Don't Lose Hope: Sharing My Success Story! « Got Bed Bugs? Bedbugger Forums

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Don't Lose Hope: Sharing My Success Story!

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greatsuccessstory

newbite
Joined: Feb '09
Posts: 1

Posted 1 year ago
Fri Feb 6 2009 13:58:33
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Hi everyone:

Today marks my ultimate succsss in my bedbug battle. I don't really have time to be writing this - I'm at work with a million things to do. But I've been anxious for months to share this story and just waiting for that 60 day mark. So here it goes. I hope it provides some hope to some of you, and maybe even some answers. I've never posted here, but I lurked for months, and you guys provided me with a lot of inspiration. Hopefully I can return the favor.

I'm a young professional in Cincinnati and was living in a downtown apartment last Spring when I first started noticing this weird rash on my arms. For Memorial Day, I'd met my boyfriend (at the time) in Indianapolis, and we'd stayed in a cheap motel (so scandalous!). Based on the timing, I suspect that's where the bugs came from. My boyfriend never ended up with them, though, and it's certainly possible that they came from somewhere else in the apartment building and the timing was just coincidental. I'll never know. In any event, the rash got progressively worse. I'd never heard of bedbugs and was completely convinced that I was allergic to something. So I got new detergent and washed my sheets, and that didn't help. I started to wonder if there was some mold or something in my air conditioner that was causing problems, so I turned it off for a couple of days (in mid-June!), but that didn't help either. The rash was unbearable. I was itching and scratching all the time. I hopped online and did some research. I diagnosed myself with hives and figured they'd go away.

One day in August, I got a call from my mom. "Hey. So. Your dad was reading this article in the paper, and he thinks he's figured out your rash." "Oh yeah? Great!" says I. "Ya," she says, "finish the rhyme - 'goodnight, sleep tight..'" I knew right away that they were right. I never even knew bed bugs were real, but it just instantly made sense. I called the landlord who said that the building had had them previously (awesome), and that he'd come over and check it out. He came over while I was at work and called me, "you've got em. You've got em bad." Great. I told him to go ahead and pitch my nearly-brand-new mattress and bedding. He called the exterminator. I took the next day off work, and my dad and I spent the whole day laundering and bagging and vaccuming and cleaning. I was exhausted but convinced that this was a small problem. The exterminator told me to sleep on the sofa (brilliant!) until he came out and sprayed the spare bed and I got a mattress cover on it. Then I should sleep in the spare room (also brilliant!).

I was determined to get rid of them immediately. I vacuumed daily. Several times, I stayed up all night to kill them. There were so many more than I'd ever expected. I found that they had nested in the brick wall that was at the head of my bed, and there were hundreds of them. The exterminator sprayed the wall, but there were so many tiny cracks that it seemed to do nothing. Two or three nights, I stayed up all night long to kill them. I wrapped the legs of my coffee table in double-sided tape, covered the top in white trash bags, put it about two feet from the wall, and stayed up all night with tape just snatching them up and throwing them away. I'd do it for hours until I'd freak out and have to leave.

I'd since stopped dating boyfriend and started dating someone new. So a month and a half into that relationship, I had the distinct pleasure of calling him up and telling him I had bedbugs and he probably did too. He handled it extremely well, primarily because he had no idea what a huge problem it was. I refused to let him stay at my place and was insane about staying at his. I bought a new blowdryer and make-up essentials and left them over there. I took all my suits and work clothes to the drycleaner and sent some of them straight to his place and others straight to my parents'. Before I'd go to his house, I'd run downstairs to the dryer, throw in everything I was going to take with me including a pair of flip flops and a simple slip dress. I'd leave them in there for an hour, then grab the dress and flip fips, put them in a zip lock, run upstairs and shower, and throw on the dress and flip fops and run out of my apartment dripping wet. I'd then go grab everything out of the dryer. Most times, I'd strip at his door and throw everything in his dryer when I got there just to be double safe. If I took any jewelry, I'd whipe it all down and bag it while I was in my car. He thought I was insane, but he tolerated me nicely.

There were no signs of bedbugs at his place, but I was also convinced that he didn't react to them. I was never once bitten there, but it took me months to convince myself that they hadn't spred to his place. I really have no idea how they didn't, but it was such a blessing. I spent a lot more time over there than I probably should have, but I really needed to sleep.

By September or October, I started to realize that this was a losing battle. The bugs were so entrenched in this brick wall. Even though I'd killed hundreds of them by staying up all night, they still seemed to swarm all over it. The bug spray seemed to accomplish nothing, and I was convinced that they would just climb up the wall to my neighbor's apartment and then back down as soon as I thought they were gone. I was losing my mind. I've been through a lot in my life, and this was the most mentally exhausting experience I've ever had. I started realizing that I couldn't go home without crying. It was a completely visceral reaction. If I was walking home or driving home, there would just be tears streaming down my cheeks. I was as close to clinically depressed and anxious as I've ever been. It was adversely impacting my work and my relationships. I had to do something.

I decided to buy a house. The timing was good for me and for the market, and I didn't want to live in any kind of communal environment anymore. I couldn't deal with the possibility that this might happen again. I started shopping. I had quite a bit of furniture, and I realized that there were some personal items that I simply would not part with. It's funny how you realize what items are really important to you. When my dad moved out of his parents' house, the only thing they gave him was a five-drawer dresser. It was the only real piece of furniture I took with me to college, and I refused to part with it. I considered storing everything, but I read about some poor girl's experience with putting clean furniture and storage and having it get infested by someone else's stuff. I freaked out and refused to store everything. I read about vikane and decided to give it a try.

So I moved everything into a moving truck and had it Vikaned. I called fumigation services and supply in Indianapolis and they gave me the name of the local guy. I can't remember his name at this moment, but he was great. I didn't have my house yet, and I refused to put my stuff in storage, so my parents let me store everything in their garage for a month.

I stayed at a buddy's house, and I did my very best to be sure that everything I took with me was clean and sterile. I stayed there for a total of two months, and I did my best to keep my paranoia to a minimum. One night, I woke up with an awful itchy bump on my leg. I woke my boyfriend up, and he looked at me like I was insane. "It's just a bug bite, we were outside yesterday" he said. He still didn't get it. I stayed up for hours, just devastated and convinced that I had brought them with me. By morning, the bump was gone, and my bedbug bites had always stayed most of the day. I tried to ignore it, but a week later, I had a string of about seven bites near that same spot. I called my parents in hysterics. I stayed there for a full month and a half beyond that, and nothing else ever happened. I don't know what those bumps were, but they weren't bedbugs.

I moved all my belongings into my house two months ago today. I haven't seen a bedbug since I've been there or been bitten at all. I don't know whatever happened with the apartment. I really hope no one else had to deal with this problem.

No one really understood why I was the emotional wreck over this that I was. Reading your stories kept me in one piece. At the end of the day, I've got a terrific, clean new house that I'm wild about. I've managed to keep the paranoia to a minimum. Vikane wasn't cheap, but it was worth it for me. I highly recommend it. Your sanity is worth a few bucks.

Keep your collective chins up and keep battling. There is life after bedbugs!
itchyandtired

junior member
Joined: Feb '09
Posts: 66

Posted 1 year ago
Fri Feb 6 2009 14:29:00
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Thank You so much for your story. It gives me hope.
brooklynbite

newbite
Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 26

Posted 1 year ago
Fri Feb 6 2009 14:40:54
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itchyandtired - 11 minutes ago »
Thank You so much for your story. It gives me hope.

Ditto! You are so brave, and I couldn't be happier for you.:)
ufatbasted

newbite
Joined: Nov '08
Posts: 8

Posted 1 year ago
Fri Feb 6 2009 18:30:33
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Congrats. I understand how you feel about the bed bugs. I've been through a lot of real tough stuff in my life too. I consider myself a very strong willed person because of my past.
Having BBs almost broke me. I had a real hard time getting my family to do what needed to be done which was REALLY frustrating.
The thing is no matter how bad things are in life your usually safe in your own bed. You get a good nights sleep and wake up to face whatever comes your way.

BBs take that safe place away from you.

I glad you beat them!
Killmenow

newbite
Joined: Feb '09
Posts: 1

Posted 1 year ago
Fri Feb 13 2009 0:48:31
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thanks greatsuccessstory! I'm planning on doing the vikane thing soon too. unfortunately i'm still in college so I wont be able to move to my own house. Just another apartment in this awful awful city (new york). I pray that we don't bring them with us and that the new place doesn't have any problems. This problem has honestly pushed me to my limit. Suicide has often seemed a better option than dealing with this. i wouldn't wish this problem on anyone but my current landlord :)
karrieg

newbite
Joined: Feb '09
Posts: 17

Posted 1 year ago
Fri Feb 13 2009 3:32:16
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wow, that sounds like alot more than what i had, makes me feel a little better, kinda, unless they are in my walls and i don't know it yet. its been a month since they sprayed here but i still cant sleep. did the boubble sided tape thing work for you? im testing it out here. the sad part is that i don't think i show signs of bites only my 5 year old daughter and 4 year old niece do. glad to hear you got to get out of there. i live in winnipeg manitoba and curently on social assistance so i cant afford extra sprays n stuff but i pray that they are gone.