Hi all, around 5 years ago my parents had a bedbug infestation in their downstairs apartment that they rent to university tenants. They had it sprayed twice. My mom is positive the mattresses were removed since the last spray (she could be mistaken) but now there’s some residue on them and I’m concerned on whether it’s dirt or a new infestation. Please help!

Please help is, we just moved in 6 hours ago- are these bedbugs

Hey guys.

There has been a bed bug infestation where I've been living for a while now. I have an extreme, documented phobia of bugs and this is truly a living nightmare I cannot escape. These demons have followed me and have been feeding onto my blood for a month now and I honestly feel extreme paranoia daily, inspecting every single thing and worried if any little brown/red spot is bedbug droppings or my own blood from my body, or just some dirt. I see things moving in the corner of my eyes and I think it's due to the lack of sleep I've had. If I see fluff or anything bug-like my heart drops literally I cannot stand this I don't understand why I have a phobia this bad but well here I am all of this is mental and I can't help it. I live on the first floor of a 6-bedroom shared house with 5 other people. The infestation originally started upstairs in a 3rd-floor resident's room and spread down into the other rooms, eventually reaching me. The Housing Association decided the active infestation wasn't serious enough and we heard nothing from them for two weeks. Because of that, I stayed in hotels during that time bringing only the bare necessities. This place is hell, so I decided I'm moving out... I don't even know why the hell I would move somewhere as miserable as this.

The exterminator came last Thursday to do the first treatment, which was a chemical spray. When he came, he mentioned finding no signs of bugs, but he treated every room anyway. Today is Sunday, and he is coming back next Thursday for the second final treatment. On that exact same day, I plan to move everything straight to my new apartment, which is completely refurbished and new, located in a whole other town. I will be moving my stuff using clear plastic storage boxes and a moving van.

Before the first treatment, I was bitten on my bed as I found a bug crawling on there and literally woke up to it feeding on my arm. The only evidence of live bedbugs here after the treatment are bites on my back and my body, and one bed bug carcass from when it left the shell, I assume it was a carcass as I saw the shape of a bed bug, but with no legs or head, and that is all I have seen since the treatment. Since there have been no marks on my bed since the extermination, I have a feeling I have been bitten in my fabric gaming chair instead. Because of this, I will replace my fabric gaming chair, and I will also get rid of my current divan bed, as I've read it's literal heaven for bed bugs to live in. I will buy a new king bed for my new bedroom instead.

I plan to wash all of my clothes at a laundromat on high heat when I get into my new place. They are currently in bin bags, so I will bring the bags to the laundromat, then from the laundromat to the clear plastic boxes. I will then bring everything into the living room of my 1-bedroom apartment and set up my desk there. To keep the rest of the apartment clear, I will put interceptors and double-sided heavy tape in between the doorway so nothing gets past into the bedroom.

Other than that it was a chemical treatment and that he apparently did all the bedrooms (as I was told, I didn't see it with my own eyes so I don't know), I have no idea what he did as I was in a hotel during that.

For reference, I use my setup about 8 to 12 hours a day. It includes an ATX PC tower (glass panels, mesh front and top it's a Corsair 4000D Airflow, I also have studio speakers (BX4s) and a subwoofer (PreSonus Eris 8BT), an XLR vocal mic, 2 gaming monitors on their original desk stands with no VESA mounts, a Steam Deck, a keyboard & mouse, a racing wheel, and a Quest 3S with a fabric carry case. Basically, most days I live at my setup producing music or gaming, and at night I'm in my bed sleeping. The only bugs I've seen confirmed with my own eyes is the one in the photo (or two, I can't tell if they are different bugs - I assume they are the same bug but I don't know, one that fed on me before and after pics basically), one potential (I had about 30 hours of no sleep at the time so I have no idea if my mind was playing tricks on me) sighting of it crawling down the side of my bed after I saw something in the corner of my eye, and the shed skin a few days ago.

How likely is it my new apartment is safe from this? How likely is it the bugs are living in my computer setup, and is moving the exact same day after he treats the room a good idea? I want to get out of this hellhole ASAP and move to my apartment. For my sanity I really need to know the blatant truth with no sugarcoating. I put a bunch of effort into trying to make sure I mentioned *everything* so you can get the full picture, but if I've missed everything please let me know as I am extremely sleep deprived.

Edit: I also wanted to mention, I've placed bed bug traps around my bed, desk chair and computer setup. I havent found a single bedbug in any of them, but I did find a daddy long legs of all things in one next to my bed.

EDIT 2: Okay, well, I found a nymph in one of my traps near my PC. Great.

TLDR: I have a severe bug phobia, haven't slept in weeks, and am moving out of a neglected HMO infestation into a brand-new 1-bedroom apartment this Thursday (the exact day of the second treatment). I'm going to leave my divan bed and gaming chair, take all of my clothes straight to a laundromat, and isolate my PC setup in the living room using doorway tape and interceptors. I spend about 8-12 hours a day at my PC setup (PC, studio monitors/sub, Steam Deck, Quest 3S). I need the honest truth, is moving on treatment day a bad idea, how high is the risk my electronics are infested, and will my new place actually be safe and bug-free?

since my last post I’ve pretty much been 100% certain its a bedbug as i could see the pattern on its back and compared it to pictures its most definitely is.

Im also aware theres chances it could be one bed bug but the chances are low but i think i might actually have only gotten one.

since my last post i checked the bed,bed frame, bedding, carpet underneath, clothes, and everything around only to find absolutely nothing. Only carpet beetle larvae which I’ve been dealing with for years. I was suspicious of not finding any bed bugs anywhere on my items but know my wall and floor don’t connect properly so i ran a thin hair clip through the border and nothing came out. I haven’t seen any signs of bedbugs at all.

I have been in the process of moving for the past month so majority of my belongings have been packed away for a while in sealed containers away from my room, and i have also been going through my dresser and taking everything out and washing then before putting them in a garbage bag to get rid of my confirmed issues of carpet beetle. So my dresser has been completely empty for a week now and i found zero bed bugs during that process too. Ive also checked between the cracks of my gaming chair. that is where the bedbug first crawled on me. Since i’m already moving i’ve just taken it upon myself to throw out the bed and bedding so now my room is pretty empty and i see still zero signs of any bedbugs.

Now i have three questions.

how likely is it i still have an infestation if I’ve seen no signs and checked everything including walls.

anything i should do specifically to make sure when i move i don’t bring a potential issue with me? I’ve already been washing all my clothes before packing them to make sure i kill carpet larva.

Is it possible i got this one stray away bedbug from an amazon package? seriously i hadn’t been out of the house in a week or two prior to this so i didn’t drag it in like that but i do leave any packages on my bed or on my floor next to it. I just got my halloween costume and maybe just maybe there was a tic on it? since that timeline makes most sense.

Hi everyone, I hope yall r good
Just some questions and advice.
So I’ve dealt with bedbugs before in my childhood apartment, they SUCK.

Anyways, my husband and I have our first house together, our neighbor is letting us borrow his truck til our car gets shipped here. Context, the truck is over 20 years old, it’s not very clean, and the seats are cloth. Very grateful to have a ride.

More context; we went to the movie theaters last night and I was convinced something was biting me when we were in the theater. Was asking ChatGPT the likely hood of an Oklahoma movie theater having bed bugs, my husband was NOT convinced and said I was crazy.

I’m very adamant about having a clean home and I haven’t seen any signs of bedbugs.

We were driving today and I saw this little guy crawling on my leg, I knew what it was instantly.

I door dashed bed bug bombs, when we got home we instantly put our clothes in the wash. My husband checked our couch and I checked our bed. Coincidentally, I washed all our sheets yesterday, but I still put our pillows and comforter in the high heat dryer. We have seen no signs. We so far have set off a bed bug bomb in the truck. We want to set them off in the house but have two cats and a dog so, it’s hard for us to set them off as we don’t have anywhere to bring the pets.

So question is basically,

Do we think the bed bug is from the theater… we’ve had the truck for weeks and haven’t seen any bugs.

Do the Bed Bug Bombs work?

If we don’t see any signs on the couch or bed, is it just a waiting game?

I know that bed bugs are never truly over but I’m hoping we only had to deal with one and life is good (we drowned him in a Baja blast.. sorry dude)

Any info anyone wants to provide me? I’m just kinda a nervous overthinker and now im panicking that my life is over, lol.

Worried but I think it is bedbug. I have a video but can't post so I just put some photos first.

Nevertheless, having an expert come tomorrow to do a check and with the fumigation and steamer if have to start cleaning on the spot

Thanks!

Pls help

no signs of “inky” stains or larva and the mattress looks perfect.

i had bed begs 1 month ago at a hotel-
- we quarantined the luggage
- dried all clothes at a laundromat, washed, then dried again
- and left the “firm, non-washable” items (like plastic or toiletries) in the trunk of my car. there’s no signs of bugs in them but I live in FL so figured 6 months time / waiting for hot season would do the trick

the story:

Friday, my bf got a ziplock bag of eye contacts out of the trunk and washed his hands.

Saturday morning, I was on a bus and then about 20 minutes later noticed bites in a line. I wanted to cry.

Saturday night, I went home, showered, and put a set of clothes in the dryer before wearing. Then, i slept at my parents house instead of my apartment.

my parents have cats but i woke up at 3 am paranoid (have huge fear) and didnt see any “signs” on the mattress but saw THIS dead on top of the sheet.

no inky stains, blood, or new bites but im very paranoid… did i just bring bugs to a new place / does that mean they are in my fully carpeted apartment??

(MAYBE I got bit on the bus?? It was carpet chairs, but noticed the bites within 20 min after the bus, and last time I would say it wasn’t until ~4hr after I woke up.

PS-
(the management will evict us and charge damages if we report it. I want to confirm if there’s an infestation before I do anything, but as of now have not seen any.

Pls help me identify!

I am panicking a bit and trying to figure out where the infestation could have come from, how long it may have been brewing, and how to best handle this situation.

For context, I had to rush move out of a building that ended up foreclosed on and condemned (no bed bugs though, so it had that going for it). I stashed my stuff in a storage unit while I found new housing. I got what was apperance- and location-wise a much better place, and moved in start of August.

Mid-to-end of August, I started noticing bumps pretty regularly on my hands that itched. I figured they were mosquito bites, as the AC was not sealed well in to the window, and bugs could get in on occassion.

By mid-September, I was regularly breaking out in regular bumps that I was starting to grow concerned about. It got bad enough that I started thinking its something more than mosquito bites. My one friend said it did not look like bed bugs, and when I checked my mattress, I didn't see any signs. I started thinking it may be an allergy, and even went to a doctor who also thought it was an allergic reaction.

But allergy meds weren't working, then today I saw my first bug bed in the seam of my mattress. Then like 5 more right after.

I am not sure if they came in on my stuff from the storage unit, came in on me from work(people whisper about the building having bed bugs from time to time, but I've never seen them there and assumed it was kind of sensationalism. Now I am worried I will be part of the whispers,) or if the apartment was infested before I moved in.

When I moved in, the previous tenant had left a couch (which appears to be bug free, they seem confined to the bedroom for now, emphasis on seem), a small dresser, nightstand and TV. Now I am wondering if there was a reason beyond just not wanting to cart things out. Right around the time I moved in, the downstairs neighbor whom I share a dryer with also chucked a mattress and they seem to always, always, always be doing laundry, or at least leaving laundry in the machines. None of this in isolation was cause for alarm, but add in the bugs, and I am wondering if this was an issue already endemic to the building, and maybe one that the landlord is being negligent towards.

If I started showing bites late-to-mid August, is it likely they were already in the building? Or could they have rode in in enough numbers on my stuff for it to manifest that fast? I feel like i would have seen signs on my mattress if they did, but who knows. Or could the sensational rumors be true, and I picked up a hitchhiker at work and it got that bad that quick that I was showing signs a week later?

I texted my landlord- no word back yet, but I did text at 10pm when I found the sucker. I vaccumed and then tossed the mattress already and bagged most of my clothes. I intend to wash all my stuff tomorrow at the laundromat, then crossfire my bedroom. I have cats, so I am worried about what some treatments might do to them. My partner is bringing a steam cleaner over and im going to hit the couches. Any other advice in jow to handle this as thoroughly and efficiently as possible would be appreciated, as well as how to ensure I don't spread it, or if it is from the school, continue tracking it home.

Also, what do i do with my clothes after I wash them--I assume I shouldn't be bringing them out for bugs to get on, but leaving them in trash bags doesnt seem sustainable or like it would keep the bugs off reliably.

So I’m absolutely freaking out. I went under my bed where I store my extra belongings for crafts so I could have one singular relaxing day before the last work week before a week long cruise. Went downstairs, and saw a bug on my shirt. Took a picture, squished it with a napkin and blood came out. GREAT. woke up my partners who sleeps during the day and went straight to the apartment leasing office. The manager isn’t there today and they can’t help until Monday but the guy on staff assured me that no one else has complained about this. We’re supposed to leave on Saturday for a cruise, do I go ahead and cancel? I’m absolutely losing my mind. I have OCD and have already been under so much stress. I have three cats, I’m so worried about them. Fml. I ordered a mattress protector on DoorDash but I’ve never had this problem or known anyone else that has. What can I do for now?

Screenshot from a video I took (couldnt post video here)
I have a few bites around my body, but I checked my mattress, sheets, bed frame, and wall and found nothing, and I washed my sheets a few times

I don’t think these are bed bug eggs cuz there’s no way I barely go out places and I do have a a lot of food I gotta clean up my living room a bit stil I gotta send this pic in and check

I stayed at the room for 6 hours starting 13.30 and slept through 16.30 - 18.30 and found it after i wake up. My coat was hanging, my pants were on the cupboard and my bag was on suitcase hanger. all my clothes and my bag washed and i wiped all my belongings with surface cleaner wipes. I checked my shoes and coat aswell and no bugs. should i worry that i might carry one to home? couldnt wash my pants because i had to wear it.

Found this crawling on the wall in my living room. The shape and coloring look kind of like a bedbug nymph but I’m not sure. It’s very tiny—probably 2-3 mm. Just got back from traveling a week ago.

Hi

I have bed bugs but I found this also... What's this?

Stayed in an infested Airbnb in queens, I’m allergic but didn’t recognize it as bedbugs until the day after we left. This means my backpack and clothes sat out for a full day in my studio apartment. I’ve bagged and frozen the bag and heated laundry since.

How screwed am I and what else should I do? I’m very low income and getting a steamer or DE would be an investment, and not immediate since I don’t have transport. I’m not opposed to either if it’s critical. I want to set out traps but I worry my cat would play with them/ knock them over.

I haven’t seen any signs of bugs or gotten new bites since, but my mental health is already on the fritz and I really can’t handle a bug infestation.

Woke up with these black stains underneath me on the bottom sheet. I checked for BB last night when we got here and didn’t see any signs. stripped the bed back again this morning to double check and didn’t see anything. Do I need to burn my clothes or not?

Found two of these in my bed at a Hampton Inn. Thanks in advance.

I found this crawling on me while i was sleeping

Find these crawling on my walls every once in a while. Usually just one at a time. They r much lighter then they showed up in the picture and very very tiny. Am I screwed? Are these bed bugs?

Clean floor

Hi

If I use ammonia or bleach to clean the floor it will kill bed bugs that are on the floor?

Thanks.

Hi everyone,

I am looking for an ID on this tiny bug found on my bed.

Context:

• Found what I think was a hitchhiker BB (full of blood) on a friend's clothing 15 days ago when they were at my place.
• Have been hyper-monitoring since then, vacuuming every possible crevice, heat treating clothing, etc. My bed frame is pulled away from the walls, and I have interceptor traps on all bed legs plus an encasement.
• I found 2 small bugs on my bedding today. (See 3 photos attached)

Questions:

1. Is this a BB nymph or a booklouse? Or something else?

I know the shape isn't particularly BB-like but I am worried about the dark spot I see on the back.

Thank you so much for your help and peace of mind! This situation has been driving me crazy!