Got Bed Bugs? Bedbugger Forums » Introductions
Introductions?
(23 posts)-
your host
Joined: Mar '07
Posts: 5,547
Posted 7 months ago
Mon Apr 13 2009 11:29:51
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I see a lot of new names the last few days-- welcome.
People with bed bugs generally introduce themselves by telling us about their bed bug problem.
But other folks don't generally take the time to say hello. Here's a thread, if you feel like introducing yourself.
Thanks!
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MartyJMK
junior member
Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 40
Posted 7 months ago
Mon Apr 13 2009 11:40:12
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I've been on the forums for months since I've been dealing with my BB issue. First got bites and confirmed live bug in January, 3 PCO treatments, bagged and cleaned or dried all clothing, basedboards sealed and was BB free for about 3 months. Just got a resurgence a couple of weeks ago and found another live bug. Killer Queen has been in to treat me last week, still getting a few bites. Here's hoping we will kick this!
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MartyJMK
junior member
Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 40
Posted 7 months ago
Mon Apr 13 2009 11:40:43
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Oh, and hello! :)
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Face
junior member
Joined: Apr '09
Posts: 47
Posted 7 months ago
Mon Apr 13 2009 15:21:13
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Hello,
I am a PCO located in New York. I rather not say which company I work for, I signed up to offer my opinion and help the public.
I hope I can help some people along the way, and answer as many questions as I Can!
Everyone can call me FACE! (< ^ > (•¿•) < ^ >) it make me feel like a super hero sorta! lol
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your host
Joined: Mar '07
Posts: 5,547
Posted 7 months ago
Mon Apr 13 2009 16:14:41
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Welcome, Face and Marty!
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fed_up
newbite
Joined: Mar '09
Posts: 22
Posted 7 months ago
Mon Apr 13 2009 16:26:35
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I'm buggy in NORcal (as opposed to buggyinsocal). Bites started gradually in Oct. 08 but were unidentified until Feb. 09. We didn't treat right away due to a complicated family situation, but we're getting ready to start this week with a K9 inspection.
I haven't posted very often, but I do start my mornings reading posts here several times a week. I think education is a HUGE asset in this battle and I'm grateful this forum exists.
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bedbugdude
member
Joined: Feb '09
Posts: 121
Posted 7 months ago
Mon Apr 13 2009 20:05:28
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I've been here a bit and yeah, I'm a bug dude working for a small company in South New Joisey. Only been on the job for about 3 and a half years or so but I've done quite a bit of studying/reading about bed bugs aside from treating them. Tough pests to deal with for sure. I found this site and learned so much more very quickly. Great site and good people with lots of answers that are sometimes given in as little a 5 minutes. Amazing! This place rocks!
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Welcome fed_up and bedbugdude also!
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Bugbroad
newbite
Joined: Apr '09
Posts: 2
Posted 7 months ago
Tue Apr 14 2009 18:52:10
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I work to support tenants with bedbug issues - helping them identify and then finding equipment/funding (most struggle with money) to help them remove them. I have been reading the forums here for a few weeks and have learned so much about prevention for myself and for tenants. This is a great resource and I have noted a lot of information. The information on cars was especially important for me to review.....
I have a lot of questions, but am pretty sure I have found a place for answers...
Thanks!
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your host
Joined: Mar '07
Posts: 5,547
Posted 7 months ago
Tue Apr 14 2009 23:46:11
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Hey, welcome, bugbroad...
Stressful job, I imagine? But the tenants are lucky to have some kind of support.
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BuggedBiologist
newbite
Joined: Jan '09
Posts: 19
Posted 7 months ago
Wed Apr 15 2009 0:00:11
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Hi! I'm a stressed out postdoc living on the UES of Manhattan. I'm partially stressed because I just switched fields and feel like I woke up on a new planet. I'm also stressed because I moved into a building with a BB problem a year ago today. This site has been such a tremendous resource and has provided me with such great info and comfort...and introduced me to a fantastic PCO, too. It's wonderful to know that we are not alone, although I wish that none of us had to endure any of this nonsense.
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Welcome to our growing community. You all sound smart. We are the unlucky ones. We will be part of the solution.
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Bugbroad
newbite
Joined: Apr '09
Posts: 2
Posted 7 months ago
Wed Apr 15 2009 17:06:45
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This has been an amazing source of information - but I am beginning to realize that this will be an issue of prevention, education and in some circumstances, how to live with bed bugs and that feels like such a burden for people - I work with a lot of seniors who are alone and its getting the assistance to spray and de clutter and then the emotional support for follow up so we can keep on top of the problem.
I will review/accept all and any suggestions that are available in Ontario!
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Oops... I'm writing on this forum since february and I didn't introduce myself...
My name is Franco and I'm a 48 years old entomologist (Ph.D in Agricultural Science) from Milano, Italy.
I work in PCM since 1991 and I'm an indipendent PCO since 1999. -
your host
Joined: Mar '07
Posts: 5,547
Posted 7 months ago
Thu Apr 16 2009 15:28:51
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And franco is a marvelous photographer and cinematographer! (I still have some photos to post, EffeCi, I have not forgotten!)
Bugbroad - 22 hours ago »
I work with a lot of seniors who are alone and its getting the assistance to spray and de clutter and then the emotional support for follow up so we can keep on top of the problem.I will review/accept all and any suggestions that are available in Ontario!
bugabroad, you might want to start a new thread on this -- I can't remember if you have -- but have you had any dealings with Toronto's Bug and Scrub? (I can't remember which city you are in.)
I understand they do prep as well as treatment and that they have sliding scale fees. Click here to find more threads which discuss what we know of them.
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SleeplessLafayette
newbite
Joined: Mar '09
Posts: 20
Posted 7 months ago
Thu Apr 16 2009 15:46:57
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Hi
I am a mother of two little girls: a four month old and a four year old. I also have a full-time job. I am in southwest Louisiana. I started to notice bites on my four-year-old daughter when the baby was born. We thought the older daughter was allergic to something she ate or something in her environment. We figured out the bites were bedbug bites about three weeks ago when my husband and I started to get bites. I was totally freaked out after I read about bedbugs on the Internet and on this forum.
I am very grateful to the people on this forum. I posted my first message at midnight one day because I could not sleep and buggyinsocal responded the same night, providing a lot of knowledge and support. I had an emotional breakdown on another night and sent a private message to KillerQueen for advice. He called me the next day, which gave me hope that I could win this war. We hired a local PCO immediately after we found out that we have bedbugs. The technician sprayed some bedlam during the second treatment. I was worried that this follow-up treatment did not work and asked for help on this forum again. Face responded and gave me advice on what I should ask the PCO to do in terms of follow-up treatment. I called the company and complained about it. Yesterday, a supervisor and a technician came to do a more thorough inspection (they did not find any bugs during the inspection except the one I found in my bed) treatment with phantom and Gentrol. I still got bites last night, but I am hoping that things will get better soon.
I am glad that I am not alone and this community has provided me a lot of support. Thank you guys!
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begonebedbugs
junior member
Joined: Mar '09
Posts: 68
Posted 7 months ago
Thu Apr 16 2009 20:45:45
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Hi - I'm Karen. A 6 month pregnant mom of three fighting Bed Bugs in my single home. We feel like were in a good position right now as its been over 2.5 weeks without a bite on my husband and over 3.5 weeks of my 2 year old back in his crib bite free... but I'm not celebrating or unpacking just yet.
Have my fingers crossed - feel more comfortable about our situation but not ready to unpack and return to life as normal. My house was professionally treated 3 times (my older kids room 5 times) in the last 10 weeks. Brutal - but I really feel for all of you dealing with landlords and apartment issues.I dont know what I would have done without this board - it freaked me out a bit reading all the horror stories but its wonderful to have the support and knowledge too! So thanks!
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Hello.
I just logged in as a member yesterday and noticed someone complaining that people do not introduce themselves.Well..I thought that I'd say hello to all of you who are in the same situation or have gone throuhg 'the hell' that I guess everyone here knows what I am talking about.I was at my mum's at christmas and soon the bites on my ankles started to worry me (my mum just said they must be mosquito bites but hey..I am living in Finland and it was far belove -10 C (don't know in Fahrenheit).
My younger brother lives in India and had been staying at my mums for coupleof months.He had left maby a month before I happened to go to the room and to the bed he had been sleeping.In Finland it is VERY RARE to come accross bed bugs though in the past two years there have been news headlines that the bed bugs are coming back (after the war in the 50's they were common but dissapered compleletly).
Well..I am now finaly in my own appartment and there is a long and stressful period in between.I am still not sure that they have not traveled to my house (I did everything I can think of to avoid that and will tell my story a bit later when I have time.Some peole her keep talking about itching..well as it apears that there are no bed bugs (gross my fingers and knock on the wood) here I still have the feeling something crawling on my arms and every now and then keep lookin my arms etc.At my mum's I actually saw a nymth with a magnifing class on my hand sucking the blood and getting bigger and red...that sight and the feeling of a little tingling sensation never will go away I guess.I also noticed that I had been spraying Bio Kill spray on my clothes and things and my sofa that I am sitting now.I have become allergic to the stuff and it make me feel that I am getting bites or stings (sorry my poor english) all over my arms .Maybe someone else has that too being a reason that skin is so irritated and I noticed also that a dry skin makes it much worse.(not to mension even thinking about them)
Well..I was just about to say hi..I am a 39 years old woman from Finland and have been on a pension from a serious car accident since 1999 and have to stay in bed a lot (because of strong pain attacks etc). We or it was me that saw the first bed bug in the beggining of the january and phoned the PCO the next day.Now it seems (at least my mum says ) that the nightnare is over witch is a bit hard to belive as she had only 4 times the PCO at her house! During the time I was there I foud this site as in Finland there is hardly any good sites with imformation..so I thank you all for giving me and my mum hope and tips and tricks etc.
I guess that not enyone really can understand how stressful the situation can be as it is 'only' a matter of small insects but everyone here have or have gone through it.
Keep it up and remember that it is possible to get rid of them sooner or later with a hard work and without no tears and worry.
Ani -
brbugfighter
junior member
Joined: Mar '09
Posts: 36
Posted 7 months ago
Fri Apr 17 2009 18:57:27
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Hello
I've made a few posts without properly introducing me, so here it goes. We live in Brazil, a family of 5, two little girls. It's a single family home in a lovely neighborhood. We moved here 3 years ago, lovingly renovated the house and everything was grand until we discovered that no, those were not ticks the dog brought in, they were bed bugs!
I don't know how long exactly we have been infested. My hunch is about 6 months, but could be longer. It puzzles me how we got them as they are still somewhat rare in Brazil. It could be pigeons, bats, the vacation rental in the mountains or the simple fact that I work in HOTELS!! I don't go into the rooms proper, but day in day out, there I am, in hotel A or hotel B, sitting on the chairs in the lobby, walking around the carpeted conference rooms, smiling at the guests.
I'm totally consumed with this bed bug nightmare, it's ruining my life and wrecking the stability I want to give my children. No couch is safe! Every bite is ominous! Every bug is a bed bug! No chemical is potent enough!
I hardly sit down anymore, and depending on where I do, I run to the shower and change my clothes immediately.
I have dreams of packing a light suitcase for me and the kids and leaving everything behind.
We have had 3 treatments so far spaced about a week apart. Brazil doesn't have a lot of the treatment options available in America, such as Vikane, Nuvan Strips, etc so I am doing the best I can, including wearing a respirator while my PCO goes about drenching everything in chemicals to make sure they don't miss any suspicious areas.
I chose the name brbugfighter becauser I didn't want to sound too despondent...(even though they DO make you feel depressed. But let's look around. They are creepy and disgusting but bed bugs ARE NOT the worst of life's adversities....Nobody in the house is severely allergic or is getting bitten a lot anymore. The stuff I had or will have to toss out, well, it's just stuff...I still have my strength...
I am very grateful for all the information I have found on this website and hope I can give back some by translating part of the FAQs into Portuguese as soon as I find some time.
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BUMPING this up.
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never_again
junior member
Joined: Aug '09
Posts: 44
Posted 2 months ago
Wed Aug 26 2009 4:01:19
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Hi,
I have been browsing a lot recently and posting a little. I am in NYC, bb capital, home of the most persistent and resistant pests.
I just posted all of the details to my problem on the "is this an egg" thread, so i'll keep it a little shorter here.
My first experience with BB was almost exactly 2 years ago in a small apartment building way out in brooklyn. I foolishly moved in with 2 roommates i briefly knew, who told me "we used to have a problem, but we're pretty sure its taken care of." Had i done my research after they told me, i would have never stepped back into the apartment. But we know if you've never had BB its hard to understand, although 2 years later it seems there has been some spread of awareness.
So the 3 worst months of my life occurred after that and with persistence and pesticide we seemed to clear the BB for about a month (although my skin has never been the same). We all moved. I went in-between places and put the rest of my sealed possessions outside in the cold for 3 months.
Eventually i moved back into another brooklyn apt and no worries for 6 months or so, then a short scare during the summer (last summer). No real problems. Then i end up crashing with a friend the following winter and went through a scare at their place. I found some abrasions and connected a timeline to a different friend who had had BB about a month before and let my paranoia run. There has been no bb problem's at that apt at all.
So in May i moved into a new apt in a very old building with mixed cultures. All good for about 2 months here until about 8 weeks ago when i found my first bite on my stomach and then the next week found about 5 on my legs. Since then i've averaged 2-5 bites a week, usually on one day or two consecutive days. The only source i can come up with is that some friends stayed over about a week before this, and two travelers (friends of friends) visited during the day.
Haven't seen a single bedbug in two years, never seen a living one.
I'm really glad for this forum and all the helpful people. The more people are aware of BB the better the fight we can put up. Widespread paranoia isn't good either, but i think there can be a reasonable line for those who haven't gone down the BB hole and don't ever want to.
Please post any advice to the "is this an egg?" thread, where you can find all the details and less story.
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never_again
junior member
Joined: Aug '09
Posts: 44
Posted 2 months ago
Wed Aug 26 2009 12:11:02
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bump
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buggyboston
newbite
Joined: Aug '09
Posts: 4
Posted 2 months ago
Wed Aug 26 2009 21:49:10
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Hi,
Very grateful for this board. I have been super paranoid about bed bugs as my husband works with the mentally ill population and in particular in a group home that's been battling bed bugs for years. So after my husband had to deal with bagging and laundering all the clothes of his clients, now two weeks later I am getting bit, and more horribly, my 4 year old and two year old have bites as well. We have no other signs of the bugs--no actual bugs, no blood staining. I believe we are in the very beginning stages. We are getting aggressive treatment this week.I'm going to post some questions I have in a minute but wanted to introduce myself and say what an impressive group this: both smart and compassionate.
Thanks,
Kristin--BuggyBoston
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