Lice argh argh argh lice again.

[Rivka]

Last year or so, someone in this forum posted about how lice are so easily gotten rid of that a chronic case is obviously due to parental neglect or laziness.

 

Does that sound familiar to anyone? I would like to buy that poster a plane ticket to Baltimore. She can show me how it's done.

 

My kids got lice last month. I bought an electric lice-killing comb and a steel comb and some Nix pesticide shampoo. I combed them out with the electric lice-killing comb the first day. I marinated them in pesticide shampoo. I fine-combed them for hours and hours with a steel nit comb. Meanwhile, my marvelous babysitter washed all the sheets and blankets and all the clothes the kids had worn recently or might have worn recently. She bagged up all their stuffed animals and all of the throw pillows in the living room and she vacuumed the furniture thoroughly. We ran the pillows through the dryer on high heat.

 

After that I combed them out every day for two weeks. I spent hours and hours on my daughter's long hair, every single day. I alternated using the electric comb and wet-combing with conditioner and a nit comb. Every. Day. At the one-week mark I shampooed them again, even though we were pretty sure that the lice were treatment-resistant - I saw live lice right after the treatment.

 

Eventually, after more than two weeks of daily combing, we stopped getting anything. Their heads stopped itching. We breathed a sigh of relief...

 

...And now the lice are back. This time I got a prescription for a massively expensive medicated shampoo called Ulefsia. I have been doing nothing but shampoo and comb hair all day long today. My husband stripped all the beds and washed all the bedding and vacuumed all the furniture. The kids bagged up their stuffies and the throw pillows and everything, and we're on the merry-go-round again. That's minimum another two weeks of daily combing. Please please please let the treatment work this time. Apparently Ulefsia isn't something lice can develop a resistance to.

 

I just don't even know what more I can do.

[Jean in Newcastle]

I think the least that poster can do is to buy her own plane ticket.  To rely on your generosity would be lazy, after all.  

 

:grouphug:  :grouphug:  :grouphug:   I hope you can get rid of them once and for all.  

[El...]

:grouphug:  :grouphug:

[Rivka]

Incidentally, my parents were both shocked that homeschooled children can get lice. :lol:

[Anne in CA]

Lice should not be able to live more than a few days without human warmth. That means that your kids got reinfected. This happened to me too. I had neighbors whose kids went to school with my kids and sat with them at school and continually reinfected my kid. I had to drive my child to school and request she sit at a different table. 

[amy g.]

I wonder if lice become resistant to the poison in the shampoos the way that fleas can.

 

Here is what worked for us.

 

I bought some cheap conditioner and added a pretty generous shot of tea tree essential oil. After shampooing and conditioning, and combing, I added conditioner with tea tree and did not rinse it out until the next day when I repeated the process. I did this every day for 2 weeks and they were gone for good and did not reappear.

 

My girls have A LOT of hair.

 

Good luck. I know how frustrating this can be.

[alisoncooks]

Lice should not be able to live more than a few days without human warmth. That means that your kids got reinfected. This happened to me too. I had neighbors whose kids went to school with my kids and sat with them at school and continually reinfected my kid. I had to drive my child to school and request she sit at a different table. 

 

This is what I was going to say.  You were probably lice-free after the first frenzy of treatment...but you guys might have had contact with whomever gave it to you to begin with?  Co-op?  Playground?  That's what I'd be looking at now...

[Tanaqui]

I can think of a couple of things you might try that it doesn't sound like you have yet.

 

You can try smothering the lice under a thick layer of petroleum jelly and a shower cap. Check google for times, but nothing is resistant to the need to breathe (except anerobic bacteria, I suppose, but as lice aren't anerobic the point is moot).

 

You can try shaving everybody's heads, or at least shaving the boys and cutting the hair on all girls and women very severely.

 

You can try dusting the baseboards with diotomaceous earth and putting a plastic mattress cover down before you lay down the sheets. (You are laundering all bedding and dirty clothing in HOT water daily, right?)

 

Lice can be really resilient. I wonder where you got them from, though. Sometimes they jump around from host to host in a cycle - Anna gives them to Bobbie who passes them on to Carrie who shoves them off on Danny who sends them along to Elise. Now Anna and Bobbie's moms have killed all the lice and breathed a huge sigh of relief, but then Anna goes to the playground and bumps into Elise, whose parents don't know she has lice yet , and Anna and Elise have a good giggle together behind the tree, and whoops! Now it starts again. You have to exercise CONSTANT VIGILANCE until they've been completely excised from your social circle.

[Tanaqui]

I wonder if lice become resistant to the poison in the shampoos the way that fleas can.

 

Yes, they do. It's evolution in action. They can't become resistant to diotomacious earth, though (no more than humans could develop a resistance to being sliced open), nor to suffocation under petroleum jelly or oils.

 

[ljpisme]

They are very difficult to get rid of, for sure.  When my kids were in PS we had a few separate instances of them.  No fun!

 

If the current treatment you're using doesn't work, try this:

 

http://www.airalle.com/treatment-locations/

 

Expensive, but it works very well.  No chemicals used and it only takes one visit and you're essentially done. All lice and nits gone in one shot.  We've used them before and they are awesome.  If we ever get lice again, we will go directly there (they have lots of locations around the country).

 

Another thing to check is to make sure no friends have lice, too.  Otherwise it is just an evil cycle.  

 

Good luck!!

 

 

[amy g.]

If my kids were playing with other kids where I thought they might be passing lice back and forth, I'd continue using the tea tree conditioner for awhile longer.

 

I have heard that lice don't love the scent and it can be a repellent as well as killing the existing ones.

 

I'm not sure if that is true or not, but it would make me feel better anyway.

[JonesinIndiana]

Hugs!!!

 

Take a deep breath. You've been successful against the little buggers before, you can do it again.

 

Comb everyday, boil combs, brushes and hair ties, clips,etc. Put anything and everything in dryer, vacuum daily. Put girls' hair in braid and then twist it in a bun, especially if they will be around other children. I also used a flat iron on my girls' hair just in case I missed a few nits. ;)

 

I've had 2 rounds of it, it's not fun!

[Junie]

:grouphug: Virtual hugs.  I have 5 girls.  With long hair. :)

[Plateau Mama]

Two things I would do.

 

1) Tea tree oil in their shampoo and conditioner. When my kids had lice I did not get it, even though one of my children slept with me.

 

2). Use a flat iron on their hair. That will kill any eggs that are still on their head so they can't hatch.

[Caroline]

I threw out the kids' bike helmets, which I am sure you thought of.

[RootAnn]

:grouphug:  I had a friend whose daughter kept getting re-infected. She was the most awesomest mom I have ever met in person. You are doing a great job.

 

I'm so sorry to hear you have to go through it all over again.

[barnwife]

Lice like clean hair. So after washing, spritz with hairspray or use gel or whatever before going out. Also, as pp said, those with long hair should contain it in ponytails or buns or something. 

 

[momto10blessings]

😥

I'm so sorry. I freaking hate lice and am so paranoid about my girls getting them again. Ugh. I hope you get rid of them pronto.

[Momling]

I go for a combination of products with d-limonene (a solvent found in orange peel)... Google "limonene and lice". I've found it in cleaning supplies and pet shampoo and it's been really effective. Afterwards, since your hair will be free of lice, nits and all natural moisture and oil you once had, I do a Cetaphil treatment and comb through. http://nuvoforheadlice.com/test/?page_id=9#acceptLicense

[OneStepAtATime]

Hate lice.  Lice are evil.  Good luck, OP.  

[Starr]

People on this board have had good results with Cephadil soap.

http://nuvoforheadlice.com/test/?page_id=9#acceptLicense

 

There are lice professionals that come over and do what you are doing. I would add in braiding everyones hair after treatment. But really I'm with camp you are getting reinfected.

[catz]

I would continue combing into week 3 and possibly 4 every 2-4 days. 2 weeks is not quite enough.

 

http://www.microscopy-uk.org.uk/theliceprogram/

[Rivka]

Encouraging follow-up: I combed them super thoroughly with the electronic comb today. I didn't get a single thing out of Alex's waist-length hair. From Colin's hair I got one tiny nymph about a millimeter long. It was never this good after using the over-the-counter shampoo - I continued to get a few nymphs from both kids every day as well as occasional adults. Ulesfia might actually do the trick.

[Farrar]

Oh good. About the encouraging follow up. Not the initial lice.

 

I sometimes wonder how we have avoided them - we've seen them go through kids we know and hang out with several times. Someone told me they don't like dirty hair so I'm going to cling to the idea that the fact that my children resist bathing is a bonus. Because... really that's the only upside to that I have found.

[SparklyUnicorn]

I don't recall that thread, but man that sounds really frustrating. 

 

 

[KathyBC]

I threw out the kids' bike helmets, which I am sure you thought of.

Yes, I was going to say don't forget things like couches, car seats, bike helmets, etc. but I'm sure you've thought of those.

[stephanier.1765]

:grouphug:  :grouphug:  :grouphug:  It makes me stressed just thinking about it. I am so sorry you are dealing with this again.

 

[ondreeuh]

I remember the thread and I remember the poster - and she does not have daughters.

 

How does Alex feel about having her hair cut? Even shoulder-length would be much easier to comb through and maintain on a daily basis.

 

I had lice once as a kid and once as an adult, but my children have been spared. When my oldest was in school, they didn't allow kids with lice to attend class. Now there are lots of schools that don't send kids home for lice so it's probably more prevalent overall.

[Rivka]

I think the main reason they're so much worse now than they used to be is that lice have become resistant to the over-the-counter treatments. As you might imagine, I've been reading up on the subject. When I was a kid, the pesticide lice shampoos were 99% effective. Now their effectiveness is 25-30%.

[Tsuga]

They are getting re-infected from the same source. I don't know where, but that's how my kids got lice repeatedly.

 

Straight iron their hair daily after treatment--every single day. That will get rid of the eggs as they are continually reinfected, until they are no longer around the vector. I know how long this takes because I did it with two girls, waist-length hair. One was three the first time. I get it. You have to do it. It really, truly does make a difference.

 

Lazy. PPPBBBBBLLLLPHHHHT. I don't know who said it but I'd like to buy her a one-way ticket to the moon.

 

Also in case you aren't aware: Hair up in tight bun WITH HAIR SPRAY. Lice hate dirty hair. (Yep. Ironic, isn't it?) That's what we did for weeks. They didn't like it but too bad, kiddo. The more hair is bunched up, the harder it is for lice to lay eggs near the root.

 

Finally, find the source. Somewhere they are going, there are families who are probably continually reinfecting one another due to one family's failure to do it right. (This is what happened at our pre-school.) It was so incredibly irritating. Anyway, seriously, we had to contact every place we'd been, let them know, and then we asked that they please ask 100% of children to be examined to prevent re-infection.

[freesia]

My kids haven't had it, but I got it a lot as a teacher. I would put olive oil and let it stay for 8 hours. Then I'd clean it out ( with liquid dish detergent.) Then I'd comb. I would repeat every other day for about a week and a half. I got the idea from some Harvard study. It smothers the adults and since they can't lay eggs until the are something like 6 days old--you get all the new hatched ones before they can reproduce.

[Catherine]

I did not feel comfortable using the pesticides.  Regardless of the questionable toxicity, they just plain don't work.  I heard somewhere about the smothering treatment, and that is what we did on all of us: plastic shower cap all night over olive oiled head.  Then nit comb daily until three days clear, then every other day and every third day.  

 

This method was effective.  No recurrence.  But we had only short-haired boys at the time.  Girls-another story, because the long hair is harder to comb and also more easily infested.

[Rivka]

 

Finally, find the source. Somewhere they are going, there are families who are probably continually reinfecting one another due to one family's failure to do it right. (This is what happened at our pre-school.) It was so incredibly irritating. Anyway, seriously, we had to contact every place we'd been, let them know, and then we asked that they please ask 100% of children to be examined to prevent re-infection.

 

I feel like it must be happening at our homeschool community center, but supposedly we were the only family that had it.

[Tanaqui]

I feel like it must be happening at our homeschool community center, but supposedly we were the only family that had it.

 

Yeah, right. If your family had it twice in a month, even if your kids are patient zero they've *got* to have infected somebody else.

 

[NorthwestMom]

I feel like it must be happening at our homeschool community center, but supposedly we were the only family that had it.

 

I call BS on that!!!!!!

[catz]

I did not feel comfortable using the pesticides.  Regardless of the questionable toxicity, they just plain don't work.  I heard somewhere about the smothering treatment, and that is what we did on all of us: plastic shower cap all night over olive oiled head.  Then nit comb daily until three days clear, then every other day and every third day.  

 

This method was effective.  No recurrence.  But we had only short-haired boys at the time.  Girls-another story, because the long hair is harder to comb and also more easily infested.

 

This is what we did too.  I think you really need to continue with the metal nit comb with a lubricant (we used leave in conditioner) every 2-3 days a good 2 weeks beyond seeing anything coming off the head.  Especially with long hair (my dd did have long hair when we were dealing with it).  You only need to miss one egg laying adult or a couple eggs to be back to the drawing board in 4-6 weeks.  You will not necessarily see every nit and nymph you get off the head. 

[Farrar]

I think the main reason they're so much worse now than they used to be is that lice have become resistant to the over-the-counter treatments. As you might imagine, I've been reading up on the subject. When I was a kid, the pesticide lice shampoos were 99% effective. Now their effectiveness is 25-30%.

I question that statistic. I had lice as a kid and even then the shampoo was seen as a bit of a waste of time. It definitely didn't kill 99% of them. No way.  :glare:

 

The only up side to this whole lice are everywhere thing now is that there's soooo much less stigma about it. Unless, of course, you're posting on the WTM forum about lazy people.  :rolleyes:

[Southern Ivy]

We always used mayonnaise in our hair. Similar to the olive oil and the petroleum jelly, you just rub it all through their hair, put on a shower cap, and let it sit overnight. 
Lice are of the devil. Glad you're getting to the bottom of it! 

And I agree - I call BS that you guys are the only ones infected with lice. There are more that aren't admitting to it. :)

[Tsuga]

Even of only one family was infected, everyone needs to be checked to prevent reinfection.

 

Checks at the door with a flashlight.

[TKDmom]

I posted a month ago how my dd had gotten lice 4 times this school year (she's in K at a ps). Last week, I discovered them for a 5th time  :cursing:  As I was combing her hair she said, "At recess me and M__ pick the nits out of E___'s hair. She has lots of them."  :huh:  Seriously??? Stop playing with that kid's hair dd! Don't touch her hair! Don't put your heads together! That's how you're getting the lice! Geesh. Only two more weeks of school. Then I'll do another thorough treatment on everyone and everything and hope the buggers never come back.

 

I really like LiceFreee spray. Its easier than the OTC shampoo and doesn't smell as toxic. Works better too. Here's a blog post that I found helpful too. http://www.mommypotamus.com/natural-remedies-lice/  I really liked the video on how to comb out nits. 

[justasque]

I feel like it must be happening at our homeschool community center, but supposedly we were the only family that had it.

It went around our homeschooling network a while back.  It was a couple of months before it was really under control.  There wasn't one family who was infecting everyone else.  Families were mixing and matching who they hung out with all week long, so it was bouncing all around the loose network of friends.  There was a local homeschool facility that took a while to realize how many of their kids either were or had been infected.  Once they gave the place a good clean and implemented prevention methods that seemed to help; of course by that time each family was also taking prevention seriously.

 

Because of reinfection issues, many of us began to cover our hair and our kids' hair whenever we were out and about, even if we were with people who were theoretically lice-free.  This "barrier method" helped a lot, both because uninfected kids were less likely to pick up the lice, but also because those with lice (either detected or undetected) weren't spreading it because they were covered too.  Most folks wore bandannas tied over their hair, but others experimented with pretty scarves of various shapes.  Those with long hair braided it and put it up, then put a scarf or bandanna over it.  Unlike chemicals, there's no health risk to covering, and unlike combing, it takes very little time.  You might feel a little silly covering when everyone else feels there's little risk, but it may be worth it for a month or two until the community seems to be back to "normal".

 

I am surprised that schools which struggle with high rates of lice don't just ask parents to have their kids cover their hair.

[justasque]

I posted a month ago how my dd had gotten lice 4 times this school year (she's in K at a ps). Last week, I discovered them for a 5th time  :cursing:  As I was combing her hair she said, "At recess me and M__ pick the nits out of E___'s hair. She has lots of them."  :huh:  Seriously??? Stop playing with that kid's hair dd! Don't touch her hair! Don't put your heads together! That's how you're getting the lice! Geesh. Only two more weeks of school. Then I'll do another thorough treatment on everyone and everything and hope the buggers never come back.

 

I really like LiceFreee spray. Its easier than the OTC shampoo and doesn't smell as toxic. Works better too. Here's a blog post that I found helpful too. http://www.mommypotamus.com/natural-remedies-lice/  I really liked the video on how to comb out nits. 

FIVE TIMES?  Oh you poor thing.  I would send her to school with her hair braided and covered for the next two weeks, and I'd send a note to the school to explain why.  

 

 

Dear Teacher (cc - principal, school nurse):

 

Since my daughter, Jane Smith, has picked up lice five times during this school year, I will be sending her to school with her hair covered by a bandanna or scarf for the rest of the year.  Jane is currently lice-free and nit-free.  Using this barrier method will help to protect her from further infection, and will also protect other children should she somehow pick them up for a sixth time.  I am sure you will make a common-sense exception to the school dress code to allow headcoverings under the circumstances.  Please don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.  

Jane has enjoyed her kindergarten year, and we appreciate all that you and the rest of the staff at ABC School do for the children.

 

Sincerely,

Mary Smith, <contact info>

[Seasider]

I posted a month ago how my dd had gotten lice 4 times this school year (she's in K at a ps). Last week, I discovered them for a 5th time :cursing: As I was combing her hair she said, "At recess me and M__ pick the nits out of E___'s hair. She has lots of them." :huh: Seriously??? Stop playing with that kid's hair dd! Don't touch her hair! Don't put your heads together! That's how you're getting the lice! Geesh. Only two more weeks of school. Then I'll do another thorough treatment on everyone and everything and hope the buggers never come back.

 

I really like LiceFreee spray. Its easier than the OTC shampoo and doesn't smell as toxic. Works better too. Here's a blog post that I found helpful too. http://www.mommypotamus.com/natural-remedies-lice/ I really liked the video on how to comb out nits.

Not sure of the school policy/politics/guidelines on this, but wouldn't you tell the teacher that E is vector? Shouldn't someone be following up with E's parents?

[TKDmom]

Not sure of the school policy/politics/guidelines on this, but wouldn't you tell the teacher that E is vector? Shouldn't someone be following up with E's parents?

 

Ahem...The district's policies are ridiculous. No, they will not inform the parents. The nurse cannot check the rest of the class if one child is known to have lice, and they cannot send kids home. It's not actually a public health issue and they can't let them lose precious instructional time just because of lice. I'm not at all happy about it. I've considered getting the email address for E's mom from group emails that the room mom has sent out. But I can't tell which email address is hers, and I don't want to get other people in trouble.

 

Anyway...just 2 more weeks at this school, and I'll be bringing dd home for next year.

[Seasider]

Ahem...The district's policies are ridiculous. No, they will not inform the parents. The nurse cannot check the rest of the class if one child is known to have lice, and they cannot send kids home. It's not actually a public health issue and they can't let them lose precious instructional time just because of lice. I'm not at all happy about it. I've considered getting the email address for E's mom from group emails that the room mom has sent out. But I can't tell which email address is hers, and I don't want to get other people in trouble.

 

Anyway...just 2 more weeks at this school, and I'll be bringing dd home for next year.

 

Wow, that is maddening.