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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to want more than a 3 week gap with no nits?

43 replies

carrieboo75 · 10/01/2010 22:32

Tonight I found nits in my 3 boys hair yet again.

They first got them in October and since then the longest time we have been with out them is 3 weeks. I am pretty sure they have been reinfested rather than me not clearing them properly as I have been putting in hours (sometimes up to 3 hours a day before I cut ds3's long curly hair)with the tea tree conditioner and the nitty gritty comb. I have spoken to the school (I think it is someone in youngests class as youngest is always the most infested), cut 2 out of 3's hair short (eldest refused) and told the boys not to put their heads next to others but still we keep getting them.

Am I kidding myself to think we should be able to go more than 3 weeks with out nits even if their is someone in the class that is not being treated?

What can I use as a preventive to try to make the gap bigger or is it a lost cause right now?

OP posts:
FluffyForLifeNotJustForXmas · 10/01/2010 22:35

Have you tried tea tree shampoo? My neighbour also recommended a shampoo called chineese whispers, she said it makes the hair greasy though but claims it works wonders as they can't stick.

Original poster
carrieboo75 · 10/01/2010 22:41

I use tea tree shampoo and conditioner each wash. I have not heard of chineese whispers where sells it? Two out of three have fine hair so it is likely that it will make their hair stick flat to their head but pretty much anything is worth ago!

OP posts:
jaquelinehyde · 10/01/2010 22:43

God I hate this my 3 are constantly itching. My eldest just started school this year and she is bringing them home with her every other week.

It really is a massive pain as all 3 DC's have thick afro hair, getting a comb through DD1's hair is near impossible, so it takes bloody ages to be sure her hair is clear.

Why can't other parents just fucking check and clear their children

FluffyForLifeNotJustForXmas · 10/01/2010 22:43

In the chinese herb shops/online. Good luck!!

Original poster
carrieboo75 · 10/01/2010 22:49

Thank you fluffy I will take a look.

jaquelinehyde - that's the thing, as others can't be checking their kids hair I am wondering if it is a lost cause right now and I have no choice but to just keep fighting the little bugs rather than attempting to stay fully clear .

OP posts:
onebatmother · 10/01/2010 22:55

It means you didn't get rid of them last time, rather than a new infestation, I fear. That's about the length of their lifecycle. You missed a nit which has now hatched and laid, etc.

The only way I've ever found that works is combing to a rigid timetable which fits in with said lifecycle and goes something like
day 1, 2, 3 comb
thereafter every 3rd day for 16 days. It sounds hideous, but because this way you hit the days which the ones you miss are hatching, you don't need to be so worried about combing for 2 hours or whatever craziness one does otherwise.

If I find the page in my favourites I'll post.

MoChan · 10/01/2010 22:58

Bring back the nit nurse, I say. Constantly combing them out at our house.

FluffyForLifeNotJustForXmas · 10/01/2010 22:59

Ds had nits last year. I found them on a Monday of half term, there was only about 2 with a few eggs, I removed them all, kept checking his head, none at all, he went to school the following Monday, Tuesday morning I found 16 of the little bastards. I kid you not!

Original poster
carrieboo75 · 10/01/2010 23:40

onebatmother - I am pretty sure it is new cases as like fluffy said I checked and checked and nothing and then pick up from school and lots of adults running around hair that weren't there in the morning! Also we were completely clear over christmas until they went back to school (ds1 had one empty egg in hair on 22nd Dec then nothing until this week). I will follow your days just to be safe though.

Thank goodness it does not take 3 hours now ds3 has had his hair cut, it took that long before as combination of him having thick hair, curly hair, lots of hair and long hair ment that a simple combing of each section took ages and then the hair egg combination was too thick for the comb so it had to be followed with a hand pick of each left over egg!

MoChan I wish they did have the nit nurse as the school seems powerless to do anything.

If it is one of their friends what can I dip the kids in (short of sheep dip ) that will deter an obviously well estblished nit family that seems to like tea tree?

OP posts:
Original poster
carrieboo75 · 10/01/2010 23:44

Onebatmother - just reread your post it is comb on the third day or is it leave 3 days and comb on the 4th?

OP posts:
fernie3 · 10/01/2010 23:44

my daughter started school in september and since then has had both nits and threadworm both of which I am sure come from school. I cant believe my beautiful little baby has become such a zoo for creepy crawlies!

Its going on my list of reasons why my other children have to stay pre school age forever.

I think i got rid of both of them but time will tell and if she gets them again i will just shave her hair off and send her in with disinfectant.

Original poster
carrieboo75 · 10/01/2010 23:48

fernie3, I am always telling them to stop growing I'll have to add this to my list as well .

OP posts:
FluffyForLifeNotJustForXmas · 10/01/2010 23:50

I really, really hate to say this but...ds has been in both private and a state school, the only times he has ever had head lice he was at the state school. I find it odd, I know they don't have a class divide, I'm not a snob, it's an observation.

paddingtonbear1 · 10/01/2010 23:51

carrieboo I feel your pain.. since dd first had nits last summer we've been fighting an almost constant battle. dd has thick hair and I've spent many hours combing with the nitty gritty. dd is very fed up with it all now!

Original poster
carrieboo75 · 11/01/2010 00:05

Fluffy, are the private schools able to have more of a say in terms of the childs health (i.e. talk directly to a parent if they see nits, refuse to have the child in school etc.). I was reading some of the old posts about nits (mostly full of answer for getting rid rather than keeping away, hence I started a new one) and there were a few people from other countries saying they are spoken to directly, kids have to stay off for 3 weeks etc. much more hands on an effective and s a result they have a very low number of cases.

paddingtonbear1, I was nearly in tears when I cut ds3's ringlets off (most of his hair is corse and wavy except for two ringlets on each side of this head at the front. I knew it would be much quicker if I cut it and at the 3 set of big adult lice at pick up time that were not there at drop off time in 2 1/2 weeks I felt it was no longer fair to him just because I wanted him to keep his long hair. Completely different with a girl though and I really feel sorry for you .

OP posts:
Original poster
carrieboo75 · 11/01/2010 00:09

Sorry that post was awfull, lots of typos .

OP posts:
FluffyForLifeNotJustForXmas · 11/01/2010 00:12

No, not in any of the ones ds has attended. There have been the occasional 'we have visitors, please check your child's head' but to be honest, these are really rare, I've seen 2 notices in 5 years, he spent a term and a half in a state school, he had headlice 4 times.

Original poster
carrieboo75 · 11/01/2010 00:20

Umm - what ever the difference is it needs to bottled and handed out to all schools.

OP posts:
FluffyForLifeNotJustForXmas · 11/01/2010 00:26

I think that it's only a few children who have lice but they have shit lazy parents/ill parents/whatever who couldn't give a shite, they send them to school, the lice go all around the class, other parents check and get rid of them, only to send them back to school to catch them again because child A's parents were too busy/lazy/whatever to check their childs infested hair.

slummymummy36 · 11/01/2010 04:01

I hate this! We had one particuarly bad year for nits in 2007!!

I was very literally pulling my hair out with pure frustration.

My children have moved to many different schools and some seemed to lot worse than others. There was one school that when I knew we were moving house yet again (and a change of school) my very first thought was Thank fuck the good lord for that! As opposed to Where are we moving to?

My girls now board (at a private school) and have had nits there!! Dont envy the house staff in a nit outbreak with all those heads to comb!! Saying that they do blummin good job armed with their nitty gritty combs!!

I swear by the nitty gritty comb btw as the teeth have special grooves that pull out the eggs as well as the lice!!

I have had to succomb to buying Hedrin since my DD started boarding. Although the staff to a fab job in the week I like to know when my DD is home for the weekend that I have zapped them quickly with a thick coating of the extremely expensive Hedrin!!

Out of all the products whacked on my kids hair (2007 saw me try every product available in my mission to eradicate the bloody nits) I have to say Hedrin works impressively. But still say if you have the time you cannot beat combing with the nitty gritty!!

Good luck with your mission to eradicate these horrible parasites from you DCs heads!!

onebatmother · 11/01/2010 07:34

1,2,3 then 6, 9 etc..

dutchmanswife · 11/01/2010 09:32

My DD2 is at private school and still gets lice from time to time. It's a universal problem I'm afraid.

SlartyBartFast · 11/01/2010 09:40

lice as classless

WorkingItOutAsIGo · 11/01/2010 09:41

Just saying as it's not yet been said - it's not just the combing you need to do - washing all bedlinen, hats, coats etc; taking duvets and pillows out of circulation for three weeks in a closed bag; washing bed toys; hairbrushes....you need to eradicate any lingering eggs and nits in the house, not just on the head.

MintyCan · 11/01/2010 09:45

Indeed but you get a better class of nits at a private school surely

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