I have never had any problems with my kids and lice, but recently I’ve notice my daughter scratching her head a lot whenever she at Basket Ball practice, I’m thinking is this a sign of lice???? Can anyone give me advice on what to look for and if she does have it, how do I get rid of it????
Take a close look at her scalp and the back of her neack. You'll be able to see them if she has it.
More likely, her scalp gets hot and sweaty from running around playing basketball. My head still sometimes itches like crazy if I go for a run in the hot sun, but used to happen to me all the time as a kid! probably depends on how dry her scalp is too.
Please, please, please do NOT use lice shampoo on your child! The national lice association does not recommend this. Children have died, had brain damage and seizures from that stuff....it is especially dangerous if you have respiratory illnesses such as Asthma. NEVER EVER USE the furniture sprays for lice...they are completely toxic and dangerous and also not recommended.
First you need to make absolutely sure she actually has live lice in her hair before you go crazy with trying to get rid of them. Sit her down in the sunlight and using a regular comb, keep parting her hair and looking for black moving bugs. They can be very tiny or as full grown adults, about half the size of a grain of rice. Use a magnifying glass if you have to. They WILL be moving if they are lice. Check the crown of her head, the hair above the nape of her neck, behind the ears. If you see live lice, you will need to get a METAL lice comb, like a LiceMeister and comb her hair thoroughly every day for 2 weeks. I have a whole list of Do's and Don'ts for Lice and step by step instructions for SAFELY getting rid of them. Anyone can feel free to message me if you'd like me to send them.
Meanwhile, this is the website to the official National Lice Association:
www.headlice.org
My pharmacist told me 'cetaphil' can be safely used to get rid of lice. it is non toxic...put it on your child's head. comb it in. the cetaphil apparantely kills the lice....then rinse.
ask your dr or pharmacist.
hth. jilly
I went through that about a month ago - I was expecting her to look like Medusa, but the lice she has looked like tiny pieces of lint. I didn;t see eggs, which I've heard are darker. What you can do is get 1) a lice preventative shampoo or 2) the full blown treatment 3) or a 'nit' comb. If you see the little buggers on the comb, you'll know.
If it is lice, then all bedding, pillows, stuffed animals, etc. will need to be treated.
But, it if is only at practice, maybe she just has dry scalp and the sweat is irritating.
Good luck!
http://www.mamapedia.com/questions/1919427795184975873
The link above, is from a question I posted on this subject recently.
http://www.fairylicemothers.com/Shopping.cfm
Also, there are natural anti-lice products too.
Could just be her head is itchy from sweating while playing basketball.
Well if she has been scratching for a while, then she may have a lot that you can see if you look at the scalp. You will see bugs walking there. It is really hard to see the eggs since they are so tiny. If you see a white spot and it does not move when you push it, then that would be an egg. If a white spot flakes off, it is not. The best way I have found to check is how the service first did it on my kids years ago. Wash their hair, leave a little conditioner in, comb through with a lice comb (can get at CVS), and then after each brush wipe it on a white towel. If there are any bugs you will see them on the white towel and they will be moving. I recently checked and if you go through the whole head and do not see any bug, then there is nothing there. If she does have them, I used a homeopathic remedy from CVS. It worked with one coverage, but I still kept checking the head for another week.
Good luck
I hope your daughter just has an itchy head! Definitely check her immediately. My daughter had an itchy head back in June, and after a couple of days, I decided just to make sure it was nothing...but it was! While lice are treatable and fairly common, I won't lie...it was one of the worst things I have ever been through! My daughter had gorgeous hair down to her waist that she was planning on donating to Locks for Love (she is 12) and the 1st time we went through it took me FOUR HOURS! So, the next day, I got it down to 2 hours, but that is still too long...I also treated it and talked to a pharmacist and doctor who both said to treat again sooner than the label said...because we were leaving for a FL vacation with FOURTEEN people!!!!!!
Both also suggested that it would be easier to go through if we cut it...so after both of us crying and accepting that it needed to be done, we did...cut it off and threw it in the garbage. :( We also took all precautions...everything that could not be thrown in dryer went into garbage bags (and we treated whole house as a precaution...I run a home daycare and couldn't take any chances...our garage looked like a dump w/ all the bags.) I also washed/ dried everything we could and threw any and all hair stuf, hats and whatever else in freezer.
One other "extra" thing I did was straight olive oil in her hair at night w/ a shower cap on, after combing through it (which I did twice a day to make damn sure I got all those things OUT!) She did the olive oil for 3 nights and I treated her one last time before we left for FL...yes, I was successful in getting rid of them, but at a huge cost to myself (had to close daycare as a precaution) and emotional...she now has the CUTEST hair style, thanks to my sis who is a stylist! Anyway, I truly hope your daughter does not have lice....it is a hassle, but it's treatable!!!! (and I am a worrier, so that doesn't help!) Best of luck to you!!!!!
Hello. I work for a company that comes out to your home. There are probably some in your area. Look at the back of her neck and behind the ears. The bugs are small and look sort of like a piece of metamucil. The eggs or nits are attached to the hair folicle and will not come off easily. If you see this, you should find a professional to help. These bugs, more often than not are resistant to the products on the market. The chemicals are also very harsh on your scalp. If you want to try this yourself I have a few things you will need to do. The bugs do not like mint or tea tree oil. Apply tea tree oil to the hair and place a shower cap on her hair. After a few hours or overnight, you will see the bugs clinging to the shower cap. Using mint on the scalp will sometimes irritate or even burn. It has to be mixed. Carefully take off the shower cap and put in a plastic bag. You will need to comb through her hair with a lice comb. The one I recomend is the terminator. It has barbs on the teeth which will help to pull all the eggs off as well as the bugs. Comb through her hair at least 20 minutes everyday for a week. Put all of her combs, brushes, hair ties, etc... into a zip lock bag in the freezer for the next 5-7 days. Use what you need and put it back. Bedding can all be run in a hot dryer for 20 minutes each day.
There is more information on our website Thehairangels.com. Everyone in the house will need to be checked. I hope I was able to help. If you have anymore questions, please post them. I will be happy to answer.
Please go to headlice.org and follow their instructions. They don't use poison on the kids and the lice are going shortly.
