Bloody Nits!

[thebabysmellsofpooagain]

Am absolutely livid to discover that my DC has nits! Poor little thing is only just 2!

Why do people leave their children roaming around with a live infestation on their heads? What is wrong with these people?

😡😡😡😡

Sadly, live and nits are very common from nursery right through primary school. You kind of get used to dealing with them.

Nit combs and conditioner used regularly are probably better than pesticidal shampoos for a little one, but that's just my view.

Unfortunately nits are a part of childhood, any child that gets through their educational years without having them at least once are extremely lucky!! And while in theory I agree with you, it only takes one missed egg so not always a case of parents leaving their children infested with them.

I speak as a parent whose staple in the bathroom is a nit comb and plenty of conditioner.

Well if you think about it, your child was also walking around with an infestation before you realised. They are easy enough to miss unless you are nit combing regularly which I doubt you would be age 2. It’s horrible but just one of those things I’m afraid. Just wait til they get worms!

DC doesn't go to nursery just yet, will be starting in September. I think it's just the shock of finding them on their little head and realising they must have been uncomfortable for a few days without me noticing, it's made me feel terrible.

Luckily, I think I've got the big ones out now and there was only a couple, it could have been a hell of a lot worse, I've got the treatment on and I will from now on be combing religiously with conditioner so's not to have this happen again!

Don't feel terrible! You're doing well and dealing with it - it's all a learning curve.

Thanks @AutumnCrow xx

Always keep some treatment in the house. Avoids 7am mercy dashes to an open pharmacy...

@Aquilla good thinking! I will most definitely be keeping some of this in the cupboard from now on!

I used to buy big bottles of conditioner and comb through every Sunday night as strict routine (and obviously other times as needed) when my DC were in primary phase.

It can be very wearing, especially when you know you're sending them in to school 'clear' but they've got lice again by Tuesday ...

@AutumnCrow I will be bringing this in as part of the routine I think! X

There's no need for expensive "treatments" as all they do is suffocate live lice - you still need to comb out the eggs. Cheaper to buy coconut oil which does the same and smells a lot nicer!

@DropZoneOne thanks for that! I'm willing to try anything to keep the little blighters away xx

I get mine from Superdrug, it's in a white pot. Heat in the microwave so it's runny and slather through the hair - add a couple of drops of tea tree oil if you want, apparently lice hate it. Leave in for an hour or so, it'll start to solidify so you can cover with cling film if child is willing. Then comb through with a nit comb (if it's hardened too much give a quick blast with a hairdryer to melt the oil again) and wash out with lots and lots of shampoo.

It's a bit faffy but at £1 a tub vs £10 for Hedrin it works out a lot cheaper.

I've just sat DC in the high chair this morning, handed over some biscuits and slathered the hair in conditioner which I have combed and combed until nothing has come out, I'll keep doing this for a week until the next Hedrin treatment is due. Once that's done, I'll get some coconut oil and use that every few days to keep on top of it.

Only problem is, that I am suffering too and I have very long thick hair! Used the shampoo yesterday but have been itching a little this morning. Just off to run a fuck load of conditioner and the comb through my hair!

This is a bloody nightmare! 😡

I find my head starts itching as soon as we get the dreaded ‘a child in your child’s year group has nits’ email from school. I sympathise. My kids have only had nits once but my head itched like mad for weeks. I couldn’t comb myself effectively so used the suffocation treatments.

I use an electric nit comb. It's far gentler on their hair than normal combs and no need for chemicals- sensory needs made normal combs and treatments difficult.

As DropZone said, coconut oil will get rid of them. Olive oil does too and that was my default when my DDs were younger. The oil kills the adults and I used vinegar as that dislodges the eggs.

It’s no one else’s fault, headlice happens to even the best of parents...

I highly recommend hedrin. I pissed about for ages raking through my DC’s hair with the nit comb and tea tree conditioner but the eggs are the main problem. Tried hedrin and they disappeared first time, never returned.

@Pinkvoid thankfully, that's what I've used on DC's head! Fingers crossed that's sorted them out.

I used the Lyclear shampoo on mine because it's so big and thick, I'd have been there for about 100 years trying to section and spray the whole of my head! I'll just KOKO I guess! 🤯🤯🤯

Wow, i wish i had the energy to get upset with every parent whose child has a very common parasite.

They're tricky to get rid of - many are now resistant to pretty much everything. What you see as fecklessness may actually be the end product of months of religious combing, spraying etc which just hasn't worked. Parenting today is so bizarrely judgemental and competitive for some people.

@RuffleCrow I'm not actually angry with all the other parents, I'm actually angry with myself for not noticing sooner and leaving my little DC uncomfortable for the last couple of days! I understand that it's common and that children get them, I was just a bit shocked to find them quite so soon, especially seeing as DC isn't yet at nursery!

It is incredibly frustrating. I remember it well.

How's it all going? I think that staying on top of it is something you'll get used to, through routine. It's not glamorous but it's possible

@AutumnCrow so far so good! I think I've definitely got them out of DC's hair as well as mine, although I still have an itchy scalp but I suffer with mine anyway, so I'm just combing conditioner through every day.

Like you say, just takes a bit of getting used to, but we'll get there. Thanks for checking in 😘

In photos of me when the DC were little, my hair always looks much better conditioned!

Autumn, mine also looks very healthy at the moment but it's still full of conditioner 😂😂