Ask what I can do about lice!!

[Itchywitchyhead]

OMG I feel terrible. I’m a teacher but always wear my hair tied up, keep my distance from the children and regularly have my hair checked. I even use a repellent.
Despite all this I have lice. And given it to DH, Dsis and possibly DD (only realised DH had it tonight so will check DD first thing tomorrow).
How can we get rid of it? We have been using our own towels and washing after every use. Washing our bedding every day. Going through each other’s hair with a nit comb every day and using lice shampoo. What can we do! I feel beyond horrible and like we will never get rid of them now!

Hedrin and nitty gritty comb. I had them in the autumn and this sorted me out. Lyclear didn't work for me.

My son's had them, and after realising he had them, I found one in my own hair. Full Marks solution (the clead liquid, greasy stuff, not a mousse) got rid of them quickly. I'd previously tried just nitty gritty and conditioner, but just couldn't get them all.

If you have used a good nit shampoo and are combing with a nitty gritty comb then you are on the right track to kill the little buggers. As an ex teacher myself I know your pain, I only caught nits once but brought home ringworm and thread worms . Heyho.

Our lovely school nurse used to say " if you break their legs they don't lay eggs" she was a great advocate for very vigorous hairbrushing to damage them , I think it worked because as I say I only brought them home once.

Now I’m itching! Nitty gritty and Hedrin, then Hedrin again 7 days later. Tie hair up and they struggle to get a hold if you wear hair spray I think.

Good luck

Hedrin once and nitty gritty. I’ve probably tried them all over the years and that’s the only thing that works. Also green vosene anti headlice shampoo is an excellent deterrent. My kids have only caught lice if we haven’t been using it.

Also, use hair straighteners ( as well as what you are doing already ) they fry them but you can't get close enough to the scalp to get all in this method alone.

twice a week use a nit comb to comb your hair, with conditioner in it [need only be cheap stuff], that'll typically get any live ones out and, ultimately, no eggs if you're consistently killing off any live ones that are more than a few days old. worth googling nit life cycles to get a feel for how long this will take to be fully effective.

i wouldn't get too precious about bedding, you'll only very rarely pick up lice from it.

thanks for not flaming me. I’m beside myself and I’ll never forgive myself if DD has it.

I can't believe you are a teacher and reacting like this. Sadly li e are an occupational hazard for teachers and if dd doesnt get them from you the chance of her going through school without getting them from somebody else is incredibly slim.

It really isn’t that bigger deal. How long have you been a teacher, there’s much more disgusting things kids can get and pass on!

We’ve found the best course of action is Hedrin with a nitty gritty comb and then loads of conditioner with some tea tree oil. Comb through every other day for a couple of weeks. To be extra thorough you can dry comb first then conditionerabd comb.

Why would anyone flame you?! As a teacher surely you know it’s just one of those things? Do you judge your pupils so harshly when they get it?
Anyway... DD came home with them on the last day of term before Christmas. Hedrin Once plus combing with a nitty gritty and conditioner every night for a week got rid of them.

And what do you mean you’ll never forgive yourself if your DD has them?! What do you think they’re going to do to her?
I hope my DD’s teacher doesn’t have this reaction to headlice.

Thank you for all the advice. Letting my anxiety overwhelm me so I’ll leave this thread alone now.

Are you ok? It's just head lice. You'll never forgive yourself if your kid has them? Seriously? It's head lice, not the plague. Almost all kids will get the. It's really no reason to panic. Comb and use a treatment. Then test again in 7 days. And you should comb once a week just to check.

But you really need to calm down.

Though these messages have helped me put it into perspective x

Olive oil/ conditioner all over hair. Wrap in cling film. Go to bed. Comb out and wash in morning.

You’re overreacting. Give yourself a reality check.

Head lice are just a common side effect of having young children.

The best way to deal with it is conditioner and thorough combing with a nit comb every other day making sure you continue after you think they've gone in case there are a few eggs left.
Tea tree conditioner if you can.

I tended to do the comb and conditioner once a week as routine especially if I knew there was a local infestation. Don't think the DC moving on to secondary school means an end to your woes. In my experience girls are especially huggy, huggy and don't let on they've got them.

My dd had headlice, noticed them last weekend, and went straight out and bought a bottle of 'Full Marks' headlice solution. That, combined with careful combing with the nitty gritty comb got rid of them first time - she has no lice now. It's very oily, you coat your hair thoroughly and then comb through section by section with the comb (best if somebody else does it for you - patiently) to catch any dead lice or eggs. It doesn't smell and you only leave it in for 5 mins before you can start to comb through it. Then wash it all out. I also read that headlice and their eggs hate hairdryers, which dehydrates them basically.

I don't think you're over-reacting btw - it's horrible feeling like you're infested with something, it can make you feel panicky.

I feel your pain. The combs and lotions are rubbish. I got lice off my four year old when my baby was 6months. Was told to comb conditioner through my (waist length curly) wet hair every morning for 2 weeks to rid myself of nits and eggs, and use those over the counter remedies. After repeated PITA combing and lotionning, the ruddy minibeasts survived, and multiplied. In despair and after days of itching I googled it, and found lice hate tee-tree oil as it’s a natural insecticide. I mixed a few drops of tee tree into a tablespoon or two of olive oil and put the lot on my hair at night, wrapped in a towel and washed it out in the morning. I straightened it with ghds to fry any survivors and, ta-da, a trawl through with the flea rake yielded only dead uns. Since then have used the cheap-as-chips tee tree shampoo/conditioner from Alberto Balsam which so far has had a deterrent effect. Good luck.

Aw OP, it is horrible and you are obviously suffering but they are just little bugs...

I say tell myself this because I too found lice in my daughter’s hair this very evening!!! Went a bit nuts then gritted my teeth, chucked her in the bath and got the comb out. Found 4 in her hair bleugh! Then obviously got myself checked with the nit comb but found none in my own hair or dh. My head is now INCREDIBLY itchy but I think it might be psychological. I will run the comb through again before bed I think.

Will pop out and get the shampoo too tomorrow. Happy days!