Lice Is Not Nice!

Okay this is quite a story and since this is my online scrapbook I want to document it. Let me start with....we made it over 12.5 years of having kids without getting lice. I'd say that's pretty good! 

There's some backstory so bear with me. Since June I've been having this allergic reaction to something. I actually ended up having to go on three rounds of steroids and then I finally figured out what I was allergic too. 

When my parents watched the kids while we were in Maui they stayed at our house. My mom went and bought one of those thick foam covers for our bed since she can't stand to sleep on our bed. When we got back from Maui she left it on our bed since they already have one and they don't need a king size one anyway. We figured we'd give it a try and see if we liked it. I loved it!!! Michael not so much, but he could deal with it. About two weeks later I started having the allergic reaction. I thought it might be the foam and I mentioned it to my doctor, but since it wasn't coming directly in contact with my skin....it has a mattress cover on it and the sheets we figured it couldn't be that. 

My dermatologist thought it was most likely one of the many supplements I was taking so I went off all those and went on the steroids to get my body to stop freaking out. Even being on the steroids I was still itching...not as bad, but still itching. It also seemed like the itching was having to work it's way through my body. It would move from my thighs to my knees, from my forearms to my wrists. From my shoulders to my scalp. I was itching everywhere. 

Fast forward to the end of July and it finally dawned on me it has to be the foam. So Michael takes the foam off our bed. The kids saw the foam all wrapped up in the playroom and asked if they could sleep on it. Even if I'm allergic to it doesn't mean they will be too so I figured why not. The boys room is big enough for the foam to be on the floor. Jack, Ella and Zeke decide they all wanted to sleep on it. During this whole summer Ella has been all about having sibling sleepovers with her brothers. A few days later Ella starts complaining about itching. I tell her she's probably allergic so she shouldn't sleep on the foam. Then the next day Zeke complains of itching so I tell him he's probably allergic to it as well. Jackson is completely fine! 

The next week Ella is still complaining of itching on her head. I check her for lice, but I don't see anything. Then I remember she went swimming at the lake with Rachael and her kids and didn't shower. I tell her to go bathe and she'll feel better. Later that night she says she's still itching because she thinks she didn't get all the soap out of her hair. She takes another shower and all is fine. 

Fast forward to the day we go to the movie theater and bowling and she's complaining again about her head itching still. She's been itching it so badly she's actually scratched herself. I check her again for lice, but don't see anything. That's when Michael tells her to come to him and he gets a flashlight and really looks. Yep....lice!!! For some reason I thought the eggs or the lice were black so I didn't see anything. Plus they are so tiny they are hard to see...the flashlight really helped. By this point it was 8:52pm on a Saturday night...the night before the bigger boys leave for camp! I grabbed my purse and drove to Bartell Drugs and got there just in time. The checker was actually standing there waiting to lock the doors. I bought a couple lice kits...thankfully they were buy one get one free...and I got two combs as well. 

When I got home we started treating the kids. Oh and we had Hansi at our house since he was also going to camp. Michael brought down all the kids bedding and clothes. We were each combing through the kids hair after they showered...it was a crazy mess! Poor Michael had to comb through Ella and my long hair which took forever. We ended up not getting to bed until midnight. 

The next morning Michael went to check us to see if there were any stray eggs leftover....yep! It was a nightmare and something we really didn't want to spend days dealing with. Plus the boys were supposed to go to camp and we did not want them bringing lice with them to camp. Michael looked online and found Lice Clinic of America in Kent. He started texting back and forth with the guy and he was able to get an appointment for the boys at 11am. The boys were scheduled to leave for camp at 12:45pm. 

All 5 guys...Hansi included ended up getting treated. Michael and Owen didn't actually have lice they got checked and got treated with the Active Rinse, but they didn't have to be treated with the special hair dryer. They use this super heated specially designed hair dryer to dehydrate your scalp and any lice or nits on your scalp. Then they comb out all the lice and eggs and then treat your scalp with the Active Rinse. It was around noon when the boys got home. Michael jumped in the shower and then each boy did as well. I ran to MCD's to get everyone lunch. I had called my friend who was picking the boys up to take them to camp to find out if she was okay taking them. They had officially been cleared and deemed Lice Free, but I didn't want her to feel like she had to drive them. She was totally fine with taking them. 

Later that night it was time for Ella and I to go to our appointment. We both had lice, but Ella's was worse. I had what the guy would deem not even a mild case. 

We got got treated with the hair dryer, combed out and they put the Active Rinse on. They put a shower cap on you and then basically a belly band that wraps around your head to keep everything all nice. While we were at the clinic it dawned on me that when Zeke got home after being treated he rode his bike. Meaning he put his helmet on! So I bought the take home kit and we retreated him once I got home. 

The clinic was NOT cheap....not at all, but it was worth it! It was worth it so we could be sure we were lice free and the boys could go to camp. It was worth it so we didn't have to spend weeks and weeks trying to get rid of these things. Now here's hoping the boys don't bring lice home from someone else at camp. We will most definitely be checking them right away! 

As for the itching....I do still believe that the foam was the cause of my itching especially since I had such a mild case of lice. I'm not 100% sure if some of the itching for Ella and Zeke was the foam or if it was only the lice. Needless to say we've moved the foam out to the garage and we are going to be throwing it away. 

As for where we got lice my best guess is that Jack picked it up at Riverview Camp earlier in July. The timeframe fits since it takes nits 7-10 days to hatch and they only live 30 days and Jack was the one with the adult size lice on his head. The crazy thing is he never itched at all. That kid!!! As for why Owen didn't get lice well he's not a joiner. He did not want to sleep with the other kids on the foam. He was happy to be in his bed so he wasn't exposed. Me on the other hand I snuggle my kids so it was bound to happen. As for Michael not getting it we found out from the guy at the clinic that 90% of the time people with grey hair do not get lice. Something about how grey hair isn't hydrated enough...so yay for more grey hair!!! 

As for the cost we were told it would be covered by Michael's VEBA account...think Health Savings Account, but they have denied the claim. A lot of times that's due to just needing more documentation so we'll probably just need to get a more itemized receipt from the Lice Clinic and then they'll cover it....hopefully! If not like I said...it was worth it to be over and done with it so quickly!