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Original poster

ARGH FGS Bloody nits now

109 replies

nutcracker · 01/01/2007 19:51

Dd1 has nits, never had them before so not a clue what to buy.

Which is the best stuff and will one bottle treat 4 people ???

OP posts:
Original poster
nutcracker · 04/01/2007 22:58

Mayonaise !! really ??

Well got up this morning and washed it all off everyones head (bugger to shift though). Combed through before, during and after and the kids seem fine but now, my head is itching and it wasn't before

Hoping it is just the amount of faffing about thats irritated it and not nits.

OP posts:
littlemissbossy · 04/01/2007 23:00

oh god nutty - don't worry we've all had them - well the kids have
you should also treat/condition your hair - have you?

Original poster
nutcracker · 04/01/2007 23:01

Yep did mine last night with the kids and the day before with conditioner.

Kids seem to be clear now, but will redo anyway with the hedrin next week.

If i still have them I will cry.

OP posts:
thewoodlandfairy · 04/01/2007 23:10

my head has been itching as i've read through all of this. Does mayonnaise really work?

garbo · 06/01/2007 17:40

We are in headlice hell, so nice to read others are too, if you see what I mean. DD riddled with the flippin' things, noticed 10 mins before leaving for first day back at school. School said they won't send letter out to class as she can't have got them from school, having been away for hols? God knows how long she'd had them though, she'd been scratching for days and I kept checking thinking she had dry scalp but never saw anything until flippin' things crawling about. Have found three on me. Really freaking me out, I too am hysterical nit-first-timer!

Got bug busting comb kit and the combs keep breaking. Have been through two large bottles tea tree conditioner. She has such thick hair, first time I did it took more than 2 hrs. She wouldn't sit for more than half an hour today though. Have bought Hedrin now as not certain my combing got them all. Just about to stop and you find a load more of the F***S. 'scuse my french but honestly, this is just the pits!!!
Haven't mentioned to other mums in light of conversation one day at school gates when some implying only the chav families got them. Think someone should be brave, like you see AA meetings on telly, "I am Joe Bloggs and I've got headlice". Did anyone see episode of Desperate Housewives when Lynette's kids weren't invited to party because of rumour they were the ones that had brought the nits to school.
Anyway, time to look at DS again, see if he's caught any.
[grin} and bear it!

Original poster
nutcracker · 06/01/2007 17:43

Oh dear Garbo, you have my sympathy. I hate it.

My head has itched loads more since I treated it so dunno whats going on there.
Am gonna do the conditioner thingy again tommorow afternoon, and leave it on until it's dry and then comb through as this seems to work i think.

Then wednesday night will re do the hedrin, and then after that I am going to dye my hair, just as an extra LOL.

OP posts:
nikkie · 06/01/2007 18:32

Think I must have caght them in time as did kids again this am and didn't find any

GArbo you have my sympathy, dd1 has waist length curly hair and its awful to comb through.
If it makes you feel better I once noticed she was crawling on a trip to the hosp for blood taken and loads of nurses/drs were round her

Surfermum · 06/01/2007 18:38

My head itches loads long after I've got rid of any nits. Yet dsd can have hundreds and doesn't scratch at all until she gets hot and sweaty. They are really hard to spot, so I only ever go on what evidence I produce from wet cmbing.

garbo · 06/01/2007 19:43

DS doesn't seem to have any, nightmare chasing him round bath with a comb as he said 'ow, ow'. scraped a bit of cradle cap off with the comb, no wonder he said 'ow'.
DD now in bed soaked in Hedrin.
Smug DH has no. 1 hair cut, hence nothing for them to cling onto.
DD must have had a live one or two at school on Friday so suppose must tell them on Monday?
Have always dreaded this as her hair and mine SO THICK.
Read funny American website - they say they live for 55 hrs off head so some health professionals recommend that instead of cleaning and sterilise house from top to bottom, just go away for 3 days!!!
Would like to think we'll look back at this and laugh but having read threads on here, it might not be something that just happens the once.
Really mad about whole thing, don't know why or who with? Just makes you feel dirty.
Just off to open bottle of red wine. To drink, not wash hair in, honest!

Surfermum · 07/01/2007 10:58

cleaning and sterilising the house. I've never done that nits or not!

Original poster
nutcracker · 07/01/2007 17:08

Kids are now sat with their heads covered in tea tree conditioner LOL.

Will be doing mine later too.

Might make this a sunday night ritual LOL.

OP posts:
nikkie · 07/01/2007 17:55

When it was worst nit infestation her, I stripped all the beds and cleaned the mattresses.

garbo · 07/01/2007 18:41

Ok me again! So DD got the hedrin last night, then DH washed it out this morning and said only saw about 6? Still a bit greasy tonight so I washed it again and got about 50?! Would they have been dead lice? If so, have my 4 condition/comb sessions since Wednesday morning been useless? I'm confused. Didn't really finish combing it as she got bored, she almost castrated DS and it all ended in tears, trying to separate them and comb them both. Tried to comb DS again but he was sobbing (he's nearly 2, she's 4). Thought I saw something? God knows, it all went pear shaped.

She's got so many I feel like I've neglected her to let them get that bad?

B*lls!

Surfermum · 07/01/2007 18:50

They could well be dead ones, Garbo. The way I look to see if they're dead is to put some that I've combed out on a piece of kitchen paper and wait about 20 mins, then I look at them, if need be through a magnifying glass, to see if they move.

How are you combing? You do need to comb it normally and from underneath too, and section the hair off. I can comb hundreds out of dsd's hair and think they've all gone, but the next day find loads more.

Were they crying because they didn't like it or it was hurting? I can give you some tips of how I've tackled it with dsd if you like.

PITA isn't it? I've had 7 years of it with dsd but do get a break as she doesn't live with us.

Spidermama · 07/01/2007 18:57

My ds has them too. Grrrrrr! They've only been back at school two days fgs!

I'm waiting til the others get out of the bath to comb them and see if they have it.

The potions are crap. The lice come out alive. Frequent combing is the only way and I know how you feel nutcracker because I have four too. It can really dominate your timetable. Can you and dh/dp do it between you? We have at least three Nitty Gritty combs in the house and plant so there's always one to hand and we do it together.
Excellent family fun.

It's so disheartening because although it HAS to be done, I know full well my kids will get them again in a week or two. Ds2's class is the nittiest class in the history of English primary education I swear.

Spidermama · 07/01/2007 19:01

Garbo they may have been eggs. The eggs are cemented on and really hard to pick out with just fingernails but I know that oils, like hedrin, losen them gradually then they can be combed out.

Get a magnifying glass and you'll clearly see if its an egg or a beast.

God this drives me mad. One more reason to home educate. So depressing on and on and on. I could get really down if I tot up how many hours I spend nit combing when I have a kitchen to clean, walls to paint, decorating to do, stories to read, bingo to play ...

nikkie · 07/01/2007 19:09

Think a lot of people don''t bother any more.Some places organise blits where all kids are told to de-nit at a certain w/e or day and then they should't be getting reinfected so easily.Quite tempted to ask at dds school about the school nurse organising one.

Spidermama · 07/01/2007 19:12

I wondered about that nikkie. It's a good idea. It takes committment from the whole class though and, as you say, some people don't seem to bother.

nikkie · 07/01/2007 19:25

Even if most of the class did it it would be better than atm.

garbo · 07/01/2007 19:33

Thanks Surfermum. Think crying because bored although could be because lost big comb that I was supposed to start with so used substitute which might not have detangled enough to start nit comb! Am combing front to back, whole head, then back to front, whole head, well that's the plan. Using the bug busting combs (that are breaking). Any tips welcome! DD been so good so far (haven't actually told her what's in her head, said they were itchy things!) but today she's been wild as the wind and very wilful so wasn't in the mood.

Going to watch Corrie and do some ironing to take my mind off it!

Surfermum · 07/01/2007 19:39

I'd recommend the nitty comb, mentioned earlier, garbo. It gets the eggs out as well. As well as going front to back/back to front, go sideways too, in fact just comb out each section of hair in every which way you can!

Dsd has really long, thick hair, so I always wash and condition hers first and rinse, then condition again and comb through so it's nice and easy to comb. Then more conditioner and off I go with the nitty gritty comb. I use Asda cheap conditioner, it's about 30p for a big bottle.

garbo · 07/01/2007 21:07

Thanks surfermum (and everyone else, this website is a godsend). Will try to buy one tomorrow. Might give her a night off washing and combing tomorrow seeing as have done it every day since found them! Perhaps when we get them next time I'll be more proficient from the start.

Night all x

Tortington · 07/01/2007 21:18

on my life, i have tried everything.

from electric combs
to conditioner alone and dry combing

then i found hedrin.

i simply cannot recommend the stuff more highly.

Quadrophenia · 07/01/2007 21:19

hedrin is fab, my kids woke up the next day and their hair wasn't even greasy looking hence the fact that i forgot to wash it off

Spidermama · 07/01/2007 21:26

Now you see I put Hedrin in my kids hair and left it overnight. The lice were still alive and perky when I was combing them out. And I had to wash their hair three times to get rid of the grease.
Also it seems to be just oil and tea tree oil so why not just use olive oil with a bit of tea tree added. Much cheaper.