It's always an unpleasant surprise when you find out that your beautiful child has got head lice. Having got over the shock you then need to decide which type of treatment to go for. Should you go for over-the-counter or home remedy? Whichever you opt for the problem of getting your child to cooperate with the treatment has to be tackled.

If you're lucky you will have a child who will sit still as you go through the routine of apply, wait and then comb. In this case treating head lice will be a breeze. But for most of us things will not be quite so easy.

Cooperation seems to rely a lot on factors such as the age of the child and whether or not you have a girl or a boy. If your little one is a turbulent two year old who is going through the 'no' stage then you'll have the most difficulty. The older the child is the greater the chance to reason with them.

Whatever you do don't let the treatment become a battleground. It's something that has to be done. And it will have to be repeated at least once more after the initial treatment. Keeping things as calm as possible is the key.

The first thing to do is to try and explain what you are going to do and why you're having to do it. Try not to use language that implies that they've caught something dirty as they could become very upset. Keep it fairly neutral in tone and try and add an educational slant to it all.

If you've decided to use an over-the-counter treatment there may be only a 10 to 30 minute wait after applying the product before it is rinsed out. Using a CD of stories is a good idea or why not play some songs that you can both sing along too. Singing loudly and badly will help keep the mood light.

Home remedies often involve having to keep the hair wrapped for several hours. If you have an active child who can't stop fiddling with things then opt to keep the hair covered over night. That way they're less likely to unravel the plastic wrap.

Two hours may not seem too long for adults but it's a long time for an active child. Trying to get them not to move around too much and not get bored is difficult. The easiest option is to let them watch their favourite film. However, if they like making things try some crafts that aren't too boisterous. Making a mask or puppets is a good one to try. Make sure that you have everything to hand before you start the treatment and don't forget to join in the fun.

Whatever head lice method you use there will be combing involved. A lot of kids aren't keen on having their hair combed even when there are no lice involved. Working quickly but methodically is the key and try not to stick the teeth of the comb into the scalp if you want to avoid loudly voiced complaints. Counting the number of lice you comb out seems to fascinate a lot of children and turning it all into a game is a good solution.