Woman doesn't wash her hair for 30 DAYS while hiking

Woman doesn't wash her hair for 30 DAYS while hiking

A woman currently on a six-month hike on the Appalachian Trail has revealed what happens when you don't use shampoo for a whole month while living in nature.

Alyse Brautigam, 23, is currently spending most of her time out in the wild, covering the longest hiking footpath in the world, totaling 2,190 miles going from Georgia to Maine. But, being a vlogger with a focus on natural, vegan living, Alyse has also taken the opportunity to leave one major creature comfort behind as an experiment.

In her latest video for her YouTube channel Raw Alignment, Alyse sees what happens when she ditches shampoo and conditioner for a full 30 days - and she ends up shocked by the results.

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Dirty secret: Alyse Brautigam, who has embarked on a six-month hike on the Appalachian Trail, has revealed what it was like to go 30 days without washing her hair

Getting going: Alyse is currently hiking 2,190 miles going from Georgia to Maine

The video blog sees Alyse starting out by talking about how she had wanted to take on the experiment for 'some time' and had assumed that she would enjoy the experience and possibly want to drop her use of shampoo long term. 

Alyse is already a champion of natural hygiene products and doesn't wear make-up, so the idea of getting rid of shampoo altogether was more than an attractive idea.

But things didn't work out quite as she had planned. While a clip from 12 days in sees her impressed at how easily she could brush her hair after simply rinsing it for the first time with just water, things quickly went downhill.

'From then I started to not enjoy the process,' Alyse explains in the video. 'I just didn't enjoy the feeling of my hair.'  

In another update from a few days after her shower, she elaborated on just what her hair was becoming.

A quick rinse: Initially, she was impressed by how easy it was to brush her hair after washing with only water

Frustration sets in: But a few days later, she is seen lamenting how oily her roots are

'I've been putting it up in a bun every single day because it doesn't feel as soft or smooth and silky or anything as it did when I used shampoo and conditioner,' she explains. 'It's kind of dry and obviously a little bit oily at the top.'

She adds: 'I guess in general I don't like the feeling of my hair like this.'

Fast-forwarding to the 30-day mark, Alyse says her feelings haven't changed, saying that her hair feels 'moist' and 'oily' and like there is 'gunk' on it. 

She claims that brushing her unwashed hair leaves it frizzy, unlike the 'smooth fluff' she would experience brushing her washed hair. 'It's just not an enjoyable texture,' she says.

But at the end of the clip, Alyse reveals that s he isn't necessarily ready to give up, despite being 'surprised' at how much she disliked the results.

No fun: She explains how her hair feels 'moist' and 'oily' and like there is 'gunk' on it

The big moment: After finally washing her hair properly 30 days later, Alyse gushes over how 'fluffy' and 'amazing' her hair feels

She says that the fact that she has been spending every day hiking in the sun and 'sweating bullets' has probably made things worse - adding that she intends to try the experiment again when she is back at home. 

The clip ends with Alyse having finally showered with shampoo and conditioner and gushing over how 'fluffy', 'light' and 'smooth' it feels. 'It feels really, really amazing, she says.  

It isn't the first video that Alyse has made about natural living on the trail, having previously posting a clip detailing how she handles her menstrual cycle, hoping to help her fellow hikers.

Her period started the first week she was on the trail, prompting her to quickly figure out a syste m that would be as convenient and as hygienic as possible.

Helpful: Alyse explained in another recent, intimate video how she deals with her period while living in nature

Tools: The vlogger, 23, uses a menstrual cup, a plastic cone that women can insert inside their vaginas to collect their menstrual blood, instead of using tampons or pads

In her video, Alyse explains that she relies on a menstrual cup, which she keeps in her toiletry bag along with her other supplies.

Menstrual cups are plastic cones that women can insert inside their vaginas to collect their menstrual blood, instead of using tampons or pads. The vlogger uses a Diva Cup, but mentions that there are other brands available.

Typically, menstrual cups can be left in for about 12 hours, meaning Alyse can hike for the better part of the day without having to worry about her period. 

'This goes up inside me when I have my menstrual cycle,' Alyse says in her clip, holding her Diva Cup. 'It catches my blood and I change i t twice a day. I change it in the evening before I go to bed, and then I rinse it with purified water.'

Tools: When a cup is taken out, it needs to be emptied and rinsed. Alyse makes sure to use purified water, which she obtains by stirring a purifying pen (pictured) in her water bottle

Done: At the end of her period, Alyse cleans the menstrual cup one last time, then puts it back in its little bag and keeps it in her toiletry bag along with her other supplies

When a menstrual cup is taken out, it needs to be emptied and rinsed. The purified water is an important part of the hiker's routine, as it ensures that her Diva Cup remains clean and safe to use.

In her video, Alyse explains she uses a Steripen, a purifying device that she sticks inside a water bottle for 90 seconds. She stirs it around, then removes it and is free to clean her menstrual cup with the clean liquid.  

'I want to make sure that what I'm cleaning this with that's going inside of me is very clean because it's very easy to get infections if it's not incredibly clean,' she says.

Most of the time, the vlogger empties, cleans and reinserts her menstrual cup in a privy, which is like a toilet stall in nature. 

'I'll pull this out, I will dump it in the privy, and I'll hold it really secure in my hand because if this drops in there, there's no way I'm getting it back,' she continues.

Impressive: The vlogger, who often shares videos about her vegan lifestyle, will cover the longest hiking footpath in the world's 2,190 miles going from Georgia to Maine

Life on the trail: Alyse has shared many clips and photos of what her existence has been like hiking a different portion of the footpath every day for the past couple of months

Sometimes, Alyse stays at a shelter that doesn't have a privy, or ends up camping. In those cases, she says in her video, she simply goes through the same routine behind a tree. 

'Once my menstrual cycle is over, I make sure this is super super clean,' she says about the cup, 'I put it back in the little bag and then I put it in my general toiletry bag.'

Alyse is perfectly at ease with this method, which she has now used several times on her Appalachian Trail journey.

As long as you're confident, it's really not a big issue

The vlogger pointed out that her hiking routine is not much different from how she would usually deal with her period. In a regular setting, she also uses a menstrual cup.

'You could say that it's a little bit more convenient to do this in your house rather than a public place or out in the woods, but honestly as long as you're confident and sure of how to do this and how to take care of your menstrual cycle when you have it, it's really not a big issue,' she says in the clip.

Alyse then points out that she has in the past changed her menstrual cup in public bathrooms, such as inside a store, without any issues.  

'Yes, it does feel a little bit awkward to carry this partially bloody cup over to the sink, but I am confident that this is what I do to take care of myself, and I much prefer using a diva cup than tampons or pads, so I just totall y embrace it,' she says.

'And if somebody sees it and happens to ask about it, which has never happened, then I would explain this is what I use when I have my period.'

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