Papilla Alternative Hair

Rubbed the Right Way with Scalp Massage PDF | Print | E-mail

Written by Naomi Mannino Monday, 01 February 2010 00:00

The Benefits of Scalp Massage to Treat Hair LossIf you are interested in being referred to a hair loss treatment expert in your area, please complete the form at the end of this article.

DID YOU KNOW? Many hair loss patients have had success using this practice, although evidence is anecdotal. Plus, a daily scalp massage feels great and is all natural!While much of the evidence involving hair loss, hair regrowth and effects from scalp massage is anecdotal, one study published in the Archives of Dermatology (“Randomized Trial of Aromatherapy: Successful Treatment for Alopecia Areata”) in November 1998 found that 44 percent of alopecia areata patients who performed a two-minute daily scalp massage with a mixture of essential oils of thyme, rosemary, lavender and cedar wood, in a base of jojoba and grape seed oils, noticed thicker hair and new hair growth, including one man who completely regrew hair from an almost completely bald scalp.

Most hairstylists, hair replacement specialists and hair loss sufferers alike agree that scalp massage, done gently, is part of an overall care plan depending on the actual diagnosis of your hair loss condition. “We’ve used a vibrating scalp massage brush, and you can actually see the blood rush to the scalp, to stimulate blood flow to the follicles,” says Diahna Husbands, hair replacement specialist and owner of Diahna Lynn Hair Studios in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area.

Is scalp massage and aromatherapy the right hair loss treatment for me?I want to try nonsurgical, nonpharmaceutical, natural remedies.I believe in the benefits of massage and aromatherapy.I believe in a whole-body approach to my health.I am familiar with essential oils.I rely on alternative therapies for my health issues.I can commit to a daily regimen for several months.How do scalp massage and aromatherapy work against hair loss?Scalp massaging with or without the use of natural botanicals is a practice that has been used throughout history by many ancient and modern cultures. In fact, the Indian head massage comes from India, where it is carried out regularly on all family members to keep scalp and hair in good condition, relieve tension and promote health. As Husbands said, the most obvious benefit of scalp massaging is the instantaneous increase in blood flow and circulation in the region, which nourishes hair follicles. Stress and tension, which can restrict blood flow to the follicles, and sebum plugs and excess dead skin, which can block hairs from exiting the follicles, can all be improved by massaging the scalp on a daily basis. Melanie Vonzabuesnig, a certified aromatherapist specializing in formulas for scalp and hair conditions and the author of Hair Loss in Women ... Getting to the Root of the Problem, reports that the benefits of scalp massage are greatly increased by adding essential oils to the regimen because of their ease of absorption; antibacterial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory properties; and well-known energizing, invigorating effects on both the skin and the underlying cellular regeneration process. Some say essential oils can actually penetrate the cuticle and renew hair from within.

Many hairstylists also have been adding scalp massage to their shampoo regimens for clients, whether or not they are experiencing hair loss. In fact, as New York City hairstylist Xac Cruz explains, “Adding massage techniques to a shampoo session or, as I like to call it, a ‘Hair Bath’ is not only an amazing, relaxing and unexpected treat, but also it improves blood circulation, which delivers nutrients to the hair and scalp. I use acupressure points, called tsubo in Japan.” Tsubo points are weak spots along an energy path and typically occur near joints, in the depressed junctures where muscles meet. Two points are easily found at the natural hollow between the ear and the middle line of the neck at the base of the skull. You can apply gentle pressure to tsubo points and in just a few seconds help relieve tension and open up pathways. Edmondo Blando, owner of Salon Vanity in Philadelphia, has taken it a step further and created soothing rinsing techniques, such as his ”hair waterfall,” and he incorporates his all-time favorite Moroccanoil into his clients’ scalp massage treatments.

What can I expect from scalp massage and aromatherapy?You can order scalp massage oils, even the one from the study above, from essential oil companies and massage them in for use overnight, or you can slip in some shiatsu and other scalp massage techniques while you shampoo in the shower. A smart way to get great technique tips is from a certified massage therapist (if you know one), or watch and learn from one, such as the one featured on this great free Videojug video (www.videojug.com/film/how-to-do-an-indian-head-massage), which uses a nationally certified massage therapist to demonstrate the steps in an Indian head massage. This way you can adopt the techniques that feel best to you. And remember -- be gentle -- because the last thing you want to do is create stress on weak hair by rubbing too harshly and pulling hairs out.

Once hair is wet or oiled, use your fingertips to perform circles at either side of the base of the neck. This is a good place to hold gentle pressure at the base of the hairline/skull for a few seconds. Fan fingers upward and stroke up into the hair roots. At neckline glide hand up into the hairline. Repeat glide. (If shampooing, however, stylists agree that you should keep the shampoo at the scalp only; do not pile hair up on top of the head or rub throughout hair shaft, because this only distresses the hair cuticle, dries it out and roughs it up.)Bring hands to the side of your hairline in a fan with fingers pointing up. With heel of hands in contact with the scalp use a circular-fingertip motion to massage around hairline. Repeat this motion toward the crown, massaging shampoo/oil gently all around other areas of the scalp. You can also rub vigorously back and forth, using small motions all over for a more intense feeling, if you like it. Keep fingertips in contact with the scalp at all times to minimize roughing of the hair. Slowly reduce rubbing to stroking fingers through the hair and move to the top of the forehead and use the fingertip circles again to move down the hairline, ending with gentle circles at the temples.End the massage by stroking fingers downward over scalp, slower and slower. If shampooing, rinse using a “water-fall” motion.If you have shampooed, apply conditioner to the ends first, then the midshaft. Use a sweeping motion to distribute conditioner throughout hair, but not so much the scalp, where conditioner does nothing, advises Nicholas Penna, owner of Salon Capri, who has been styling hair in the Boston area for over 40 years.Complications of scalp massageDo not use any botanicals that you know you are allergic to and always perform an overnight patch test behind your hair to be sure -- you don’t want to exacerbate your condition with any type of allergic reaction. If you are working with a practitioner be sure to tell the individual about any allergies or sensitivities and disclose your full hair loss diagnosis.

The bottom line on scalp massage and aromatherapy as a hair loss treatment

This type of treatment works best for those who have the time and patience to follow the practitioner’s plan exactly and to take a whole-body approach to their hair loss. Also, results may or may not be noticeable in six to eight months, depending on your hair loss diagnosis, so keep doing it as long as it feels good.

EYELASH ENHANCEMENT OPTIONS

Copyright © 2007 Xtreme Lashes™ LLC All Rights Reserved

Mascaras

Often thought of as the most convenient and user friendly of options to enhance eyelashes, mascaras do have some downfalls:

• Overuse of mascara can cause dryness which in turn can lead to the possibility of lashes falling out.

• Some mascara formulations have ingredients that may cause allergic reactions.

• Wearing mascara is not always a practical option for activities such as swimming or exercising.

• Many types of mascara are difficult to remove and create black smudges below the lower lash line. Removing mascara can damage the delicate skin under the eye since the process often requires repetitive rubbing to remove the product completely.

• If mascara is not completely and thoroughly removed along the lash line, the remaining remnants can clog the hair follicles and prevent future lash growth.

• Visually, the effect is often not as dramatic as clients are hoping for with mascara. It’s important to note that the models used in mascara promotional campaigns are all wearing false lashes, a look which no mascara alone can replicate.

Mechanical Curlers

Curling your eyelashes is typically one of the quickest ways to get instant uplift. These popular devices raise several concerns worth noting:

• Skin can easily get caught in the clamping device, causing pain, pinching or tugging on the eyelid.

• The use of mechanical eyelash curlers can damage the lashes, potentially leaving them broken or distorted.

• Repeated breakage caused by the use of mechanical curlers can actually permanently stunt the growth of lashes.

False Strip Lashes

Traditional false lashes are made up of numerous human or synthetic eyelashes attached together in one pre-made strip. A full set is placed (via a special adhesive applied to the strip of false eyelashes) against your upper lash line on the skin, as close as possible to your actual lashes, but not on your real lashes (which indeed is as tricky as it sounds).

Readily available and often used by makeup artists for their dramatic effect, there are many disadvantages associated with the wearing of strip lashes:

• Visually, false lash strips tend to look, well… false. They are often glaringly phony and stiff in appearance, proclaiming to all that that the wearer’s lashes are, quite obviously, not real.

• The temporary adhesive used can come loose due to perspiration from heat, exercising, dancing or doing any strenuous activity, creating a potentially embarrassing situation.

• The weight of an entire strip of lashes added to the eye can feel heavy and weary the lid.

• False lash adhesive, which is attached directly to the skin, is difficult to remove and can irritate the eye and tear ducts during both application and removal.

• Contact lens wearers should avoid strip lashes as the temporary adhesive used will destroy their lenses should it come in contact with them at any time.

• Because the adhesive is applied to the skin, there is the possibility of an allergic reaction and an increased risk of infection.

• If used frequently strip lashes can cause irreparable damage to the natural lashes and cause them to fall out prematurely.

• Long-term use can lead to permanent lash baldness caused by hair follicle blockage or even infections.

• Clients should never sleep in false eyelashes as there is a danger that the glands in your eyelids may become blocked and cause an infection.

• Because they cannot be worn while sleeping, false lashes must be removed and reapplied each day.

• Removing false eyelashes must be done very carefully. Natural lashes can be pulled out by the root along with the false strip during removal. Repeatedly pulling the same lashes out by the root can eventually prevent their re-growth permanently.

Flares or Lash Clusters

Cluster lashes, or flares, typically consist of groups of 5-8 blunt-end lashes knotted together in a bunch. These clusters add instant fullness because of their multi-lash flare and they tend to be smaller and shorter than strips. They can be applied either directly to the skin (between natural lashes) or on top of a grouping of existing lashes. They are more natural in appearance than strips however they do carry many of the same concerns (the same skin adhesives are used when attaching to the eyelid) as well as a few additional ones:

• If you look closely you can see how flares and individual (see below) lashes are not tapered but are blunt at the end. This creates a stiff, abnormal appearance to the lashes.

• Lash clusters that are adhered to the natural lashes need to be placed on top of several natural lashes at once because their large size and weight cannot be supported by a single lash.

• Natural lashes grow at different rates. When they are glued together to support flares and left in place for a period of time, the flares will cause faster growing natural lashes to prematurely pull out slower growing lashes from the root because they are adhered together. This can result in permanent damage and lash baldness if done repeatedly.

• If flares are attached to the skin, the adhesives can damage the follicle, irritate the eye and increase the risk of infections.

• When applied to the skin, cluster eyelashes will last no more than a week at most.

Individuals (Sometimes incorrectly portrayed as eyelash extensions)

‘Individuals’ are synthetic lashes that are stacked one on top of the other and attached at the base, often with a knot to allow for fast and easy adhesion. Typically there are three lashes in each grouping with the longest on the bottom and the shortest on the top attached together. Like flares, individuals can be attached to either the skin, if they are knotted, or the natural lashes.

• Individuals have the same concerns as clusters or flares (see above) with regards to weight when applied to the lashes and skin irritation when applied directly to the eyelid.

XTREME LASHES™ Semi-Permanent Eyelash Extensions

Xtreme Lashes™ are single strands of synthetic eyelashes that are curved to replicate a natural eyelash. Our lashes are thicker at the base and taper to fine point. They are applied to individual eyelashes, one lash at a time, for a natural, elegant and luscious look.

Xtreme Lashes™ Stylists Are Professionally Trained

Xtreme Lashes™ is proud to require quality training for the safest application.

• Every client purchasing professional products from Xtreme Lashes™ must be Licensed or Certified in the health or beauty industries. We require this to protect not only our name but the reputations of our clients and the eyelash extension industry as a whole. We train only professionals who are familiar with health and hygiene procedures due to their previous experience.

• Professionals wishing to purchase products from Xtreme Lashes™ MUST successfully complete our training and certification workshop. Eyelash extension application is a meticulous and exacting procedure and we will only put our products in the hands of those we know have been trained in the right methods!

• Before receiving an Xtreme Lashes™ Certificate, all students must submit proof of their proficiency by sending photographs of their work. Consumers have come to recognize that going to a Certified Xtreme Lashes™ Professional means they will be receiving the highest quality application along with the best products in the industry.

Xtreme Lashes™ Uses The Safest Eyelash Extension Adhesives

Although our procedure does not entail the use of adhesive on the skin, our adhesives have been formulated to be perfectly safe for skin contact. Both of our adhesives are medical grade, created with the same ingredient that is used by surgeons to close wounds on the skin without stitches.

• In a May 2006 article for the News Tribune in Tacoma, WA, Seattle ophthalmologist Dr. Richard Bensinger commented on the types of adhesive we use by saying, “I don’t see any problem with it medically. In fact, we use it (the same type of adhesive) medically to close incisions.”

• In August 2006 the Baltimore Sun released an article about Xtreme Lashes™. Elliott Myrowitz, an optometrist and an assistant professor of ophthalmology at Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions' Wilmer Eye Institute was asked if there were any concerns related to the procedure. Myrowitz says, “I think its fine to glue things to the eyelash… [Doctors] use that same surgical glue.” Myrowitz isn't familiar with any problems associated with eyelash extensions and says the fact that the procedure is done at certified salons, and not at home, is reassuring.

Xtreme Lashes™ Maintain A Natural Appearance

• Xtreme Lashes™ add curl, thickness and length to lashes, opening up the eye for added definition.

• Xtreme Lashes™ are designed to be indistinguishable in size and weight to human lashes. They are flexible yet crimp-resistant and they move with your natural lashes. As long as you keep up with the touch up applications, it is almost impossible to tell that you are wearing the extensions.

• Because Xtreme Lashes™ are applied one by one each application is completely customized. We offer three different thicknesses of lashes with lengths ranging from 6mm to 17mm and a variety of colors for highlighting effects. Differing individual synthetic lash lengths are chosen to carefully replicate the shape and frame of a natural lash line. The thickness of the Xtreme Lashes™ applied is determined by the health and thickness of a client’s natural lashes as well as client preference.

Xtreme Lashes™ Are Virtually Weightless

• Because an Xtreme Lash is an exact replica of an eyelash, it weighs about as much as a natural lash: practically nothing. You will not notice the addition of the extensions to your lashes and they will not cause your natural lashes to fall out ahead of their natural cycle.

Xtreme Lashes™ Are Durable

• The temporary adhesives used with most other lash enhancements are short-lived and do not hold up to activities that cause perspiration or any immersion in water. With Xtreme Lashes™ it is possible to do any activity that you would normally do. The specially formulated adhesives we use create a water resistant bond that will withstand most any level of physical activity.

• Not only do Xtreme Lashes™ have an instant enhancing effect, but they simplify the rest of your beauty regimen since little other eye makeup is necessary.

o Fuller lashes create a more youthful, open-eyed appearance; many consumers equate the transformation to a miniature face lift.

o A darker lash line is created by Xtreme Lashes™ replacing the need for eyeliner on most clients.

o Mascara is no longer necessary. No more mascara smudges; clients can go swimming and exercise knowing that their mascara won't run and distract from their appearance.

Easy Care & Lasting Results

When properly applied, an Xtreme Lashes™ eyelash extension will remain in place until the natural lash on which it rests falls out. This can be as long as two months or more.

• Natural eyelashes are programmed to grow in and fall out in cycles (every 60 to 90 days). When a natural lash matures and falls out, a new natural lash has already been growing and quickly replaces it without us noticing the turnover. This process is constant and at any given moment our many natural lashes are at different stages of their life cycle. Some are just growing in while others are ready to shed. People typically shed between 1 and 5 natural lashes each day depending on our individual growth cycles. On shorter natural lashes this growing and shedding cycle is virtually unnoticeable.

• When eyelashes are extended with Xtreme Lashes™, it will be more noticeable when these lashes shed because they are longer and darker than natural lashes. Please keep in mind this is a perfectly normal occurrence with or without extensions. Lash Stylists will apply Xtreme Lashes™ primarily to those lashes that are in the middle of their maturation cycle to maximum the amount of time they will last, while not jeopardizing the health of baby lashes. The Xtreme Lash will fall out with the natural lash it is attached to when it reaches the end of its growth cycle. A few Xtreme Lashes™ may be lost in the first week because the attached natural lashes were at the end of their growth cycle. Most will remain in place for approximately two months.

• With proper care and maintenance, touch ups are typically only needed once every 2 to 4 weeks to replace the lashes that have shed. Your Xtreme Lashes™ Stylist will add extensions to the newest mature natural lashes to maintain a full, lush appearance.

• Though Xtreme Lashes™ are easy to maintain, the first twenty-four hours are crucial to the bonding of Xtreme Lashes™. Clients should keep lashes dry and avoid touching them initially. After twenty-four hours care is simple: avoid oil based products and be gentle with the lashes. They are resistant to water, sweat and tears. Clients can swim, shower and spa worry free.

Spring is in the air, and as we put awaythe bulky sweaters and boots, it is also time to evaluate our skincare products. For instance the moisturizer we have used all winterlong may be too heavy for the spring and summer months.Furthermore, your winter moisturizer may not contain enough SPFprotection for the spring and summer months.

An how about color? Usually our spring and summer wardrobe have awonderful assortment of different colors.  Whynot add some color into your makeup bag and introduce new shades ofeye shadow, lip tints and blush.

Below are some simple steps to get you glowing for the springseason:

1:  Evaluate your moisturizer  -  Does it contain SPFprotection?  As the weather gets warmereveryone’s complexion tends to get a little oilier. Even if youhave a dry or combination skin, you may need alighter moisturizer.  For those withextremely oily skin, keep a few blotting papers in your bag or check outthise products specific for oily skin.

2:  Exfoliate the whole body- winter months can take a toll on our skin because the skincells do not rejuvenate as fast, thus leaving behinddry, rough, and scaly skin.  Smooth outskin with a whole body exfoliation. Additionally, exfoliation will promotecirculation and bring about a natural glow to the skin.  Getsome homemade body scrub recipes here.

3:  Evaluate your skin - Just asyou visit the doctor for yearly physicals; it is imperative thatyou check your skin. Get a skin survey from adermatologist.  The dermatologist will evaluateall moles, freckles, dark spots and variations in skintone.  Most skin cancer is treatable if detectedearly.

4:  Your Skin and food - springbrings a bountiful harvest of fruits and vegetables and offers somuch to promote great looking skin.  Fruits andvegetables provide antioxidants which fight off free radicalsand

protects the skin

5:  How about a hydrating facialmask to relieve winter dryness, below is a simple recipe you canmake at home:

Ingredients:

1/2 cup unripe papaya, diced

1 teaspoon plain yogurt

1 teaspoon honey

Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend. Apply themask to your face for eight to ten minutes. Then, rinse with coolwater and apply a toner to remove all traces of the mask andrestore pH balance. Follow with a moisturizer.  Get more skincare recipes at Complete Skin Care Therapy

6:  What about your beautyproducts?  If you are using a hydratingfoundation, consider a light dusting powder, bronzer and lightlip gloss.  For springtime,it is best to keep it simple and fresh.  However,ensure that your moisturizer has SPF protection!

7: Be diligent about sun protection - theweather gets warmer, make sure you’re applying sunscreen to allexposed areas 20 to 30 minutes before heading outdoors, andreapplying every two hours. If you don’t own a double-duty productalready, consider using a facial moisturizer with SPF, thusavoiding applying several layers of lotion on the face.

8:  I can relate to thisone!  Clean out the makeupbag!  Does you makeup bag look like a child wentthrough it with their crayons?  How many items doyou have in you makeup bag and never use?  Maybeit is time to spring clean your makeup bag and make roomfor wonderful spring products.

9:  Don’t forget feet and hands - Well manicured toes add so much to thatpretty sandal!  Your hands and feet need extracare to stay smooth and supple.

Check out CompleteSkin Care Therapy  for more skin care tips and skin carerecipes.