[Flutterby]

it seems that we have picked up the little critters from somewhere along our travels, and i'm frustratingly trying to remove them from mine and my daughters hair.
Does anyone know the cheapest place to get a robi comb, or any other useful removal method, trying to stay away from the chemicals and don't have much money to spread about at the moment.
Embarrassing to notify family of them and then a little shocking to realise how uneducated some people are about this matter.

Also where can i get my hair cut, don't think any of the hairdressers would really appreciate cutting my hair when it has lice in it but i'm struggling to remove them with such long hair. I can cut DD's and DP's hair myself easily enough but not my own....well not if i want it to look tidy!
:wah

[norma]

The combs should be available at your local pharmacy and some treatments include a comb in the pack. Tea tree oil is often recommended as a treatment. My children's school have recommended using Dove conditioner - leave it on the hair for a while and then comb through with it still on.

Good luck.

[Flutterby]

currently using conditioner and a standard nit comb.
The robi comb i was refering to is an electronic comb that zaps the lice, appears to be around $80 to buy in the shops, i was just hoping to find it a lot cheaper somewhere.

[JandM]

This is just one of several available. http://www.trademe.co.nz/Health-beauty/Hair-care-products/Other/auction-248479589.htm

[Flutterby]

thanks JandM i found that one.

[Kanga]

Good luck with that! We had them on-off for a year until the kids changed schools ...

I honestly found the most effective method (and believe me, I've nearly tried them all!) to be conditioner combing- use HEAPS of conditioner and a long toothed nit comb (the shorter ones aren't as effective, imo). Repeat as often as you can bear.

[Flutterby]

thats what we are currently doing, but i figured if we could kill them too (which the robi comb does) then the ellimination would be quicker and we would be less likely to become reinfested!

[YouMeAndThree]

If you can get hold of a nitty gritty comb that would be great. A fantastic little nit comb that has spiral teeth.

I have one DD who is a magnet for nits, even her sisters don't pick them up like she does. I've tried many lotions here, but the only one that works for us is Derbac, all the quick treatments and shampoos have failed. I supplement the Derbac treatments with conditioning. I slather dry hair in conditioner and comb through and then leave it in overnight, wet it again next day and comb through then wash out. I use the nitty gritty on my hair everyday when I have conditioner in.

I have not heard particularly good reviews of the electronic combs tbh. Combing and combing and combing seems to be the most tried and trusted method.

Good luck - it's our constant headache :(

[Kanga]

If you can get hold of a nitty gritty comb that would be great. A fantastic little nit comb that has spiral teeth.



I second that- we had one in Australia and it was brilliant and much less likely to snag hair than a non-spiral one. My older daughter developed a love of crushing the lice between her fingernails.

[beanbeanz]

If you have a hair straightener, it will work to kill the lice .... fried lice anyone?

[Kanga]

Here's a stomach churning average haul from when my two were fair diggered:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3250/2898146622_de291a658d.jpg

Blurgh!

[Flutterby]

i'm really regretting getting rid of my hairdryer and straighteners before i left the UK now, heck i don't even have a tumble dryer to make sure they are fryed in the clothes before next wear.

[Mamee & Co]

One of mine gets them..don't know how. We call them his little pets, get rid of them completely and then about 6 months later they are back!

We swear by the nitty gritty comb and reckon that daily combing with conditioner for 3 days will get rid of the live lice and then you have to keep going for another fortnight every other day to get rid of the eggs as they hatch if any are left and the NG comb does remove some but not all eggs.

We then move onto twice weekly combing for a month and then back to a weekly check!

It is labour intensive but most Mums I have met reckon that the nit killing lotions just do not work.

If they end up in the bed clothes I am informed that it is not a major problem as they only fall off heads when ill and close to death. They spread when children work with heads close together (or close to yours for that nice cuddly bedtime reading session!)

And yes, I'm scratching as I write about them......

[coppers]

It is nightmare. We have a very effective nit comb that removes eggs and the lice in one hit - used with loads of conditioner. Only one daughter is affected though but we call it 'mummy time' when delicing in the bathroom. I have found ( 2 months nit free now) by using a Teatree shampoo and conditioner, platting her hair everyday and spraying a Teatree childrens head lice repellent leave in spray all over seems to working. It doesn't help that her friend at school is constantly covered in them and doesn't seem to do anything about it - even when I have complained to the school welfare nurse.
Good luck in your quest.

[girlwithanewf]

Oh no, I was moving to NZ to escape them.... I would definitely not bother with the tiny combs, the nitty gritty ones with the long prongs work the best. Everything else has already been said!

[TonnyTessa]

As an expert sufferer in my school days I can confirm what everbody else said, comb, comb, comb. Shame my mum didn't know about the conditioner though! What we used was lavender vinegar which apperently kills the little suckers.

[YouMeAndThree]

As an expert sufferer in my school days I can confirm what everbody else said, comb, comb, comb. Shame my mum didn't know about the conditioner though! What we used was lavender vinegar which apperently kills the little suckers.


In my day, the treatment was like petrol, highly flammable and very, very smelly. It seems todays remedies are all 'natural', but I would actually really like something that killed the little blighters stone dead instantly :laugh Combing 3 girls hair takes up and awful lot of Mummy time :wah

[Flutterby]

thankyou all so much for the support, its comforting to get all the advice when i don't have my mum right here to help.
I will keep my eye out for a nitty gritty comb.
In the mean time does anyone want to come and do my hair, its almost impossible when you cannot see what you are doing!

[YouMeAndThree]

I've seen the nitty gritty shampoos and lotions here in NZ, but not the combs (although I've had no need to hunt them out yet) - you may need to get one sent over. They cost around £10, expensive but worth it imo.

[grady bunch]

You can order a Nitty Gritty Comb from here, came delivered within a week!! I also use Paradiso Shampoo on my eldest (Shampoo on, rinse off after 3 mins) who likes to collect these pets too!!

[tmprince]

I slice a huge problem in NZ? and what age group if contracted at school? :uhoh

[JandM]

Head lice can spread through ANY group of people who work closely enough together that they are sometimes likely to touch heads. There's nothing particular about children, except that they do often work on the same thing, and lean in to see what they're doing (and they cuddle close to adults and share any 'passengers', too). And lice like clean heads best. Very generally, they're more likely to go through a whole class of younger children who have less feeling of personal space/keeping their distance, but then older children are more likely to have close friends they whisper privately with. You can be 'lucky' :wah with any age child.

[GrumpyGoat]

Fortunately, we have not had any of the lice. But I have been warned by other mothers that it does sweep through on occasion.

Also, (and I dread this more than lice just because, well, eww) I have been warned that pin worms (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinworm) sweep through as well. I have actually had several mothers warn of this one. :wah

Ewww!


I think of the two, I would rather have the lice.

[YouMeAndThree]

I slice a huge problem in NZ? and what age group if contracted at school? :uhoh


I have not found it to be any more of a problem than in the UK tbh. It will start at any young age where children are playing together. Gets less of a problem once the hit their teens as by then children are less likely to get head to head.

[Kanga]

and impetigo.

Oh the joys of a rural NZ education ...

[Flutterby]

To be fair having just travelled from the other side of the world and having a child who will make friends with just about anyone we could have picked them up anywhere UK/KL/NZ, and i do vaguely remember somebody telling me that they were doing the rounds, but that could have been any number of places (she really does make a lot of friends) so the only reason that it is highlighted as an issue for me is that this is the 1st time i've needed to deal with it as a mother, the last time i experienced lice i was a young teen and it was pretty much dealt with by my mother, and i've just arrived in a new place and not completely got my bearings yet.

[seattle]

Fortunately, we have not had any of the lice. But I have been warned by other mothers that it does sweep through on occasion.

Also, (and I dread this more than lice just because, well, eww) I have been warned that pin worms (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinworm) sweep through as well. I have actually had several mothers warn of this one. :wah

Ewww!


I think of the two, I would rather have the lice.

Yep- this one swept through my daughters class last fall. I had never heard of this until we got to NZ. ick is right! :uhoh

[Flutterby]

ummmm ewwwww, but i remember hearing about this at school in the uk as a teenager!

[sweetpea]

I had never heard of this until we got to NZ. ick is right! :uhoh

Me neither! Never had a problem with lice growing up, and never even heard of whipworm or school sores (staph skin infections, from what I can gather) before I got to NZ. I don't know if it's the climate, or less of a handwashing culture, or what. But yuck.

[dilanium]

We had monthly lice checks at my elementary school in the US. I loved the feeling of them going through my hair with "chopsticks" looking for lice, so I always looked forward to it. :)

[Charliefarley]

I think of the two, I would rather have the lice.


I think you might change your mind after your first Nit visit!

[Flutterby]

funny you should bring this topic back up now i am battling with the lice again as DD just won't sit still to be combed, I'm about ready to shave all her hair off!

[Kanga]

We had monthly lice checks at my elementary school in the US. I loved the feeling of them going through my hair with "chopsticks" looking for lice, so I always looked forward to it. :)

My mum used to do that and I confess I would often say I was itchy just for the pleasure of the very thorough inspection!

[JandM]

funny you should bring this topic back up now i am battling with the lice again as DD just won't sit still to be combed, I'm about ready to shave all her hair off!Tell HER that - I'll bet that would nail her down to be dealt with!

[Flutterby]

Nah, shes not even four yet, so she really don't understand!