OK - for the record - I have had
much experience of head lice - I live in a big city and they are very common in schools around here....
You catch lice because they can crawl from one hair to another very quickly - so can be transfered in class (for instance) when heads are close together - touching. They CANNOT jump like fleas - so you caught it from someone's head you touched.
The lice need the warmth of the head/scalp to survive - so if they are in your brush or on your pillow or on your soft toys they will die very quickly - they simply cannot survive without the warmth of your body.
You can wash your hairbrush or pillow case, etc. - but it is not absolutely necessary
You need a nit comb - fine tooth comb. You can buy special shampoos from the drug store or pharmacy that kill lice - or you can try a more "natural" remedy.
I have used this one successfully many, many times:
Take a saucer of Olive Oil and add a few drops of
Tea Tree Oil (natural anti bacterial agent).
Mix together and massage it all thru the hair and scalp. Wrap your hair in a towel for 10 mins. This gives the tea tree oil time to kill any live head lice in your hair.
Wash your hair with shampoo (normal hair shampoo).
Add conditioner - lots of it... great glooping blobs of it so your hair is totally covered and slimy with it !!!
Then take the nit comb and carefully and methodically comb through all the sections of your hair - this is where older sisters and parents are useful!!! Pay special attention to the nape of the neck and behind the ears - this is the favorite place to lay eggs for lice
Each sweep of the comb, wipe away the conditioner and any black specks (dead lice) from the comb. Keep working methodically thru the hair until you can't see anymore specks. It is tedious - but it works.
Rinse and towel dry your hair. Do not use a hair dryer (the lice need heat to survive and hatch their eggs - so don't give it to them!!)
Let your hair dry naturally.
You have now killed all the adult lice and are left with eggs in your hair. The trick is to break the cycle and kill any new lice that hatch from the eggs left in your hair.
You need to do this "shampoo, condition and comb" every 3 days for about 10 - 14 days to make sure you are totally rid of them.
I promise it works - if you follow the regime. You need to do it every 3 days so that any eggs that hatch don't get enough time to grow into adult lice and lay more eggs.... see?
In between times - if your hair is long enough - wear it up - so more air (coldness) circulates around your neck and ears - keep it cold for those little nits!!!
Sorry it is a long post - but I have been there and done that so many times I have lost count.... lol
If it makes you feel any better - it has been proven that head lice prefer clean hair - so you must have clean hair!!!
If you keep your hair up and stay out of the way, there is no reason why your brother can't have his party.... you just need to make sure you don't play with the kids.
Perhaps this would be a good time to check out cool bandanas in the mall?
My friend has em' at the moment.
