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I’m so fucking fed up of nits

20 replies

Iwantabloodypizza · 23/01/2023 08:59

I know what I am doing to try and keep them at bay - combing with conditioner and a kitty gritty every other night (all of us to make sure), I put argon oil or tea tree oil though dds hair to make it harder for the little arsehole to attach eggs too, I use full marks every couple of weeks on all of us, dd goes to school with tight plats.

But when I comb, there are often a couple of fully grown ones that have come from another child’s head.

There are children at her school where you can see lice infestations.

I have spoken to those parents (in a lighthearted, roundabout way, or you’d get punched), saying things like, “God, aren’t these nits awful! Are you always having to get rid of them too?” Most of the time just getting ignored, or just told “no”.

I’ve spoken to the teachers and TAs and it turns out they are just as exasperated as me with it all and getting lice constantly themselves but say they can’t do anything as a lot of the parents think the school is against them anyway and pushing the issue in the past has made things like attendance worse. They don’t even send out the “there is a case of nits in your child’s class” email anymore as it makes some situations worse.

I’m so sick of it. I’m sick of having to battle with my toddler every other night combing though her hair just incase.

And I am sick of the parents who do jack shit about it. I’m also sick of living in this shithole surrounded by people who don’t give a monkeys that their children are covered in lice, which is just the tip of the iceberg anyway, and I can’t change schools because they are all full of people like this here. But we are stuck here for now.

OP posts:
Iwantabloodypizza · 23/01/2023 09:00

Nitty gritty, not kitty gritty.

OP posts:
Builtforcomfortbutnotspeed · 23/01/2023 09:14

I had the same problem
in fact one mother (who’s kids hair was moving with nits) was heard to say ‘nits?I work full time!I don’t have the time to check for them!’
guess who’s dd sat next to hers?
6 bloody years I was forced to comb through her hair-every night-you name a treatment,I tried it
the only cure was when they moved to secondary school-by then I was dealing with her siblings (who,thankfully went to school with parents who did check)

you have my full sympathy-it’s one long cycle of nits and ignorant parents

VenusClapTrap · 23/01/2023 09:16

Bring back Nitty Nora!

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TheTurn0fTheScrew · 23/01/2023 09:17

I hear you.

12yo found nits in November. Treated the whole family, lots of combing, two different OTC products, Nitty gritty, Conditioner, the works. Found nits on the 15yo, H and I were clear. 12yo's resolved easily, 15yo STILL has them, to the point that I now think she was patient zero and gave them to the 12yo. We are combing the 15yo thoroughly every second night (I would prefer nightly, but teenagers) and I am convinced she's picking them back up at school. My only hope now is GCSE study leave!

Ineedwinenow · 23/01/2023 09:19

That’s sounds awful! Your poor children! Is it just one child in the class spreading it or a few? This sounds ridiculous but Is your daughter friends with the child with nits? If so can you invite her round for a “pamper party” and do it yourself! It’s not nice for yours but that child must be really suffering! The parents should be made to take the child (or children) out of school until it’s dealt with 🤬

Nottodaty · 23/01/2023 09:20

I remember the nightmare - worse time reception to y3. Eventually the kids don’t get so close!

I worked full time and had to deal with them regularly- my daughter eventually had a reaction to the treatment - this was after the worse 3 months of trying to get rid of them!!

luckily the school had no issue in sending out strongly worded letters regularly around the nits issue.

MeMyBooksAndMyCats · 23/01/2023 09:20

As someone who had nits through out primary school even though my mum combed my hair every damn day with the nit comb and treated it every weekend (also while working full time!) I feel for you.

Some parents are lazy as hell. It's near enough neglect.

Velvian · 23/01/2023 09:26

I find the plastic combs work much better than the nitty gritty. Also with DD, a single French plait was most effective for keeping clear. There are so many girls that have loose hair, if parents could just tie it back if they won't treat them.

Could you ask the school if they can implement a rule that all long hair should be tied back?

I feel for you op, it's miserable.

Ditzyduck · 23/01/2023 09:27

I had a friend who was studying to be a social worker and her daughters hair was crawling with them . My friend and all her family had them and everytime I was around them I was absolutely paranoid . When she did do her hair she would take pieces of paper full of them out of her hair then wouldn’t do it again for weeks . The kid used to rake her hair constantly and it was just normal in the family. I remember we was in the bank once and there was one on my friends forehead …
they all used to laugh that the kid was sharing her nits round . The auntie and the nan had them and one time there was one on the head of the newborn baby with no hair !!!
I remember picking up the child from nursery and they mentioned she had them and my friend went mad “I’m sick of all these dirty fuckers giving her nits again !” And yet it was coz she could never be arsed to get rid of them .
Shes now a social worker and I saw a video the other day on fb and the kid is now at high school and STILL scratching her head !!!
Makes you wonder when obviously headlice are a sign of neglect if left and this woman is no better than some of the parents she is dealing with every day.
It must affect the kids confidence and other kids obviously notice them . They need to bring back the nit nurses in school !

Iwantabloodypizza · 23/01/2023 09:31

Ineedwinenow · 23/01/2023 09:19

That’s sounds awful! Your poor children! Is it just one child in the class spreading it or a few? This sounds ridiculous but Is your daughter friends with the child with nits? If so can you invite her round for a “pamper party” and do it yourself! It’s not nice for yours but that child must be really suffering! The parents should be made to take the child (or children) out of school until it’s dealt with 🤬

It’s not just one child, it’s many of them, sadly. And nits are the tip of the iceberg. Lots of problems with substance abuse in families, neglect.

I don’t live in a great area at the moment (followed the line always trotted out on mumsnet following a period of ill health and redundancy of “you’ll have to move far away to somewhere you can afford!” and ended up here for various reasons), it’s an area with a lot of problems which is why the school staff can’t really do anything. I do understand why they are unwilling to make things worse.

Before I get accused of being a snob, that’s just the way it is here like in a lot of deprived areas.

But it doesn’t stop me being pissed off for having to spend ages making sure my own children are lice free. Especially my 2 year old who hates having her hair combed through. My 8 year old is fine with it, but it’s just another little misery.

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UtterlyUnimaginativeUsername · 23/01/2023 09:36

We found them on DD over and over for about a year. Used every treatment the chemist had, multiple times, combed till her scalp was raw. Eventually I asked the GP for advice and he said to try benzoyl benzoate. I found it as Ovelle, which we hadn't heard of before. We did one treatment and haven't seen one since. You do need to be careful with it because DS found it very sore and we had to rinse it off him immediately, but the rest of us were fine.

Vodkaskirts · 23/01/2023 09:43

Tea Tree Shampoo & Conditioner That's what I used on my son who had been palgued for over a year. Started wasging his hair in Tea Tree Shampoo NO issues after I changed his shampoo

Knittingnanny2 · 23/01/2023 09:43

I was an infant teacher for 40 years and the best way I found to avoid nits was to use a coating of hair spray on my hair every day. Might be worth a try.
Nits in the classroom was often my fault apparently! I often got blamed- as if I kept them in a jar in the cupboard and let them out to annoy parents!!!
There is a school of thought that tight plaits make it easier for them to climb up as opposed to freely swinging hair, but I’m not sure that is actually correct.

Notyetacatlady · 23/01/2023 09:50

Use the vosene spray every day. I have done for years and luckily my 2 dds have never got lice despite them going round school.

Iwantabloodypizza · 23/01/2023 09:53

Notyetacatlady · 23/01/2023 09:50

Use the vosene spray every day. I have done for years and luckily my 2 dds have never got lice despite them going round school.

I’ve not tried that but I will get some.

We only use tea tree shampoo and conditioner but these lice seem to laugh in the face of it.

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Bunnycat101 · 23/01/2023 09:55

I really feel for you. The problem is the combing takes effort and clearly some people just can’t be arsed. I can’t imagine what it must be like for children with a head full untreated. Last year my 3yo had them from nursery and in one weekend spread them to us, grandparents and our niece and nephew. I was horrified and felt so bad at how quickly she’d infected everyone. Fortunately got everyone treated before they’d had a chance to multiply and was combing every day for ages out of paranoia. Previously I’d always done a weekly comb with my eldest so we could pick anything up quickly but hadn’t done it with my youngest as I thought I’d see them on her (baby fine blonde hair).

MrsPelligrinoPetrichor · 23/01/2023 09:56

A quick blast of hairspray after right plaiting deters the little bastards.

pelargoniums · 23/01/2023 10:00

We comb DD every other day, have used every treatment going, blow-dry her hair (it helps to desiccate the eggs), treat the whole family, tightly French plait her hair, boil wash bedding, hats and soft toys twice a week, the works, and we can never get them all short of shaving her head. Some kids are more susceptible and no amount of tea tree, vosene, “oh, this random cure worked on my DC so it must work on yours” has had any effect. The only time we got her down to zero was going to Hairforce in London and having them literally vacuumed out, but it cost something like £200 plus travel plus two days off work (you have to have two separate sessions), which is obviously prohibitive. Some parents may be doing what they can and be at their wit’s end (nit’s end).

Iwantabloodypizza · 23/01/2023 10:07

pelargoniums · 23/01/2023 10:00

We comb DD every other day, have used every treatment going, blow-dry her hair (it helps to desiccate the eggs), treat the whole family, tightly French plait her hair, boil wash bedding, hats and soft toys twice a week, the works, and we can never get them all short of shaving her head. Some kids are more susceptible and no amount of tea tree, vosene, “oh, this random cure worked on my DC so it must work on yours” has had any effect. The only time we got her down to zero was going to Hairforce in London and having them literally vacuumed out, but it cost something like £200 plus travel plus two days off work (you have to have two separate sessions), which is obviously prohibitive. Some parents may be doing what they can and be at their wit’s end (nit’s end).

Yes, they seem to love something about my 8 year old.

I have a much older son, he had them once, after a school residential, one treatment and they never came back. He had a head of floppy hair too, not like it was super short.

But dd seems to be a magnet for them.

And selfishly, it’s a pain in the arse for me as I have long, really thick hair. It’s a pain in the arse for me. I comb with the nitty gritty during every shower but the amount of hair it pulls out or breaks off, I’m surprised I have any left! I prefer using full marks as it’s so oily it makes it much easier for the comb to go through my hair. I co sleep with my two year old, who is always glued to her older sister, so I get them too. It’s a nightmare.

OP posts:
Iwantabloodypizza · 23/01/2023 10:08

Such a pain in the arse, I had to say it twice 😳

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