LICE

Artemis_Acorn · July 2011

Lots of good advice here, but don't forget to thoroughly vacuum your upholstered furniture and carpet - and that includes car upholstery - anywhere that her head has touched. Wash all the bedding, pillows, clothes etc. in super-hot soapy water. Do the came with combs, brushes, hair-bands, barrettes etc, or dip them in rubbing alcohol. Bag up any potential "carrier" items that can't be treated and leave the bag sealed for 2 weeks. The lice can't live without a human host for over 24 hours, so if there are any hair strands with nits on them, that gives ample time (7-10 days+24 hours) for them to incubate, hatch and die.

The combs work great to get the stubborn nits off the hair strands. The nits are hard to see in lighter colored hair, so if you're not sure you've spotted them all, take her out in the sun and go through every inch of her hair. The nits really sparkle and are much easier to find this way.

Keep inspecting for re-infestation for awhile too. All it takes is one pregnant louse to start it all over again.

Good luck!

Giraffe33991 · July 2011

No matter what you use to kill the live bugs (RID, Mayonaise, etc), if you do not pick out all the nits (eggs) they will return.

The nits stick to the hair shaft and don't rinse off when you wash hair. I was obsessively picking each strand of hair--first with a comb & then just with my nails (yuck!) for at least a week. It does take time, so find a comfy chair near some good lighting and settle in. Makes you feel like those monkeys at the zoo that always groom the other monkeys. LOL!

Then use tea tree oil shampoo a couple times a week as a preventative. Apparently they don't dig the smell.

Good luck!

kysassyblonde1 · July 2011

Rid makes a spray and you need to make sure you have all the lice out of her hair and use the comb and get every single nit out of there. It can take hrs to do. Then use that spray on every area of the home she has been in, put the sheets in a plastic garbage bag and seal it airtight and after 48 hrs wach them on hot water. Any other fabric items you can seal off in airtight plastic bags is a good idea also like the clothing she had on. You will have to shampoo your carpets because they will live in there kinda like fleas can. I have been blessed to never deal with it in a childs hair but run a hair salon and anytime a customer has it then I have to go thru quite a mess to make sure its not in the salon!!!!!

kysassyblonde1 · July 2011

another good tip is once they are gone everyday spray her hair with hair spray or put a hair product like a gel in it , lice dont like chemicals!!!! It will keep her from regetting them!!!

pixxistiks · July 2011

Rid with a Shower cap. Don't just wash everything, wash it in the hottest watter possible, and with bleach or color safe bleach. Treat everyone in the house INCLUDING pets and ANYTHING that has touched the head or hair of anyone you live or come in close contact with. Shampoo carpets and furniture, and anything made of fabric, or you'll never get rid of them.

Jill_newimprovedversion · July 2011

Make sure you wash all bedding and clean hair brushes etc as well.

Pillows are the hardest to clean. If you can't afford to pitch them and buy new, there is bedding spray. Walmart sells it along with the other lice treatments (shampoos, etc.) Spray them good and keep them sealed in garbage bags for several days ( follow directions on can)
Same with hair accessories. Nits are often embedded in them.

I have also battled this when my kids were little- and it was expensive and humiliating. I finally realized that dog shampoo- for ticks and lice- has the same ingredients. That's what I ended up using after the 4th round...
It's not as nuts as the kerosene.........and tea tree oil is repulsive ( imo)

teacherkatz · July 2011

Please don't use any kerosene or any other stinky chemicals. They don't work anyway. I am in charge of taking care of the lice problem at my kids school. I learned how to do it from an expert with years of experience. First wet the hair. Then apply a ton of conditioner to the hair and leave it in. Sprinkle baking soda on a small area. Dip a steel fine tooth comb into some water to keep the hair wet as you comb through section by section. Keep the section that you have combed pinned back separately from the sections not combed. Keep repeating twice a day for a week. Washing everything will not do much to the problem unless you wash everyday. I have not found that to be effective. Constant combing is really the ony way to get rid of them.Also, make sure you really know what you are looking at. Some bugs look a bit different depending on where they are in their life cycle.Being dilligent is key here. Good luck.