OT Bed bug phobia

[Stormynights]

I am getting this fear of getting bed bugs. I am getting afraid to travel. Do you think I am being silly? Maybe some bed bug safe travel tips?

[mars]

Hi Stormynights

No safe travel tips, but being educated is always a good option -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4qx751dNw7Q

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bedbug

You are probably just as likely to get them in your own home as anywhere else, so I wouldn't worry too much about travelling.

But if you really have a phobia -

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phobia

then professional help might be needed.

cheers

Mars

[rosacer]

Good idea Stormy. Me too I have been thinking at that. I hear you can bring those monsters at home in your boxes or I wonder if they can pass through a coat . Yesterday I was in my choir rehearsal and somebody stated making a pile with the coats, I instantly thought at the possibility somebody could bring bedbugs in the coat, silly me.

I was going to check how can you get rid of them in case they arrive at your place.

[kteague]

No, you are not being silly. I have a friend who won't go to movies for fear of them. A while after my daughter got home from church Sunday she had company very briefly then was walking outside and something caught her attention. Crawling down the front of her jacket was a bedbug. She doesn't know if the guest carried it in or if she picked it up earlier, but she went into crazy-woman mode, putting out diatomaceous earth in crevices etc.

Because they can be in even reputable stores and absolutely anywhere people go, it is reasonable to expect you may one day encounter one. If you do pick up an isolated hitchhiker, and get up one morning with a bite(s), respond aggressively. It may not have reproduced yet, and you may ward off a problem.

We had them about a year ago. Nearly made me crazy. Haven't seen one for about 8 months or more. Our house is about as busy as grand central station, so we're always in tune to the possibility and try to stay vigilant. But you can't stop living. I'm pretty fanatical about checking out hotel rooms, but I use Amtrack and Greyhound, so what's a woman to do?

If one is immediately proactive, the critters can be beat, and without too much effort. No need to fear them as if they signal doomsday.

[Emilia]

Just last night, I was chatting with a friend who had just returned from a week in TN with her daughter, son-in-law, and grandsons. She mentioned that her daughter had done such a good job researching hotels and amenities, and then she said that she had even checked on bedbugs. I said, HUH? So... get this, it is required to report any infestation now, and you can access this site to check on any destinations you might be interested in. She said the the other hotels they considered going to had been reported as having bugs, but they stayed at one that was not on the list. I have not researched this enough to know how thorough this reporting is, but it certainly is a helpful resource to bookmark!

http://www.bedbugregistry.com/

[Junebug999]

I nearly lost a friend a few years ago who had over 100 bites. She was staying in a very nice hotel in the l.a. Area while attending a business conference. Their bites caused a infection that led to pneumonia type symptoms. At one point it got pretty scary. But she has not become weird or paranoid about staying in hotels.

I pull the bedspread way back though.

[Bigburd2008]

Sorry, this site is for us to report to. Not required by law.

"The Bed Bug Registry is a free, public database of user-submitted bed bug reports from across the United States and Canada."

Would be nice if the government responded to our concerns, but it is run by politicians.

[Mr Earwig]

Hey! No one likes a snitch!!!

[Stormynights]

Does anyone have any tips on how to get rid of them? I think I will just plan on getting them and hope I am wrong.

[bearded_two]

I don't give bed bugs any thought at all while traveling or at home. Worrying about it does no good, and other than total isolation, I don't think that there are any effective or reasonable ways to avoid them. Even total isolation may not be effective in preventing bed bug infestation.

[BlackSpinner]

Sorry, this site is for us to report to. Not required by law.

"The Bed Bug Registry is a free, public database of user-submitted bed bug reports from across the United States and Canada."

Would be nice if the government responded to our concerns, but it is run by politicians.

They can't be bothered because only in very rare instance are bed bugs a health hazard. They are a nuisance and icky but not a health hazard, they have more important life threatening things to spend money on.

If you live in an apartment you are at the mercy of the other renters too.

[Stormynights]

I asked some older ladies that remembered bed bugs from years ago what they did to get rid of them and 2 of them said use a rag damp with coal oil and rub the seams of the mattress. Another said lavender oil. I think that would smell better but would be expensive. Any other ideas?

[chunkyfrog]

We bought a used mattress set from a second-hand store;
but the worst thing that was in it was a garter snake hiding in the box spring.
It probably ate everything else.

[Stormynights]

We bought a used mattress set from a second-hand store;
but the worst thing that was in it was a garter snake hiding in the box spring.
It probably ate everything else.

Yikes!!! bedbugs and snakes. I am glad I hardly ever have dreams.

[sleepycarol]

Hubby is a long haul driver and often gone for days on end. He has stayed in various motels/hotels around the country and said you can't always judge which are going to be the cleanest.

So far we haven't been infested.

My daughter has worked as a hotel/motel housekeeper for a couple of years and the horror stories she tells has turned me completely off from staying in one -- the one she works at is a well known national chain.