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.

[Mishymichy]

My hair type: thick, wavy, long, healthy.

Hair Care: wash every other day mostly. have been using pantene dandruff shampoo for about 6 months or more. Don't always style and mostly let hair hair dry. I use lo real vive conditioner at tips and occasionally use fructise hair anti friz serum. But for the most part product free hair. Weekends I curl or straighten.

I recently started experiencing a sticky patch of hair myself and thought I was loosing my mind! On December 4 or so, I washed my hair, put no product in and went to get acupuncture. When I got home and put my hair down I noticed a sticky patch near the spot where a needle had been placed so I assumed the acupuncturist left some product in. The next morning I was my hair out 2 times and its still sticky. Call acupunturist they say they never use anything other than alcohol to wipe area. At this point I'd been trying acupuncture for about 2 months. I'm not on bc and I would say I'm a little stressed, but not much more than usual.

After washing hair out and unable to figure out what was up, called my stylist friend and she suggested dish washing liquid soap applied only on patch. Used generic soap and was still sticky. Went in to see her and she used tree oil to get it out. My hair was back to normal until yesterday. It's not as bad as it was the first time but its completely weird! Will go buy tree oil tomorrow. I will also state that I believe it's an overact ice sebum glad. http://hair.lovetoknow.com/Hair_Follicles_Clogged_by_Sebum and if this continues I will visit my dermatologist bc I've never experienced this until now. I'm 32 and trying to conceive if that helps anyone compiling data. I may also see an endocrinologist if this worsens. It's very weird and I want to fix this. I'm happy I found this page!

[liz898]

Same as all of you girls, I freaked out for so many weeks over my greasy hair because i thought i would have to live with it forever.

When i was a teenger, i used to always abuse my hair with dye chemical, bleach and straightening chemical so my scalp would get really dry and flaky. Hence my shampoo was always either Clear or Head and Shoulders for years and years ( I don't have dandruff anymore ) . And i think that was the cause, the shampoo was too harsh for my ( now healthier ) scalp and thats what ( i think ) caused the oil gland to go crazy...

Thank God i found this blog, i read so many similar stories and feel so relived that i am not alone.
I tried the Listerine trick but that didn't completely help, it burnt my scalp and was bad for my hair. So i was planning to buy Baby Shampoo and Apple Cider Vinegar but then i came across this REDWIN TEA TREE OIL SHAMPOO (http://www.redwin.com.au/sensitive-skin-product/tea-tree-shampoo/)  which has antiseptic and anti-fungal properties. I washed my hair twice with it, fingers crossing as i was drying my hair. And BOOM !! SOFT, HEALTHY , FLOWY hair AGAIN. I didn't even have to use conditioner and my hair was really smooth and sily. It didn't burn my scalp and only cost me $4. It is perfect for daily use too.
I am incredibly happy and hoping this would help anyone who is experiencing the same problem .

PLEASE TRY TEA TREE OIL SHAMPOO BEFORE LISTERINE, DISH SOAP, BAKING SODA OR APPLE CIDER VINEGAR AS THOSE ARE VERY HARSH FOR SCALP !!!

[Bextaaa]

After years of fantastic long silky hair I suddenly developed this weird sticky oil substance on the roots of my hair an just was not normal for me  :( spent a hole day surfing the net trying to see if anyone had a cure or the same sort of problem I discovered a lot of other women having such a problem had died the hair with nice n easy hair die being I had used this same hair die 9 days before this sticky substance appeard I think it was from the conditioner that came in the package that created a film on the hair causing it to become sticky that's my theory anyway I tried everything from vinigar an water to dish washing liquid lemon juice none of that stuff worked then I kept searching an I seen someone said about T/GEL NUTROGENA  was the last thing I was going to try before I was going to shave my hair off well it worked!!! I can't believe the result I was crying with happiness my hair is smooth an back to normal I didn't know what T/Gel to get so I hoped for the best an got the therapeutic shampoo it smells a bit funny but it works so that's the best thing I didn't use conditioner but when I brushed my hair after using the T/gel it was very easy to brush an I have long hair that tangles easy when wet do not use any sort of conditioner as it only makes the film worse hope this helps an hope it gives the same result as it gave with my hair :) I'll only ever use T/GEL now!

[ash5750]

Try LUSH Juicy shampoo, it worked for me!

[Slm13]

i tried baby shampoo again, lush jumping juniper, and palmolive dish soap and literally nothing is working!!!! i have to put my hair up everyday and even with it up it gets dirty after a few hours! i dont know what to do please please please if anyone has any answers let me know. i miss my old clean soft hair that i could actually wear down without it being so disgustingly greasy! i have literally always had clean hair but i have had this problem for six months now. ): if it is a fungal disease like some said, should i go to a doctor or is there anything i can do? i seriously need to find a solution to this, i cant take it anymore.

[happytripper]

Hi,

I'm on holiday in Bali right now and yesterday my hair had this horrible oily, sticky, film. I assumed that I hadn't washed the shampoo out properly, so reshampooed. But it was not corrected at all. I figured I'd go to bed and deal with it today.

I still couldn't get the problem corrected, so I googled it and saw someone on here mention that it might be due to a fungus. I loaded my hair in tea tree oil, let it sit for a while and then washed it out and now my hair is 80% normal. It's not as nice as usual, but  it looks decent enough that I won't feel embarrassed about going out in public at least.

I have no idea what could have caused this - maybe a fungus? Also, I did radically change my diet since coming here. Being on holiday I decided that I get to eat whatever I want. Usually, I eat a wheat free, sugar free diet. Ive had tons of wheat and sugar this week. Maybe that was a factor??

So unclear ... I'm going to see if I can find baby shampoo here and give that a shot tomorrow after reapplying more theatre oil. Good luck.

Ugh ... So GROSS!