Possible bed bug infection :(

[Jeff V]

I’m at the point now that I’m terrified of visiting people or even having them over because of this thread. Hell, I doubt I’ll ever even stay at a hotel again.

"Snug as a bug in a rug" is just an expression, it doesn't mean the bugs in the rug are snug at all!

[Punisher]

I’m at the point now that I’m terrified of visiting people or even having them over because of this thread. Hell, I doubt I’ll ever even stay at a hotel again.

The obvious answer is to buy a flamethrower and use it everywhere you go.
Simple really.

[Jeff V]

I’m at the point now that I’m terrified of visiting people or even having them over because of this thread. Hell, I doubt I’ll ever even stay at a hotel again.

The obvious answer is to buy a flamethrower and use it everywhere you go.
Simple really.

You forget -- he farts. A lot.

[Punisher]

I’m at the point now that I’m terrified of visiting people or even having them over because of this thread. Hell, I doubt I’ll ever even stay at a hotel again.

The obvious answer is to buy a flamethrower and use it everywhere you go.
Simple really.

You forget -- he farts. A lot.

Wouldn't that just increase the power of the flamethrower?
Like a buff.

[Jeff V]

But also increase the chances of self-immolation. Do you have any idea how much hairspray he uses?

[Zenn7]

But also increase the chances of self-immolation. Do you have any idea how much hairspray he uses?

Enough he where's a NO-SMOKING sign to prevent possibly being lit up that way?

Yeah Hep, if we don't have bed bugs, my desire to leave the house ever again is not so high. If we do, my desire to leave the house (on fire, it will eventually get hot enough...) is a bit higher...

But if you search the net you can find things you should do when going to hotels and you can just practice general protocols anytime you go somewhere and come home. Something like keep all your clothes in a plastic bag, sealed (dirty or clean). When you get home, only unseal the bag over the washer and dump them straight in. Strip the clothes you are wearing off and straight in as well. Wash on high heat, dry on on high heat for at least 30 (60?) minutes. Isolate luggage in external area, preferably in sealed plastic bags (clear) so you can see if there any signs of bed bugs.

Might be some other steps. Orkin guy said he makes his family do this every time when they come home from any trips.

[Jeff V]

He has this on a t-shirt:

[em2nought]

I’m at the point now that I’m terrified of visiting people or even having them over because of this thread. Hell, I doubt I’ll ever even stay at a hotel again.

I'm even starting to worry about living in a building where other people live, and just think about storing stuff in a mini storage with other people's hoards of crap.

[hepcat]

I had the exterminator the building just switched to visit recently for a review (they're treating the building for pests) and I’ve convinced myself that because he’s an exterminator, he may have brought bed bugs with him. Now I’m searching my place again.

[Punisher]

I had the exterminator the building just switched to visit recently for a review (they're treating the building for pests) and I’ve convinced myself that because he’s an exterminator, he may have brought bed bugs with him. Now I’m searching my place again.

It's called job security...

[miltonite]

Mark Rober has a video on bed bugs. He talks to an expert about the best methods. Might be a good watch.
Bed Bugs- What You've Been Told is Totally False

[hitbyambulance]

Mark Rober has a video on bed bugs. He talks to an expert about the best methods. Might be a good watch.
Bed Bugs- What You've Been Told is Totally False

yeah, this was worth the 23 minutes - good info in this one (and might actually put one's mind at ease, a little bit)

[hepcat]

So I finally got a handle on my german roach situation. Between the advion bait gel, the IGR point control pods and having a new exterminator come out and blast my place with pesticides, I've gone from seeing a half dozen or more a day to seeing one every week or so.

However, I have a new issue that's...well...bugging me.

Over the last four weeks, I've had bite marks on my arms appear. First it was one, then two last wednesday while i was driving to lunch, now it's three that appeared Monday night while watching tv. They're big, red raised marks that are not itchy.

Since the roach situation started, I've had 3 different exterminators come out and assure me that I don't have bed bugs. But now I'm starting to worry they missed something. I just got back from a dermatologist who told me he was 99 percent sure they were bug bites. He offered to biopsy them for me, but I didn't feel that was necessary given his insistence that they were bite marks. However, he couldn't tell me what kind of insect made the bites. He said that if I had had three different exterminators give me a clean bill of health, he doubted they were from my home though.

But I'm just a mess at this point. Since mid July when all this started, I've become a friggin' wreck. I had hoped that getting the roach situation under control would be the end of it. But now these bites are sending me down another spiral. I'm seriously thinking about having my building treat my apartment for bed bugs anyway. But since I raised such a stink about the roaches with them, they may think I'm just being a hypochondriac.

[stessier]

Could it just be a mosquito? It's still summer-ish.

[Blackhawk]

Over the last four weeks, I've had bite marks on my arms appear. First it was one, then two last wednesday while i was driving to lunch, now it's three that appeared Monday night while watching tv.

It could be worse. It could have been three, then two, then one.

[hepcat]

Could it just be a mosquito? It's still summer-ish.

I really, really hope so. But do they usually bite in groups like the last two instances?

NSFW bite picture of my arm

Spoiler:

[stessier]

Could it just be a mosquito? It's still summer-ish.

I really, really hope so. But do they usually bite in groups like the last two instances?

NSFW bite picture of my arm

Spoiler:

They can. Hard to say if they did. My daughter went to the lake this weekend and has clumps of bites, so it's not impossible. She even has two bites that are so close they form a giant lump. Not sure if it was one really hungry one or a swarm.

[Smoove_B]

NSFW bite picture of my arm

That's on the underside of your arm - like inside your bicep?

They don't look like mosquito bites to me and it would be a weird spot for a mosquito to bite - unless you sleep like a princess with your arm over your head, resting on your back. Do the spots seem to grow or expand over time?

[hepcat]

NSFW bite picture of my arm

That's on the underside of your arm - like inside your bicep?

They don't look like mosquito bites to me and it would be a weird spot for a mosquito to bite - unless you sleep like a princess with your arm over your head, resting on your back. Do the spots seem to grow or expand over time?

Correct. Both of the recent bites were on the underside of my arm. They don't seem to grow or expand. They also don't itch, oddly enough. p.s. I'm a side sleeper, so the underside of my arms are always facing up when I sleep as I tend to extend my arm straight out from under the pillow on the side I'm lying on.

As I said, I've had 3 damn exterminators give me a clean bill of health on bed bugs. I've got bed bug interceptors on every sofa and bed leg in my apartment (6 days and no sign of anything in them). And I've never seen a live bed bug in person or on ANY of the multiple glue traps I had set out during my roach battle that lasted almost 2 months. And I had a LOT of them set out. Finally, I switched to white bed sheets when this all started a few months ago and I've never come across any blood marks, crushed bugs or any kind of stains whatsoever on them.

This is driving me nuts.

[Blackhawk]

It may not be bedbugs. There are other bugs that bite. Mosquitoes, fleas, spiders, chiggers, mites, carpet beetles, and more.

Also, your elbows are too pointy.

[hepcat]

Fingers crossed. Those I can deal with...mentally as well as physically. But if it does turn out I have bed bugs, I'm not sure how I'd react. I know it wouldn't be pretty.

I do have evidence of gnat activity. This place seems to always have them in the summer. But they've never bitten me before.

[Zenn7]

Do you wear a top (pj top, shirt, whatever) when you got to bed that covers your elbows or are they exposed while you sleep?

If they are covered, unlikely to be bed bugs. Was told they do not generally crawl under your clothing (don't need to, just bite you where you are exposed) and they have to bite, don't have a poker type bite with depth that can get through closes (unlike mosquitos).

Either way... just to be safe... STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM ME YOU DAMN WALK BUG HOTEL!

[hepcat]

I do not, so they are exposed.

Last night I slept with a flashlight in my bed. No sign of anything so far. All my interceptor traps are clear, and I did another full search of bed, nearby furniture and my living room sofa last night with no sightings of anything.

I spoke to a terminex rep yesterday who told me they don’t even do inspections for bed bugs unless someone sends them a picture or had a dead or captured bug. They just get too many false alarms over bites that are usually something other than bb, and he said it’s virtually impossible to find them with just a visual inspection. He did recommend a bb dog snipping service in the area though and said they trust that. But I’ve read conflicting stories about their efficacy.

I’m going to just keep watching for signs of them. I’m assuming that if I do have them, they’ll eventually make their presence known somehow.

[stessier]

Probably by bites on your arms...

/ducks and runs away/

[Holman]

Hold on--Hepcat, do you have Astarion in your party?

[hepcat]

I do. But he's not the reason for the bites.

I had a dermatologist do a biopsy on one of the bites today. The woman who runs the bed bug dog inspection company suggested it. I'd left a message on her company voice mail to call me as I was just curious about the dog thing. She called back and was honestly quite helpful. She said that since I can't find a hint of bed bugs in my place (nor could the three other exterminators that have looked), it may be something else. And that she'd seen people have reactions to carpet beetles, fibers, you name it. And they often would mistake those for bb bites. Even though the dermatologist told me yesterday he was sure it was bites, I realized he'd done so without actually even looking at them closely. If nothing else, it will tell whether or not it's just my weird skin doing yet another weird thing (stress especially causes me to break out in hives, etc.), or an actual bite.

She also said that since I'd had the place treated recently (my roach situation is, as far as I can tell, history now), I had to wait 4 weeks before I brought in any dogs. Apparently it could cause them a great deal of harm in the old snout if they work around a recently treated place. She also told me that reports show dogs to be 98 percent accurate...but that she thought that was bull. She said it's probably more like 80 percent.

My interceptor traps, after a full week, still show no signs of any bug activity whatsoever. I've now used a hand steam cleaner to clean my entire sofa, while using an LED flashlight to search every nook and cranny I could get to, and still no sign of anything...live bugs, dead bugs, shells, anything. I did notice quite a few gnats and other flying insects stuck to a light trap I have near my sofa. Looks like there's a gap in the window between it and my air conditioner. I'm guessing they're coming in from there, or from a crevice in the baseboards somewhere. But there were quite a few.

This is definitely my last year in this apartment. It just has too many stressors for me after this summer. My lease is up in April, I believe. I've already noted a few places I like. I think for my last 5 or 6 years before retiring somewhere, I'm going to pamper myself with a nicer place. I've always lived under my means because that's how I was raised. But I've got a nice financial cushion and a few more years of a decent salary at least. Time to live a little.

Sorry to hijack the thread. I'm just venting/airing out my thoughts. I'm fairly stressed right now....and it's probably over nothing. I just want a full night's sleep with no worries.

[Isgrimnur]

bb bites

Picture from hepcat's location:

[hepcat]

Is that a domesticated bowling ball?

[Isgrimnur]

Is that a domesticated bowling ball?

The chain suggests that it's not domesticated. And it's missing the scale. It's magnified several times, as it's a bb.

[hitbyambulance]

note that fleas also bite in clusters - i have had those welts before....

It may not be bedbugs. There are other bugs that bite. Mosquitoes, fleas, spiders, chiggers, mites, carpet beetles, and more.

carpet beetles are hell for other reasons, but they don't bite - some people do get reactions from the hairs of the carpet beetle larvae, however.

https://ipm.ucanr.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7436.html

https://www.healthline.com/health/do-ca ... -they-bite

[hepcat]

Yeah, that’s what I’ve read as well.

It’s now been 10 days with interceptor traps on my sofa and bed. Still zero signs of anything. Supposedly, with interceptor traps, if you don’t see anything within 7 to 10 days, you’re likely clear (like 92 or 96 percent). But I’m going to keep them out just in case. I also still regularly check my sofa, bed and nearby furniture for signs, with zero results as well.

The bite thing is the only thing that’s causing my suspicion, but all sites pest control people say that you can’t definitively say you have them based on bites alone. You have to see fecal dots, blood stains, shells, or dead/alive bugs. None of which I’ve seen.

[Zenn7]

I read up on the bb sniffer dogs as well.

They are nowhere near 90-98% effective. Some site I read (sorry no clue where it was, that was weeks ago), that went off and talked to people and supposedly did research on this (IE, not somebody marketing a product) said they will often find bugs more than 50% of the time, but the problem is, nearly 1/2 the time they find bugs, their false positive. Signs from an old infection and other reasons.

Interceptor traps - I was going to get these, but the Orkin guy who came to my house said they seldom work. He's never seen bugs actually stuck in an interceptor trap.

If you haven't gotten any new bites in weeks, that's a good sign. They don't eat every night (unless you have a bunch, different ones biting every night), but from I recall, they do eat like once a week or so. You'd have new bites by now likely. And if you had enough to be getting bit every night, you'd have found signs of them by now.
- That's all my unprofessional opinion from research I did, what Orkin guy told me (based on his professional and personal experience) and my personal hope that not getting bit in over a month and seeing no signs on our white sheets we bought specifically for this, means we don't have bed bugs either.

Feel free to prove me RIGHT... PLEASE!!!

[hitbyambulance]

Yeah, that’s what I’ve read as well.

It’s now been 10 days with interceptor traps on my sofa and bed. Still zero signs of anything. Supposedly, with interceptor traps, if you don’t see anything within 7 to 10 days, you’re likely clear (like 92 or 96 percent). But I’m going to keep them out just in case. I also still regularly check my sofa, bed and nearby furniture for signs, with zero results as well.

The bite thing is the only thing that’s causing my suspicion, but all sites pest control people say that you can’t definitively say you have them based on bites alone. You have to see fecal dots, blood stains, shells, or dead/alive bugs. None of which I’ve seen.

an aside, but i would also suggest looking into if there's a diagnosis (for you) for OCD or anxiety, and if so, going for treatment... that helps a lot (and which turned out to be my _actual_ issue)

[em2nought]

Just be glad you're not a hornet.

Removing two huge parasites from a hornet,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-S8v8YAbID0

[hepcat]

Yeah, that’s what I’ve read as well.

It’s now been 10 days with interceptor traps on my sofa and bed. Still zero signs of anything. Supposedly, with interceptor traps, if you don’t see anything within 7 to 10 days, you’re likely clear (like 92 or 96 percent). But I’m going to keep them out just in case. I also still regularly check my sofa, bed and nearby furniture for signs, with zero results as well.

The bite thing is the only thing that’s causing my suspicion, but all sites pest control people say that you can’t definitively say you have them based on bites alone. You have to see fecal dots, blood stains, shells, or dead/alive bugs. None of which I’ve seen.

an aside, but i would also suggest looking into if there's a diagnosis (for you) for OCD or anxiety, and if so, going for treatment... that helps a lot (and which turned out to be my _actual_ issue)

Thanks, that's good advice. I probably should talk to a therapist. It's almost a feeling of PTSD. But I think it has some real world causes due to the recent issue with roaches that were brought in/stirred up by one of the neighbors that moved in/then back out quickly. That's finally (as far as I can tell) getting under control now, so hopefully I'll gradually return to a less heightened sense of anxiety. Plus, I'm definitely out of here after my lease ends. But it's probably a good idea to talk to someone about all this anxiety.

[em2nought]

Imagine if it was fleas and you swallowed one in your sleep. You could end up like these bears.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/aQPeXTD7xsQ

[Zenn7]

Imagine if it was fleas and you swallowed one in your sleep. You could end up like these bears.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/aQPeXTD7xsQ

Much more thankful for having a CPAP machine to prevent me from being a mouth breather when I sleep...

[Punisher]

I think I figured out whats goung on.
It also explains why the exterminators couldn't find anything.
The bed bugs aren't in yoyr bed, they are living inside of you!
Also, they aren't bite marks, they are exit wounds!

Hope this helps! Sleep tight!

[hepcat]

No, I’m good now. No bites in two weeks and still no sightings…ever….of anything even closely resembling one. Plus, multiple traps with lures and nothing. Biopsy showed they were bug bites, but I suspect they were from no-see-ums or mosquitoes outside my apartment.

In any case, my place has been treated so thoroughly I doubt there’s any insect life here now.

Also, thanks for reminding me the internet is NOT the place to be vulnerable.

[hepcat]

So about two months from my last bites, I get two more. My place has zero sign of bugs (at least live ones) since they started regularly treating it. And there is still ZERO signs of any bed bugs (by this point, I should have seen SOMETHING if I did, according to the exterminator...plus, I'd be getting bit more than once every month or two).

So I can only guess I am getting bitten outside while walking around (I was wearing shorts on Sunday - this time the bites are on my leg above my right ankle- and it was unseasonably warm for this time of year in Chicago) and that I have a slight allergic reaction to whatever is biting me.

It's all just so frustrating. I need the Scooby gang to help me solve this mystery.