Sticky / Oily / Greasy scalp?!?

[JerseyGirlNB]

I have an weird sticky substance in my hair that NOTHING will get rid of and it's extremely frustrating.  About a month ago i noticed after i got out of the shower and blow dried my hair that the hair at the crown of my head was very oily and sticky (but ONLY at the crown of my head). At first i thought i forgot to wash the conditioner out so the next night I scrubbed thoroughly, but once again the stickiness was still there.  Then i bought a few different brands of clarifying shampoo (thinking it was build-up) and still the same thing.  The oil is def coming from my scalp because at the same time that this happened I started breaking out with acne really bad.  I'm 27 years old and have not broken out this bad since puberty.  Very strange.  So i went to the extremes of trying baking soda, lemon juice, listerine, medicated shampoos, even dawn (for it's grease cutting abilities) and NOTHING gets this substance out of my hair.  It's driving me crazy to the point that i asked my dermatologist to put me on accutane to stop oil secretions.  Has anyone experienced this problem before, and if so, do you know of anything that will get my scalp back to normal.  PS - it has nothing to do with my diet, because i eat extremely healthy and always have.

[FSUChef]

Didn't read through all the posts so I am not sure if someone else posted this solution yet. The best and easiest method is mayonnaise mixed with a couple tablespoons of apple cider vinegar. Apply the mixture generously to hair and leave on for at least one hour. Rinse the salad dressing (come on this is too frustrating a problem not to laugh at it) from hair and then lather wet hair with Dawn and rinse out. No conditioner required. Let hair dry naturally and you'll find the stickiness is gone and your hair feels quite luxurious again. Do this treatment every time your hair gets sticky, otherwise wash and condition as you normally would in between treatments.  

As an aside, the Mayonnaise actually coats the hair with good protective natural fats and protein while the vinegar molecules bind to the sticky residue so once the hair is rinsed with water (oil and water naturally separate from one another just as oil and vinegar separate from one another) the vinegar (now bound with the sticky residue) washes off with the water leaving the fat (oil) molecules behind on the hair. This is why I follow with a quick Dawn lather and rinse because it cuts through the grease (fats and oils) without stripping or damaging the hair.

I apologize for the long response, but as a Chef, I decided to go at this hair issue that I have been dealing recently from a food science perspective. Like how would I get the stickiness out of calamari or okra. Anyway this method will actually be beneficial to your hair in the long run.

[Beret]

HERE'S THE CURE!!!
After much research I learned that this "issue" is called Cradle Cap. Most common in babies but adults can get it. It IS a fungus. It doesn't have anything to do with your personal hygiene. It occurs most often when we don't dry our hair out completely before we put it up in a ponytail or bun. Selsin Blue is the most recommended remedy followed by Paul Mitchell clarifying Shampoo. If neither of these work see a dermatologist. I have had it for four days now and finally get to start curing it. I will keep you all posted. Remember CRADLE CAP!!! Hope this helps some of you

[ellieg5]

It started a week ago for me! I've always prided myself in having healthy, shiny hair so imagine my shock when I woke up one morning to find my greasy hair stuck to my forehead. When the grease didn't go away after the third day I decided to switch to baby shampoo for a few washes to see if it would make a difference. Thankfully it did! I don't know what went wrong but I've been using Pantene every day for the past 4 months (I usually change shampoos every month) when this happened, so I will be steering clear of that! Baby shampoo from now on :-) thank you everyone for all your suggestions! This discussion thread helped so much, I would've gone crazy if my hair continued to be as greasy as it was!

[snbrandt]

Hey guys. So I just recently had this problem with the disgusting sticky scalp, and after reading these comments I was desperate and saw someone used dish soap. So, I reached for the Palmolive dish soap and scrubbed it into my scalp in the shower. Then I shampooed and conditioned as normal. I could not believe it...MY HAIR WAS BACK TO NORMAL! I was SO happy! Now I use dish soap everytime I shower, and my hair has never been softer. I highly recommend. Hope this helps! :)

[KAS_DE]

After reading everyone's posts and suggestions, I headed (no pun intended) to Walgreens and bought baby shampoo, Suave clarifying shampoo, their version of T-Gel Shampoo, tea tree oil, and apple cider vinegar. Can you tell I was determined?

There didn't seem to be a consensus on the specific order of products, but here's what I did last night: massaged a generous amount of tea tree oil into the yucky areas of my hair and scalp. Let sit for 5-10 minutes and rinse out. Soak affected area with the vinegar. Again, maybe 5 minutes (as others have said, don't let it drip in your eyes) and rinse. Then the T-Gel shampoo. Rinse and rinse some more. Here's when I had to stifle my gag reflex -- the smell was incredible. I covered my pillows with towels and went to bed with wet hair.

This morning, I repeated the vinegar step before showering. Then, in the shower, I used the Suave clarifying shampoo and quickly noticed that the lather was much, much richer and frothy than I've seen in a long time. Product or Progress, I'm not sure. After a thorough rinse, I shampoo'd again, with the baby shampoo. Good step, because it was a nice, neutral fragrance after all the stink. Last: Pantene conditioner everywhere but on the top of my head.

Even wet, my hair felt different: lighter and smoother. I blew it dry and then flat-ironed it (which I haven't been able to do lately, since it's accentuated the greasy patch) and it came out very, very nice. I wouldn't say it's 100%, but I suspect only I would notice. I think I'll repeat this whole thing in a couple of days to get it "all the way."

Thank you to everyone who posted their history and help. I really was beginning to think I was losing my mind. (48 y.o., straight hair, some grays)

[kcarolhxw]

***SOLUTION THAT WORKS FOR ME***

1. Melt 1-2 tablespoons of coconut oil in microwave in small cup.
2. Pour melted coconut oil onto crown and top of head, and massage into roots (WARNING: make sure the coconut oil isn't too hot!!)
3. Shampoo vigorously at roots, where oil is applied, then rinse.
4. Repeat shampoo to ensure all coconut oil has been washed out.
5. Condition if desired.

For me, the greasy/sticky roots came on suddenly and I tried many things on this thread. This finally worked for me, and I do this whenever I see it coming back.