These annoying little creatures can cause lots of discomfort for your kids so as soon as you see your child scratch their head, please check them for nits thoroughly. Around the bottom of the hair line (the nape) is where they frequent often.
This treatment takes time and patience. I suggest you make yourself and your child comfortable with something to eat, drink and do. Play some great music. My sessions take about 2 hours including the blowdrying and straightening.
When you do find them here are the most important steps below, some not, included in this VIDEO:
1. Change your child’s bedding and wash their pillow in hot water as the eggs might be there to reinvest after your treatment.
2. Tell your teacher and your child’s best friends parents so you can keep the re-investation at bay.
3. Repeat the steps in this video 2 times. After your first treatment, repeat after 7 days and then at 14 days. If you still find lots of eggs I really encourage you to repeat the treatment again at 21 days.
4. Share this video with your friends so you can all benefit from not having to spend hours of your week on tediously combing strand by strand.
5. Start with a treatment on your child’s hair for 15 minutes or as directed on the bottle. I personally think the magic is in the combing after so if you think ONLY a treatment will get the job done, I am going to have to break the news to you softly that it is not enough. You can buy the treatment at the chemist or supermarket.
6. Wash the treatment out over the bath. Make sure your child puts their hair back over the bath or sink or let them bend back in the shower. The solution is highly chemical and will hurt their eyes. Have a small towel ready just in case. Test the water that it is not too hot or cold. I have in the past set up a “salon” experience for my daughter with soft cushions on the kitchen bench and her head over the sink.
7. Then shampoo the hair and apply a triple the amount of conditioner as usual. As thick a layer as possible as this is how you will get the nits out with your nit comb. Apply carefully to the side and base of the neck where nits love to hang out and grow.
8. Dry and Dress your child and put their soaking hair up in a bun.
9. Organise yourself with snacks and activities and great music. My preference is iTunes top 50 so my daughter and I can sing along.
10. You will need a nit comb, two bowls – one of them filled with hot water to since the comb and the other for the used tissues, a tissue box, hairbands, a clip and a cloth to wipe your greasy conditioner hands. If there is not enough conditioner in your child’s hair simply apply extra when you comb strand by strand. You will need plenty of sunlight or a bright light to highlight the nits.
11. Start in one section of the hair and pick out a small part. Keep combing and wiping the comb on a tissue until it is clear of eggs or adult nits. Adult nits can be about 1-2 mm and the eggs are tiny. This is very important to continue until clear.
12. I like to use elastic hairbands to pull together the sections I have cleared.
13. Once you have done the whole head you can do a little celebration dance and stretch as you have completed the hardest part.
14. Now wash the conditioner out of your child’s hair.
15. This next part is a tip from a Kindergarten teacher who saw nits as a hazard that came with the job. She advised me to blow dry my daughter Yasmine’s hair thoroughly to kill any left overs with heat. Even after a thorough combing session last week I still found grown up nits fleeing when I used the hot dryer so it is a very useful step. Make sure you don’t burn your child’s scalp. Use the dryer on an angle and move frequently.
16. I like to finish off with a hair straightener on hot to give any leftover nits or eggs a final headache.
Well done! It is a big job and takes patience! The good thing is that your child’s hair will look shiny and soft after all that treatment! And all without the itch!
Here is a great article I just found in SMH that busts many myths about headlice:
Head lice: Busting the myths so we can nab those nits
Further information and step-by-step guides to the “comb and conditioner” method can be found at:
health.nsw.gov.au/environment/headlice/Pages/treatment.aspx
schoolatoz.nsw.edu.au/wellbeing/health/removing-head-lice-and-nits
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