Hair washing sink

David J

I couldn’t find what I needed in the archive, asking here:

Does anyone wash their LO’s hair outside of the shower or tub? What do you use for a basin? I am looking for something like a hair washing sink found at a salon, but not so big and permanent. My DW showers with my help, but absolutely hates to put her head in the water stream. She has great thick hair, shoulder length, and I have to work the water and shampoo through it and onto her scalp from outside the shower. It’s very difficult to rinse, since she won’t get back into the shower stream. I know a hand held shower would make it easier, and that’s where I might end up. The last time we went to the salon she did very well and I was thinking a hair wash sink would work better for us. Any experience out there?

harshedbuzz

There do exist portable hairwash stands that are not permanently installed. Most often they would be set up to drain into the kitchen sink. 

Pibbs 210 Portable Shampoo Bowl (buyritebeauty.com)

If she does well at the salon, a weekly standing appointment for wash and style would be an option for now as well.

Sjodry

Check Amazon, they have blow-up inflatable sinks for bedridden or wheelchair users. My mom’s hospice uses something like this for her.

Sandy

mommyandme (m&m)

A hand held shower head, for us, is absolutely necessary...gets all body parts rinsed well.  The Occupational therapist (long gone now) made sure we had them.  The hospice CNA that showers mom now, also looked that one was in place.

I wouldn’t live without one, even just for myself. 

David J

Lots of good suggestions!  One or more of them will probably be the solution. I need to install a handheld shower wand anyway, so I’ll try that for hair washing. If I can’t get her into a comfortable position to do the hair, I’ll move on from there. I also was thinking of more frequent visits to the salon. As long as she is ambulatory, this may work. 

Thanks all!

BassetHoundAnn

There's something called a "beauty parlor stroke" that occurs when an elderly person's neck is tipped back and extended during shampooing. There can be compression on an artery. It's recommended that if you use one of those shampooing sinks you pad the neck area with towels and be very careful with your LO's neck positioning. Or position them to be face down during shampooing. I've even read that anyone over age 80 should be shampooed face down or while standing because of the danger of stroke. 

I wash my LO's hair in the sink because she's most comfortable with that. Since there's no hand sprayer on the faucet I wet and rinse her hair with cups of water. Showers and baths are traumatic for her, but she enjoys having her hair washed gently in the sink so it's a two-step event. She holds a towel to her face to keep soap and water from her eyes. 

Sjodry

David,

I checked with Hospice to see what they use with my mom. They use a shampoo cap which can be microwaved to make it warm for the resident. You can Google it (and find it for sale on Amazon and other places). 

The product is called: Clean Life No Rinse Shampoo Cap. My mother absolutely hates showers or hair-washing. 

The hospice aide reports that mom loves this method because she warms it in the microwave first. This hair-washing argument is not one I thought we would ever win..so I love this product! Sorry, I did take a picture of it for you but the file is too large and I don’t have the editing app I use, at home.

Good luck!

Sandy

LJS45

I have also used the no rinse shampoo caps on my mom. No water is needed and I just microwave for 30 seconds and it is nice and warm. You just tuck all the hair in and massage it into the scalp and towel dry. It is a nice intermittent alternative to a full hair washing.

rubialejoschrome

Hi! I also thought about a portable stand for washing my hair. I think this is the best option for you. If you don't want to spend much money on it, you can find something on Aliexpress. When I was studying at http://www.nwcollege.edu, I needed different pieces that I didn't use afterward, so I bought them just on Aliexpress. There are often very cool, comfortable things at a low price. Well, or another option, you can search for what you need on eBay.I hope it will help you.

sunnydove

What about just keeping a large cup (like a super size soda cup) in the shower and filling it to rinse her off gently and not in the actual shower stream?