bulk of grains out of your hair with as little rubbing and scrubbing as possible.

Marjaryasana

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When I'm sure my hair is getting close to clean, I start sitting up and using the flow of the water to gently roll my hair back. This makes excessive combing and handling unnecessary.
Hair is fragile and stretchy while wet, so making a habit out of limiting handling is a good thing!
You should always focus on cleaning your scalp, but not comb your wet hair unless it's necessary for tangles or shifting it from one pose to the other.

Sukhasana

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This is my final pose in the cleaning process: I like to sit back, relax and give my scalp the last bit of attention. Leftover product on my scalp can make me break out. I comb, scritch and massage the scalp. Then I let the water gently rinse my hair backwards to prepare to braid it or put it up after.