Before the boys started kindergarten this year, I took them in to get their scruffy, overgrown locks trimmed. They were each sitting in chairs in the salon, about to be shorn, when I went to use the restroom. When I walked out, one of the stylists beckoned me over and spoke the words I have been terrified of hearing since they started to grow blond wisps on their sweet little heads.
“Ma’am? This one has lice.”
(Cue shrieking “ree ree ree” music from Psycho.)
She parted his hair and sure enough, I could see tiny little dots near his scalp, nearly the same color as his hair. She even (shudder) pointed out the live little bugs darting around.
“He said he told you his head was itching,” she said, and yes, now I recalled him complaining of being itchy, but I chalked it up to mosquito bites, since he was usually covered in those. Plus, boys are, you know, filthy little creatures.
It suddenly occurred to me that Miles wasn’t an only child. We all turned to where the other two were getting trimmed, and sure enough, at closer glance, it seemed all three were infested with the little bugs.
(Is your head itching yet? Just reading this?)
They all hopped down from the chairs, some with haircuts half completed, and with my head hanging in shame, we drove across the parking lot to Target. I begged the pharmacist (in a whisper, of course) to direct me to the lice-removal products. He handed me a box of noxious chemicals and I stealthily brought it to the register to check out.
When we got home, the first thing I did was thank the good Lord that I had boys. I had my husband get the clippers out and I shaved those boys’ heads within an inch of their lives. Then I slapped on the chemicals, let them do their job, and “combed out” their stubble with the little metal comb that came with the kit. I spent the rest of the night washing or spraying with Rid every soft surface in the house. Stuffed animals were relegated to a sealed trash bag, except for a few beloved doudous that got a hot bath in the washing machine. For the next week, our house was cleaner than it had ever been.
A week later, I slathered them again with the chemicals that probably lowered their IQ a few points, and breathed a sigh of relief that this was a problem that was relatively easy to take care of.
Until a few weeks later, when I got a note in Linus’s backpack. Cue the Psycho music again, lice was found on one of his classmates!
Have your kids had lice yet? If so, what was your strategy?
Author’s note: Since writing this post, I’ve become aware of local professionals to help you take care of lice infestations. Contact The Critter Cure for more info!
This is something I fear greatly- BUT you just reminded me that it is WAY easier to take care of lice on boys than girls, because with girls, you can’t just shave all their hair off!
I am hoping and praying I never have to deal with this!
I just recently saw a commercial for a lice removal product that wasn’t heavy on the chemicals… I wish I could remember the name of it.
Right when you said “is your head itching yet?” I had to scratch! Eek!
OMG, me too.
It can happen to any of us! They’re beautiful even without head fulls of hair 😉
I HATE lice and as a teacher I get the chills just thinking of them. However, there is hope. Many teachers use a little trick to make sure we don’t get lice (or at least to make it a little less likely). Lice like clean hair, and the cleaner the better! Every morning I put a little hair spray in my hair or use mouse or gel. Lice need clear hair and have a much harder time getting in if the hair had some type of product in it.
I am soooo thankful my son, even at 4 is a metro sexual lol.. has to have his hair done and cologne on!
OMG! My head is so itchy right now! EEeek! You poor thing. I am not looking forward to the day I get to deal with this one. That reminds me, I saw preventative lice shampoo at the supply house the other day. Perhaps I should pick some up!
they say black children don’t get lice is this a myth
It’s not entirely a myth. The head lice that are most prevalent in this country need a hair shaft that is cylindrical. The hair shaft on people of African decent is more oval in shape. There are head lice, primarily in Africa, that are adapted to an oval hair shaft, but they are not common here.
So it is unlikely that a black child in the US will get head lice, but not impossible.
I remember getting lice a few times as a kid. It happens. The first time, my mother used those nasty chemicals that smelt to high heaven. Anything that says you should use in a ventilated room probably shouldn’t be used on children. Plus, it didn’t work. She then went back to her old faithful method of slathering our hair in conditioner, sectioning it off and using the lice comb to remove the eggs and lice. She did that every night for a week and the lice were gone. No chemicals and no worrying that we were breathing in nasty fumes. She also checked our hair once a week so she could catch them early. I will be using her conditioner method on my own children, and highly recommend it if you don’t want to use chemicals.
we got the dreaded note right before the end of the year last year that some students had it. We were thankful that we were not infested by these horrible little creatures. They are SO creepy even though they don’t harm us. That’s of NO comfort. LOL I have all boys myself. They would be so bald you’d need glasses to look at them. No kidding. Then I’d have a serious trash party and be throwing way too much away and spending untold amounts of the expensive chemical free stuff that costs about 10 times the regualr stuff.
The best product I’ve found is called Lice MD. They carry it at Walgreens and Wal Mart but it tends to be sold out. It is not toxic and you can use it every day if you need to. My child with fine blonde long curly hair was a lice magnet last school year. This year her hair has thickened up since we got her a nice short bob haircut. Hopefully it won’t be a nightmare again. They say that Tea Tree Oil and Rosemary are natural repellents.
I recently seen an ad on tv about live prevenitive, lice shield… and it is said that rosemary and tea tree oil helps keep them out of the head. Will be getting some this week. Friend of mine has been using fairy tales over three years and has NEVER experienced an issue with lie.