My Four year old got head lice somewhere, I have treated it 5 times now, and my 15 month old has it now too. I have tried 2 different treatments from the store. I just can't seem to get rid of it. Please help any advice???
I have treated her hair and my house 5 times what more can I do?
2007-09-27 07:25:15 · 14 answers · asked by redmama 1 in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Grade-Schooler
I had the same problem a few years back. It seemed like I just could not get rid of them. I treated my kids and myself, washed everything, and they would still be there. Then, one time, it worked. I had practically given up and thought I would be treating for head lice for the rest of my life!! Just keep trying and eventually you'll get it! I was actually surprised when it was all over. It is such a battle!!! It left me so paranoid that now every time I see my kid scratch I'm checking! Good luck! Just keep trying!
2007-09-27 07:29:23 · answer #1 · answered by tangerine 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Those chemicals are not good for your kids. I was successful w/ natural treatments (conditioner, mayonaise, etc). Put it on, leave it on for 4 hours minimum to suffocate the lice. Then you have to comb through very thoroughly (tiny pieces, as if you're getting highlights) and cut out the nits.
Any nits you miss will hatch w/i a few days but you have 5 days or so until they're old enough to reproduce. So repeat on day 5, and 10 and 15.
Bag up your non-essentials, hot dry your clothes, sheets (daily!!!) etc. Make sure you treat the car seats, bike helmets, batting helmets. Notify the school so they can separate the kid's stuff. Braid your daughter's hair so it can't come in contact w/ other kids' hair. Vacuum, vacuum, vacuum.
If your weather is hot right now, leave your car in the sun for the day - the heat will cook the lice.
2007-09-27 07:44:28 · answer #2 · answered by DaisyCake 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Oh this sounds terrible! When I was in 3rd and 4th grade I had lice more times than I can count. My mom did everything she was supposed to to get rid of it, but my sister and I kept getting it. The problem was our friends parents were not doing anything so we kept contracting it from them. Make sure you bag all the stuffed animals for a couple of months and run all the blankets/clothes through the dryer on high heat for at least a half an hour. Also when you treat their hair with the shampoo you have to go through it and pick out every bug and egg you see. I know everyone thinks lice is so gross, but it does not discriminate. Anyone can get it poor or rich dirty or clean. Making sure you pick out all the bugs and eggs is going to be the best way to get rid of it and also find out where you child is getting it, if he/she goes to daycare take them to a different one and if he/she has playmates check them for lice the next time you see them. Just look behind their ears for the nits which are white and if they have lice you will see them their. Please do not think you have to cut their hair, my friends mom did this and to no avail the lice came back. GOOD LUCK!
2007-09-27 07:34:19 · answer #3 · answered by mitchellar31 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Its either in the house or in the school. Either way the house needs proper treatment, and they need to make changes also.
Cut their hair off as short as you can. Short enough that its far from their shoulders. Kids with light colored hair get lice worse, because the louse has small claws and blond hair is thinner. Cut it short, and keep it up while theyre at school and on the bus.
You can treat your house, but thats not good enough, you need to put EVERYTHING thats fabric into plastic bags until it can be washed and dried. Your carpets and beds need to be treated, and vacuumed well, and then do a follow up treatment.
Its not enough to treat the child and the sleeping area, it has to be every single fabric material, including toys and stuffed animals.
Beyond treating you have to go through their hair and pick out the nits and anything else. THeyre very very tiny and very very hard to see, unless youve found them before and know what you're looking for have another mom who's seasoned help you.
Start at the top and work your way down.
2007-09-27 07:31:39 · answer #4 · answered by amosunknown 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
I found the chemicals did not work. We fought it for a long time until we discovered hair conditioner. Yup, cheap dollar store hair conditioner.
Put the conditioner on their hair when it's DRY. Glob it on and let it sit for 15-20 minutes. That drowns the critters that are moving around and makes the hair slick so you can get the eggs off easier.
Rinse out the conditioner and comb through with a nit comb. You have to go through the hair just a tiny bit at a time. Do this every day for 5-6 days and you should be lice free.
Yes it takes time but it's worth it.
Wash bedding every day, vacuum couches, chairs etc every day as well. Put all stuffed animals in a plastic bag and tie off - leave in the bag for 3 weeks to kill off anything lice that may have gotten on them.
Good luck!
2007-09-27 07:31:11 · answer #5 · answered by pinkpiglet126 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Please do not use chemicals, they do not work - old school is much better. And they are parasites, will not live off humans more than a day - 7-10 for eggs. If eggs hatch off a person they will die.
All parents should have the LiceMeister comb in the house - go to headlice.org and order it asap! it is really the best, none of the drugstore brands are as good.
1. put olive oil in hair (can also do it with oil and vinegar. throw in some lettuce and a carrot and you have a salad...), cover with showercap for a couple of hours - it kills any live ones. Let them watch tv or even sleep with it.
2. wash pillow cases and bedding hot water, toss animals in the dryer and vacuum home. Don;t go crazy in the house, they will not live off a human host too long.
3. comb thru hair very carefully after oil treatment, wiping on a white paper towel after each comb - go many directions thru the hair
4. every other day, use white Pantene conditioner and baking soda as follows: a paper plate with the pantene, a paper plate with baking soda (to make it grainy)- dip lice comb in Pantene, then Baking Soda and run thru hair. Wipe on paper towel to see what comes out. Dip again and repeat.
5. use oil treatment every 7 days for 3 weeks.
6. keep this up until no more nits - it really is not that bad.
If you have boys, the easiest thing to do is shave their heads, for girls put the hair in a ponytail with hairspray - nothing will get in or out.
Also, any nits that are more than 1/2 inch from scalp are dead or hatched, but many schools have a nit free policy.
DO NOT use any of those crazy chemicals - NOTHING will kill live nits except lindane (quell) which is NERVE GAS!! and seriously, BAD for kids.
I promise this works - Pantene and baking soda are what all the professional nit-pickers use and they charge $200...
Good luck.
PS - sharing baseball helmets, dress up clothes, bike helmets, are all ways to get them - make sure your schools and camps know your kid will bring their own helmet, etc...don't care what anyone else says!
2007-09-27 15:55:28 · answer #6 · answered by SA38 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
When I was younger I had lice. I have 3 sisters and all of them got lice and none of us were allowed back in school. We tried everything and this is what seemed to work the best. My dad got the hairdryer and dried our hair. This killed the lice and also the eggs. After that we combed and brushed our hair. My mom became extremely familiar with lice and how they look. Whenever my mom would see a louse, she would know what it was and immediately get rid of it.
We also got rid of a lot of our fabric furniture, but that is, of course, your choice. Get all the fabric in the house treated for lice and make sure to check for lice regularly.
2007-09-27 07:31:57 · answer #7 · answered by Desiree 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Put mayonnaise in her hair and put it in a shower cap for about 30 minutes. Use a nit comb to get all of the lice & eggs out. Then wash it out, and rinse with white vinegar. Make sure you wash all of your bedding; put all of the stuffed animals, pillows etc. (including yours and any siblings') in the dryer on high for at least 20 minutes; vaccuum carpets, couch, mattress, etc. Repeat the process in 5 days, as that is when eggs start to hatch.
Also, lice hate tea tree oil. It is VERY strong, so just put a few drops in everyone's shampoo and that will keep them away.
Good luck!
2007-09-27 07:41:52 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
We had that problem last year. My husband and son ended up shaving their heads and my daughter and myself dyed our hair. For some reason once we dyed our hair they never came back. Of course my daughter was 12 so I didn't have a problem putting dye in her hair. We had tried 4 different treatments before we resorted to this extreme but within a couple of minutes of applying the hair dye I was pulling out dead bugs and within a few days all the nits were gone as well. It was extreme but it was what finally worked after almost 3 months of fighting.
2007-09-27 08:26:04 · answer #9 · answered by Lostlove 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Is your four year old in day care? Is she in any situation where she may be around other children on a regular basis? She could be getting reinfected every time from one of these places.
Have you taken her to see a doctor about the recurrences? I mean, that is way to many times to continually recur without an influence from somewhere.
I don't mean this to sound stupid, but you have thoroughly cleaned all pillows and stuffed animals she is in contact with in the house, too, right?
2007-09-27 07:29:59 · answer #10 · answered by teel2624 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋