Saturday, February 26, 2011

Nit Picking...An Itchy Subject

For the past 2 weeks, we have been dealing with the itchy scratchy subject of head lice. If you are as squeemish about this as I am, do not read any further...but if you don't mind a bit of scratching read on.

First of all, these little bugs are a pain in the rear! We have thrown out pillows, head bands, hair ties, etc. Just because I hate spraying kids things down with insectisides. It amazes me that chemicals to kill our lawns and bugs are banned and yet, these chemicals can still be used for a child to get rid of lice.

Secondly, each time I have used the treatment, I start wheezing, so it can't be very healthy at all!

Everything has been washed in scalding hot water with bleach and dried when possible on the highest heat...blankets, clothing, coats, backpacks, etc. between my hubby and I, we have spent over 100 hours washing, drying, folding, scrubbing, boiling, spraying.

I purchased vinyl covers for pillowcases and every morning, off comes the pillow cases, the pillows get wiped down with hot water and in the dryer all the blankets go.

Every night, I have picked, parted and prayed and yet, there are still nits in her hair. I should mention that during this entire ordeal, only 1 bug was found and to her credit, her head was itching, she caught it and ran directly to the school nurse, so maybe we have it stopped in its tracks??? Pray we do!

It makes me realize how many people probably do not go through all of this as we have, but I am a bug phobe! No one else has it and we took our little man to the barber and had his head shaved to make sure. We have used the shampoo on all heads but the adults.

I am now on a quest to purchase some all natural lice products and have found the Wombie comb...yes, it works as a friend swears by it. One of the things I have noticed is that most of the natural products have Rosemary in them...

After this, I think I could do this for a living. I hear people make a good living nit picking at around $40-$70 per hour. But how much would it cost for a totally enclosed SCBA (self contained breathing apparatus) to ensure I wouldn't scratch?

Still, for the first time in my life, I realize how much work is involved to get rid of these and no, haircuts are not an option!

Now, you may scratch!

5 comments:

Erin said...

if you are allergic to ..i think some kind of grass or herb..they use it in the shampoo and it could be what is causing your wheezing..we have had those nasty little bugs and i have also spent hours and hours doing laundry and bagging up plushies and bleaching toys, blankets and such. good luck.

Quiltingranny said...

Thanks Erin, they are a real pain!

autumnesf said...

I have dealt with this one time - my jr high student picked it up from the sports locker room (can you say hair brushes left in the lockers?). It was the biggest nightmare ever. Tried commercial stuff first and read the labels and freaked. They didn't work either.

So we used the electric comb and for three nights in a row we did mayo on both girls for 30 min to an hour, then they wash (about 3 times to get the oil out) and then we nit picked. Seemed to do it. Totally gross...hated the way it smelled and felt but it smoothered the suckers...and the middle child had it but good.

Now, the next thing is to get yourself some tea tree oil and add a capful to their shampoo. Shake the shampoo before each use. It has a strong smell and you don't want it in your eyes but it keeps the bugs away. Do a google search on it. Many girls/boys homes that have multiply children coming in and out use it. That's how I found out about it.

Good luck.

Hate those bugs.

Beth said...

If you have kids in school, this is inevitable. I am so happy to recommend a product called LiceOff which is 100% pure essential oils. They have a website, just google lice off, and I ordered just the bottle of essential oil from them. We had already gone through the nit picking process, coating hair with mayonnaise, olive oil and wearing shower caps, etc., so I can't really say about killing the little bugs, but the beauty of this is it is preventive, and pleasant. Just a few drops in a spray bottle of water, and spray every morning. Reminds me I should start this routine again. I am a grandmother raising grandchildren, and love to read your blog. Blessings, Beth

Quiltingranny said...

Thank you for all the comments and Beth, thank you for the LiceOff recommendation, I had seen it on the net but needed confirmation it worked.
I also purchased Organix Tea Tree Oil/Mint shampoo to try that.!