To think my cleaner is being bloody ridiculous!

[Namechange20002]

Oldest DS is in primary school. He started scratching his head a lot the weekend before last and obviously my first thought was the dreaded head lice! Turned out to be that, so we treated the whole family with Nitwits and have been doing the daily slog of nit combing. DH has been threatening to shave his head for years due to his receding hairline and took DS’s head lice as an excuse opportunity to do that.

So come today, our cleaner arrives in the morning, I'm at work so not there. She comes in and sees DH shaved head and asks him about it. He doesn’t think anything of it and says oh the kids had head lice last week so I shaved my head. He then pops to the shops and returns 15 minutes later to find her sitting in her car. He asks her what’s wrong and she says she doesn’t want to go back in the house. At the same time she’s messaged me at work saying
”Your husband told me the kids have lice. Is that right? Can I come back another day as I’m a bit scared to be honest”

AIBU to think this is absolutely absurd behaviour?! I get that no one would want to get nits, but unless she’s physically rubbing her own head against my child’s head she’s not gonna get nits from just being in our house!
Shes made me feel like a bloody leper!

I wouldn't want nits either and would ask to rearrange. Why would you want her to risk it? Thought makes my skin crawl.

That is silly. She isn’t going to catch them. Tie your hair up and crack on.

She is being ridiculous. As is your DH for shaving his head for that reason.

It’s not really about you though, she has said she’s a bit scared. Some people are really scared of lice. I remember at school my friend’s mum cut my friends and her own hair really short when there was a headline outbreak. My friend didn’t even have them! I sense your cleaner is like that, your husband caught her off guard by mentioning the lice and she’s obviously phobic.

Perhaps she thinks you haven’t treated everyone and killed the lice and eggs. Still, she is being odd.

I mean, if that's how you feel you can't really reasonably go into any primary aged child's house - any child could likely have them at any time and you'd be unlikely to know.

Is she confusing headline with fleas? She's not going to catch them from being in the same house as you, that's ludicrous.

See things like that completely freak me out. It may seem silly to you but not to her and that's allowed. Not everyone is the same.

So the only person that was in your house when the cleaner arrived was your bald husband? She’s being ridiculous.

The only thing I’d be a bit funny about is stripping beds if I were her but I’ve never met a cleaner who does that anyway.

Has there been a breakdown in communication/language issue and she think it's a different sort of lice? Like bedbugs or something?

It is an absolutely absurd reaction to head lice! Although as pp says maybe she's got a head lice phobia.

I’m not sure it particularly is ‘allowed’ for a cleaner, is it? I mean, yes she can do it, but I wouldn’t be giving her any more work if I was OP.

Do you never go near anyone? What's the risk, she's cleaning not shampooing heads

How is it more risky than standing next to anyone?

You have to touch hair to hair to get them, so yes she is being ridiculous. They can't jump, only walk along hairs.

It's also not so terrible to get them - with my girls and I having long hair we caught them and passed them between us several times when they were younger. Makes you a bit itchy and it's a faff to comb them out. End of.

She's clearly got a phobia of them. Try having some sympathy instead of just rubbishing it. Just because you're not terrified of them.

Does she know what they are? Honestly what an overreaction everyone has been treated I wpukd be sending her some information and telling her not to bother rearranging

Absolutely ridiculous! Jeez the things some people are ‘phobic’ about and extreme reactions. How wet! Tell her to get on with her job or she’s out!

Gross. YABU, you should have let her know!

You say it's an overreaction but your husband shaved his hair off so shes going to think its a big thing.

I don’t think she should be called ridiculous. She may be genuinely worried about catching head lice. What’s the problem in reassuring her and arranging for to come back another day?

Did your DH not tell her that everyone had been treated so the problem is solved? I would have done in the first instance as I wouldn't want anyone thinking we still had them or just wasn't bothered about getting rid.

Some people do feel a bit antsy about parasites, it turns out your cleaner is one of them. If she's a good and reliable cleaner, I'd be trying to talk her down, as it were. Good cleaners are hard to find.

If its a true phobia that's a bit harsh

Then I would suggest cleaning is not the career for anyone with such a phobia

Why? Most peoples houses aren't crawling with lice

To be honest, I would do the same if I was her. I would absolutely hate to get head lice and then spread it around to loved ones. She was absolutely right to go back to her car and ask to rearrange.

This. I completely understand her.