The Right Approach To Having The “Lice Talk” With Your Child

Kids — they are meant to lead their life free of the stress that inevitably comes with adulthood. Their academics, their friends, their weekend plans, these are the things they are supposed to be concerned about, not problems such as lice.

As a parent, you’re bound to have this one talk in your life: the lice talk. Eventually there will come a time when you will detect lice in your child’s hair, or get that dreaded lice call or letter from the school nurse. Or maybe you’ve already gone through this.

And when it happens, it’s up to you how you want to tackle the issue. Do you panic and resort to blaming other children for giving your child lice, or do you approach this subject calmly?

A Choice of Compassion

Your children’s opinions are formed based on your reactions and responses to certain situations. How about taking a step towards eliminating the social stigma associated with head lice the next time you’re dealing with your child’s infestation? Here are a few ways you can have the “lice talk” and make it a positive, learning moment for your child.

Let them know that having lice does not equate to being unclean or dirty. Lice are just as attracted to clean hair as they are to dirty or messy ones. Sure, hygiene is great, and practicing hygiene is something kids are to be taught. But as far as lice epidemics go, the level of cleanliness is not a factor.

You also need to tell your child that head lice are not a danger to their health. Does the incessant scratching lead to a possibility of skin infection? Yes. But a scalp only gets that itchy when an infestation has been left alone for too long. If you make sure to get a lice treatment as soon as possible, you can avoid that. We’ll discuss this in a while.

Shrugging off an ongoing lice infestation is not smart. While not panicking or giving a shocked reaction to the lie matter is smart, you child should know that ignoring the matter altogether isn’t good either. It’s important that you and your child talk about lice.

Too often, widespread lice outbreaks happen in schools because the infested child and their parents fail to say anything about it out of the fear of being judged and blamed. Open communication regarding all things lice can help control spread of lice.

Final Thoughts

More than 6 million children in the U.S. suffer from lice infestations each year. If your child has lice, then they are not alone, and you are not the only parent dealing with this critter-y issue. Make sure to be supportive with your child and with others dealing with lice, and opt for a safe lice treatment.

Lice Master offers professional lice removal services throughout Kendall. We promote a message of positivity; our lice salons consist of welcoming environments and our specialists are understanding and compassionate. Call us at 800-748-9451 to make an appointment today!