So I’ve been reading about the pre-poo on a number of websites and wasn’t sure that it was something that I wanted to do but I recently went in to the hairstylist and got my hair trimmed for the first time in about a year and every time that I lose any length in my hair for any reason, I freak out and start doing and trying everything to regain the length I’ve lost and then some. So following my hair cut, two weeks ago, I scoured the internet for information on essential oils and herbs that help hair grow and I came across a number of different things. The one thing that kept coming up was the use of coconut oil as a pre-poo or oil rinse and so I decided that was what I was going to do. I picked up my phone and called the health food store closest to my house and they didn’t think they carried coconut oil and their jojoba oil was a bit much for my “struggling student” pockets. However a local grocery store carried organic coconut oil for about $6 a jar and so I dropped by and picked some up for my pre-poo extravaganza (yes, I know just how that sounds!).
Have you heard about the pre-poo?
Later that night, before I went to bed, I put some of the coconut oil in a small spray bottle and proceeded to saturate my hair with the coconut oil. Once it began to feel like my head could actually be a coconut, I stopped and put a shower cap on and a wool cap over that to keep the shower cap on and to catch any drips, and with a towel folded at least four times over on my pillow, I went to sleep.
The next morning, when I was washing my hair and washing out the coconut oil, I noted that it was a bit softer in texture. I was careful to use all of the tips from the earlier post on how to wash your hair and I noticed that there was significantly less hair in my combs and brushes after I washed my hair. I did note though that after my hair had air-dried, my new growth (read: natural hair) was quite a bit woollier than it normally is. It typically dries into very tight curls and bunches but it felt like a thick woolly mess- some of this might be my own making because I was overcome with hand in hair syndrome (HIHS) all day yesterday.
So… at the end of the day, I am likely to try the pre-poo again, although I might add some other oils and herbs to my paltry coconut oil. I also think that I might start to use the coconut oil as a (ever other) daily moisturizer for my hair because it felt really light and didn’t seem to weigh my hair down. I’ll let you know how that works out :-).
What are your thoughts on the pre-poo? Have you ever tried it?
ZedHair 
I have been trying this for about a month, after I read about it on The Natural Haven. I think it works for me and my hair is softer. I also agree that coconut oil is light and doesn't weigh the hair down. As noted elsewhere on this blog, coconut oil also gives the hair a healthy shine for several days
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This sounds more like baggying to me. Most people I know just pre-poo on wash days and don't necessarily keep it overnight.
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From what I have read, the overnight pre-poo is what is commonly in India/Indian hair care. I think the principle is the longer the better. If I have time, I will sleep with it, if not, I try to leave it on for a few hours. I really should search for The Natural Haven article on the deep penetration properties of coconut oil and share it.
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I decided to keep it (coconut oil pre-poo) in overnight following the logic of the longer the better, and I didn't want to do an oil rinse because I wasn't sure I'd appreciate having oil run down the rest of my body in the shower. So I figured having the coconut oil in all night was a good alternative. Masuka, where do you get coconut oil in Lusaka?
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