How to Look for Head Lice
There are two things that you are looking for when searching for head lice. One is the lice themselves, the other is their eggs or nits as they are usually called. Neither head lice nor nits are easy to spot unless you're actually looking for them. This is what makes them very successful as parasites and why most of us don't realise what's happened until the hair is heavily infested.
It's best to examine the hair and scalp under a bright lamp or in strong daylight. You may want to use a magnifying glass to look at possible nits. Using your fingers part the hair and focus your search on the scalp (for lice) and on the hair shaft just above the scalp (for nits). Be systematic in your looking to maximize your chances of finding any possible infestation.
Head Lice
So what are you looking for? Lice are designed to be difficult to see and you may not spot any unless an infestation is well established. The lice have six legs with claws at the end to help them cling onto hair. As they are about the size of a sesame seed you probably won't see them unless they are scuttling across the scalp. The video below gives some indication of what head lice look like.
Nits
Nits are the eggs of head lice and like the lice themselves are difficult to spot, blending well with the hair. Look towards the base of the hair. If you spot anything that looks like as small bump on the hair shaft try to scrape it off with your fingernail. If it doesn't come away easily and appears to be stuck to the hair then it could be a nit. The nits are "glued" onto the hair and are meant to be hard to remove. If you find one possible nit there should be others that.
If you've got no one in the household capable of searching for head lice in your own hair then you'll need to comb through with a head lice comb yourself. Tip your head down and comb over something white be it the bath tub or a large sheet of white paper. Comb through thoroughly. As you're just looking you don't need to wet the hair if you haven't got the time but wetting the hair tends to make the lice less mobile. Once you've finished look at what's been combed out. It's possible you might spot a louse that's been dislodged. Also look at any hair that's come out. Examine the shaft at the scalp end and look for little bumps that appear to be stuck on. Nits that have been dislodged should also show up against the white but if you're new to head lice they can be difficult to recognise from normal scalp debris.
Trying looking for black specks on pillows, shoulders or amongst anything you've combed out. These are the faeces of the lice. If you dampen them they should bleed out a orangey/red stain.
If you find no lice but only nits then you may not have an infestation, especially if you've previously had an outbreak. The empty egg casings can hang around for months and you may have simply dislodged them when you combed. In such cases it's best to comb through again in a few days to check for lice.