Lice Prevention

A little over a year and a half ago before I moved back to Texas, one of my good friends here quickly became a lice expert. She would treat it, but it kept going around her school and coming back again. She ended up doing a lot of research on the internet and driving herself half insane trying to completely rid her family of this problem. I remember her horror stories too well.

For some strange reason, I started talking about lice two weeks ago to another friend. We were talking about how horrible it would be. Like me, she has long hair and so does her daughter. She commented that she would probably go to a specialist and pay the $500 for them to get rid of it. I didn't know that was an option, but realistically, it is not an option for me to pay that kind of money. I was just glad that I hadn't heard of any cases.

Last Monday, I decided to shave Jordan’s hair. I had been thinking about letting it grow a little since winter is coming, but I pulled out the clippers and buzzed it off without even thinking about it. On Thursday, I was so glad I did. I got a note from his school saying a child had lice. All the kids were checked, but they wanted us to keep an eye out. Suddenly, I was so thankful to have a son that is too energetic to cuddle or lie down where other kids have been lying. Good thing, they don’t have nap time for his age at pre-school.

My alert level was definitely kicked up another notch this weekend when a friend whose kids attend a neighboring elementary told me that her daughter got lice last week. She said that the best treatment is olive oil in a shower cap for about an hour and using a flat iron. The chemical shampoo sold at the store is not only very harsh, but the lice have become resistant to it. She also recommended tea tree oil. I already use tea tree shampoo for the kids, so I didn't think too much about it. She lent us one of her flat irons in case we would need it.

I made sure to wash Lexi’s hair with tea tree shampoo last night. Another good practice that I already do is that I RARELY let Lexi go to school with her hair down or even in a pony tail. I was feeling pretty safe.

Yesterday evening, I took the kids on a walk. We saw one of my neighbors/friends and I asked her how she was doing. She said, “Horrible!” Then, she proceeded to explain that she just noticed her daughter in 4^th grade came home with lice. I told her about the olive oil and cap. As my kids and I walked home, I decided to kick up my lice prevention a notch. We headed to the grocery store and bought 2 bottles of tea tree oil (one for us & one for my neighbor). My kids will get a little drop on their necks every morning. Lexi will also not only have a braid; her hair will be up in a bun. I have cautioned her about hugging other kids and laying her head on their shoulders. Sadly, this is no time to be affectionate.