Are you frantically looking for tips to get rid of lice? Unfortunately, I was too. A few months ago, most of the people in this house had lice. For some reason, I am ashamed to admit that fact. Sure, my children have brought home the “someone-in-this-class-has-lice” school letters, but I used to think, “my son’s hair is too short for lice” or “I let my daughter’s hair get dirty and lice don’t like dirty hair.”

However, one morning while trying to do a workout DVD, I couldn’t stop itching my head. I went and got the lice comb I purchased last year when one of our neighbor’s and their house had lice. (I hugged my friend right before she told me they all had lice and was convinced that I had it too.) I started combing my hair and much to my dismay, large black bugs appeared. I have never had lice before, and I thought these bugs were too big to be lice. However, when my son got up and I combed through his hair, I found smaller bugs and tiny eggs like I had heard so much about. I frantically brushed through both of our heads throwing anything I found in the sink. I was so disgusted (still am) and couldn’t shake the fact that there were bugs crawling on our heads.

I was frantically scouring the internet at the time my daughter awoke. I parted her head and saw one large bug. That is when I knew we all had the dreaded “L” word. I remembered my friend saying they treated their lice at home and it ended up coming back a few days later (or perhaps they didn’t get it all). I didn’t want that to happen to us, so I started googling lice removal services in my area. Low and behold, I found one that even used natural products! They could even be there in a few hours!

As my lice removal person was combing my head, she explained many interesting things about lice. This might not be something I enjoy talking about, but in the spirit of “Sharing A to Z” and because I was totally clueless, I thought I would share the tips I learned with  you.  Hopefully, with these tips, if you or someone you love has lice, you can catch it early and will be better prepared than I was! I also hope this helps it from spreading again and again in the classroom!

What I learned about lice:

• Most recommend doing some kind of treatment (store bought, purchased from a natural lice vendor, or your own).
• After my initial treatment, I used coconut oil in my hair and left it on overnight. It is supposed to help get rid of everything. If nothing else, it leaves your hair very soft, which makes it easier to brush with the lice comb.
• The act of brushing (with a lice comb) is what really gets the lice out of your head.
• When brushing, divide hair into small sections and pay close attention to the back of the neck and around the ears.
• It is helpful to brush through one time and wipe with a paper towel (Viva are the best for this). Another method is to brush/comb your hair forward or down towards the sink.
• You need to comb all of the lice out and once you have done that, be sure to keep combing at least three times for the next 7-10 days.
• Between days 7-10, you may need to do another treatment to ensure you got everything (especially if you still find eggs or lice).
• Wash everything you can in hot water and put in the dryer.
• If you can’t wash something either put it in a plastic bag for at least 2 days (preferably a week) or use a lint brush.
• When there is a case of lice at school, make sure you bring home and wash your childs’ sheets, blankets, jackets, ect.
• There are some hair sprays designed to repel lice. They actually smell decent as they use mint as an ingredient.

Good luck,
Stephanie

*Please note, I am not a lice removal expert. I am just sharing my experience in hopes of preventing the prolonged spread of lice.

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