Spiritual Meaning of Head Lice

You’ve heard about the yogic meaning of head lice, but what actually is it? When we talk about obtaining knowledge, the ability to discriminate between good and evil, the temples of our body, which lice live in your scalp, you don’t feel like seeking out any type of knowledge. Well, I am here to tell you that if you really want to learn something valuable and powerful, then you should find a guru who can help you understand the true meaning of head lice. We will guide you through the Spiritual meaning of head lice, killing head lice dream meaning and spiritual meaning of lice in a dream.

It is an unfortunate reality in today’s world that people of all ages can be affected by scalp lice and their eggs. Being afflicted with this scalp parasite brings physical ailments and emotional distress. Some of our readers have expressed concern as to why they got head lice in the first place. While some cases can be attributed to negligence and uncleanliness, many times practitioners are at a loss to help their clients until they understand something about the spiritual side of head lice.

Head lice are a common pest that can be found on humans and pets alike.

While head lice are not known to be harmful, they can be very uncomfortable and annoying. The itching sensation caused by a head louse can be unbearable at times.

As a result of this discomfort, many people have come to associate head lice with spiritual meaning. For example, there is a belief that having head lice is a sign that you should get your hair cut or styled in some way. In addition, some people believe that having head lice means that someone close to you does not like you.

Spiritual meaning of head lice in dream

Lice symbolize evils; yet, by comparing evils with similar vermin, one can discern the nature of these problems and their source, as they are mostly associated with sensuality, or the exterior man. This corresponds to the idea that lice reside in the epidermis, in the filth there, and under scabs. This is also the sensuous life of individuals who have known faith but led bad lives. When this wisdom is taken away from them, as is the case in the afterlife, they become vile and foolish people. They have occasionally shown up as repulsive and disgusting. Their biting is a symptom of nasty infestations. Other verses in the Bible do not support the idea that lice have this meaning; in fact, the only other place they are referenced is in David’s account of Egypt (Ps. 105:31).

Dreams about pubic lice typically carry a symbolic meaning related to personal or intensely felt emotions. They can also demonstrate the importance of having empathy and consideration for one another. We are all human, after all.

Conversely, head lice are more related to our everyday social interactions. They also include a great deal of symbolism related to appearances and our external appearance. They may be an indication of our desired perception by others. Themes of feeling alone or excluded, or of not belonging, can also be connected to head lice. Furthermore, body lice typically share themes with head lice.

Spiritual Significance and Symbolism of Lice Dreams
seated on the grass and gazing at her reflection in the mirror
If you dream about lice, it may be a sign that you need to take stock of your life and ask yourself, “How am I doing?”

Lice dreams can have a wide range of spiritual connotations, interpretations, and symbols. As we delve into the following subjects, pay attention to anything that strikes a chord with you. You should generally reject an interpretation if it doesn’t make sense.

It’s acceptable when a lice’s dreams are too personal for a general interpretation or meaning. By observing how the dream makes you feel, you can still investigate what the dream is trying to tell you. You could try journaling, informing a friend, or speaking aloud to yourself about the dream. You can access various parts of your brain with these activities than with silent thought alone.

Feeling Alone or Separated
Feeling alone or undeserving is a recurring theme in dreams about lice. They could make you feel ashamed or unwelcome. As though having lice somehow makes you a horrible person. In actuality, lice are highly prevalent. In the United States, between 6 and 12 million people have lice annually. Children who attend preschool or primary school make up the majority. That thing you believe sets you apart from everyone else could be as widespread as lice.

killing head lice dream meaning

While these beliefs may seem silly at first glance, there is actually some truth behind them. Head lice tend to congregate where their favorite food source (human blood) can be found: the scalp near the base of the skull where there are plenty of blood vessels close together for easy feeding access. This means that if someone had lots of head lice and decided to get their hair cut short enough so as not to allow them access anymore then they would no longer have any way of feeding themselves anymore which could result in their death within days or weeks depending on how much time had passed since last feeding occurred (if ever).

Head lice are a common problem for children. They live on human heads, and can be spread from child to child in school or daycare. Head lice are not dangerous, but they can cause itching and discomfort.

In spiritual terms, head lice symbolize being overwhelmed by busyness and being unable to see the bigger picture because you’re so focused on the little details of your life. The solution is to clear your head—literally!—and focus on what’s important: the well-being of your family and friends.

Spiritual Meaning of Head Lice

Head lice are tiny, wingless parasitic insects that reside on the scalp, where the temperature is warm, consistent, and very hospitable. Sometimes you can find head lice (Pediculus humanus capitis) on eyebrows, eyelashes, and neck hair as well. One place you will not find head lice? On dogs, cats, or any other animal. Head lice is a 100 percent human issue. And since head lice survive and thrive solely on human blood, once they’re separated from their human host, they starve and perish within several hours. Nits (head lice eggs), on the other hand, generally die within a week away from their human host. While it’s true that an infestation of head lice is inconvenient and perhaps uncomfortable, it’s usually harmless, notes the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). (1)

Common Questions & Answers

How are head lice spread?

Head lice are only spread via direct head-to-head contact. They can’t jump or fly, but rather travel by crawling and — contrary to popular belief — cannot be spread by sharing items like hats, helmets, and hair brushes.

Can I go to school or work with head lice?

Even though the American Academy of Pediatrics insists that it’s okay to go to school or work with head lice, many schools still have “no-nit” policies that keep children from attending when affected with lice. Check with your work’s human resources department to see if they have policies regarding coming to work with lice.

How do I treat head lice?

You should only treat head lice if you have a confirmed case: a live louse in the hair or on the scalp, or one or more nits (lice eggs) on the hair shaft within ¼ inch of the scalp. There are a number of prescription and nonprescription shampoos and creams available to treat lice, and nit combs are important for removing both lice and nits.

How do I get rid of head lice in my home for good?

Although lice can’t live for long without a human host, it’s important to treat your surroundings if someone in your home had lice. Wash and dry pillowcases, towels, pajamas, and other items the infected person used in hot water; soak brushes and hair items in hot water for 10 minutes; and vacuum. Sprays typically aren’t necessary and can be toxic.

What’s the difference between head, body, and pubic lice?

Head lice are small parasitic insects that feed on human blood and can be found on the scalp or in eyelashes, eyebrows, and neck hair. Pubic lice spread mostly via sexual contact and live in genital and anal areas. Body lice, the only lice known to spread disease, live on clothing and bedding but crawl onto skin multiple times daily to feed.

Signs and Symptoms of Head Lice

Not all people with head lice exhibit the very same lice symptoms. But the most common signs that you might be dealing with a head lice infestation include:

Itchiness This may be felt on the scalp, neck, or ears. Itching is often a sign of an allergic reaction to louse saliva or feces, per the Mayo Clinic. (2) (Of note: For folks dealing with their first infestation, itching may not occur until two to six weeks after the outbreak begins.)

Trouble Sleeping Lice are more active in the dark, so those with an infestation may experience issues falling asleep thanks to this uptick in movement. (2)

Red Bumps or Sores For some, the infestation may go hand-in-hand with a rash, which can lead to excessive scratching. This can lead to a bacterial infection, complete with swollen lymph glands, tender skin, and oozing sores. If this occurs, your physician may treat the infection with an antibiotic, notes Kids Health. (3)

Visible Nits While the presence of nits does not always indicate that there’s an active infestation, it can. (2) Look for oval-shaped nits that are about the size of a grain of sand, stuck to the base of the hair shaft, closest to the scalp. At times, nits appear to be the same color as the hair in which they reside, making them very hard to spot. (Empty or hatched nits are lighter in color and further from the scalp and can be easier to see.) When not mimicking the host hair color, nits look yellow or whitish, which is why nits are often confused with dandruff or droplets of hair spray. (1)

Visible Nymphs or Lice Both nymphs (young lice) and mature head lice remain small — the size of a pinhead and the size of a sesame seed, respectively. They can be found on the scalp, around the ears, or at the base of the neck. They’ve got six legs and hook-like claws, and adults are often tan or grayish white. They may appear darker if their host has dark hair, though. (1) They may also appear red if filled with blood, according to Nationwide Children’s Hospital. (4)

Causes and Risk Factors of Head Lice

Contrary to popular belief, head lice cannot fly, jump, or hop, so it’s uncommon for people to spread lice by sharing belongings such as hats, helmets, and hair brushes. And personal hygiene — or lack thereof — has nothing to do with getting head lice. (1) Instead, “direct head-to-head contact is how we transfer lice,” says Richard J. Pollack, PhD, a research associate in the department of immunology and infectious diseases at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston. (This had also been confirmed by a report published in May 2015 in the journal Pediatrics.) (5) With that, here are the risk factors of head lice:

Young Age Children ages 3 to 11 get head lice most often. Because younger children tend to have more head-to-head interactions — sharing a bed, parent snuggles, wrestling — they have far more opportunity to spread their head lice with one another than older kids and adults. “As such, prevalence drops dramatically once kids get to middle school,” says Dr. Pollack. (The CDC lists attending day care and elementary school as a lice risk factor.) (1)

Proximity If you live with someone who’s dealing with a head lice outbreak, your chances of also becoming infested go up, regardless of age. (If one person is found to have head lice, all household members should be checked for head lice.) (1)

Sex Girls have a 2 to 4 times higher chance of becoming infested by lice than boys. It’s speculated that the reason may be attributed to the fact that girls often have longer hair, according to study published in the January–February 2020 issue of the Indian Dermatology Online Journal. (6) It’s also thought that, perhaps, this may be because girls experience more frequent head-to-head contact than boys, per the CDC. (7)

Race Black children in the United States have far fewer reported head lice infestations than other ethnic groups, according to a report in the Western Journal of Medicine. (8) It’s thought that this may be due to differences in hair thickness and curl. And that fact that lice most frequently found in the United States have claws that may be better able to grasp the hair shafts of other races. (1)

How Is Head Lice Diagnosed?

The best way to zero in on an accurate diagnosis of head lice is to find a live nymph or adult louse on the scalp or hair. When looking, concentrate on the scalp, behind the ears, and around the nape of the neck. (3)

Lice are very small and move quickly, so begin by parting the hair into small sections and using a magnifying glass, as well as a special fine-toothed metal comb called a nit comb. The special lice comb may help you locate live lice more quickly and efficiently than without the comb, according to a study published in the journal Pediatric Dermatology. (9)

“If you find a crawling bug on the scalp hair and it looks consistent with the images of head lice, then your lice conclusion is likely correct,” says Pollack. But if you are unable to find a live, moving louse, proceed with some doubt.

While most schools regularly screen children for lice, it’s important to know that this has not been proven effective at reducing the incidence of head lice in school. (3) “There are a lot of misdiagnoses at school head checks,” says Pollack. “Parents should carefully consider the evidence before starting treatment.” Again, finding a living and crawling bug on scalp hair that matches with the images of head lice is the best evidence.

“What parents and teachers sometimes believe to be nits are often confused with other things found in the hair, such as dandruff, hair spray residue, and dirt,” says Pollack. In fact, according to Pollock’s research published in The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal, most of the presumed “lice nits” and “lice” that doctors, nurses, and others have submitted to laboratories for identification were ultimately found not to be lice. (10) One common misdiagnosis is hair casts, or pseudonits — thin, elongated, firm, white attachments to the hair shaft that resemble nits. But unlike nits, they can easily be dislodged. (11)

That noted, nits are coated in a glue-like substance that very strongly attaches to the hair shaft, making it far more difficult to shake a nit loose than other foreign objects. If you discover lice eggs that are firmly attached within ¼ inch of the base of the hair shaft, you may be dealing with an infestation. If the lice eggs are found more than 1 centimeter from the scalp, on the other hand, they’re likely dead or already hatched, indicating an old and inactive infestation that doesn’t require further attention. (5)

If you discover a member of your household has lice, check everyone in the home who had close contact with the infested person every three or four days. (3)

Unsure whether or not you’re dealing with an active lice infestation? Visit a healthcare provider or a person specially trained to identify live head lice. That individual may use a specialized light called a Wood’s lamp, which makes the lice nits appear bluish in color. If suspicious lice eggs are found, they’ll be examined under a microscope to determine if there is, in fact, an active head lice infestation, says the Mayo Clinic. (12)

spiritual meaning of lice in a dream

In the spirit of Halloween, we thought it would be fun to look at the spiritual meaning of head lice.

Head lice are a common parasitic insect that can be found on the heads of humans and other species. Head lice are spread by close contact with other individuals who are infested with them. A person can become infested by coming into contact with an infected person’s hair or clothing, by sharing personal items such as combs or brushes, or by using the same bedding.

Head lice do not jump or fly but they move quickly through tangled hair and they can crawl long distances on the scalp to find a new host. An adult female lays about 1 egg each day and an adult male may live for up to 30 days on average.

In ancient times, head lice were thought to be a sign of good luck because they were believed to have been brought down from heaven by angels who had been sent to Earth by God in order to help people remember their names when they died (hence “Nits”).

Duration of a Head Lice Infestation

When infested, kids usually carry fewer than 20 mature head lice, each of which, if left totally untreated, live for three to four weeks. The kicker, of course, is that those lice mate and produce more eggs, thus more lice. In fact, the adult female louse can produce up to six eggs a day for 30 days, noted research published in February 2018 in Paediatric & Child Health. (13) With that, duration of an infestation greatly depends on which treatment is used and how effective said treatment is.