AIBU to move to a policy of nit containment from nit eradication!

[marmitesarnies]

I am a 10 year nit veteran from when my DS1 was 4. Initially if I got "the letter" or found anything that could possibly be one of the little critters, I did everything required and eliminated every single nit from DS1's head.

Over the past 10 years I have spent hours with the comb and conditioner/spray etc in a battle with DS2 (11) and had some nit free periods.

With DD1 (9) it seems there is no way to get on top of it, 100s of nits every time which sometimes go down to a few, but quickly bounce back - it is just circular process. Now I have moved to a once a week comb - specifically an act of containment rather than hope for eradication - with the thought I have just 2 more years in primary school and then it will be over!

Does anyone else have this approach?!

NB just interested in what other people think - not looking for nit treatment suggestions - hair spray, combing, conditioner, tea tree oil etc etc - as I am aware of them all!

How odd so why does he keep herring themselves why can't you take the them down to the zero?

If he keeps getting themselves from the school I think you need to complain to the school.. Explain this to me them and they need to impress more upon parents... To sort out nits.
Dd first had them at just 4 and wouldn't let me near her hair, didn't understand what nits where and we managed to get rid.

Dd 9 had them and that was the doddle! A child sitting and letting me comb them out and inspect!

You would be totally unreasonable to not do everything to eradicate. You’d become the parent of ‘that child’ in every year group, the poor child who has a parent who doesn’t give a shit for the comfort of their own child and that of other children.

Grow up and get on with it.

Also if you your dd keeps carrying then she becomes the problem.
Have you used headrin and nitty gritty comb

Nits feed on the blood of their host and unchecked can cause huge discomfort for the person who has them so I would be trying to get rid as much as possible. Maybe a chat with the school about it being an issue in her/his year?

I really don't know what to suggest but feel your pain.

Is everyone else in the class treating? It only takes one parent not to. I no in ds2 class we know which poor child has them as it obvious and the head keeps having the mom in so fingers crossed that works.
Good luck.

I dont understand how youre not actually getting rid of them???

Is your daughter’s hair tied up for school?

Your poor child, she must be so uncomfortable.

How about trying actual eradication, rather than stopping - as you have been doing - before eradication is achieved?

Why did you stop when you'd got it down to "a few"?

Because I think that's where the problem actually lies,

unreasonable, disgusting and a bit neglectful imo. nits are not comfortable for the child. may be cut her hair into a pixie style cut? or make her wear a headscarf to school? there must be something you can do! good luck and sorry if this was too harsh.

I understand your frustration, we wage a constant battle against nits in this house. If nits get the upper hand I do a condition and comb every second night until their nasty little lifecycle is broken. Takes about two weeks. I do it in the bath on wet hair which is much easier. I have given up any dreams of being nit free until they are year 7 or so. I just keep on top of infestations and accept they will have them again within a week or two caught from someone at school!

Just reread you op, you have to break the lifecycle which once a week treatment won’t do. Every night or second night for two weeks minimum, you’ll be v satisfied once you see the results! Hard to stop reinfestation but you can get on top of them once kids has them.

If you comb every 2 days, you find 100s each time? Big ones or little ones? Or how often are you doing it?

There are two possibilities. Either someone in her class is crawling with the things. Or you're not treating 100% effectively and it's your children reinfecting themselves. Even if you succeed in zapping all the lice, maybe some eggs are surviving. If you go with what you're suggesting it'll be option b) for sure though. So sorry, but I think you need to keep combing. And look into protective spray and hairstyles to put them off taking up residence in the first place.

How about a weekly routine check plus every time you find one comb every couple of days for a fortnight (is that enough nitty experts?).

And are you treating the whole family at once?

You need to use loads of conditioner and comb through every 2 days that way you get the new ones hatching out before they can lay more eggs. It may be worth getting a new nit comb some of them have teeth that are too big, I have found the metal ones to be better than the plastic ones.

This reminds me a bit of the little girl who was on embarrassing bodies and her hair was crawling with nits because the Mum it seemed couldn’t be bothered not. That poor little girl.
Sorry op didn’t mean you can’t be bothered but please you need to look to get specialist help if you think the nits are winning.

That electrI can comb works well in between times to check dry hair. If your child has had continual nits they are the problem and will be passing them around the class.

Dd kept getting them from a girl in school. Since they’ve broken friends she doesn’t get them anymore but that wasn’t before I got her hair cut into a pixie cut. This girl still has nits, and dd even saw one walking her eyebrow a few weeks ago.

Nits can cause long term scalp problems and leave hair knotty and matted. I’d find a way to get rid off them (haircut or hedrin).

DS2 currently has nits, its thefirst time he’s had them. I slathered conditioner on and combed and got most of them, the next morning I combed again and got a couple more. I’ve since combed every morning and night and not found any more.

I’ve combed the other and me and DH and have found none.
I’ve also let the parents in his class know by posting on our Facebook group.

DD has nits once at a similar age and I did exactly the same - conditioner and combed through. Then combed everyday for a couple of weeks then took it down to just on a Sunday night for a couple of months. Touch wood she hasn’t had them since. She’s now 9.

Definitely someone in her class is crawling with them. We had this with one of my dc. It would always be him that reintroduced them to the family. It only stopped once he went to secondary school. I still had two dc at primary school but it never happened again.
I did go for the zero nits approach. I was literally combing all my dc morning and evening for two weeks at a time when the nits were reintroduced. I used to love the long summer holidays.

Combing with nitty gritty everyday is the only way to actually get rid of them. Ensure that you plait your child's hair tightly and that will help massively to reduce any reintroduction of nits. It's a pita but necessary.

I've always taught my children that they need to keep heads away from everyone else. And I tie the girls hair up really high with no ends dangling down. Don't just accept its going to happen, prevention is important.

I do use hedrin for the initial treatment. Then I comb with conditioner every day until the 7th day when I do another hedrin treatment in case anything's been missed. I pick out the eggs with my fingers because some do slip through when combing. Its long and laborious but it gets rid of them.