Sisterlocks and the L Word...

Well it was, perhaps, only a matter of time...

While unbraiding my daughter's hair after our summer vacation, I was aghast to realize that she had contracted lice during the summer holiday! Despite the luxury trip she had been on with her father, the trip to the "summer house" resulted in an international case of lice. When I say 'international' I am not kidding. Kids from 4 different countries ended up with lice as well...

At any rate, my babe was not in any way willing to part with her tresses, so we took the necessary steps to deal with the issue. Sadly, those steps included very harsh shampoo, lots of laundry (daily for 2 weeks), harsh chemical sprays throughout the house, notifying parents around the world, nit-picking twice a day for 2 weeks, encouragement, support, prayers, tears, and more.

We did use the RID kit available at most pharmacies. Unfortunately, the expensive treatment we purchased did not do the trick (it is also clear that the kit is not made with Black or tightly curled hair in mind. The nit-picking comb was mostly a joke on my daughter's hair). At my daughter's open house right before school started, I had to cut short my conversation with her teacher because I saw a bug crawling across my child's head!

I did some research online and learned about some other remedies that work more effectively:

1. Mayonnaise (on dry hair) all over the head for 2 hours. (This suffocates live louse). Followed by,
2. Listerine all over the head for 2 hours. (This kills any remaining live louse). Followed by,
3. Vinegar all over the head for 2 hours. (This loosens nits from the hair shaft). Followed by,
4. Shampoo with Desitin and/or another shampoo mixed with tea tree or coconut oil. (This is a deterrent to new louse).
5. Flat-ironing her hair for 10 days, and nit-picking twice a day (to ensure that no nits remain. I also found that this was more effective for my daughter's hair texture. It made it much easier to see each individual strands and the products used for straightening, jojoba oil or pressing 'grease' y'all, are deterrents for lice because they make the hair strand to slippery for lice to hold onto).
6. Washing sheets and clothing daily for 10 days (again, to be sure no nits remain).
7. Using tea tree oil daily (to repel louse in case another friend or classmate ends up contracting lice).

Needless to say, the thought of getting lice in my beautiful sisterlocks was not an option for me (and I did find a dead bug atop my head after using the RID kit). So I participated in the home remedy. My daughter had a great time slathering me in mayonnaise, but the Listerine and vinegar had a harsh effect on my hair. As you may recall, I colored my hair at the end of May, so after the harsh treatments (and the fact that I am regularly in the sun), my hair is very, very light... almost orange (...yes, some slight exaggeration...photos to follow...).

At any rate, I haven't had an outbreak of lice. For me, the color change is a small sacrifice in comparison to the idea that I might have to cut off my locks (my niece also contracted lice from my daughter, or from the luxury cabin they where they were all vacatioing. My sister has long, traditional locks...No cutting for her either!).

At the end of it all, the most important things I learned were:
1. Don't stigmatize folks with lice!
2. Blacks can get lice! (Wish I had a Euro for all the European parents who told me that it was impossible for my daughter to get lice because of her hair texture....! In reality, the myth is probably promoted by the reality that the products Blacks use in their hair makes it more difficult for lice and nits to hold onto individual hair strands, and that louse are repelled by certain oils).
3. Patience and understanding are learned in various ways!
4. Lice is not gross, just a headache and a hassle to deal with.
5. Lice does not mean having to cut your hair.

Hope this is helpful to someone out there!