TTM about Lice (EW)

[Lrachelle80]

So after we left a restaurant today, the server ran out to my car and flagged me down. She said, "As a hairstylist and a mom, I wanted you to know that I think your older daughter has lice." I was kind of taken aback since I'd just braided her hair this AM and hadn't seen anything, and since I hadn't heard of any outbreaks amongst her friends or school. So I was just like, "Oh! Um, okay!" I glanced quickly at her scalp when I got back in the car but didn't see anything except some flakes of dry skin and some glitter (fucking glitter amirite?). When I got home, I looked closely with a bright flashlight. I see a lot of what I THINK are just flakes of skin. No bugs/nits. I've been looking at Google Images and websites to see if that helps but I'm still not sure if I'm missing something or what. Any advice or hints as to what to look for??

[mischief]

WTF? to that server. But really if you dont see little bug crawling around her hair then I think you are good.

[Lrachelle80]

@nochill @bears mischief yeah I was incredibly "wtf" to the server.

[Lrachelle80]

No, not itchy.

[Deleted]

That sounds ridiculously Inappropriate of her.

But honestly speaking (and take this with a grain of salt bc i dont have any experience with lice), if you dont see anything crawling, i wouldn't worry either.

[talon]

Did she say why she thought she had lice? I've always heard that dandruff comes off easily but the eggs are kind of gluEd to the hair and harder to pull out. If it's coming off, she's not itchy, and you don't see any bugs you're probably good.

[bennyandthejets13]

Wow how inappropriate and awkward that must of been. I agree with PP if she's not itchy and you don't see anything then I wouldn't worry.

[cjchio]

Jan 31, 2015 19:33:59 GMT -5 talon said:

Did she say why she thought she had lice? I've always heard that dandruff comes off easily but the eggs are kind of gluEd to the hair and harder to pull out. If it's coming off, she's not itchy, and you don't see any bugs you're probably good.

Those little bastards cling for dear life. They don't just flake off. As long as she isn't itching, I wouldn't worry too much.

[auburn]

Nits won't move when you blow on them. Live lice are hard to spot since they hide from the light. They are also tiny. It might be worth investing in a lice comb to be sure. They are only $5-6 bucks. Good luck! I hope it's not lice.

[emilillies]

You might have been on Candid Camera!

[Lrachelle80]

talon she didn't say and I didn't follow up with her, I was kind of shell shocked. But I assume the a few white flakes from her dry scalp and a couple pieces of glitter that were on her hair.

[talon]

Jan 31, 2015 21:30:45 GMT -5 Lrachelle80 said:

talon she didn't say and I didn't follow up with her, I was kind of shell shocked. But I assume the a few white flakes from her dry scalp and a couple pieces of glitter that were on her hair.

Yeah that's weird/rude then.

[sarahandeddie]

Nits are sticky. I would move her hair around and check her over really well.

FWIW - Lice really prefer clean hair. If there are issues at school I recommend putting some sort of product in her hair. I had a student with a re occurring lice issue. It was awful, but thankfully I didn't get it.

[tonksy]

Jan 31, 2015 19:33:59 GMT -5 talon said:

Did she say why she thought she had lice? I've always heard that dandruff comes off easily but the eggs are kind of gluEd to the hair and harder to pull out. If it's coming off, she's not itchy, and you don't see any bugs you're probably good.

This.

[kmm2150]

DD has a ton of blond hair, we had lice and it was absolute hell. They were really hard to see - definitely could not see them without going strand by strand and using a small flashlight - nits are kind of translucent and the light will hit them so you can see them. Just looking through her hair as I braid it or something like that, I never would have seen them so you really have to look carefully. They like the nape of the neck and around the ears. Just because you don't see bugs doesn't mean they aren't there. She was scratching but didn't complain about it.

just typing this has now made my head itch!!

[dovetail223]

The big difference in the appearance of a nit vs dandruff is the nit is teardrop shaped. There will be a distinctly pointier end.

Also...if you see something actually crawling it's gotten really bad. Like untreated for months bad. Otherwise the only evidence is itchy head and nits.

[Lrachelle80]

Jan 31, 2015 22:14:46 GMT -5 kmm2150 said:

DD has a ton of blond hair, we had lice and it was absolute hell. They were really hard to see - definitely could not see them without going strand by strand and using a small flashlight - nits are kind of translucent and the light will hit them so you can see them. Just looking through her hair as I braid it or something like that, I never would have seen them so you really have to look carefully. They like the nape of the neck and around the ears. Just because you don't see bugs doesn't mean they aren't there. She was scratching but didn't complain about it.

just typing this has now made my head itch!!

This is what I gathered from my Googling - that it can be really hard to see and that they like to be close to the roots. So after I read that, I was like, "How on earth could the server have seen something concerning??" After I got home, I used a flashlight and basically combed through her hair and focused on the nape and the back of the ears (Google said that too) and didn't see anything except a few flat white flakes, which came off easily when brushed or blown on. She didn't have any scratching before or after. I really think we're okay but I'm going to keep checking. 

[Lrachelle80]

But since she's in school, I'm sure it's an inevitable fact that she'll get it at some point. Has anyone used anything like this?

www.ladibugsinc.com/lice-prevention/

[Lrachelle80]

Also I feel super itchy now but I'm like 100% it's just psychological, haha. But I'm going to have DH look when he gets up.

[Mermz]

Really, braiding her hair and just putting gel or hair spray is usually enough of a deterrent.

[cjchio]

They don't like certain oils from what a hairdresser friend told me. I think tea tree and coconut? I remember after I got them in college I've used coconut shampoo and haven't switched. Whether or not that is still considered to be true,I'm not sure.

[auburn]

Feb 1, 2015 10:21:59 GMT -5 cjchio said:

They don't like certain oils from what a hairdresser friend told me. I think tea tree and coconut? I remember after I got them in college I've used coconut shampoo and haven't switched. Whether or not that is still considered to be true,I'm not sure.

Definitely tea tree oil. You can get shampoo that contains it but be really careful about getting it in your eyes. It hurts really badly!

[wesleycrusher]

Feb 1, 2015 10:21:59 GMT -5 cjchio said:

They don't like certain oils from what a hairdresser friend told me. I think tea tree and coconut? I remember after I got them in college I've used coconut shampoo and haven't switched. Whether or not that is still considered to be true,I'm not sure.

I got them in college too! It was rough.

[cjchio]

Feb 1, 2015 18:30:05 GMT -5 wesleycrusher said:

Feb 1, 2015 10:21:59 GMT -5 cjchio said:

They don't like certain oils from what a hairdresser friend told me. I think tea tree and coconut? I remember after I got them in college I've used coconut shampoo and haven't switched. Whether or not that is still considered to be true,I'm not sure.

I got them in college too! It was rough.

Omg it was so awful. I left and went home for a few days to get them out.

[wesleycrusher]

Feb 1, 2015 18:31:10 GMT -5 cjchio said:

Feb 1, 2015 18:30:05 GMT -5 wesleycrusher said:

I got them in college too! It was rough.

Omg it was so awful. I left and went home for a few days to get them out.

I didn't have that option and I lived with 3 other girls and their boyfriends. They spent hours picking nits out of my hair. Thank god for good friends.