STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

I'm still doing it (also fine hair and very straight). I only shampoo once every 2-3 weeks and use much less of it. I "co-wash" and have been using, on and off, Wen, Sally's cheaper Wen knockoff, and my regular conditioner from TJs. I think my hair looks better - fuller, kind of.

I had to give it up too. I stayed with it for a good couple months, and I could tell that in general my hair was healthier, happier, etc. so I wish I could have stayed with it. I have fine hair and was worried it would get weighed down, but really it didn't. But what I could NOT deal with anymore were all my tangles. It's probably because my hair is long and fine, but the longer I stayed CG the more tangly my hair got. I couldn't handle it anymore. I bought that tangle spray they make for kids, I'd practically douse my head in it, and it would still take me 20 minutes every morning and night to comb my hair. It was annoying and I was breaking a lot of hair. I went to get my hair done after a few months of CG and with just one wash with regular shampoo and conditioner, the tangles were cut down dramatically. I think my hair just needs silicones to stay slippery and stave off the tangles. I tried using water-soluble silicones (since you don't need sulfate shampoos to get rid of that kind) but I guess they just weren't enough.

I still try to limit the number of sulfates & silicones I put in my hair, but I can't do away with it completely anymore.

BTW getting one sulfate + silicone wash won't undo all your months of hard work...just FYI if anyone else is in Metric's situation where the stylist uses it, all you have to do is use a sulfate shampoo the next time you wash your hair (to get rid of the stylist's silicones) and you're good to go again. Metric I think you had other problems with it but just FYI for anyone else.