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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to be angry at parents who do nothing about their kids' headlice?

144 replies

atthecarwash · 14/02/2011 20:03

I've just spent the last 45 min getting rid of the headlice and nits on my two youngest.

I've used a 15 min treatment plus conditioner and comb and it's the 3rd time in a month I've had to do this.

There are parents who simply can't be bothered to get rid of them and they are infecting everyone else. Aren't they disgusted by these pests?Am I overreactng?

OP posts:
helloimhere · 14/02/2011 20:06

you are not overeacting at all.

We are having the same prob this month, my son was lice free since sept and now they have returned, bad news as well i have them too.

We are washing our hair every evening and doing the conditioner comb....

fingers crossed.

Original poster
atthecarwash · 14/02/2011 20:10

yikes! Luckily I don't have any. But I have had them before and it's horrid. If only everyone tried hard to get rid of them....

OP posts:
xstitch · 14/02/2011 20:11

YANBU.

ohnoshedittant · 14/02/2011 20:19

YANBU it's soooo annoying!

pointythings · 14/02/2011 20:36

YADNBU, flogging offence IMO.

Thank goodness DD2 is now in Yr3 - they seem less frequent in KS2.

bibbitybobbityhat · 14/02/2011 20:42

Yanbu.

But you need to

  1. Hedrin them with the overnight stuff, not the 15 minute stuff. Do it at the weekend and wash their hair in the morning.
  1. Wet comb with conditioner to get rid of the dead lice. This will probably take about 15 mins per child.
  1. Wet comb with conditioner every 3 days for at least a fortnight after that.

Treating them 3 times in a month isn't enough. Forget the chemical treatments, you need to use something on their hair that you can use all the time without fear of the chemicals.

Oh and you also need a nitty gritty comb if you haven't already got one.

HSMM · 14/02/2011 20:52

YANBU

I wet combed my DD's hair twice a week all the way through Primary School.

Some people just leave them and the children stop noticing the itching after a while.

verytellytubby · 14/02/2011 20:55

Drives me insane. Done all 3 of mine tonight again.

I'm going to get some Hedrin and try that as I can't seem to get rid of them. I have a nitty comb.

DD has really curly hair so it's a nightmare. We even cut it short as it would take me hours to comb through.

tl10 · 14/02/2011 20:57

Can't believe in this day and age nits till exist to be honest. If a parent is perfectly happy for their child to go weeks and months without treating their child for lice then I think it's an issue of lack of basic care and social services should be arranging a visit. When I was a teacher I remember one student who constantly had nits (even to the extent they were visible on her shirt). She was a lovely girl but completely shunned by the rest of the class and it was quite heartbreaking to witness to be honest- there was very little we could do though even though I just wanted to take her home and get her cleaned up :(

Amieesmum · 14/02/2011 20:58

Get a nitty gritty comb they are fab!
I did a sneaky, and had said friend that kept infecting all the other kids over to stay the weekend & blitzed her with the comb & conditioner.

I wouldn't normally do that, and i know in most cases i'd have been really really interfering unwelcome to do so, but in this case i should add social services were heavily involved with her family at the time, the only reason my dd ended up friends with her was because we lived in the same temporary housing block & i felt so bad for the kid being neglected so badly i ended up taking her to school because her parents never bothered to get up on time and having her over for tea every night for 6 months. Washing her uniform & buying her new clothes. Making her a packed lunch for school & giving her breakfast along the way & doing her hair for her. Poor kid :(

verytellytubby · 14/02/2011 20:59

Amiee- that's really sad.

zombieslovebrains · 14/02/2011 21:05

The eggs are pain in arse to get rid of even though they are dead.

Use tea tree shampoo and conditioner (we use this and never had repeat experience of nits)

Clockface · 14/02/2011 21:09

YANBU.

I have spent ages tonight on my dc - dd has severe eczema so when she gets infected it sets off her eczema and tonight the back of her scalp was red raw Sad. I'm going to go through her hair again in the morning.

I go through my dcs' hair every other day.

They are such a PITA!

pointythings · 14/02/2011 21:09

We wet comb with conditioner and Nitty Gritty every week, tie hair back (even though it's short-ish now) and add a spritz of unscented hairspray - tip from my hairdresser.

No crawlies since September '09 and counting.

And if you do get them, Hedrin is definitely the way to go.

ddubsgirl · 14/02/2011 21:27

no you not,my boys have had them,been going through thier hair morning and night for the last week,driving me potty,cleared them over the weekend and now 1st day back and they have more.

ShinyMoonInAPurpleSky · 14/02/2011 21:30

YANBU if the parents really can't be bothered but YABU if, like my mum experienced, the nits do not want to leave the child alone.

Me, my sister and brother all got them at the same time. Mum promptly treated us all and my brother and I were clear within a week or two. My sister however, was still struggling with them literally a couple of years later until she hit puberty.

My brother and I never caught them again however so I don't know what it was about my sister's hair but it drove her and my mum mad!

whattodonow1 · 14/02/2011 21:32

It is such a nuisance, my daughter got it all the time at nursery and as soon as she left she stopped getting them. Apparently only 40% of people with head lice have an itchy head. I check my daughters head every week by wet combing with conditioner. My daughters now in school and was very impressed that her teacher told all the kids to get their mums to check their heads that night when she obviously spotted a nit on one of the pupils. The only way to get rid of them is through everyone working together to get rid of them. Last time I spotted them on my daughter I made a point of texting her close friends mums to make sure they were checked to.

mercibucket · 14/02/2011 21:33

I don't think some parents see them tbh - they're easy to spot on my kids cos they've got thin and blonde hair and the nits are always really dark but unless you nitcomb you wouldn't see them on dark haired kids. We are not even allowed to make the letters home more specific about what to do to look for them etc in case parents get offended that we are accusing them of having 'dirty' haired kids [sigh]
I'd like everyone to agree to check once a week on a specific day otherwise tbh it's an endless circle

WynkenBlynkenandNod · 14/02/2011 21:35

The worse person I knew for this is a Teaching Assistant. She used to moan how much it cost to treat them. Then when another friend said she'd spent an hour or two (can't remember how long) nit combing, she looked shocked. Her DD refused to let her brush her hair and it got all matted and had to be cut out.

I was doing DD's hair with the curling tongs and started doing her friend's bu gave up when I saw how many empty White egg cases there were plus brown ones. In the end other friend and I got really firm about it and pointed out that for the one she was using you have to do the second application and she finally sorted it out. But it took many months for all the White egg cases to grow out, they really showed on her dark hair.

Wombletini · 14/02/2011 21:36

YANBU
Second what Pointyhings said especially the hairspray.

ReindeerBollocks · 14/02/2011 21:36

YANBU we spoke to the school when DC got them, and asked if they would inform other parents. Unfortunately the teacher said she knew which child was mainly responsible but couldn't do anymore than send out the standard letter to all parents. Apparently the child in question had been itching for months, poor thing.

Wombletini · 14/02/2011 21:38

I mean Pointythings {blush}

Tryharder · 14/02/2011 21:45

Bring back the Nit Nurse.

pointythings · 14/02/2011 21:50

At least mine start itching the moment they have more than half a dozen... IMO the scratching ones are the lucky ones.

DD2 in Yr 2 knew full well where she had picked them up from and made a determined effort not to go near that child (fortunately not a favourite friend) - that really helped.

I do get very Angry at parents who don't do the basics of prevention - it ain't rocket science, after all. And if you use a leave-in conditioner and time combing day for the day before hair washing, they end up with lovely silky hair as well.

bookworm1 · 14/02/2011 21:51

It drives mw mad too. I have wet combed and done recommeded 2 hedrin treatments and the little blighters have reappeared.