Got Bed Bugs? Bedbugger Forums » Reader questions (do not fit into other categories)
No physical signs other than bites. Help!
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bugsNOmore
newbite
Joined: Sep '09
Posts: 8
Posted 1 month ago
Wed Sep 23 2009 13:04:02
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About two weeks ago I noticed a patch of ''bites'' on my left hip. They were very very itchy. I also noticed a bite on each of my legs on the inner sides near the bend of my knee. The bites were in almost identical spots on each side. A day or so later I noticed another patch of bites on my outer right calf, and then another day later a patch of bites on my inner right calf. During this time I had been sleeping at my house, and ocasionally visiting my boyfriend in the hospital.
When my boyfriend got out of the hospital (about 4 days after I noticed the bites) I was complaining about how itchy they were and wondering where they came from and he suggested they might be bed bug bites because he'd seen a show about them on tv. At first I disregaurded the idea, but when the itching persisted I decided to look into it. Of course after looking into it there was no way I was getting any sleep in my bed at home, so I started sleeping at my boyfriends house. I first checked my bed for telltale signs but found no spots, no skins, nothing. I washed most of my recent laundry and pillow cases and sheets, and only went over his house wearing clothes that had been washed and dryed on high heat, and not been in my room since. I also set up a heating pad on my bed with some tape sticky side up surrounding the heating pad and near various suspected hiding places but never found anything.
In the time I spent sleeping at his house, about 5 nights, I noticed what seemed like more bites but they were in close proximity to the other ones. I had been putting rubbing alcohol on them and itching them like crazy so I thought maybe it was a rash that was spreading and hoped that was the case rather than bed bugs. Then I read online that some bites may take a few days to show up. I figured at least that they weren't new bites, unless it was common for the bugs to bite close to previous bites, but I had not read anything about that. I also noticed a small irritation on my back that wasn't itchy but has become more itchy recently, but my boyfriend never got any bites so I feel like they aren't at his house.
Finally I decided I needed to sleep in my own bed to figure this mystery out so I went home and slept in my newly washed sheets. I took some melatonin, and put on my ipod to help ease my nerves and finally I fell asleep. It wasn't very restful, but I managed to stay there all night. In the morning I inspected for bites, there were three near the bend of my right arm. They weren't too itchy, and dissapeared by the end of the day. The next night I slept on the couch, and woke up with no new bites but some irritated old bites that were ''calming down'' before the day before.
I'm getting very stressed out over this and am feeling little tingling prickling all over my body all the time. I'm scared to lay down anywhere even on my couch. What freaks me out is how unpredictable the bites are and how elusive the bugs are, it's almost impossible to know if I have the, when I got them, and where they've spreaded to since. I don't have money for a PCO which stresses me out more. I also want to add that about 5 days before I noticed the bites- me, my boyfriend, and his friend bought a second hand rug at a flea market. We sat on it that day without cleaning it. A few days ago his friend got "poison ivy" on his feet and ankles. He said it was like blisters and they were popping and stuff. He didn't go to a doctor but just guessed it was poison ivy even though he couldn't think of where he could have gotten it. I don't know what to make of this, I feel like I could be getting paranoid (I have ahuge bug phobia), but I also dont want to ignore it and let it get worse if it is bed bugs. I don't think it could be a rash because its in random spots on my body far away from eachother.
My mom bought a kit online from something called Q-Based Healthcare (hopefully not a scam?) for 99 dollars it comes with a spray, some DE, a steamer, and a matress encasing. I'm going to do some major decluttering in my room and bag all my clothes etc.
I'm sorry for the long rant but I wanted to give every detail so my question could be better answered. My question(s) is this: does this sound like bedbugs? What else could it be? Could it be possible to bring home one bedbug and thats it? Do bedbugs only come out of hiding if they detect a host? Is it possible to rid a room of bedbugs on your own without the help of a PCO? Can a put DE in an electrical outlet without a plate, or is that unsafe? Would all the bedbugs in my room come out to feed at once? And do they all hide together, or could they be scattered? Can a put DE in an electrical outlet without a plate, or is that unsafe?
I know I am asking for alot, but these are the questions I couldn't find answers to, and I really just need some help! Thanks.
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bugsNOmore
newbite
Joined: Sep '09
Posts: 8
Posted 1 month ago
Wed Sep 23 2009 14:05:30
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Also, does anyone know how long without food before they start migrating to other rooms? Because I don't want them to go into my sisters room (next room over), but I can't possibly sleep in there!
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bugfreebed
junior member
Joined: Sep '09
Posts: 55
Posted 1 month ago
Wed Sep 23 2009 17:09:05
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Your case may or may not be BB , Most BB like to feed every 5-7 days they will not all come out to feed at once some of them may hide together but not all of them . IF you can inspect and clean your bed very well then isolate it by either putting double sided tape on the legs or putting the leg in plastic containers of mineral oil and check them daily and make sure it not touching the wall or the blankets aren't touching the floor . When you put the encasement on the bed make sure to tape over the zipper well . The DE should be safe in side of the outlet . Hope this gets you a better night sleep let me know how your doing in a couple of days . By all means try to sleep in the room until you know whats going on even if you sleep in there every other night
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bugsNOmore
newbite
Joined: Sep '09
Posts: 8
Posted 1 month ago
Wed Sep 23 2009 17:56:15
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Thank you so much for reading my long post and responding. I am certainly hoping bed bugs are not the case but am doing a total DIY treatment anyway starting tomorrow. I am way too freaked out to sleep in there tonight, but hopefully after tomorrow I will feel better. I will deffinatley update within the next few days about how it goes. Again thanks alot.
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bugsNOmore
newbite
Joined: Sep '09
Posts: 8
Posted 1 month ago
Fri Sep 25 2009 11:57:15
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Okay, so we did a total self treatment. First I bagged all my clothes to be washed then bagged every little nick nack, basically everything but large furnature, and sprinkled some DE in it and am planning on not opening those for a while. Then we put DE in all the empty drawers, cabinets, closets, along the baseboards, electrical outlets, any cracks where the wall meets the ceiling (its an old house). We put DE on the matress and inside any holes in the matress, covered that with a cover. Then put DE inside the box spring and put a cover on that as well. We put DE all over my metal bed frame, all along the peremeters of my room, and outside of my room. We vacummed every inch of the carpet and then ground DE into it.
And in all of that I still found not one bed bug or any evidence of them. Hopefully it's because they were never there, and not because they're hiding out in the walls, waiting for a safe time to come out. I was so sure based on the bites (some which are still itchy!) and bite patterns, but now I am questioning. What do you think, bed bugs or no bed bugs?
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Aris
junior member
Joined: Apr '08
Posts: 62
Posted 1 month ago
Sat Sep 26 2009 22:37:26
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Sounds like a visit to an experienced dermatologist might be of some help.
If the doctor is fairly sure your rash is not due to bites, that could be very useful information.
(Of course, if the doctor thinks you are being bitten, there will still be the issue of whether it's specifically bed bugs that have been biting you.) -
bugsNOmore
newbite
Joined: Sep '09
Posts: 8
Posted 4 weeks ago
Thu Oct 22 2009 11:56:22
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UPDATE:
So after my mom and I completly treated my room, I got no more bites, but I also haven't slept in my bed at all since! My boyfriend got a new apartment and I've been staying there so there is no real way of knowing (unless I sleep in my bed) but anyway, on monday I did go in my room during the day for about a half an hour but didnt go on the bed or anything. Last night which was wednesday I noticed two small bites on the side of my butt. It was only slightly itchy and is much less noticable today. (By the way my boyfriend also brought that rug I mentioned a while ago into his garage of his new place recently) So today I decided to clean out my car and I noticed on a sock (that had been in there for a while) what looked to me like a cast bed bug skin. I put it in a ziploc baggie and took some shots:
[IMG]http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y249/Flowe07/IMG_1395-1.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y249/Flowe07/IMG_1393-1.jpg[/IMG]
All the pictures I saw online showed them as tan and kind of light colored, are they always that color? Because what I found is more of a dark brown/ reddish color.
I know these aren't the best images, but what do you think? Could my car be infested?
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upagain
junior member
Joined: Aug '09
Posts: 164
Posted 4 weeks ago
Thu Oct 22 2009 12:18:39
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Hard to tell from the image, but maybe someone else can. Try to give us an idea of the size as well.
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bugsNOmore
newbite
Joined: Sep '09
Posts: 8
Posted 4 weeks ago
Thu Oct 22 2009 13:03:02
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the actual size is pretty similar to how big it shows up in the photo, maybe a teeeeny bit smaller.
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upagain
junior member
Joined: Aug '09
Posts: 164
Posted 4 weeks ago
Thu Oct 22 2009 13:46:23
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Hard to see the detail in the photo. Think you can get a better one? Maybe zooming in, cropping, and reposting might help.
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bugsNOmore
newbite
Joined: Sep '09
Posts: 8
Posted 4 weeks ago
Fri Oct 23 2009 19:00:13
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that was the closest i could get without losing focus but i'll try again anyway.
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