Morrocco Method for Hair Growth [Product Review]

Updated October 2020

I often candidly discuss my hair loss journey on my PCOS Diva blog. In my experience, hair thinning and loss is one of the hardest symptoms of PCOS to deal with and to control. I’ve tried countless different products including hair toppers and wigs.

I am always on the lookout for new products, but at this point in my journey, I am no longer willing to expose myself to chemicals like Rogaine or take pharmaceuticals like spironolactone or flutamide.  I had resigned myself to thinning gracefully.

In my family, all of my female relatives have thinning hair, whether due to PCOS, age or both. My hair was doing well with an all-natural shampoo bar, but years ago, I experienced a major shed and my hair was limp and lifeless again. I started wearing my Follea topper once more.

One evening, I was reviewing comments to one of my hair loss articles and noticed a PCOS Diva had mentioned that she had a lot of luck with the Morrocco Method. I had never heard of this product, so I did some research and found that many reputable bloggers I follow have written favorable reviews of Morrocco Method products.

I was immediately attracted because they are an all-natural, gluten-free, raw product line. I have been working to eliminate endocrine-disrupting chemicals as much as possible from my environment, so I was thrilled to see that the Morrocco Method products are all-natural. This inspired me to take a closer look and give my own Morrocco Method review. I was so impressed with the products that I interviewed Morrocco Method founder Anthony Morrocco. Check that out here.

Getting started

I’ll admit, figuring out which products to start with was a bit overwhelming. Morrocco Method offers shampoos, conditioners, sprays, detox mud, henna, brushes, massagers, hair oils, elixirs and more. I’ve spent hours reading about the products and exploring their site. There is a definite learning curve.

I ended up purchasing the Healthy Hair Starter Package and began using the products in September 2014. 

As their site states, the Healthy Hair Starter Package, “is perfect for people ready to transition from chemical hair care into the amazingly nourishing effects of Morrocco Method’s raw, vegan, and gluten-free hair care products. With all five shampoos, all six conditioners, a sample of the styling gel and the facial scrub as well as the Scalp Massager and Anthony’s e-book, this package is an affordable option for beginning your healthy hair journey with MM products.” They also offer a trial size shampoo kit which isn’t as much of an investment if you want to just try the shampoos.

The Starter Package includes:

MM Raw Shampoos:

            Pine Shale Shampoo (Normal), 2 oz.

            Apple Cider Vinegar Shampoo (Normal), 2 oz.

            Sea Essence Shampoo (Normal to Dry), 2 oz.

            Earth Essence Shampoo (Normal to Oily), 2 oz.

            Heavenly Essence Shampoo (Normal to Dry), 2 oz.

I find that I like the Earth Essence and Apple Cider Vinegar shampoos the best.  These two shampoos give my hair the most volume. Experimentation with all the types of shampoo will help you find the right one(s) for you.

MM Raw Conditioners:

            Sapphire Volumizer Mist Conditioner, 2 oz.

            Diamond Crystal Mist Conditioner, 2 oz.

            Pearl Essence Creme Rinse, 2 oz.

            Floating Lotus Conditioner, 2 oz.

            Euro Natural Oil Conditioner, 2 oz.

            Zen Detox Hair & Scalp Therapy, 1 oz.

Bonus Products:

            Blood of the Dragon Styling Gel, 2 oz.

            Large Scalp Massager & Invigorator

I anxiously awaited my starter kit. I started with the shampoos and rotated one each day. I found that the travel-size shampoo lasted about 3 months on my short hairstyle. I will forewarn you, that the shampoos look and feel like mud but have a pleasant herbal fragrance. They feel and act nothing like a typical drug store shampoo; I was surprised that there was no lather when I shampooed. After spending time on the Morrocco Method online forum, reading the FAQs and educational material, and through trial and error, I found that diluting the shampoo before applying it worked best for me. I shampooed and repeated as instructed.

How to use Morrocco Method Shampoo

Step One: Wet your hair, squeeze a nickel-sized portion of shampoo into a travel-size bottle, fill it with water and shake.  Put about 1/3 of this on your scalp, massage it lightly, and then rinse thoroughly, using warm water.

Step Two: After rinsing, squirt the remaining shampoo on the scalp and massage it gently into your clean hair and scalp for a second cleansing, then rinse thoroughly, finishing with a cool rinse. Towel dry hair and scalp thoroughly.

At first, I was skeptical about shampooing twice. This is what Morrocco Method says about repeating the shampoo process:

“At first glance, the recommendation by the shampoo industry that we shampoo our hair twice each session sounds like a gimmick to sell more shampoo. However, there is value in this recommendation. A perfect shampoo is achieved in two parts. The first shampooing cleanses hair and scalp of dirt, dead cells and dust, which would otherwise be massaged back into the hair, scalp and follicle openings if only shampooed once. This clogging debris could retard new hair growth and severely damage the oil glands, upsetting the natural fall-out and reproductive cycles of your hair. The second shampooing and massage of your clean hair and scalp stimulates the flow of blood to the scalp and opens the hair follicles, allowing the blood vessels to feed each root, bulb and hair shaft, nourishing the entire follicle and activating the sebaceous (oil) glands. This ensures the proper lubrication and distribution of your own natural oils to the entire scalp and hair shafts. A natural coating of oil is vital to the maintenance of a healthy scalp and hair. It keeps the outer layer of hair lubricated and prevents drying, which is the excessive evaporation of moisture.”

Zen Detox

As described on the Morrocco Method site, “Zen Detox is a therapeutic method to assist in detoxing accumulated chemicals coming from synthetic shampoos, conditioners, styling products, coloring agents, perms, hair relaxers, and Sodium Laurel Sulfate. There is also a wide variety of toxic exposures, including environmental and industrial pollution, toxic water and toxic air. All of these chemicals and pollutants are then stored in our body’s glands and immune system. The Zen Detox Hair and Scalp Therapy is a unique formula of clays, minerals, and proteins created to detoxify the hair follicles, roots, oil glands and scalp.”

Basically, build-up from chemical products is clogging the pores of your scalp and shafts of your hair and must be removed before you can begin your healthy hair journey. As your hair begins to “let go” or detox of plastics, -cones, and chemicals, you will notice some changes in your hair and scalp. With the natural botanicals in MM shampoos (and lack of chemicals!), your scalp will begin to regulate its own oil production naturally. This may mean you experience an overly dry OR overly oily scalp for a short period. Give your scalp time to readjust and re-regulate its own oil production.

I will say that when I began using the shampoos, my hair texture was heavy and a bit oily for about a month. Although I was using the natural shampoo bar previously, my hair must have gone through what Morrocco Method describes as a detox. I found that the Zen Detox was very helpful during this process. Don’t let this detox period derail you. It may take a little time to get through this phase, but persevere; it is worth it.

I use a couple teaspoons (but you may need up to 1 tablespoon depending on how much hair you have) of the Zen detox powder, combined with water to make a paste.  I apply this paste to my wet hair, leave it on for 30 minutes and then rinse. You will want to go through this process once a week for three weeks. This made my hair more manageable. Now that I am no longer “detoxing,” I use the Zen Detox once a month and often sprinkle a little at the roots of my hair to give it volume, texture and lift.

Styling Products

I used to use lots of mousse, root lifters, gels, etc. to give my hair volume. Now I only need a little of the Sapphire Volumizer Mist Conditioner and Blood of Dragon Styling Gel. I don’t use the conditioners; I found that they tended to weigh my hair down, and the shampoos are conditioning enough. From time to time, I use the dry shampoo with great results. Read my review of that here. That said, the Euro Natural Oil Conditioner makes a great eye makeup remover.

Hair brushing and massage

Hair brushing and scalp massage is a big part of the Morrocco Method methodology. I had always avoided brushing my hair (except to untangle it in the morning after a shower). Surprisingly, brushing has changed my hair dramatically for the better. It is shinier, and it has much more volume at the roots.

Morrocco Method recommends, “Always use a natural bristle brush. Boar bristles are the preferred material because they are almost identical to human hair in texture. This allows the sebum (naturally occurring oil) to be gathered and redistributed. For optimal maintenance and rejuvenation, brush your hair three times a day: morning, late afternoon and before bed. For those with curly hair, you can reduce hair brushing to once a week or more, but moving vital sebum throughout your hair strand will improve your curls’ strength and shine.”

Use this brushing time as an opportunity to practice Diva extreme self-care. As you begin, sit quietly for a few minutes, breathing slowly and deeply through your nose. Calming your body (especially shoulders, forehead and scalp), releases any flow-blocking tension. Make brushing a regular habit. Nightly use of your brush is especially critical. By coating your hair with additional sebum, you set in motion new, healthy growth while you experience the renewal of sound sleep.

When I brush, I bend at the waist, allowing my hair to flow toward my feet and brush toward my frontal hairline in slow easy strokes. Then, I reverse the process to help condition and coat my hair with natural oils.

Benefits of daily brushing:

o   Far more cleansing than any commercial, artificial shampoo

o   Eliminates waste materials — deposits of uric acid crystals, catarrh and other acids and impurities that build up and become encrusted on the scalp

o   Stimulates the capillaries, increasing blood circulation and the transport of oxygen and nutrients to the hair stem, root and bulb

o   Stimulates hormones and oil-producing glands, which keep the pores of the hair and scalp open, allowing them to breathe and retain their natural oils

Scalp Massage

If you order a Starter Kit, you’ll get a rubber scalp massager. Morrocco Method recommends that you massage your scalp 1-3 times a day, around the same time you brush your hair. I have short hair, so I massage vigorously in a circular motion all over my head for 3 to 5 minutes or until my scalp is tingling. If you have long hair, flatten your hair with one hand, place the massager straight down onto one area with the other hand, hold it with your palm and do the same.

Elixirs

According to their website, “Morrocco Method Elixirs are food for the hair follicles and scalp, expertly compounded to revitalize and reconstruct your hair.”  They supposedly help to reverse hair loss and thinning and help the growth of hair within 90 days.

There is quite a bit of info regarding hair loss on the Morrocco Method site. They recommend their elixirs if you are suffering from alopecia, hair loss, or thinning. These elixirs are expensive but keep an eye out, they do go on sale.

I added the first set of elixirs (Gold and Silver) to my regimen after I detoxed in November. As recommended, I used a pump of elixir and applied it to my scalp and hair every evening for two weeks on and one week off, rotating elixirs. I have been using this set since November, and I am about to run out. I just ordered the next set of Elixirs (God & Goddess). I’ll give my scalp a break as directed for a month in April and then start the new set in May.

For more detailed info on elixirs please see the Morrocco Method site.

Lunar Chart

If you are really feeling adventurous, you can consult their “Lunar Chart” to see what days are best to use certain shampoos.  I have honestly not taken it this far yet, but I want to try to plan my haircuts around the suggested days just for fun.

Conclusions

I’ve really been surprised at how much I love these completely raw, gluten-free, GMO-free, chemical-free, cruelty-free, and wild-crafted hair care products. 

It has been years now since I started the Morrocco Method program, and I am a convert. I have experienced lots of regrowth during this time frame (my hairstylist has noticed too).. My hair has more volume, is more manageable, and is visibly thicker. I am so happy with the results that I can’t imagine ever not using Morrocco Method. I wish I had discovered it sooner.

In the interest of full disclosure, I have joined Morrocco Method company as an affiliate. In doing so, I am able to offer you 15% off the entire line with code “PCOSDiva”. I never, ever endorse a product or service that I would not purchase myself. Items/services that I recommend are always those with which I have personal experience and can recommend without reservation. No exceptions.

*Remember that you have to make a commitment to using these products for a while. You probably won’t notice a difference in a day or two.

Amy Medling, the best-selling author of Healing PCOS and certified health coach, specializes in working with women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), who are frustrated and have lost all hope when the only solution their doctors offer is to lose weight, take a pill, and live with their symptoms. In response, Amy founded PCOS Diva and developed a proven protocol of supplements, diet, and lifestyle programs that offer women tools to help them gain control of their PCOS and regain their fertility, femininity, health, and happiness.