With 5 children all of which go to school it is amazing (up until now) that they have not gotten these little stressful bugs. Well low and behold the eldest girl got a note home from school there was a Lice outbreak. LOVELY. Head checks started. Nothing, Nothing and Nothing for two weeks. Phew I think we are in the clear. NOPE the oldest girl got it spread to the oldest boy now spread to the two babies. I AM SO GROSSED OUT AND EMBARRASSED! Of course I call the Pediatrician in TEARS. Crying how I am extremely clean and my daughter is clean and how could this happen! She calmed me down and started telling me HER story. Her daughters had it, the nurses children had it, it is life it is lice and it spreads like wildfire! So we start.
All 4 children (lucky my oldest boy did not get it nor did I) were treated and combed, and combed, and combed and are still being combed. First time in my life I found myself at the laundry mat with 10 BIG loads of clothes and bedding (our washer and dryer are just to small) Between the laundry mat, the head treatments and other products we are $150 in the hole. LOVELY. But worth it.
So this is were the snob part of me comes into play. I have always thought it was dirty people who got lice, that lice can jump from person to person, it lives in furniture and oh my god my car! Again CRYING to the pediatrician. This is what I learned from research on the internet (we all know google doesn't lie lol) Contrary to what people think Lice can not jump or fly, can not live off a host for more then 12-24 hours, is extremely very hard very rare to be transferred threw furniture or car seats, and really the only way to get it is by head to head contact. Well that would explain why girls are more prone to it then boys. Girls are more touchy touchy and the oldest well she sleeps with the brother and then holds the babies all the time. Well YUP that spread it. After the shock wore off we treated. You treat and comb and comb then treat again in 7-10 days and usually that is all you have to do.
Lice can not harm you they are just a nuisance. They are not dirty or carry diseases. Pets can NOT carry them (due to the oil on their fur and skin.) And once everything is laundered in vacuumed you should be in the clear. It states everywhere do not kill yourself cleaning and spending time cleaning because you should be spending time combing the source because again they can not live off host.
So since Thursday (since I am anti bug) I have vacuumed out my entire car washed all car seats, luckily I was getting a new rug, vacuumed all furniture striped all beds, washed all laundry and packed up the stuffed animals and have put them away for two weeks.
Take the time if you have school age children to read up and learn the truth about lice. I did and I feel a little better about it and yes I am still extremely embarrassed but it is life. It happens to over 150million school age children a year (mind you that is only on average 8 months year wise) they say 4 out of a class of 20 get lice every year. It is extremely common and not dirty at all. I am listing a few websites I have found which has really helped me in my lice journey and I am happy to say WE HAVE TACKLED THIS PROBLEM better then a line backer for the Cowboys. We are now Lice free in only 5 days!
(These are not my children's head lice just pictures I have found to inform you)
http://biotech.law.lsu.edu/cphl/Practice/lice/hl-myths.htm
http://www.headlice.org/
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001843/
Much Thoughts For All Denise <3
5 comments:
Oh my gosh, my daughter just got it at 3 years old! It was horrible. My hand was shaking as I called the doctor. When I became a Mom if anyone told me I would be combing bugs out of my kids hair I would have said no way. Now I know the true reason for the term nit picky, and being a nit picker. I would not wish it on my worst enemy. And as you said you feel embarassed, but once you learn more you are not. Glad to read your post.
I am a new follower, who you just recently followed also from MA.
Gilda
Oh lice SUUUUUUUUU*S it is so horrible! I am still brushing 5 heads getting nothing but still brushing... Anyway I am from the south shore :) Do you have a blog?
And yea Nit Picker that is totally what I have been for 5 days now lol and I am still a little embarrassed but I think its more of being upset that people still have those bad thoughts on what lice really is?
Thank you for following I hope you enjoy it :)
My kids got it from the neighbor girls a few years ago. We got rid of all of it, but the mom next door never got around to her girls' hair (she was a single mom of 5 girls, so I get that she was tired) so they brought it back 3 or 4 times before I finally got the stuff to do their hair too. I hate lice, and reading this makes me so itchy.
OH yes Jenn I agree it makes me itchy to think about it too lol...
And its so nice to have people like you to take care of those girls! that was so sweet of you considering how annoying it (lice) is! thanks for reading :) hope you enjoy the rest of the blog :)
Believe me when I say that it was not out of kindess that I was about to get onto the hair of the 2 culprits at my kids school! My youngest kept getting reinfected for about 3 months! And that was with long hair and in the middle of dance comps! This mother was NOT a happy camper. As a microbiologist, I knew not to be embarrassed, so I was more annoyed than anything! I hope that your experience with your children is a much shorter one.
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