AHHHH - Head lice!!

[mommyjam]

We went thru this a couple years ago. We did the Rid treatment and all the rest with the vacuming, the stuffed animals, everything. We still couldnt get rid of them. I would use the Rid on my daughter and still find live bugs right out of the shower. I finally googled other remedies and found Listerine. It really works! Soak their hair in it and cover with a shower cap for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Then wash it out. When we took the shower cap off all the dead bugs were in it. Then I soaked her hair in white vinegar and covered with another shower cap. Let that sit for another 90 minutes and then wash out. This will loosen all the nits and make them easier to comb out. One treatment this way and we never saw another one. Plus it's much cheaper, easier to wash out than mayo and you are not putting poison on their heads.

 

[gem21]

I would use the Rid on my daughter and still find live bugs right out of the shower.

Oh thanks for mentioning this! It's true, these days a lot of lice have become resistant to the treatment, especially the common ones (Rid, Nix...) I would definitly recommend googling "other" remedies... surprisingly a lot of them work!

 

[seashoreCM]

I want to suggest not using kerosene. That can be absorbed into the skin and then lead to headaches or cancer.

 

[ilovemyjj]

I feel for ya! What we did is get shower caps, i used a jar of mayo, left it on the kids heads for an hr, and rinsed with vinegar, the rit and those things are pesticides!! I will not put that junk in my kids bodies! SO, after washing all things, pillowcases, blankets, sheets, pillows, stuffed animals, steamed the beds, and car seats, used the metal comb, we finally got rid of them!!! I know kids are kids, but dont let em share hats, jackets, even headphones.
Lice are nasty lil buggers, and can make ya feel dirty, but lice do not mean dirt! it is embarrasing, but, sometimes it happens.

 

[ilovemyjj]

I feel for ya! What we did is get shower caps, i used a jar of mayo, left it on the kids heads for an hr, and rinsed with vinegar, the rit and those things are pesticides!! I will not put that junk in my kids bodies! SO, after washing all things, pillowcases, blankets, sheets, pillows, stuffed animals, steamed the beds, and car seats, used the metal comb, we finally got rid of them!!! I know kids are kids, but dont let em share hats, jackets, even headphones.
Lice are nasty lil buggers, and can make ya feel dirty, but lice do not mean dirt! it is embarrasing, but, sometimes it happens.

also, the knits glow under a black light!!! So, if around halloween, pick up a hand held one..lol!!

 

[thelittlemermaid]

My SIL was completely freaked out when all 4 of her kids got lice. My other SIL had her 2 kids with it as well since we had all just had a family reunion and the big kids were all sleeping together. They both did the same protocol as you, but they switched all the kids to the fairytales haircare line to make sure that they didn't get it again.

www.fairytaleshaircare.com

It is pricey, but worth it for the peace of mind. She said is smells okay and seems to work!

I swear by the fairytale products!

Two years ago my daughter had lice 3 times in one year. Her school was so packed that at lunch time they sat shoulder to shoulder, and the staff wondered why lice was going around.

The first time I used the RID stuff and it seemed to make things worse and my daughter had more lice after the treatment. Called the health department and was told they had stuff and it was better for the child. After using that stuff for 2 days, the lice was gone. The next 2 times I used the same stuff from the health department and like before in 2 days the lice was gone. After the third time I learned about the Fairytale products and bought small bottles of the shampoo and spray shield {you spray on your child{ren} hair each morning before school} just to see if the stuff would work before I spent alot of money on anything bigger. The stuff is great! Before school last year I bought a big bottle of the shampoo, the spray leave in conditioner, and the spray and shield.
I won't use anything else on my daughters hair during the school year. Yes the stuff is pricey, but to me it is well worth it. I can't put a price on my sanity and I thought I was going to lose it quite a few times.

Here's a link to the stuff I got from the health department.....

http://safe4people.com/html/ptotoday.htm

 

[txsoccermom]

Wow - glad to find I'm not the only one dealing with this! DD had been scratching her head for a while, and then (after a nite of me sleeping in her bed with her b/c she didn't feel well), I saw a fairly decent sized one on her pillow, next to her head Then I looked thru her head and found eggs, etc. Got RID, have done one treatment w/the shampoo and gel and got a bunch of lil guys and eggs out. Since then, been picking eggs out each nite - so gross. And yes, she found a small one crawling on her backside after a shower last nite

Now, this am @ breakfast, DS was scratching his head! And he's a strawberry-blond!

I washed my hair the same nite @ DD's, but was not able to comb it out b/c DH has no clue what to do/look for! I keep feeling like there are things crawling in my head We're getting ready to do 2nd treatment this Friday nite. I have bagged up stuffed animals, but not all - should I? I have the RID spray, but haven't used it b/c I'm scared with the whole pesticide thing. If I do use it, I guess spray the mattress and car headrest? The car has leather seats, so could I just wipe it down? And what about the pillows? I washed the bedding, and am doing that again today......but pillows? Should I just get new ones? argh

The pedi said if the 2nd treatment doesn't work, to just call them and they'll call in a prescription shampoo. Wonder if I should just do that now, or wait? Or try the listerine treatment instead? I asked a dr if once they're gone if this means she shouldn't wash her hair every day She said no, wash it, but use conditioner daily - guess that makes it too slippery?!

Geesh - will say this site has a lot of great ideas (except for the kerosene!).

Thanks for letting me vent!

 

[39CINDERELLA]

what about the seats on planes? how can you protect your head from these?
My DH travels for work and is on a plane at least 6 times a week. I am always fearful of him getting lice from the head rest.

Also when we travel I try to not have DS rest head back on seat.

DS had lice a few years ago. Do NOT want to go there again!!

I thought of putting a trash bag over the seat...lol

 

[BABY_EINSTEIN'S_MOM]

I'm guessing the Listerine works because of the alcohol content. After trying the over the counter treatments, only two things worked for my dd. White vinegar to comb any nits out and rubbing alcohol to kill any actual lice. UGH, I don't even like thinking about it again!

 

[tinkerbelletreasure]

what about the seats on planes? how can you protect your head from these?
My DH travels for work and is on a plane at least 6 times a week. I am always fearful of him getting lice from the head rest.

Also when we travel I try to not have DS rest head back on seat.

DS had lice a few years ago. Do NOT want to go there again!!

I thought of putting a trash bag over the seat...lol

That is the perfect scenerio for the Fairy Tales products. They don't actually kill Lice, but they repel them. When my daughter's got lice I started using it immediately, and I never got it.

 

[pgumiela]

Our older son had lice when he was in kindergarten. He has eczema and is always itchy at times, so I missed the head scratching, yikes!!! By the time I figured out he was scratching his head alot it was too late, he was crawling with the little creatures. After one treatment with the rid and a serious amount of time combing, he still had alot the next day and we were really freaked out by the chemicals and warnings on the rid box.

So I went in search of something better and found the Robicomb at walgreens. It was awesome! It is a battery operated comb with metal teeth and when it comes across a nit or live bug it electrocutes it. It's made so that the teeth don't touch the scalp, so it is pain free and chemical free, and it beeps when it comes across something so you know it's working. I still had comb everday(I'm a little OCD at times, I combed several times a day, the whole lice thing really freaked me out), but it was quicker because I just combed through section by section until I did his whole head. Then just to be safe I did everyone everyday.

http://www.walgreens.com/store/catalog/Treatments/Robi-Comb-Electronic-Lice-Comb/ID=prod9618-product

 

[tres besitos]

I washed my hair the same nite @ DD's, but was not able to comb it out b/c DH has no clue what to do/look for! I keep feeling like there are things crawling in my head We're getting ready to do 2nd treatment this Friday nite. I have bagged up stuffed animals, but not all - should I? I have the RID spray, but haven't used it b/c I'm scared with the whole pesticide thing. If I do use it, I guess spray the mattress and car headrest? The car has leather seats, so could I just wipe it down? And what about the pillows? I washed the bedding, and am doing that again today......but pillows? Should I just get new ones? argh

Yeah this just totally S*CKS! I would definitely have your husband look through your hair. Especially if you were sleeping in bed with your DD - that is exactly what happened to me. My DH was pretty bad at my hair the first night (the guy has silky straight short hair which I don't think he even needs to comb!), but has gotten much better at going through mine. But he is still finding nits - 3 on Sunday night. What helped for him was the olive oil treatment, my hair is very thick and the olive oil allowed the comb to go through mush easier. But I would buy a metal comb and maybe a magnifying glass, the plastic ones that came with the medicated shampoo were spaced too far apart and didn't pull anything out of the hair. I followed the advice of the people here - thanks again - and did vinegar rinses on both my hair and DS4 - as we seem to be the one that keep having nits. I also bought some of the Fairy Tales products including a leave in conditioning spray which I am using on everyone daily.

Everyday that I found some in their hair I washed the bedding again, but for the pillows I just put them in the dryer for 30 minuets on hot. It is supposedly the heat that kills them. I didn't do the pesticide bed spray that came with the shampoo as my DS6 has asthma. And I am trying to remember that they live on human heads, not in beds or pillows like bed bugs, they cannot live without human blood for 24 hours.

But definitely do the second shampoo at the 7-10 day mark. My DS8 had the lightest case of all, just 1 or 2 and I hadn't found anything on his head after multiple checks, I thought it was gone for him. But last Friday I found a very small, probably newly hatched louse on him, so he quickly got the second shampoo and that is the day I bought all of the Fairy Tales products. It seems that for all of us since the second shampoo we haven't found anything alive. I don't know if this makes a difference but the first shampoo we used Nix and the second one we used the CVS brand, but the active ingredient was different, so maybe the combo of the two helped. Because after the first shampoo I did find a dead one in the rinse of the shampoo, but also found some alive while doing the comb through. So these little buggers are definitely becoming resistant to these pesticides.

I have also been thinking/worrying about the airplane seats. We are flying 5 weeks and I know I will still be suffering from PTSD from this! I thought about maybe baseball hats for all the boys - but what else could you do? Also what about The Chapeau! That is always our 1st stop in the MK. I actually almost bought mickey ears online last night so they wouldn't go in there and try on a dozen hats, but thought I might be being a little too crazy!

And also every time I talk about this my head starts itching! I am about to start a round of head checks right now. Wish me luck!

 

[mychicks]

Youngest dd came home with lice last December. She also has skin issues so I had no idea she had this and honestly she probably had it for almost a month before we realized it. Did the Nix treatment twice, checked everyone, etc. I had it too from snuggling with her while she had been sick. A month later oldest dd had it. We hadn't gotten them all the first time.

I was neurotic and driving myself and everyone else crazy. We ended up going to a place that specializes in removal. Expensive, but best $400 I ever spent. They went through everyone's hair with a magnifying light (like at the dr's office) and combed through both dds hair (luckily middle dd didn't get it)

They give you a regimen to follow and I will say it works. They use any white conditioner and slather it on damp hair. Then comb out each section with a metal comb (10-15 passes on each section) Wipe the comb on a paper towel and if there are any lice or nits you will see them on the towel. Do this Day 1, Day 3 and then on Day 5 put olive oil in the hair overnight. Comb out the next day. Said to use dishwashing detergent to help wash out the olive oil. Do this for two weeks. Third week do the conditioner and then you should be done. Then once a month. Said after 4-5 combings there should be nothing left.

Time consuming? Definitely. But it was worth it for peace of mind. Kids were really sick of it (we treated them all and myself) We have the Fairy Tales shampoo and spray (it's a good detangler also) I still cringe every time I hear of a case in school. I always stress to the girls no sharing of hats, combs, anything.

Oh and the place we went to said not to stress about the cleaning. Wash sheets, vacuum, etc but that stuffed animals really don't need to be put away (we did) Most important thing is the combing.

 

[SharkyGoddess]

Passing on what a friend did. Her child (thick long hair) had lice and she knocked it out in 3 days for the entire family. Luckily it was over a long weekend so they didn't miss any school, but she loaded everyone's head in vaseline, then had everyone sleep in shower caps for 2 days straight. She did the usual vacuuming and washing of clothing, bedding etc. and on the third day she used baby oil to remove the vaseline (it works, really). That was it. No more lice, and her poor child was covered in the little nasties. According to the advice she was given, the vaseline works two ways. It smothers the living critters, and prevent them from glueing their eggs to the hair shaft, since as pointed out before they have such a short lifespan, this trick kills them quickly. Plus, since your head is covered any lice running free in your home have no host to attach to, so they die quickly as well. It's messy, but it works.

 

[txsoccermom]

I was neurotic and driving myself and everyone else crazy. We ended up going to a place that specializes in removal. Expensive, but best $400 I ever spent. They went through everyone's hair with a magnifying light (like at the dr's office) and combed through both dds hair (luckily middle dd didn't get it)

But it was worth it for peace of mind. Kids were really sick of it (we treated them all and myself) We have the Fairy Tales shampoo and spray (it's a good detangler also) I still cringe every time I hear of a case in school. I always stress to the girls no sharing of hats, combs, anything.

Oh and the place we went to said not to stress about the cleaning. Wash sheets, vacuum, etc but that stuffed animals really don't need to be put away (we did) Most important thing is the combing.

Ok....I feel compelled to update. School started 3 days ago and I didn't want them found on my daughter. I'm exhausted from combing thru her shoulder length, thick brown hair, looking for the little buggers. Tired of all the laundry So, I took all 4 of us to a place here that combs thru them w/the "terminator", a metal comb. $337 later, all of us are de-liced....yes, ALL

They asked for the 1st person to check, to be the one I thought would least have it. I said DH. After about 3 swipes with the comb, "Yep, he has it!" Darn nit! Then DS...."Yep, he has them" - more nits. Then it was my turn - she just visually inspected, didn't even use the metal comb, "Yep, you have them". And of course we knew DD did.

So, they put me and DD in a room together, we each had a person working on us. Then in another room, they had one lady who worked on DS first (he had about a handful of nits), and then DH (who only had 2-3 nits). Poor DD had what I thought were alot of nits (and some live babies too - yuck!), but the lady said that was nothing Found about a dozen or so nits on me - GROSS! They moussed our heads up and put the comb thru it, and then dried it with the hair dryer. Next, had a HUGE light they put on our head and they wore a magnifying glass/headband thing to see if they got all of them. Found about 3-4 more on DD and 2-3 more on me. Let me tell you, these things were VERY tiny and there is no way in Haiti I would have found them. The ones they combed out - I had no idea DD had all of those, much less DS and DH I figure we were right at the time before they would hatch b/c I used RID shampoo on DD's hair and mine on Fri nite - so we were approaching the 7 day time period. OMG - I'm itching writing this

We're supposed to comb thru the hair every day, and go back for a follow-up next Tues. I also stopped on the way home at a place and got the full line of Fairy Tales products - shampoo, shield and spray (don't know if I'll get that again though!), conditioner, leave-in conditioner, adn styling gel I am making us all use at least the shampoo. Think if we use it every other day it would be ok, and use our other shampoos in between? Was thinking of at least using 1 FT product daily, whether it's the shampoo, conditioner, or gel.

Anyways, we left there lice-free DH still doesn't think it was worth it, along with all the $$ spent on hair care products, however he did admit when looking into the tub of water they were putting the nits into, that he would never have found that in my hair!

Oh well, good luck to all

 

[Evi]

I read through this purely out of curiosity and had to kinda laugh not at any of you but just at a memory more or less.

When we were kids my sister got lice once I was lucky I did not get it. But when I was in my late teens my niece got lice like 4 times. Each time my sister would drop her off to my mother and just leave her for like a week lol no lie. I was always mortified, thankfully I never got it. But durring one of these incidents my niece picked up my mason pearson all natural boar bristle brush and ran it through her hair and I almost died. I immidiatly set water to boil on the stove with vinager and submerged my poor friend in the boiling water and then plucked it out and rinsed it in cold water. I then dried it and stuck it in a plastic bag for like 2 months. The entire time I remember arguing with my sister over the phone about how she owed me $200. I feel for all of you I remember my mother spending hours with her combing her hair and making her sleep with olive oil in her hair every night.

I'm glad you were able to take care of this. Hopefully you won't have to deal with it again. Just be thankful no one is droping of their little ones to you to deal with this problem.

 

[kalee45]

When I went thru this with my DS in preschool, I tried Nix, green alcohol, coconut oil, short haircut, etc. The only thing I found that allowed me to get rid of all the nits was LiceMD & it's cheap plastic but effective comb. Thanks to whoever posted the blacklight tip, if we have the issue this year I'll try it!

 

[wvdislover]

I'm feeling very paranoid these days. We leave for Disney in a week and 2 days. Last year, we went to get our hair done just 4 days before leaving, and my DD12 was crawling with them. DD8 had some on her, too. It ended up working out pretty well, timing-wise, b/c by the time we got back home, everything that may have been left in the house was dead. Just praying it doesn't happen again...EVER!!!

 

[Vijoge]

.

So I went in search of something better and found the Robicomb at walgreens. It was awesome! It is a battery operated comb with metal teeth .

http://www.walgreens.com/store/catalog/Treatments/Robi-Comb-Electronic-Lice-Comb/ID=prod9618-product

Absolutely invest in a Robi comb. I've had one for about 5 years (well, I'm actually on my second one. . .) and my granddaughters know they have to check their hair with it every morning and every night. It's quick, painless, and chemical free. If by chance they pick up the stray louse we find it before it has time to lay eggs and multiply and they no longer get sent home from school with head lice, even during the most severe outbreaks. This thing has saved my formerly nit-picking sanity, as the most tedious thing I've ever done is remove nits from a child's hair. The cost is $30-$40 but worth it's weight in lice shampoo and valium.

 

[michelle140]

I really feel your pain. 2 days after returing home from Disney I disovered we had lice. All 4 of us! After my own investagation a talking to several nurses and doctors, I know we got it from Disney, probably the room. We stayed at Pop Century and there were many many clues but we missed them all. First, the room smelled of bug spray when we firs arrived. Do they spray ALL the rooms??? Second, after a night of sleep, I woke up itchy. I immediately checked for bedbugs...expecting them to be there because of the itchiness, but I found none. Third, I actually found a small bug in my hair 2-3 days into our trip, now knowing it was a louse! And forth, my head was itchy for most of our trip! I ruled out every possibility that we brought them,to Disney but no-one in our social group or family has them but us! Not to mention, my daughter and I were at the salon getting our hair cut just days before our trip. I double checked with her and she said she would have seen it in our hair. A nurse told me that we had to have been repeatedly exposed..."hotel room?", for us to all have it so bad. We were at Disney for 10 days. I don't want to go back. I can't be the only one this has ever happened to?