Aaargh bloody headlice AGAIN

[bratnav]

Please please tell me what to do, I am at my wits end.

I use the nit comb every day on both DDs hair, tie it up for school/nursery, use tea tree shampoo and conditioner, even tried an electric nit comb, but the little buggers keep coming back.

Help please, any suggestions gratefully received

forget the endless combing.... HEDRIN is what you need. non toxic, no combing and best of all..... IT WORKS. (i should get comission for the no of times i've recommended it).

ps. should have said... it wont stop them being reinfested by their nitty mates...

Tried it several times a few months back, still returning

well do it again... properly. (you have to use a generous amount and follow instructions re gap between apps to the letter).

There is nothing that will stop them getting reinfested other than shaving their heads I'm afraid. Unless every single child at the school is vigantly treated they all just get reinfested.

what do you mean by returning? you need to establish whether you are clearing infestation... but then they catch them again (which you basically can do nothing about except check and treat frequently and make a fuss at school re all children's parents doing same

or... you are never effectively treating infestation in the first place...

How thoroughly are you combing? Are you combing from underneath as well, ie the opposite way to how you would normally? Are you sectioning off the hair and combing from all directions in every section?

Are you using a nitty gritty comb?

Basically yes, I section off hair and go through it really thoroughly. I usually go through their hair every day with a comb then a nit comb (they have separate combs which are scrubbed every day). The little swines just don't seem to have left for more than a few days at a time for weeks and weeks now. I can only assume that there are some kids at school who aren't being treated often enough?

Nitty gritty comb? Enlighten me please

(Sorry was on school run) I usually spend at least 15 minutes per DD on combing every day, surely this should be enough?

I know that nits are not supposed to be able to survive on pillows but have you checked the bedding and pillows/quilts?

Well they get changed once a week, which I though would be ok, but if they constantly have them, unless I changed the bedding every day I don't think it would make any difference, would it? not sure now

Definitely nitty gritty comb (though it is expensive - £10). I used it every time I saw ds itching. So 3 times the first day, then another couple of times just to satisfy my paranoia. I'd say 95% of them came out with the first combing. Then check every few days. Ds got reinfected when he went back into school on the following week.
And they keep scratching when they aren't infected btw. Ds had lots of scratches on his scalp which made him scratch some more. (making me twitchy about more headlice).

Another Nitty Gritty fan here.
I had DPs DD here a couple of weeks ago and she was infested, I mean infested.
3 days wet combing and the Nitty Gritty did the trick.
Wet combing my hair every day prevented me getting them.
I still do mine once or twice a week to help prevent them.

could this help?

I haven't tried the link above but I have read it and have kept the link for the day I find a live nit, I check my dd's hair every time I brush her hair and use a comb once a week

I hate headlice!! My 2 DDs get them regularly as another child in their class is not treated and has them all the time. Hedrin is good and so is Lyclear but both are expensive. I condition and comb twice a week as well. DD2 is only in Year 1 and has had them 6 times already! I think the key thing is that no matter how good you are at getting rid of them, there is nothing you can do about other people not doing anything!!

You can get the nitty gritty comb on prescription. It's brill. I got tons more out of dsd's hair using it than I ever did using the little plastic ones.

Another thought, are you doing both girls together? Any chance they are infesting each other? Have you checked yourself and anyone else in the household?

I think you're either missing some - and that's not your technique, it's the comb or they are picking them up from someone else or each other.

I do sympathise - dsd has had them for about 10 years now . I've spent hours in the shower with her combing them out, she gets them really badly. She doesn't live with us so I never really get on top of them. Dd is a different story and whenever she gets them from dsd I do manage to get rid of them.

Right off to the GP to get a comb and will try and comb the little blighters out for good. I do use the same lice comb, but I always give it a good scrub in between each DD, so I would have thought it was ok.

Thanks for the link to that programme, it feels like I am doing that already, maybe I will have more luck with the new comb.

Is there anything I can do to prevent re-infestation after they are shot of them?

Do not believe it!!!! After posting on here yesterday my dds came home with them again today!!! Here we go again!!

I hate Headlice.

Through trial and error and 3 long haired dds, I have found the only thing that works is serious chemical shampoo on night one followed by fine combing with loads of conditioner every night for ten nights.

The nurse who saw my tears after ongoing reinfestation explained that the conditioner immobilises any that have either escaped the onslaught of the organo phosphates or were still in nit phase. I also found that cheap conditioner was too nasty so stock up on special offer decent stuff.

Each child takes 30-45 mins/ night, sitting in the bath. It's the only time they are given lollipops. My emergency supplies on the top shelf of the bathroom are lollipops, surgical gloves, assorted finecombs and 3 bottles of conditioner and one of some nasty stuff... and yes, I tried herbal remedies/ tea tree oil shampoo

I was also advised not to cut girls hair but keep it long enough to plait. The source of the lice was identified by the school and appropriate help given to clear them: in one case it was a little girl whose Mum had died and the dad, with everything else going on, just hadn't realised there was even a problem.. All hair must be tied back in school and elastics dispensed daily to those who "forget"

Good luck...

I wish our school would hand out elastics and enforce tying hair back. In DD1's class only 4 out of 15 girls have their hair tied back. She sits between 2 girls who have long hair loose all day. One of whom has headlice all the time. I know this because her mother is always complaining about it but obviously it has not occured to her that tying her daughters hair back might help!

Here is a piece of advice the docs won't like, apparently according to our school nurse if you take a live louse(ie taped to a piece of paper)to the dr they have to prescibe headlice treatment, as with hedrin at £'s a bottle I like the sound of that -
Just bring back the NIT NURSE

You dont have to go to the dr for the headlice stuff, you can get it from the chemist for free if your registered for minor aliments. I find none of the stuff here works getting rid of them, my mum brings back american treatments when shes over there. I dont think anything keeps them away.

Thanks Clayre, have just printed out the form for the " nitty gritty" comb and school informations as they offer heaps of advice and discounts - if nothing else it will mean the other parents will realise they can get "free" coms etc on prescription- I am fed up of the little blighters