Nit Pick!

When my daughter started prep two years ago, it was going well.  She enjoyed it and the year was progressing well.  I noticed she was itching her head alot but never thought anything of it.  One day I casualy thought "I wonder if she has head lice?"  I know this sounds weird but I never remember having nits as a kid and up untill that date neither had my kids.  In I went looking in her masses of locks.  I had no idea what i was looking for as I never had seen a head lice before.
I did happen to see a large 'ant' looking bug in her hair, I picked it out thinking it was jut that.  Anyway, when she went to bed I did a brief google search and asked on a parenting forum about head lice.  It then occured to me....My daughter... HAS NITS!!!!
I didnt panic as I thought I will check her again in the morning to confirm it, mayby she hasnt got them.
Next morning before school I had another good ol' dig through her loooong thick hair.  Yep...to my horror I discovered eggs and quite a few bugs crawling around.
I literally glued her hair to her head with hair gel and got straight to the chemist.  I purchased nice natural healthy hair de-nitter shampoo, combs and spray.  I eagerly sat down that afternoon shampooing, combing, washing and drying...2 and a half hours later, we were done.
A whole week later I did it again as a follow up treatment.  Another 2 and a half hours later. Done!
Anyway, I was very proud of myself for getting ontgo it and being a responsible parent and all.
ONE MONTH LATER THEY WERE BACK WITH A VENGENCE!
From that point on it was a never ending battle.  Let me tell you.  For just over a year we battled with this issue.  What started out as a bonding, responsible activity was strating to turn into an irritating, annoying, time consuming problem that I despised.  It was then I understood why people chop their childrens hair off.  Miss Mimi has got the thickest, longest most beautiful hair any child could possably have, hence the reason it took so long to comb and condition and the reason these little blood sucking leeches love her hair.  I was at my wits end.  I had gone from the pretty smelling, natural, soft nit treatment to essential oils to the most potent of chemicals, ...I know, I know...terrible but NOTHING WAS WORKING!  I was gluing her hair to her head for school everyday, washing it every night.  I would pick her hair while I was watching t.v and when I was talking to friends...most of the time without even relising I was doing it....I was becoming obsessed. 

To make it worse Mr T picked them up and so did my husband and I...I never got them at school but now, in my 30's I get them?????  WHAT???
Just when I almost admited defeat and waved my little white flag to the head lice I once again did a complete and thorough search on the net for a solution.  I thought "surely someone else out there has had this problem"  And it turned out I was right.

In one blog I read one lady had tried EVERYTHING including bleeching and cutting off her 7 year old daughters hair....with no luck.  I thought 'eek, thats very drastic...but yeah, I understand'.  Like me she had tried everything, taken advice of everyone and even tried a few of her own techniques.  Nothing worked.
She was so determained to beat the little suckers that she went as far as interviewing chemist, parents and doctors...putting all their advice and she came up with a VERY simple solution to the problem.  I tried her
solution and much to my suprise...very happy suprise, it worked!!  So now, this entire school year none of my kids have had nits, even through the crazy nit season they managed to avoid them.  WooHoo!
So I just have to share this amazing secret with you...such a simple solution.

Use 500ml of listerine.  Any Listerine will do however I gung-hoed it with the original, antiseptic brown one.  Like in the picture.

Next wet your child's hair all over with the listering.  Drench the hair completly.

Next I wrapped their hair in plastic glad warp and outside to play they went for half an hour.

I got my kids to hold their heads over the bath tub.  This prevented it from running down onto their skin.  The excess went down the drain.

Aparently, from what this lady said the menthol in the listering is lethel to lice.

Next, put them in the bath.  With a jug pour in 500ml of vinegar and 300ml of warm water.  Pour this through the hair to wash the lice out.

Using Vinegar to wash it out not only washes out the lice but also dislodges the 'glue' the eggs have so this allows easy removal of the eggs.

When they are out of the bath dry the hair with a hair dryer.

Then, with my daughters hair I used my hair straightner.  I sat down and combed her hair as well as straightened it.

Doing this you are brushing out the dead lice and eggs and the heat of the straighter kills any that are thinking about living on.

I repeated all of this again one week later.  Since then I have had nothing.

Oh, also i must add....I have put listerine in a spray bottle and spray the kids hair before school every morning.

I honestly recomend you give it a go.  If you are at the end of your tether like I was I promise it will work!  Those annoying little pest are a thing of the past...for now!