Lice!!! Oh No

[sahm1225]

I had a dcg yesterday from 3-5:30 (school kid). Mom texts me today that they found nits & lice in her hair last night. I didn't notice her itching or scratching at all! I've checked all the kids and they are clear. But after watching so many videos and reading so much about it, I can't stop itching! My entire body itches so I know it's just in my head, but I can't help it!

Question for those that have dealt with lice - how long did you exclude for? How long do you check everyone's hair for?

[NoMoreJuice!]

I just had a bout of this sweep my daycare about two months ago... it ****S!

I implemented a nit-free policy. I checked heads every single morning when they came in (and the first few days realized I wasn't checking the correct way...definitely YouTube that if you're not familiar). The itty bitty tiny eggs were caramel colored, just like some of my kiddo's hair! I was only looking for white eggs.

I kept checking every morning for three weeks and their parents weren't allowed to leave until I was satisfied there were no nits. The bad part was that they were passing it to parents, siblings, etc and we were seeing recurrences until the parents got sick of having their child excluded and treated the whole family. By the way, the RID treatments at Walgreens or Walmart DO NOT kill lice eggs, so the ONLY way to get rid of them is to comb them out individually. I bought this comb and it was a million times better than the RID one I found at walmart: http://www.amazon.com/Nit-Free-Termi...ords=lice+comb

In Kansas City, we found several great Lice Salons that do nothing but check heads and remove lice. The checks were $20 a head and removal was $60-$80 an hour, but for some of the families that was the best resource after they were exhausted from trying to treat with over the counter products.

Good luck, and hope you get rid of the nasty bugs soon!

[KiddieCahoots]

Ugh! I'm sorry you're having to deal with this.
NoMoreJuice gave awesome advice.
I'm still checking my families heads, vacuuming and washing with hot water....btw, turn up your water heater. It's kind of ironic that we cannot have our water heater over 120 degrees per regulations with scalding concerns, but to kill lice you need water temperatures to reach 130 degrees, and the child care children are the ones who usually bring in the lice.

I just had a grandmother lie to me for 3wks about her granddaughter having lice, and had been treating her without notifying me.
Once I started to see how much this was costing me, lice removal products, electric bill, etc....I terminated this family for non disclosure of information.

Good luck

[Unregistered]

for those with experience- do you think the lice prevention shampoos work? I got the dreaded letter from my daughter's preschool this week that there was a child with lice. I freaked out. I bought the lice prevention shampoo, we've both been using it, I've kept her hair tightly braided at school, and I check her scalp nightly. Her teacher told me I was overreacting, that the kid who had lice wasn't even in her class, but I still can't stop thinking about it!

[KiddieCahoots]

for those with experience- do you think the lice prevention shampoos work? I got the dreaded letter from my daughter's preschool this week that there was a child with lice. I freaked out. I bought the lice prevention shampoo, we've both been using it, I've kept her hair tightly braided at school, and I check her scalp nightly. Her teacher told me I was overreacting, that the kid who had lice wasn't even in her class, but I still can't stop thinking about it!

It does say on the back of the bottle's of shampoo that some lice become resistant to treatment, and the shampoos are technically to kill the lice, not necessarily the eggs/nits. So be sure to use a metal comb to comb out any existing nits. The plastic combs can be used too, but are not as effective, because they can bend, and don't gather the nits as well.
Even though I went ahead and used the shampoos, the pharmacist recommended against it due to the chemicals in it that can cause liver damage. He suggested that if live lice or nits are found on the head, and become a problem to get rid of, to contact your doctor and they can prescribe a lice treatment that is less damaging.

Keep in mind lice do not jump, and prefer to stay all warm, moist, and in the dark on their current host. The odds are less that your child would catch them from a child in another class.
If you are really that concerned, I'd do preventative measures....vacuuming regularly and disposing of the vacuum bag in a zip lock baggie, or emptying the vacuum canister outside and away from your home.
It's also helpful to vacuum car seats, and anything that cannot be put into the laundry.
You can also clean all clothing, sheets, hats, coats, towels, in hot water at or above 130 degrees, and running through the dryer on a hot cycle for at least 20 minutes.
And do regular head checks for the entire family.

I've been using the CVS and Walgreens version of Rid.

[Cradle2crayons]

for those with experience- do you think the lice prevention shampoos work? I got the dreaded letter from my daughter's preschool this week that there was a child with lice. I freaked out. I bought the lice prevention shampoo, we've both been using it, I've kept her hair tightly braided at school, and I check her scalp nightly. Her teacher told me I was overreacting, that the kid who had lice wasn't even in her class, but I still can't stop thinking about it!

Are you speaking of the tea tree oil preventative shampoos ??

Tea tree oil is proven to prevent but I don't know percentages on that.

[MOM OF 4]

I use lice shield.

There was a question of whether or not my kid had nits. I picked whatever they were out every single day. Then I had her Peds Dr check too.(She had a sick visit and so I just had them check since I was nervous). The dr. said that what it looked like was she had dandruff, and I was using too much of the lice shield (which is a lot of oils blended together) causing the dandruff to stick. She told me to use a clarify shampoo, COMB out her hair and then let dry, make sure not oily anymore, and see if I could see the 'nit' looking things. I could not, so it looks like maybe I was a little overzealous with the spray. So now, I spritz under her braid just a little, and at the top of her head and we're good. :: So far, no lice that we know of.

[sahm1225]

Are you speaking of the tea tree oil preventative shampoos ??

Tea tree oil is proven to prevent but I don't know percentages on that.

I have pure tea tree oil that i put in our kids Shampoo. So far we have been lucky & no one else has gotten it! One funny thing - I have super long thick curly hair. Yesterday morning I conditioned my hair with a mix of tea tree oil & conditioner. My hair felt so squeaky clean afterwards and smelled very strong. I thought nothing of it, until I walked In my 5 years old dd bedroom & she started sneezing. Everytime I walked near her she would sneeze & she told me very nicely that I smelled funny! ::::

[Unregistered]

yeah, it's the shampoo with tea tree oil in it. I really hate the smell!

And thanks to my little one yesterday at the store telling everyone I put special shampoo in her hair to kill buggies. I tried to tell her it was "just in case" and she didn't have bugs, but the looks I got....

[Magic]

" I'm still checking my families heads, vacuuming and washing with hot water....btw, turn up your water heater. It's kind of ironic that we cannot have our water heater over 120 degrees per regulations with scalding concerns, but to kill lice you need water temperatures to reach 130 degrees, and the child care children are the ones who usually bring in the lice. "


get a " water guard " they go under sink and mix hot and cold so no burns for kiddies but some nice warm baths for us you can get them at home depto

I invested this year in new washer that has a sanitize setting ...for this reason and sickness
for you need to wash everything ...sigh

and yes comb comb comb with cream rinse ex...
I am in BC can and they used to do lice checks in the school with volunters and they have taken that away and we have no idea why ...so....yes we have to be diligent these days ...good luck

[KiddieCahoots]

" I'm still checking my families heads, vacuuming and washing with hot water....btw, turn up your water heater. It's kind of ironic that we cannot have our water heater over 120 degrees per regulations with scalding concerns, but to kill lice you need water temperatures to reach 130 degrees, and the child care children are the ones who usually bring in the lice. "


get a " water guard " they go under sink and mix hot and cold so no burns for kiddies but some nice warm baths for us you can get them at home depto

I invested this year in new washer that has a sanitize setting ...for this reason and sickness
for you need to wash everything ...sigh

and yes comb comb comb with cream rinse ex...
I am in BC can and they used to do lice checks in the school with volunters and they have taken that away and we have no idea why ...so....yes we have to be diligent these days ...good luck

Thank You! I did not know about these. Sounds like a definite must have for daycare.

[TaylorTots]

My contract excludes any child with nits or lice for the entire shampoo treatment period - 2 weeks (long enough for everything to hatch and die etc). If at the end of those two weeks or anytime thereafter they have them again, they are excluded again for another 2 week treatment period. I check outdoors before they enter the house.