Is this caused by sunburn?

If you burn the top of your scalp thenthe skin will peel, just like it peels when you burn any where else and this could look like dandruff. If your scalp is sore and feels warm then it probably is burnt and so this could be the cause.

Are your braided hair extensions human hair or synthetic. Synthetic hair can cause many ailments to sensitive skin types. Also, some human hair has a mix of synthetic in it.

@Lightlyseared My scalp isn’t sole…

@AmWiser They are synthetic. My mum thought it would be a good idea to take them out. But I just had them braided in last thursday. I kinda feel bad to take them out soon because I just got them :(

If your scalp is already peeling from sunburn, it probably is beyond the “sore” stage. My guess would indeed be sunburn. No one markets a scalp sunscreen because it’s unlikely that anyone would use it (Handful of goop in my hair? No thanks…), and because we can wear hats to protect ourselves from sunburn and sunstroke (much more fashionable than a handful of goop).

@dappled_leaves Guess I was a little stupid on that part. I seriously need to take them out and might even need to cut my hair. :(

Ok, a sunburn would peel, but did you have a sunburn?

There are ways to protect your hair from the sun, but dandruff is from the scalp, not the hair.

Real dandruff is a yeast infection, and the best way to cure it is with yeast medicine. If it is really bad you can buy the stuff you would use for GYN yeast infections and rub it into the scalp, leave it for a while, and then wash it out. It might take a few washes to get it all completely out.

The shampoo Nizoral is made for dandruff it has Ketoconazole, which kills yeast. You can get it in the shampoo section at the drug store with 1% or a prescription from your doctor with a higher percentage.

Since it is caused by yeast, follow what is logical. Dry your hair right away, don’t let it dry on its own or stay wet for a long time, yeast loves to grow in damp places.

@JLeslie I don’t think I had a sunburn.
From what you wrote here I am starting to guess its dandruff because I have been letting my hair air dry. And about the Nizoral shampoo, what happens if I stop using it? Is it like one of those anti-dandruff shampoos that break you out even more as soon as u stop using them?

@nailpolishfanatic Just use the shampoo a few times past your symptoms stopping, to make sure it is really gone, similar to taking antibiotics longer than when you already feel better. It shouldn’t come back. It is a medicine just like antibiotics, but antifungal. Some dandruff shampoos don’t have medicine they treat dandruff a different way.

When I use the shampoo I rub it into my scalp before I get in the shower and let it sit for 5 minutes, then bubble it up in the shower, wait another three minutes, rinse. That is not the directions on the bottle, so you can follow the directions and see if that works first if you want. I have had dandruff twice in my life. It cleared up for years until I had it again, I didn’t start to have a chronic problem of any sort, don’t panic.

@JLeslie Thank you. I will definitely try it out.

If that doesn’t work, you might want to try something else. Not all causes of flaky scalp are the same, and require different medicines to fix (I’m 3 down, including ketoconazole, still looking =_=).

I doubt you’re sunburnt, you’re black African, right? You should take a lot to burn (not always the case though, you’d know better than me), and the rest of your body would be peeling too.

I’m only part-Indian, but the the pathetic amount of sunlight we get in England is poor enough to make me feel shit after a few months without proper sunny weather, and my holidays to Mediterranea become Vitamin D holidays, where I just sit outside and try to absorb as much sunlight as possible. I don’t get peeling, and generally my skin is much, much better afterwards.

You live Iceland IIRC? do you get national (‘free’) healthcare? If so, and the ketoconazole doesn’t work, just go straight to the doctor, and make sure you write down ‘ketoconazole’ to show them, and explain it didn’t work.

Is it itching?

@The_Idler Yep, full Zambian, my skin isn’t peeling at all. And yes we get free care until we are 18 I think…
I will check it out. The ’‘ketoconazole’’.
It was itching, now I took out the extensions and the dandruff is less o.O