The Four Letter Word No Parent Ever Wants to Hear Shows up in St. Michael-Albertville

I've done stories about head lice. Those creepy crawlers that tend to crop up in kids' hair soon after they head back to school, or when they decide to toss on a stocking cap.

Now, it's personal.

Yep, for the first time, the nasty little bugs have been spotted in connection with my household. While we found nothing more than a couple of nits, the resulting chaos is something I wouldn't wish on my first enemy.

First, a bit of background. Lice are incredibly small, and pop up in more than 15 million heads each year, according to the CDC. That's in the United States a lone.

A couple of common myths: Lice don't actually live on "dirty people." In fact, they prefer a clean head of hair. If you wash a child's hair daily and don't use any product (gel, mousse) your chance of getting lice is actually better.

Also, lice don't "Jump" from head to head. They're not fleas. They crawl, and do that very well. Head-to-head contact, or sharing stocking caps, baseball hats or anything that goes over the head is the most common way of transmission.

And, according to the CDC, head lice should not be considered as a medical or public health hazard. Head lice are not known to spread disease (even though they do consume blood).

So, what do you do when that neighbor tells you their child has a case of head lice?

Time to search, and destroy.

To search, you need to use a comb and divide the hair into sections. You don't necessarily have to pull through with the comb, but look closely. If you saw something crawling, you're definitely hit. If you see a white or tan fleck that almost looks like a seed sticking to a hair strand (yes, you have to look strand by strand), those are nits, or lice eggs. You're hit again.

Now the real fun begins.

Everything and anything in your house needs cleaning, or so it seems. Bedding should be washed, or at least dried on high for 40 minutes. So, too, should any clothes, coats, hats, gloves or scarves from the last two days prior to the outbreak. 

As for the hair: Well, we've discovered Ladibugs, and they've been a godsend, through Kids Hair in Maple Grove.

Here's another tip: IF you're not sure, call a local salon, such as or . Tell them your predicament. Chances are, they'll check the child's hair for you, but won't treat or cut. You're on your own for that one.

The treatment–phases of serum, mousse, shampoo, conditioner and a leave-in spray–is gentle. The ingredients consist of things like olive oil, peppermint oil and glycerin.

Nothing so harsh you have to wear rubber gloves or a mask. Because, really, if you have to wear gloves, do you want it in your child's hair?

The nits we found were gone after treatment No. 1. We've seen no creepy crawlers, and our house is spotless.

Of course, there are still bags of stuffed animlas, blankets and toys used the last couple of days that are still out in the garage. But, good news! Our freezing temps will kill the bugs after a couple of days.

Life will, eventually, get back to normal. I'll stop having the sensation that millipedes are working their way through my coiff, and we can sleep on our flannel sheets once again.

But, it's safe to say that I despise lice even more than I did before, and this is a "learning experience" I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy.