Spent $1000 for lice treatment - I feel sick! UPDATE Day 10: I THINK THEY ARE GONE!

[rockyroad]

I used to teach first grade.

One year I had a class that was like the head lice capital of the universe.
Especially when you consider that about half the kids were black.
Black kids rarely get head lice.

But I have seen the things swarming on kid's heads.
I mean masses of the things moving in kid's hair.

The same kids would get them over and over.
Their environments were infested apparently.

Anyway, what I observed was that little girls who came to school with their hair obviously fixed by someone else, braids, french braids or whatever, seldom had headlice.
Or they were discovered before they got out of hand.

I never got them myself, but I did wash my hair everyday.

 

[sbrussell]

Frontline(the stuff for dogs and cats). It is not recommended for human use in the US, but you can do some research and find that it's been studied in other countries for human use. We've used it at our house and it works. It's also effective for over a month so as the nits hatch it will kill of the new ones.

 

[mefordis]

Tonight I found 4 nits on my 7 yr old, none on me and none on my 2 yr old. The frustrating thing is, when I picked through with my hands I found nothing, but when I oiled her hair down and combed through with a fine tooth comb, I got the very tiny tiny nits. So tiny they were stuck in between the teeth of the comb and I used a magnifying glass to verify they were there, and a toothpick to get them out of the comb!

Does anyone think I am coming near to the end of this problem? I got I think about 3 this morning and 4 tonight from my daughter. We are all oiled for the night, with our hair pinned up. Tomorrow we will do more shampoo.

The Frontline idea sounds interesting. I wonder why they didn't approve it here in the US. Oh, well, my 2 yr old is better off using olive oil and teachers and other people on this thread say that alone works, right? I'm using the shampoo as well.

Thanks for helping me out with your great advice and sympathies!!

 

[shaylyn]

Oh my goodness! Did they tell you how much they charged per hour when they started?

 

[aprilgail2]

Tonight I found 4 nits on my 7 yr old, none on me and none on my 2 yr old. The frustrating thing is, when I picked through with my hands I found nothing, but when I oiled her hair down and combed through with a fine tooth comb, I got the very tiny tiny nits. So tiny they were stuck in between the teeth of the comb and I used a magnifying glass to verify they were there, and a toothpick to get them out of the comb!

Does anyone think I am coming near to the end of this problem? I got I think about 3 this morning and 4 tonight from my daughter. We are all oiled for the night, with our hair pinned up. Tomorrow we will do more shampoo.

The Frontline idea sounds interesting. I wonder why they didn't approve it here in the US. Oh, well, my 2 yr old is better off using olive oil and teachers and other people on this thread say that alone works, right? I'm using the shampoo as well.

Thanks for helping me out with your great advice and sympathies!!

What company did you use??? I don't understand if you had them come and do it why you are still finding nits! The place I used picked every bug and nit out of the hair and it was gaurenteed-I did not have to go searching through my daughters head picking out more. I would call them to come back for FREE and finish the job!!

 

[aprilgail2]

Frontline(the stuff for dogs and cats). It is not recommended for human use in the US, but you can do some research and find that it's been studied in other countries for human use. We've used it at our house and it works. It's also effective for over a month so as the nits hatch it will kill of the new ones.

heck a lot of vets will tell you not to even use that on your pets as it does damage to their nervous systems! I would never put any pesticides, including rid or any of that other damaging stuff. My friend treated her son while pregnant- she miscarried a few days later- could have had nothing to do with the poison she was putting in her sons hair or it may have but she has never forgiven herself for using that stuff on her child and while pregnant.

 

[cinnamon-sugah]

I worked for a while at a daycare for homeless kids (best job I ever had!) and as you can imagine, we dealt with lice A LOT! It seemed like I always had at least one kid in my class with nits. I used a rosemary mint shampoo and wore my hair in buns while at work. Even with close contact with the kids and treating a couple of them I NEVER had lice. I have also heard that tea tree oil shampoo will do the same thing. Sorry you're having to deal with this OP.

 

[Nicolepa]

I hear ya about paying the $$ and still finding more nits. I was upset at first but I realize that they got MOST of them and dd's head was crawling with live ones so I really had to get someone out here to help me, and they came here at 9 am and stayed until 1:30 am. It was a psychological thing, too. I was freaking out and I needed some help. I was alone with the kids with no help. Now I feel empowered to do it myself if there is a next time. Also, I realize I'll be doing this process for the rest of the month.

The place I went to they did the intial clean. Then I had to comb thru their hair every day for a week. On my daughter (who had it the worst) I think I found a few nits the next couple of days. Then after the week, we went back for a recheck. At that point they were considered clean, but they had a 2 week guarentee and if I found any live ones they retreated for free.

In other words, if they missed any nits and they hatched they redid the treatment for free.

 

[robinb]

Frontline(the stuff for dogs and cats). It is not recommended for human use in the US, but you can do some research and find that it's been studied in other countries for human use. We've used it at our house and it works. It's also effective for over a month so as the nits hatch it will kill of the new ones.

I no longer even use Frontline on my pets, I would not consider using it on my children! I remember when I got a tiny bit on my hands one time ... by mouth went numb even after washing it off right away. That stuff is literally poison!

 

[twooley2]

usee an oil called cajeput oil in your shampoo a cpl of drops. It is strong. Can even put a couple drops in laundry. Can get it at health food store like natural vitamin kind of store. about 10.00 might even find it online and lice will not return again. This works like a charm like nothing else after trying several crazy recommended remedies. Do not get in the eyes it has strong menthol like vapors. Seems online can go from 10.00 to 40.00 but only need a little

 

[sk8jdgca]

I swear by the Nitfree comb- I had to order it from england on ebay but I found it in the states. It is amazing- no chemicals- just squirt the hair with a mixture of water and conditioner and start combing through- if you rinse the comb out in a glass container you can see how many you get- During the prime lice years, I kept combing the kids hair out with this comb every so often after they had their baths. Best money i ever spent
http://www.amazon.com/Terminator-Professional-Stainless-Treatment-Removes/dp/B000HIBPV8

 

[daisyduck123]

I used to teach first grade.

One year I had a class that was like the head lice capital of the universe.
Especially when you consider that about half the kids were black.
Black kids rarely get head lice.

But I have seen the things swarming on kid's heads.
I mean masses of the things moving in kid's hair.

The same kids would get them over and over.
Their environments were infested apparently.

Anyway, what I observed was that little girls who came to school with their hair obviously fixed by someone else, braids, french braids or whatever, seldom had headlice.
Or they were discovered before they got out of hand.

I never got them myself, but I did wash my hair everyday.

I've been teaching 1st grade for 20 years and I've never, ever had lice (nor has anyone in my family, thank goodness).

I have always worn a ponytail/twist to work, and try not to let the kids hug me too much...and yes, I have had lice in my classroom this year.

 

[BellePrincessBelle]

What company did you use??? I don't understand if you had them come and do it why you are still finding nits! The place I used picked every bug and nit out of the hair and it was gaurenteed-I did not have to go searching through my daughters head picking out more. I would call them to come back for FREE and finish the job!!

I would also like to know what company you used!!! We never found any nits after the company I used left & the girl who came gave her her cell phone just in case so I could get ahold of her anytime and the owner called 2x's with follow ups. You should not be finding anything in your dd's hair.

 

[mefordis]

The owner has called me a bunch. She just said that they are so small it is impossible to get them all in 1-2 days. You have to keep combing and doing the shampoo/oil for 7-10 days to be sure.

I would also like to know what company you used!!! We never found any nits after the company I used left & the girl who came gave her her cell phone just in case so I could get ahold of her anytime and the owner called 2x's with follow ups. You should not be finding anything in your dd's hair.

 

[ccgirl]

The owner has called me a bunch. She just said that they are so small it is impossible to get them all in 1-2 days. You have to keep combing and doing the shampoo/oil for 7-10 days to be sure.

I disagree with her. While it is difficult, it is not impossible. I spent about 6 hours nit picking my DD's hair the first day. The second day, I found many 4 nits and never again. With someone that does this "professionally" they certainly should be able to get them all. I used the metal nit comb. Separated the hair in 1 inch parts (and my DD's hair is LOONNGG) and went thru that way. I wore the plastic gloves along with my hair up. I spread a white paper towel on the counter next to me. I wiped the comb pressing against the counter after each comb thru. It was easier to see any nits/lice that way. I then put the paper towel in a plastic shopping bag and straight into the trash outside. Since my DD has had the lice she has always gone into school wtih her hair up. This makes it a little more difficult for the lice to transfer since the hair is not down and flowing.

Good luck.

 

[mefordis]

The nits I am finding are so small they are between the teeth of the comb, and I have to get them out with a toothpick! I think only the very very small ones are left.

I hear ya, though, when they told me they might not all be gone I was livid. What could I do then? They had my credit card and it was visit #2 for them, so I just sucked it up and now I know what to do myself.

Thank you for the advice!

I disagree with her. While it is difficult, it is not impossible. I spent about 6 hours nit picking my DD's hair the first day. The second day, I found many 4 nits and never again. With someone that does this "professionally" they certainly should be able to get them all. I used the metal nit comb. Separated the hair in 1 inch parts (and my DD's hair is LOONNGG) and went thru that way. I wore the plastic gloves along with my hair up. I spread a white paper towel on the counter next to me. I wiped the comb pressing against the counter after each comb thru. It was easier to see any nits/lice that way. I then put the paper towel in a plastic shopping bag and straight into the trash outside. Since my DD has had the lice she has always gone into school wtih her hair up. This makes it a little more difficult for the lice to transfer since the hair is not down and flowing.

Good luck.

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

Another excellent measure to get rid of pests such as head lice, and for that matter, even body lice, is to add a few drops of tea tree oil to your regular shampoo and use it as you would any other time. Tea tree oil has anti fungal as well as anti bacterial properties which will kill the lice or any other living organism at once


** not sure if this has been mentioned but if you child is wearing a coat/hats make sure to wash it as well. Throw out combs and brushes. and get a new pillow.

 

[mefordis]

Oh my goodness! Did they tell you how much they charged per hour when they started?

Yes, they told me. It's $125 per hour but it was late in the evening and I was desperate for help. Plus I didn't anticipate calling them back the next day but I wanted to do that to be sure they were gone.

 

[ccgirl]

The nits I am finding are so small they are between the teeth of the comb, and I have to get them out with a toothpick! I think only the very very small ones are left.

I hear ya, though, when they told me they might not all be gone I was livid. What could I do then? They had my credit card and it was visit #2 for them, so I just sucked it up and now I know what to do myself.

Thank you for the advice!

Sure, no problem. You will be a pro when this is over. Maybe you have found your side job?? no when someone in my DD's class thinks they have it they call me to confirm. Amazing the nurses miss it but I seem to find them just fine.

Another excellent measure to get rid of pests such as head lice, and for that matter, even body lice, is to add a few drops of tea tree oil to your regular shampoo and use it as you would any other time. Tea tree oil has anti fungal as well as anti bacterial properties which will kill the lice or any other living organism at once


** not sure if this has been mentioned but if you child is wearing a coat/hats make sure to wash it as well. Throw out combs and brushes. and get a new pillow.

Great advice! My DD had lice in the winter. I refused to let her wear a hat. She was playing outside and her teacher asked where her hat was. She told her that her mommy won't let her wear one.

That Fairytales has the tea tree oil already in it along with some other scents that the lice supposedly do not like. I can't believe how much healthier my DD's hair is since using it.

 

[torinsmom]

Make sure you wash the covers of your kids' car seats too, and vacuum the seats in the actual car well also.