I kill head lice for a living — how to avoid infestation

You think your job’s lousy?

A 21-year-old woman is going viral on TikTok after admitting her full-time job is killing scalp-loving critters.

Rachel Maroun, from Sydney, Australia, revealed to her followers that her creepy-crawly day job is head-lice technician.

She shared videos of some of her infested clients on the platform, which have gained her millions of viral views from followers who are often grossed out by the critters.

“I don’t expect many people to like my job,” Maroun told NeedToKnow.online. “I’m very used to the ‘grossed out’ reaction I receive for doing what I do. At one point I was the only technician in Australia since no one wanted to do treatments.”

But, she admitted, she couldn’t see herself in any other career path, calling it a “blessing.”

Maroun has even revealed some of her most severe cases online, including one young girl whose lice-infestation took nine hours to completely remove. On another boy’s head, Maroun claimed he had “more lice than stands of hair.”

“It makes me happy every day knowing that I can change someone’s quality of life in such a short period of time,” she continued. “The one thing I adore about what I do is being able to turn a negative experience into a positive one for every one of my clients.”

The lice expert even gives some tips and tricks about how to prevent an infestation of the the pesky parasites.

On TikTok, she explained that lice will grab onto any free strands of hair, and touts the benefits of slicked-back ‘dos — which is great news for “clean girls” everywhere. In the clip, Maroun combs back her hair into a ponytail before braiding it and securing it into a high bun, saying a tight hairstyle will deter the critters.

“This is easily achieved with braids or tight buns and can work for all hair types,” she said. “I recommend using hairspray or gel to pin down any loose or free flowing hair that’s left out of the hairstyle. This ensures that there is absolutely nothing lice could grab a hold of.”

Maroun also advised using lice preventative sprays and warned against sharing hairbrushes and hats.

“It’s also important to note that swimming caps are so important for children doing swimming lessons as lice can actually swim and are spread very easily in swimming lessons,” she added.

Her methods seemed to be effective, as her viewers flooded her comments with praise and success stories.

“My mum used to always tie my hair like that when I went to school so I don’t get lice!” wrote one enthusiastic user.

“Yes! This is why my daughter has never had lice we use way too much hair products to keep them out,” wrote one mother.

“I’ve had lice 2 times and it’s so scary, I’ve even had nightmares about it,” commented someone else.

“Hellll no. I can’t believe that’s the only thing you wear. I would have 5 hairnets on, a helmet, and a hazmat suit,” wrote a skeptic.

“I can’t even count how many times I’ve had lice,” admitted another user.

While lice might be inevitable, Maroun’s steps could help keep the creepy-crawlies at bay.

“It is hard to completely prevent catching head lice for your children, but taking these steps ensure a much better chance of protecting their hair while at school or other events,” she said. “I always remind parents that birthday parties and school camps are ‘lice party zones’ and are events in which these lice protection methods should be taken.”