Soph the vet Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 :eek:!!My best friend just called (two kids in PS) and canceled our playdate this afternoon as she is doing mounds of laundry and spending most of her time combing nits out of dd9 hair. Guess it was going around the class. Her ds7 also got it. Needless to say I went and thoroughly checked all heads in my house as we had seen them very briefly last week! I feel so bad for her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 I fought head lice for ONE YEAR. A whole dadgum year. We'd be completely clear, past the life cycle of the critters, and dds would get them again. I never, ever discovered how/where they were being contaminated. It wasn't until we moved to another city that we were lice free. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
battlemaiden Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 choosing to homeschool actually made us immune to these things. I've seen too many posts on this board about lice treatment to make me put this on the "reason to homeschool" list. :o I know lice is always a possibility. Jo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WTMindy Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 homeschool families who have had lice. I'm praying we escape that one!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KristineIN Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 I know a family that battled it for months because people were bringing it to their church. She treated and treated and treated. It was not fun. Kristine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catherine Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 My schooled son escaped them, both of the homeschooled ones had it. After extensive research, the only explanation I found is that I think he picked them up in a movie theater. Plus, they passed them around to other family members...but I won't elaborate! Not fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abbeyej Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 I saw my first louse back in December -- my kids picked it up from some of their home schooled friends. When I first saw one, I did the only rational thing: I screamed, killed it, then Google-Imaged to make sure that's what it was. We successfully killed them immediately and I haven't seen another one, but gosh was I grossed out! BTW, the recipe we used was: 1 C olive oil 1 C Dr. Bronners Eucalyptus soap 1 T rosemary oil 1 T tea tree oil Mix it up (this should do 2-3 kids or a couple of kids and an adult), and it will get rather thick like creamy conditioner. Work through the hair thoroughly, then cover with a shower cap for an hour. Rinse, nit comb while wet, and rinse thoroughly again. Wash every soft surface in the house, vacuum stuffed toys and things that can't be washed and, if possible, put them in a sealed ziploc bag for three days. Vacuum (and/or wash) upholstery, curtains, carpets (I used X-Mite powder which is usually used to kill dust mites)... A couple of days after the initial treatment (their hair will look a little greasy in the mean time, but hey, it's better than lice), wash the kids' hair again with tea tree shampoo, nit comb and blow dry thoroughly. Continue for next several weeks. Dh thought I was going overboard, but I had so many (thorough, clean, conscientious) friends who battled this over and over... The other thing to to, after washing and vacuuming, etc, etc, is to leave the house for three days. ;) The lice can't survive without a human host (I think their limit is 55 hours?), so a trip to grandma's is in order if it's possible. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracey in TX Posted February 18, 2008 Share Posted February 18, 2008 You can headlice at gymnastics (mats); movie theatre seats (supposedly one of the worst places); planes, trains and automobiles... We fought it for a semester. It was horrible! Still get heebie jeebies thinking about it!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soph the vet Posted February 19, 2008 Author Share Posted February 19, 2008 I realize homeschool kids can get lice too. It just seems that the less involved you are in large group settings the less likely you will get it. That's all. Thanks for the recipe, abbeyej, hope it never comes in handy:D!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Call Me Cordelia Posted February 19, 2008 Share Posted February 19, 2008 I wrote the recipe down! According to the National Pediculosos (sp?) website, tea tree oil is the only thing with any proof of killing the little buggers. I even went straight to the hard chemicals (my kids must have had them for months before I found out!) but the lice develop resistance!! Eeeewww! Also, according to that website, you do not need to wash everything in the house, but only put it in the dryer for 30 minutes. I wish I'd know that before I almost doubled my water bill one month!! Also, as a side note of pain, right after I'd washed every stick of bedding belonging to myself and my four daughters and had it neatly folded on a chair, for no apparent reason a light bulb directly over the laundry completely shattered, sending small shards of glass all over the pile. I had to walk away and just pretend it hadn't happened! We spread them to some friends. The mother was expecting their 8th, due anyday. The girls all had long hair. Some had long curly hair. I know we are friends, because we are still friends!! We also spread them to one other family. The neatest, cleanest, prissiest family I know. They are also good friends and we all laugh about it now! Still don't know where we got them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted February 19, 2008 Share Posted February 19, 2008 My sons have never had them though. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ferdie Posted February 19, 2008 Share Posted February 19, 2008 My dd had lice last summer and she spread it to her ps friend. My poor dd kept complaining about her head itching. I didn't know that lice live on the shaft of the hair so when I checked her scalp I didn't see anything. Finally, one day while we were reading together I saw one and figured it out. I still makes my head itch when I think about it. Ugh! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Lorna Posted February 19, 2008 Share Posted February 19, 2008 ...your neighbour pops in for a chat and you are all huddled round the microscope watching the blood move round the insides of a dying head louse... You know you are the neighbour of home schoolers when they excitedly invite you to have a look! He still popped round for tea even after that. It helped that he is a doctor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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