Just wanted to update you guys on our war on bed bugs This problem has totally disrupted & altered not just my house but also my peace of mind. Home is a scary place now, we walk around with magnifying glasses inspecting pieces of lint, our clothing is still stored in Ziploc bags. Worst of all for me, is the nightmares I have, I also struggle with random creepy crawly sensations that are maddening. The place I used to love most & feel safest in doesn’t feel safe anymore.
Our Current status
We’ve had a professional treat our home with dry vapor steam, insecticide was also professionally applied, 3 treatments, one every two weeks. Our beds? gone, our sofa? gone, a computer chair, an ottoman? also gone. Smaller pieces of furniture have been inspected, vacuumed & treated. Every article of cloth that could survive a hot washer & dryer has been treated. Other items are being treated with special chemical strips in containers out in the garage. We continue to vacuum & steam floors religiously. The legs of our new steel bed frames sit in special traps called bed bug Interceptors, our memory foam mattresses are in special Safe Rest Encasement’s. We have inspection routines & drills now, I get up at 3am regularly to check walls & baseboard areas looking for bugs with a flashlight.
The Count down
I last saw a live bed bug on Oct 27th, lots of experts over at the Bed Bugger Forums advise that you need to wait till 50-60 days bed bug free before declaring victory but I am crossing my fingers here, all I can do now is just stay watchful & pray.
The Silver Lining in this Black cloud
Much as I hate to admit it, there is good that has come from this situation. Our house is amazingly clean & organized. “Deal with it now or dump it” is my new motto . Our new beds are really nice & we’re looking forward to a much more comfortable winter with fluffy new blankets & thermal drapes.
The best change though has been emotionally, this problem freaked me out badly, so much so that I reached out here on this blog & my personal Facebook page, the outpouring of emotional support that followed stunned me. So many of you reached out in one way or another to comfort me. I am so grateful to have you all in my life, your support has helped to keep me sane here!
Thank you, all of you!
I have kept meaning to come and comment on this……….
No kidding bedbugs would freak me out. They aren’t like mice (see-able) or roaches (also see-able) they are so small that they would go unnoticed for awhile.
I can’t imagine the torment you went through during this. I only saw your facebook posts and your pain.
Wishing you a bug free time from now on!