How can I tell it is really lice?

My 2 children both had a case of head lice this past summer.  I treated both of them but have been extremely paranoid every since.  I always am checking their heads and mine.  I have been seeing white things in their hair but they easily brush off.  It seems like dandruff.  This is all located around the ear area.  Do I need to worry?  I also constantly worry that I have lice..my head is itchy but I also only see what appears to be dandruff.

[kirb_dude1]

another worried mom about lice, go see a doctor hell look at your head and if they are lice and theyve infested that long he might use some permethrin shampoo the only way to really tell is to have a trained pro get a good look sorry

[caregiver222]

Decades ago I got a lice colony courtesy of a homeless man brought into an ER.

Yuck!

I used the appropriate shampoo (very toxic) and thought they went away. Uh, uh. They had infested my pillow. Threw the pillow out. Used the shampoo again. The infested my mattress. Threw the mattress out. They came back. They had colonized the rug. They are not supposed to live in a rug, so all the best people told me, but they did.

A close-haircut was part of the drill, and the experience was disheartening.

Get a magnifying glass. The little critters are very hard to see.

Throw out the bedding. I know what things cost nowadays.

And I feel very bad for the little ones...

[kseven]

Wow! Decades ago? They have a new term they are calling "super lice" these things are said to have become immune to expensive medical, pharmacy treatments, etc., etc., i have not been able to rid myself of them for almost a year now. I wear a shaved, or short hair style and they are still surviving though I have tried RID (does not work!) it only increased them.

The internet has many sites that say natural methods like mayonnaise, vinegar, and natural oils can be used to smother the louses and neutralize the nits. I would like for someone to share a real testimonial with me on how to defeat this agonizing pest, and I advise you to do your own homework on the subject and not waste hundreds and thousands of dollars on over the counter remedies.

[kseven]

Today I intend to try the mayonnaise and vinegar process and see if actually works on the head. The only thing that i'm questioning is that if this remedy really works on the scalp area, then how do I kill the ones in my eye brows,eyelashes, nose, and ears?

Again, if someone out there knows the best way to treat this issue, then please let me know, this is my day off and I will be fighting lice all day long.

[helping480]

Use a lice-killing treatment as recommended, however, if you use it too much, you may have killed the lice but dried up the scalp.  This will cause the flakes and itching to continue making the person think they have lice.  Actually, these chemicals may have dried up the scalp so much that you either have psoriasis or seborrheic dermatitis.  Continued use of lice-killing shampoos will only make the condition worse.  

SEE YOUR DOCTOR after reading this link about psoriasis vs. seborrheic dermatitis:  

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/scalp-psoriasis/an01177