Nitty situation what would you do?

[melia]

i had a women booked in for full head foils 2 weeks ago and upon consultation noticed she had a bad case of nits...i mean really bad. she was obviously devastated but i reasurred her and sent her off to boots to get some treatments.
she came back in a week later but it was still fairly bad so again suggested she do another treatment and use a nit comb at every oppurtunity.

shes booked in saturday so popped in yesterday for me to have a look shes still got a fair few in the problem areas.

Should i suggest another week or just do it??

 

[SJK]

Nope. Never treat someone who has nits. She'll just have to wait.

 

[JHall]

aww poor woman must be so embarrassed, I can't give advice on you going ahead with doing her hair or not cause im not a hairdresser, but tell her to get one of these combs
Nitty Gritty - Nitty Gritty The Nitty Gritty Comb - Only £11.49 - Free UK shipping

my 9 year old daughter has not had them since i got one and there is no need for useless nit treatments that dont work, the comb will get rid of them all HTH x

 

[melia]

she was absolutely mortified! when she got home she said it was horrific!

she said shes been combing it everyday for hours at a time! not sure what comb shes bought.

The ones that were left were close to the roots and really stuck on! if there is any left tomorrow when she pops in i will tell her to leave it another week...i just feel so mean!

 

[Baggybear]

This is what I use when my kids come home with letters from school and a thorough comb through with this will eradicate the lice (make sure its a 2 row comb as these catch the adult lice, the juvinile lice, the tiny lice & eggs).

http://www.yourschooluniform.com/catalog/product/GP641/Nit_Comb.html

Then for added protection I use Lyclear spray away (only when walking lice are found):
Lyclear Spray Away Plus 100ml - £7.28

After this is washed off I comb again to remove any dead lice and loose nit eggs.

Then on days 3 and 7 I comb through again to try and remove any empty nit eggs that remain and any lice that have hatched before they grow big enough to have laid anymore nits.

I dont usually find any more walking nits after the first comb through (I am a demon with a nit comb lol) but I always perform comb throughs at day 3 and 7 as this ensures that IF anything was there I would get them and the cycle would not start up again.

Then I use a tea tree conditioner on the kids as a repelant. I bought a spray on leave in tea tree conditioner and I spritz this on them when I brush thier hair in the mornings for school.

Lanes Tea Tree Conditioner 200ml: Amazon.co.uk: Health & Beauty

The smell of anything tea tree now make me feel sick as I associate it with nits :sad:

PS.. I'm not a hairdresser but - If the only thing remaining are the empty eggs then I would think it would be fine to perform a service as there are no lice. The eggs are the hardest thing to remove as they are so well stuck to the root of the hair.

 

[Karenpeters85]

Hey
I would do as above geeks say but under no circumstances would i do her hair until it has completely cleared up better safe than sorry huni xx

 

[Penners]

can you still see the actual 'walking lice' as another poster put it? sometimes you are left with the empty eggs these are generally quite light and very noticable. my daughter has quite a lot of the empty eggs that are gradually growing out . as long as there aren't any 'walking wounded lice' and shes been doing the treatment regularly then I would go ahead with the foils.:biggrin:

 

[Zo Zo]

I have successfully treated my daughter and some of her friends and I reckon the comb is what makes the difference. I think it needs to be a metal comb not a plastic one and you need lots of (cheap) conditioner to make the hair really slippery, and some sectioning clips because you do have to do the whole head. Thinking about it, it might be quite hard to do your own, you need someone patient to do it for you.

One of my daughters friends who I combed had really thick curly hair and it took forever, but i think the answer is to physically remove them.

 

[JHall]

I have successfully treated my daughter and some of her friends and I reckon the comb is what makes the difference. I think it needs to be a metal comb not a plastic one and you need lots of (cheap) conditioner to make the hair really slippery, and some sectioning clips because you do have to do the whole head. Thinking about it, it might be quite hard to do your own, you need someone patient to do it for you.

One of my daughters friends who I combed had really thick curly hair and it took forever, but i think the answer is to physically remove them.

seriously try The Nitty Gritty comb, the teeth on it are twisted (spiral) which is why it pulls everything out even empty eggs as they get caught in the twist, I tried lots of combs, even got one from a pet shop and this is by far the best one.

 

[melia]

i didnt notice any running lice the first day, but she said when she went home 'her head was crawling' i didnt wanna embarrass her any more by fully inspecting her hair.

How do yo know if there just dead eggs?

shes just come in again and theres a few darker ones and definate eggs

shes pretty determined to have her hair done saturday!

sorry to be a pain but normally people come in with nits..they leave to treat it and you never see them again.

plus this is my own business and its just me so i want to do things right

 

[Fuzion]

I've got to say, the comb alone is NOT good enough!!! Sorry but this makes me so angry as the hairdresser that constantly find these critters! Not to offend those of you that find it works for you, but you have to be soo vigilant and thorough doing it this way, let me assure you 9.75/10 are not. Most members of the public wouldn't even know what they're looking for. It only takes one egg to be missed and reinfestation, then the whole process starts again. This is why the whole world is under attack by these critters, pure ignorance which in turn means heads are not being treated correctly.

 

[Fuzion]

i didnt notice any running lice the first day, but she said when she went home 'her head was crawling' i didnt wanna embarrass her any more by fully inspecting her hair.

How do yo know if there just dead eggs?

shes just come in again and theres a few darker ones and definate eggs

shes pretty determined to have her hair done saturday!

sorry to be a pain but normally people come in with nits..they leave to treat it and you never see them again.

plus this is my own business and its just me so i want to do things right

Dead eggs look flatter than live ones, dead eggs appear more creamy colour, live ones are pearly, shiny. If in doubt don't do it. Suggest maybe she visits her GP if she can't get rid of them herself.

 

[JHall]

I've got to say, the comb alone is NOT good enough!!! Sorry but this makes me so angry as the hairdresser that constantly find these critters! Not to offend those of you that find it works for you, but you have to be soo vigilant and thorough doing it this way, let me assure you 9.75/10 are not. Most members of the public wouldn't even know what they're looking for. It only takes one egg to be missed and reinfestation, then the whole process starts again. This is why the whole world is under attack by these critters, pure ignorance which in turn means heads are not being treated correctly.

Ignorant people generally dont bother attempting to get rid of them at all, hense why there such a problem in schools, the wet combing method does work and yes you have to be vigilant.

A lot of doctors will not prescribe treatments because nits are becoming immune to them, they are full of harsh chemicals and as in my daughters case should not be used on someone with eczema or other skin problems ( I would imagine the same for people who suffer from asthma), which is why these doctors recommend wet combing.

 

[lucyboo]

Every night is nit patrol in our house!! I'm lucky that my daughter hasn't had them really bad because I go through her hair every night but I use the nitty gritty comb when she has them & it is great

 

[persianista]

Do not, under any circumstances perform hair services on someone with an infestation.

We have a very discreet procedure to clean up the area if we discover an infestation.

Head lice are easy to catch and difficult to get rid of. For a hairdresser, if you catch them it is a REAL problem.

My staff are most definately not required to perform services on anyone with any hint of infestation.

This client needs a few weeks of sustained treatments of insecticides plus combing to clear this. Only when it is completely clear should you proceed.

 

[NailsByStacy]

Definitely speak to her about the Nitty Gritty comb. It is expensive about £10 you can get it in Wilkinsons and Tesco. It comes with a lifetime guarantee and been a godsend in my house. Wet combing every 3 days is the only way to get rid of them, the solutions will not.

 

[melia]

shes popping in again tomorrow for me to have a look. ill just have to be firm and say leave it longer.

I've had such a horrific week!!!