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Original poster

Head Lice virgin needs helllllllp!!!!

48 replies

Tessiebear · 28/05/2004 11:58

Discovered nits in my DS1 yesterday. Went to boots got the mousse etc. I combed through this morning and didnt find any nits but picked out a few eggs clinging to the hairs - are they dead or waiting to hatch as i used treatment yesterday???? Do i have to keep him off school till all clear??? What is considered all clear??? Checked DS2 definately no nits. Do i still treat him??? Have treated myself. Help

OP posts:
luckymum · 28/05/2004 12:24

Hi Tessiebear- yucky aren't they? I would treat ds2 too just to be safe. The eggs should be dead if you've used the mousse properly but its best to wash and use the comb with some conditioner daily for a few days to make sure. I nit comb dd's hair religiously once a week to keep a check on them and I also use tea tree oil in the final rinse. Fingers crossed she hasn't had them for 18 m now.

BlossomHill · 28/05/2004 12:35

Hi Tessiebear, it's fine to take ds back to school as long as he has been treated. I personally would check your ds2 and treat if you find anything. With boys it is so much easier to tell. Carry on with the combing for a week or so and hopefully that should help. I would also inform the school as we kept treating dd only for her to be re-infected every time she went back to school. The only time that dd was finally clear was when the school sent letters home informing other parents to check their children. Good dluck

roisin · 28/05/2004 13:06

Tessiebear ... I wouldn't treat ds2. Personally I prefer not to use chemicals unless there is a really bad infestations.

Despite the claims many products do NOT kill the eggs, so you do need to keep combing ds1's hair every 2-3 days, as the eggs might hatch out into babies. They take 7-10 days to mature to egg-laying size, so if you keep combing out the babies frequently, you'll still be OK. Comb for at least 2 weeks, and until you comb twice and find none. (Put LOADS of conditioner on, then comb through with a nit comb. Wipe off each time onto a piece of kitchen roll.) Keep checking ds2's hair too, until you are sure you're clear.

Do inform the school, but you won't need to keep him off. (Small babies can't crawl onto other heads yet, so he can't infect anyone else at this point).

Original poster
Tessiebear · 28/05/2004 13:14

Roisin... that is really great advice - thanks!! I have not managed to get the eggs out with a comb i have had to literally pull them off with my fingers. I only found 5 dead nits after i treated - does that mean that it was not a bad infestation??

OP posts:
Original poster
Tessiebear · 28/05/2004 13:15

Luckymum, yes they are yucky!!!!

OP posts:
roisin · 28/05/2004 13:19

Yeah - five is not bad. However they do lay a lot of eggs - be warned. I found one live adult in ds2's head, (didn't treat with chemicals just kept combing), and over the next 10 days found about 60 babies! Yuck!

Be grateful you have boys (like me) not girls with long thick curly hair.

Original poster
Tessiebear · 28/05/2004 13:23

After school tommorow we will be going staight to the hairdressers to get the shortest boy haircuts possible- without looking too short if you know what i mean

OP posts:
Original poster
Tessiebear · 28/05/2004 13:25

What size are the babies as opposed to adults???

OP posts:
roisin · 28/05/2004 13:32

Babies are tiny - about 1-2 mm. The full grown adults can e about 6 mm I guess. this is a good site Scroll down to the bottom for pictures. Lots of helpful information on here.

Good luck!

PS Some hairdressers won't cut hair that may have eggs in ... just thought I'd warn you. It would be very embarrassing for you if she found a live louse and you hadn't told her

roisin · 28/05/2004 13:34

That link didn't work. try this Click on 'Buy the Bug Buster Kit' and scroll to the bottom.

I've got to go, so I hope this works.

SofiaAmes · 28/05/2004 21:20

Tessiebear, are you using a nit comb? They have much finer teeth and should pull out most of the eggs. Put conditioner on the hair first and it will keep it from hurting your ds while you are combing. At least he is a ds and you can give him a skinhead if you need to. Other than that I would follow Roisin's advice - I did exactly what she recommends and it worked for us.

Penguin2 · 28/05/2004 23:34

Head lice hit my four kids for the first time last November. They were a nightmare to remove. In the end, having tried with little success different lotions, dh and I found only regularly (ie once every 2/3 days) combing their hair with a nit comb got rid of the blighters. It was a pain in the neck, especially with dd's long hair, but it worked in the end. I would comb both your kids heads if I were you - we didn't to begin with and we were still deasling with the problem a month later!

WideWebWitch · 28/05/2004 23:38

Agree with everyone, combing every other day for 10 days or more with tea tree conditioner and a nit comb works. It's a PITA but it does get rid of them and is a better way than the chemicals IMO. My son chose combing over chemicals when I gave him the option last time.

Sheila · 01/06/2004 16:42

I found head lice in my DS's hair yesterday (utterly disgusting!) and slapped on the lyclear - trouble is I also found one on my head - aargh!

I treated myself with chemicals but had a really hard job nit combing my own hair - it's long and very thick and I just couldn't get the comb through - any tips? I wouldn't look good with a skinhead cut, believe me.

roisin · 01/06/2004 16:45

Sheila - ask a friend, a fellow mum to comb it through properly for you. Most mums will completely understand, and will be very happy to help. I did this several times for a good friend of mine.

gettingthere · 01/06/2004 16:48

teatree is excellent - you can keep on using it and it won't reduce effectiveness. I tried the medicated stuff (free from the doctors by the way!)but since teatree we haven't had any back. Good luck!

prettycandles · 01/06/2004 17:29

What are the best products, in people's experience?

I haven't had the 'joy' of experiencing this aspect of parenthood yet, but with both of mine in regular nursery/creche I think I'd best be prepared!

Original poster
Tessiebear · 01/06/2004 17:37

Sheila, my DS got it on Saturday and i also found one on me. Got my mum to check me and also treated myself and keep combing through - have found nothing else - i am hoping that it just hopped onto my head that day and i caught it in time. I found it really disgusting as well but now i am nearly a week into it (just keep finding the odd tiny baby one) combing through with conditioner has become a way of life and i dont cringe anymore when i find something!

OP posts:
Sheila · 06/06/2004 17:25

Thanks for the encouragement. I kept trying and have got it in the end I think - did it myself with head bent over the sink. Important thing was to make sure hair was dripping wet and covered in conditioner - then comb went through.

Have heard that tea tree oil is as toxic (volume per volume) as pesticides (Lyclear etc.) so I will stick to combing with normal conditioner.

The "Bugbuster" kit recommended by Roisin is very good - comes with nit stickers for kids as a reward for getting combed. Worked very well with my DS and it's relatively cheap. Web site is here

rosies · 14/06/2004 12:05

tea tree is fine to use, but needs to be blended with a base carrier, like almond oil. apply to scalp and comb through... try to leave overnight and wash out in the morning, applying the shampoo first.

i know that likisma used to do a headlice shampoo that was very effective.

bundle · 14/06/2004 13:03

we've been using Lyclear, from boots about £4, comes with a comb and you can buy double packs too. the tea tree/conditioner combing just didn't work and loads hatched at once. there does seem to be a bit of an epidemic at the moment inLondon as I couldn't get a bug comb for love nor money the other day

walnuttree · 16/06/2004 23:57

Tessiebear,
Headlice are the bane of my life. The best nit comb (expensive) is £10 - called the Nitty Gritty from Oakwood Remedies, www.nittygritty.co.uk. My dd has long thick hair. I find the problem is other children with lice and the infection keeps going round.

We were having an extension last year and I neglected to keep combing. My poor dd ended up with loads and it has taken ages to get rid of them. My advice is to comb twice a week with long hair (using conditioner). I then pick through all the hair with my fingers. I hate to say this but half the things officialdom says about lice ain't so. They can live off the head and can move very quickly away from where you are combing. If you do it twice a week you can keep the problem in check.

My dd had to sit next to a girl who had headlice - the mother obviously wasn't dealing with them and re-infection was a problem. The school can't touch children because of all the anti-abuse rules, so head checks and sending home are a thing of the past. I think mild winters and hot summers are making the little b...s resistant to all sorts of things. My dd has very sensitive skin and slight asthma, so don't want to use chemicals. People have told me they don't work anyway.

Sorry to sound depressing, but I find constant vigilance is the only cure.

walnuttree · 16/06/2004 23:59

Tessiebear,
Headlice are the bane of my life. The best nit comb (expensive) is £10 - called the Nitty Gritty from Oakwood Remedies, www.nittygritty.co.uk. My dd has long thick hair. I find the problem is other children with lice and the infection keeps going round.

We were having an extension last year and I neglected to keep combing. My poor dd ended up with loads and it has taken ages to get rid of them. My advice is to comb twice a week with long hair (using conditioner). I then pick through all the hair with my fingers. I hate to say this but half the things officialdom says about them ain't so. They can live off the head and can move very quickly away form where you are combing. If you do it twice a week you can keep the problem in check.

My dd had to sit next to a girl who had headlice - the mother obviously wasn't dealing with them and re-infection was a problem. The school can't touch children because of all the anti-abuse rules, so head checks and sending home are a thing of the past. I think mild winters and hot summers are making the little b...s resistant to all sorts of things. My dd has very sensitive skin and slight asthma, so don't want to use chemicals. People have told me they don't work anyway.

Sorry to sound depressing, but I find constant vigilance is the only cure.

prettycandles · 17/06/2004 16:49

Oh b! We've just lost our virginity .

willow2 · 29/06/2004 15:57

Got a feeling we might be joining you... just spotted a tiny bug crawling near ds' ear - it squidged easily between my fingers - please tell me that lice don't squidge easily!