Got Bed Bugs? Bedbugger Forums » Tales of Bed Bug Woe
nervous breakdown in progress
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beantownbugs
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Joined: Aug '09
Posts: 11
Posted 3 months ago
Sun Aug 9 2009 0:42:45
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Hi people. I'm new and this is going to be a long one. Thank you in advance for any suggestions you can offer. The forum has been a great resource in my freakout.
So I've got not one, not two, but four possible flavors of infestations/parasites going on right now. Fun, right? Here's the saga. A few weeks ago I noticed general itchiness. No large bites so far, but little pustules or pupules (sp? that look a little like ingrown hairs, itching worse at night, bad on my anus (sorry) and ankles, but generalized everywhere. I had what was diagnosed as scabies in college and had battled it on and off for the last few years. The itchiness and "skin crawling" feelings were familiar and continued to the point where I could no longer shrug it off and lie to myself that it was dry skin or heat rash. I made a doctors appointment so I could get a premethrin prescription and steeled myself for the inevitable embarrassing conversation with my housemates and tons of laundry. Simple, yes?
However, in the meantime I noticed some bites on awaking. Mostly reddish welts on my legs and ankles, bigger than the pustules but smaller than mosquito bites, several in a two bite line or cluster, some that were actually still bleeding. I saw bugs in my room, on my stuff. In the back of my mind I thought of bedbugs (it's a college town and growing problem area) but didn't want to admit to myself that that was it. It's summer and bugs happen; it has to be mosquitos or something. I went to the doc who spent about two minutes on me, gave me a scrip for premethrin, and said it might be scabies... or bed bugs, so if the premethrin doesn't work check for that.
I went home and checked for that. According the research on bedbugs I was frantically performing online, I had made an incredibly poor choice recently in buying some used wooden furniture. Not to mention I have bought used clothing and have not always washed it the same day. Also, my housemates and I have been on vacations (separately) and stayed in hotels and motels. Their luggage is stored near my room.
It must be bedbugs.It must be scabies and bedbugsMy room is a mess. Clothes everywhere, papers, you name it. I freaked out, found this forum. I captured some bugs I found in a little plastic baggie. I've tried to identify them by comparison on the website but haven't been able to determine if they are in fact bed bugs. I looked at my furniture and couldn't find nesting sites, but I have found pellets of what I took to be bed bug feces. More on this later. Meanwhile. A friend (and occasional visitor) had experienced a mite problem in her apt. not long ago, which got me thinking about mites. Out of curiosity, and with a looming sense of anxiety and doom, I did research online and discovered the existence of bird mites.
Now, of course, I'm convinced I've got those too. I do have several tiny red pinprick like spots on my arms. My face and scalp have been itchy, as has my hairline, the inner rims of my ears and, (sorry again) pubic area. Those are not scabies-typical areas to be itchy (except for the last part.)I just haven't been paying attention to these symptoms because I was sure it was scabies. Not to mention that we had noticed bird noises for many months coming from our bathroom ceiling - it was clear there was a nest on the roof right above the bathroom (which has a window.)
So it must be bird mites. Although the bird noises haven't been present lately.Bird mites or bed bugs.Bird mites and bed bugs and scabies.Then I took a closer look at the poop. For some reason I had just assumed what I found was bedbug feces - I hadn't read that area of the forum carefully. Now I did, and realized that the droppings I've found have all been of the compact, easy to move irregular-pepper-flake flea variety. I have found these hard little pellets on my futon mattress and all over my room. I have not noticed any of the marker-line flat stain or hard-to-remove feces traces characteristic of bed bugs. On the other hand, my sheets are dark colors and my futon is coated with dark lint bits - impossible for me to distinguish tiny stains. There's a cat in the house, but she's an indoor cat who only leaves the apt. to go to the vet in a carrier. Still. Fleas. I think? I compare the bugs I captured with flea pictures. Can't tell. Compared flea and beg bug pictures. Still can't tell. I know you can't tell from the appearance of the bite. The poop is definitely flea poop. On the other hand, I have never seen any of these suckers jumping, just crawling.
So it's fleas.Bed bugs.Fleas and bed bugs. And bird mites. And scabies.It's too dark right now to take good pictures, but I will do that in the morning and upload. In the meantime I need to tell my housemates what's up and possibly my landlord. But, what on earth should I tell them? How do I figure out, of all the possibilities, what is actually going on? What is the next step? I'm going absolutely insane.
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Hi beantown,
It's extremely unlikely that you would have two different problems at once, though it's possible. Less likely you'd have three or four.
I suspect you may have bed bugs OR mites, OR fleas, and the good news is an experienced pest control firm (one which contracts with an entomologist) should be able to identify and treat whichever of these is present. The keyword is "identify." You are in a panic because your problem has not been properly identified.
Remember bird mites, fleas, and bed bugs will all multiply in time, and are visible, though the likelihood of seeing one is lower if you have fewer.
I think it's fully possible that you may have had whichever problem for a while. My understanding is that scabies can be treated with medication, so perhaps if the meds did not work and you had the problem for years, it was really something else. (Perhaps not even a parasite, but some other skin issue.)
So get the most experienced, reputable pest firm you can to do a careful search and see if they find any of those pests or their signs.
But try not to panic. I think it is very common for many of us to wonder whether one or another of these pests is the true culprit -- especially if we do not have a visual confirmation of one of them. But it's unlikely to be multiple ones, and very, very unlikely to be three or four at once.
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spideyjg
oldtimer
Joined: Jul '08
Posts: 1,405
Posted 3 months ago
Sun Aug 9 2009 2:47:08
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The flea dropping test I did was to show that "pepper flakes" could be flea droppings.
That test was on definite flea scat and doesn't preclude other possibilities. Easy for you to confirm is get a flea comb and comb the cat. If fleas are in the house, odds they would be a fair bunch on the cat at any moment. If fleas are present get the cat on a flea control product which will just about nuke the flea problem. I had cats when the first flea control stuff, Program, came around and despite humans in the house the fleas got wiped out.
Get pics of your specimens and post them for experienced eyes.
One step at a time but regardless of the pests decluttering is called for.
Jim
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beantownbugs
newbite
Joined: Aug '09
Posts: 11
Posted 3 months ago
Sun Aug 9 2009 9:27:38
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Thanks for talking me down, nobugsonme and Jim. Miraculously, I got a good night sleep and feel less crazed now. I'm waiting for my camera to charge and then I'll take some pictures.
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beantownbugs
newbite
Joined: Aug '09
Posts: 11
Posted 3 months ago
Sun Aug 9 2009 11:44:13
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Sorry, edited to delete a link. Going to fix and post again
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beantownbugs
newbite
Joined: Aug '09
Posts: 11
Posted 3 months ago
Sun Aug 9 2009 11:56:16
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Ok, trying again...
http://i786.photobucket.com/albums/yy146/beantownbug/problem005.jpg
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beantownbugs
newbite
Joined: Aug '09
Posts: 11
Posted 3 months ago
Sun Aug 9 2009 11:59:42
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That worked. Here are the rest of them.
http://i786.photobucket.com/albums/yy146/beantownbug/problem005.jpg
http://i786.photobucket.com/albums/yy146/beantownbug/problem006.jpg
http://i786.photobucket.com/albums/yy146/beantownbug/problem007.jpg
http://i786.photobucket.com/albums/yy146/beantownbug/problem008.jpg
http://i786.photobucket.com/albums/yy146/beantownbug/problem009.jpg
http://i786.photobucket.com/albums/yy146/beantownbug/problem001.jpg
http://i786.photobucket.com/albums/yy146/beantownbug/problem002.jpg
http://i786.photobucket.com/albums/yy146/beantownbug/problem003.jpg
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beantownbugs
newbite
Joined: Aug '09
Posts: 11
Posted 3 months ago
Sun Aug 9 2009 12:06:28
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Did I get identified as a spambot? My posts do not appear!
My post keeps vanishing...sorry if this gets posted more than once.
Here are the rest:
http://i786.photobucket.com/albums/yy146/beantownbug/problem003.jpg
http://i786.photobucket.com/albums/yy146/beantownbug/problem001.jpg
http://i786.photobucket.com/albums/yy146/beantownbug/problem002.jpg
http://i786.photobucket.com/albums/yy146/beantownbug/problem005.jpg
http://i786.photobucket.com/albums/yy146/beantownbug/problem006.jpg
http://i786.photobucket.com/albums/yy146/beantownbug/problem007.jpg
http://i786.photobucket.com/albums/yy146/beantownbug/problem008.jpg
http://i786.photobucket.com/albums/yy146/beantownbug/problem009.jpg
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spideyjg
oldtimer
Joined: Jul '08
Posts: 1,405
Posted 3 months ago
Sun Aug 9 2009 13:40:04
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Too oblong for a BB but too out of focus to be more specific.
Probably a beetle. Look for a single line going down in the direction head to butt on the abdomen. BBs have horizontal segments and for the most part the beetles found in a home have the single vertical line which is where wings are tucked in.
Jim
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Last two lists of links rescued from spam.
In future-- if posts do not appear immediately, no need to repost. That only convinces the spam filter that you are a spammer! ;-)
I can't view these on my phone but will login from computer later.
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buggyinsocal
oldtimer
Joined: Jun '08
Posts: 1,130
Posted 3 months ago
Sun Aug 9 2009 15:38:00
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Dude. The spam filter here is weirdly touchy. I've had it decide posts of mine with a couple of links are spam. (If the average spammer were as wordy as I was, I'd be surprised, but what do I know, right?)
The pics are a little blurry, and I'm on a schedule as the month counts down to what promises to be a crazy busy school year, so I didn't look at all the links, but it looks like a beetle of some sort to me too.
Definitely not a bed bug in those pics.
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spideyjg
oldtimer
Joined: Jul '08
Posts: 1,405
Posted 3 months ago
Sun Aug 9 2009 15:41:26
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All beetles now that the other links showed.
Jim
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Aris
junior member
Joined: Apr '08
Posts: 62
Posted 3 months ago
Sun Aug 9 2009 17:12:42
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Carpet beetles, nah?
Beantown, was the doctor you saw a dermatologist?
If not, it might help to see one."Scabies" is not usually something that one battles off and on for years. So, assuming that what you have now is the same as what you've been dealing with over the years, that diagnosis sounds a little strange.
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momto2boys
newbite
Joined: Jun '09
Posts: 29
Posted 3 months ago
Sun Aug 9 2009 18:28:16
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I 2nd the idea of seeing a derm. I have eczema and was diagnosed by several GP's as having ringworm. After almost a year of putting anti-fungals on and in my body I went to a derm who took one look and said it was eczema which it is. I haven't known anyone to get recurring scabies infestations, but I suppose anything is possible. Congrats on not having bed bugs!
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beantownbugs
newbite
Joined: Aug '09
Posts: 11
Posted 3 months ago
Sun Aug 9 2009 21:43:08
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Nobugsonme - 6 hours ago »
Last two lists of links rescued from spam.
In future-- if posts do not appear immediately, no need to repost. That only convinces the spam filter that you are a spammer! ;-)
I can't view these on my phone but will login from computer later.Thanks for rescuing the posts from the spam trap! I'll be aware of that for the future.
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beantownbugs
newbite
Joined: Aug '09
Posts: 11
Posted 3 months ago
Sun Aug 9 2009 21:46:41
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spideyjg - 8 hours ago »
Too oblong for a BB but too out of focus to be more specific.
Probably a beetle. Look for a single line going down in the direction head to butt on the abdomen. BBs have horizontal segments and for the most part the beetles found in a home have the single vertical line which is where wings are tucked in.
JimJim, I think you're right. I compared my samples to pictures of beetles and they look much more like that than bed bugs. I think they're carpet beetles. I also found a bunch of bugs in what looks the centipede-like life stage of carpet beetles. I'm still not sure that I don't have bed bugs, but at least I know the bugs I have found have not been attacking me at night.
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beantownbugs
newbite
Joined: Aug '09
Posts: 11
Posted 3 months ago
Sun Aug 9 2009 21:52:52
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Aris - 4 hours ago »
Carpet beetles, nah?
Beantown, was the doctor you saw a dermatologist?
If not, it might help to see one.
"Scabies" is not usually something that one battles off and on for years. So, assuming that what you have now is the same as what you've been dealing with over the years, that diagnosis sounds a little strange.No, it was a nurse practitioner. I've heard the waiting lists are nuts for dermatologists in this area, but you're right, I should probably at least try it. As for battling for years, I think I've reinfected myself a few times from clothing out of storage, or just never completely eradicated it from the treatment. Also, I gave it to my boyfriend at one point and we ended up passing it back and forth for a while. It might not be totally common, but I do think it can be harder to get rid of then people think. (There are scabies forums with horror stories far worse than mine.)
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beantownbugs
newbite
Joined: Aug '09
Posts: 11
Posted 3 months ago
Sun Aug 9 2009 21:55:21
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buggyinsocal - 6 hours ago »
Dude. The spam filter here is weirdly touchy. I've had it decide posts of mine with a couple of links are spam. (If the average spammer were as wordy as I was, I'd be surprised, but what do I know, right?)
The pics are a little blurry, and I'm on a schedule as the month counts down to what promises to be a crazy busy school year, so I didn't look at all the links, but it looks like a beetle of some sort to me too.
Definitely not a bed bug in those pics.I think now that they're carpet beetles...not bedbugs but still pretty gross. Good luck with school and thanks for the feedback!
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beantownbugs
newbite
Joined: Aug '09
Posts: 11
Posted 3 months ago
Sun Aug 9 2009 21:57:20
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momto2boys - 3 hours ago »
I 2nd the idea of seeing a derm. I have eczema and was diagnosed by several GP's as having ringworm. After almost a year of putting anti-fungals on and in my body I went to a derm who took one look and said it was eczema which it is. I haven't known anyone to get recurring scabies infestations, but I suppose anything is possible. Congrats on not having bed bugs!Seeing a derm is probably a good idea. Glad there was a happy ending for the ringworm thing and thanks for the input!
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