Lice

[SlimSlowSlider]

I know there are a lot of people with young kids who post here, so I assume some of you have had to deal with lice. Blech.

My daughter apparently came home from school with lice. (We had been told there was lice at her school, but we did not discover the lice until after Christmas.) My wife was very diligent and we thought it was gone ... but apparently not. It is back. My wife is going to have a nervous breakdown. Does anyone have any remedies (in addition to over the counter treatments and combing out the nits and lice every day). On the web I see people mentioning mayonaise, mouthwash, vinegar, etc. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!

Slim

[wilson]

My mother was an elementary school principal for about ten years, so she too dealt with this problem more times than she cared to.
When I came home from a mission trip in Honduras with lice, she washed my hair thoroughly and carefully with one of the over-the-counter products (I think the brand name was "Rid") three or four times in the space of a week or so, with the careful fine-toothed combings after each session. It wasn't pleasant for her or for me, but it did knock those suckers right out.

[Devil in the Blue Dress]

Lice seem to find children, especially young ones. When I worked in elementary schools where this situation came up, the local public health department provided some helpful tips. My recall is that in addition to washing the hair as a previous poster described, there are some instructions about washing bed linens, clothing, etc. Another good resource is the web page for People's Pharmacy (www.peoplespharmacy.com).

Good luck!

[Devil in the Blue Dress]

The Center for Disease Control has some helpful information including some simple steps for cleaning linens and clothing.

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dpd/parasites/lice/factsht_head_lice_treating.htm#how_treat

[DevilAlumna]

I somehow picked up lice in 7th grade when I was in Enterprise, AL. OTC stuff didn't work (I wasn't all that diligent about it), but the permanent my mom gave me knocked the suckers out right quick. Good thing frizzy hair was in vogue in 1987 Alabama....

Be sure to wash anything the head touches -- jackets, sweaters, sheets; hair brushes (just buy new); hair implements like barrettes; etc.

Good luck -- the little suckers still give me the heebiejeebies.

[SlimSlowSlider]

Thanks for the input.

We tried olive oil in the hair overnight (with hair wrapped in saran wrap and with a shower cap). We'll see how that does. We'll also (on a daily basis) comb out any nits/nymphs/lice that remain, and are washing bedding and clothes diligently.

What a pain in the arse.