DIY Natural Lice Shampoo

*SIGH*

I grew up in a house where we played a lot of sports. I was in year round soft ball, one of my brothers was in year round baseball, one of my sisters was in year round soccer & the rest played baseball and softball in the season. Needless to say there was always a practice or a game going on.

Do you know what else goes on when your kid plays baseball or softball? 

HELMET SHARING

Do know what happens when your kids shares helmet with other kids? Well its the same thing that happens if your kids share brushes, hats or other hair things with other kids, they run the risk of catching lice. And boy did we ever get it when I was little. Its actually quite embarrassing. 

Some where in the middle of the regular season of baseball and softball someone would catch it from their team, bring it home & the following week there were 4 other teams that all had lice. Every year for about 3 or 4 years this happened. The last year my parents finally decided that they would just buy everyone their own helmets. Since my little brother & I also played catcher, it meant buying us our own catching gear {YES!!} We never got lice again after that.

But, having it that many times as a young kid left me TRAUMATIZED! I have been horrified of my daughter coming home from school with lice ever since I put her in preschool. In fact I was so concerned that I wouldn pull her hair back into tight buns every morning so her hair wouldn't hit someone else's on the playground. It was overkill, I know; but, dealing with lice is no fun!!

These days I breathe a little easier; but, its not because my daughter is no longer at risk of catching lice. Oh no, no, no! In fact she has come home with 3, yes 3 letters in the last 4 weeks about someone at school, in her class actually that has lice. 

*SIGH* 

As much as I still really hate seeing that letter; I sleep easy knowing that I have the best secret weapon for preventing and killing any lice that ever cross the threshold of my daughter's hair. In fact she is 10 years old and has never had lice - EVER!! 

YAY!!!!!

I am going to share this with all of you because it really is too good to keep a secret. Those over the counter shampoos & sprays really aren't all that they're cracked up to be. After you leave the super itchy shampoo in everyone's hair for 30 minutes, you have spend the next few hours doing all the laundry in the house & spraying all the places anyone sits or sleeps. Oh and the best part is you get to spend the next week or 2 going through everyone's hair looking for knits. The best part? If you miss 1 little knit, you get to start all over! So not fun. Just look at how small those suckers are!

{picture from pedatrics.about.com}

The way that you keep lice from ever coming into your house and causing you stress is to make your own lice shampoo. Its super easy!!!

Here Is What You'll Need:

* Shampoo & Conditioner
{the kind you normally buy or make is fine}

* Eucalyptus Oil

* Rosemary Oil

* Oregano Oil

* Lavender Oil

* Tea Tree / Melaluca Oil

* Peppermint Oil

Take a new bottle of your shampoo & conditioner {try to use one with a neutral or light scent, strawberry shampoo mixed will all those oils probably wouldn't smell too good} and add about 10 drops of each oil to the bottle. Shake it until you feel that its well combined & have everyone wash their hair 1-2 times per week with it for 2-3 weeks. Let it sit for about 5 minutes before washing out. Follow with the conditioner.

 

Yes you will smell like the essential oils section of Whole Foods after you wash your hair; but, the smell will wear off. Plus, its way better than having to go through the whole routine of over the counter lice treatments & it actually has a pleasant smell to it.. 

The reason that this works is 2 fold. First, this blend of oils can eat right through those pesky knit casings & kill the knits before they have a chance to hatch. Secondly it kills any lice that may have landed in your child's hair almost on contact. The oils eat through the exo-skeleton of the lice killing them on contact. The lice don't like the smell of the oils and will not transfer to your child if their hair has been recently washed in this shampoo. 

The first time I tried this I was super surprised at how well it works. We went on vacation with another family; and, I didn't find out until we were headed out that they just had to go through a full blow de-licing the day before they came out. I didn't want to cancel the trip, so I talked to one of my close friends who's daughters caught lice at gymnastics. When I told her what was going on she told me about this mixture & said she used it in her girls' hair instead of over the counter stuff. She said she did 1 treatment and their heads stopped itching. We wash our hair twice a week for 3 weeks after a scare just to be on the safe side. 

Good Luck!