Right now you’re panicked. You have no idea where to begin.
You’re skin is crawling just at the thought of them.
Maybe you were braiding your daughter’s hair when you found them.
Maybe you felt your stomach drop as you tried to brush the sand out of your son’s hair and realized it wasn’t sand.
Maybe you got the dreaded call from the nurse’s office.
No matter how you discovered them, there they are. Little, tiny, almost microscopic creepy-crawlies have invaded your child’s hair.
Head lice.
Maybe you raced to the drugstore, hoping you wouldn’t run into anyone you know as you walked to the register with a box (or 5) of lice shampoo in your hands.
Or maybe you already had a box in the medicine cabinet, waiting, just in case.
You’ve filled the washer with sheets. Hauled blankets and towels to the laundry room. And vacuumed.
Oh, how you’ve vacuumed.
The pillows, mattress, carpet, and every stuffed animal you can find. Twice.
Every day.
And then there’s the combing.
You’ve tugged that fine tooth comb through all that hair, from end to end. Carefully wiping it off between swipes. Removing each and every intruder. Trying to soothe your child, knowing you will have to do it again. And again.
You’re wondering how long you will be fighting this battle.
I know it seems endless. But it’s going to be okay.
It’s going to be okay.
You will get through this.
Until then, know you are not alone.
While the word lice is whispered in hushed voices as parents divert their eyes and talk about the itchy problem, it can, and does, happen to families of all backgrounds, regardless of race, education, or income. That’s right, it’s an equal-opportunity offender.
It’s time to stop whispering the words head-lice like it’s something to be ashamed of.
They don’t jump or fly; you aren’t going to get them just by walking by the couch where your child was sitting.
They don’t live forever (though it may seem so right now). Lice only live 24-48 hours off a human head.
So if your child has more stuffed animals than you can count, pack up the ones they don’t sleep with every night and store them somewhere for a few days. Save your crazy daily vacuuming (or tossing them in the dryer) for the ones they can’t sleep without.
And grab yourself a glass of wine (or a scoop of ice cream). You’ve earned it.
I promise you, you’re going to get through this.
We’re all going to get through this.
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