by There’s nothing like waking up in the middle of the night and realizing bed bug biting you. If you’ve ever had the tragedy of dealing with these tiny, blood-sucking pests, you know how much of a nightmare they can be.
Traditionally to stop these pests from spreading, you will need to confine yourself to the same bed for sleeping. Once these crawlers have invaded your bed, there is not much you can do but wait. You can apply specific home remedies, but eventually, you will acquire professional help.
How to Sleep Knowing You Have Bed Bugs
It may not be convenient once you find out that your bed is infested. You might want to look for alternatives until the creepy crawlers are out of the house. But going for a choice is not an option for some.
Even if your bed is infested, you might have to sleep on it while the issues are resolved. In that case, there are several tips and hacks that you can apply to improve your sleep, even with bed bugs causing trouble. It may not completely resolve the situation, but it will make a difference.
Tips & Tricks for How to Sleep with Bed Bugs
Vacuum
Get rid of all the covers and vacuum your mattress thoroughly. Make sure you get the corners and the seams of the mattress carefully to suck out any bed bug eggs. Before vacuuming, you can try to brush off the mattress edges overall.
Include the foundation as well in this cleaning procedure. Use a hard brush to sweep off any bugs and eggs from the edges of the bed, under the mattress, under the bed, and anywhere you can reach. The bugs usually hide off in dark, hard-to-reach angles.
After brushing off, vacuum around the box spring, the bed frame, the headboard, and the mattress.
Encase both the Mattress and Box Spring
A protective mattress cover is an excellent option for preventing bug bites. Generally, they keep your mattress clean and prolong its life. Similarly, a protective cover, especially one with a zipper, will keep the bugs from reaching you. Once the cover is on, it will keep the bugs inside, and you can sleep peacefully even while your mattress is swarming with bed bugs.
If your bed has a separate box spring, that, too, should be encased to keep the bed bugs at bay. Unless you find a solution to your insect problem, it is to have your mattress and the box spring enveloped.
The covers don’t need to be of a particular material, but for the time being, a waterproof one will be better. We need one less porous so that even the tiniest bugs cannot find a way out.
As for keeping everything hygienic, it’s better to wash, steam, and sun-dry the covers at least twice or thrice a week. Encasing your mattress will protect it from the bed bugs trying to infest it again. It is a defense mechanism to keep the bugs from entering or leaving.
Steam Clean
Kill them with the steam! Steaming is a great way to decontaminate or disinfect anything that is not damaged by heat and water (check the top-rated steam cleaners for mattress).
The intense heating in steam cleaners can reach temperatures over 200 degrees Fahrenheit. Whereas the hot steam can get up to 248 degrees Fahrenheit. This temperature is enough to eradicate the bugs. They cannot survive at temperatures above 113 degrees Fahrenheit. Even Medline Plus states that high temperatures help.
Make sure you get the steam to hard-to-reach places along the foundation and the headboard. You should certainly not miss the corners and the edges. This is one of the most effective ways to kill bed bugs so you can sleep soundly in your bed again.
Similarly, washing the bedding in hot water will positively impact the extermination. Repeating the procedure twice or thrice a week is necessary. You can continue steaming until your house is entirely free of these critters.
You must consider the whole house, even if you spot these bugs on a particular bed. They tend to infest other areas like sofas, couches, etc., so be thorough as much as possible.
The more frequently you steam the bedding and mattress, the faster you can refrain from the bugs.
Use Essential Oils
Waking up to itchy welts is never fun, primarily when you know the bed bug bites. Fortunately, essential oils will fix your problem to some extent.
A few essential oils are detested by bed bugs and work as excellent bug repellents. These include lavender, peppermint, and eucalyptus. Even neem, tea tree, and cinnamon are good choices. The bugs loath the smell and the taste, so you have many options for its use. You can directly rub some on your hands, feet, and neck.
You can add some to the diffuser to incorporate the smell throughout the room. Since the scent of these essential oils is offensive to the bugs, it will work productively. You may add it to a spray bottle and spatter it around the bed, especially near the seams and the edges.
Overall you can use these oils as you want but make sure they are not used in abundance or directly on the bedding. The essential oils are capable of leaving oily stains.
Wear Full Clothes to Bed
Until you don’t get rid of the bugs, try to keep yourself covered as much as possible. The bugs won’t be able to reach your bare skin and thus won’t bite to suck blood. Switching to full sleeves instead of half and pajamas instead of shorts will make a difference.
Moreover, make sure your clothes are loose and not skin-tight. The bugs might be able to get their needle-like mouthparts through tight clothes.
Wear clean clothes daily, and ensure you wash the clothes in hot water until your house is free of bugs.
Place Bedding and Pajamas into the Dryer Everyday
The bed bugs are dirty insects, so change your clothes and sheets every night. Ensure they are thoroughly washed and dried at high temperatures so any bugs hidden in the fabric are removed. You can even consider just dumping the bedding in the dryer.
Exposing them to high temperatures in the drier might be enough to wipe out the bugs. If you do not practice these routines, they might quickly spread to other furniture in the house.
You might soon be dealing with the whole house being infested with bed bugs. Hence it is vital to go through a careful cleaning exercise every day till the bugs are completely taken care of.
Call Pest Solutions to Eliminate Bed Bugs
Remember when you were told – don’t let the bed bugs bite! Now is the time to implement it. Even though you can repeat the cleaning action or steam and vacuum regularly, you need to get to the source of the problem.
The traditional ways of keeping the bed bugs from biting might work, but you need a long-term solution. Something that will not only clear your home of these pests but stop them from bed bug infestation again. You will certainly need the experts for that – the pest controllers.
They have certain chemicals and bed bug repellents that guarantee the eradication and their return. They look and spray under every nook and corner and try to get to the initial source of the bed bug problem. Overall be wise when choosing the people for your pest solution.
Make sure the chemicals are harmless to humans. Some substances can have a dangerous impact on human health, according to PubMed. Only choose to get your house pest controlled when it is extremely necessary.
Do Bed Bugs Pose Any Harmful Effects
As mentioned by CDC, bed bugs are not dangerous. Their bites might sometimes not even leave any marks. A severe rash is rare, but people usually get red spots. The only daunting factor is sleeping with these insects crawling under you.
What Is The Main Cause Of Bed Bugs?
Bed bugs can remain alive without sucking blood for a long. Their slender, thin bodies camouflage them well while they are being transported.
Bed bugs often travel in the seams and folds of sleeping bags, luggage, fabric, bedding, second-hand furniture, and anywhere else they can hide. Most people transport bed bugs to various locations without knowing they are doing so.
Key Takeaways
Managing Bed Bugs Infestation
Dealing with bed bugs requires a combination of cleaning, encasing your mattress and box spring, and sometimes, seeking professional pest control assistance. The traditional practice to contain bed bugs is to continue sleeping in the infested bed while addressing the issue, as moving to other areas could spread the infestation further.
Improving Sleep During Infestation
To make sleeping less distressing while dealing with bed bugs, you may vacuum and steam clean the bed and surrounding areas to kill and remove the bugs. Encasing your mattress and box spring in protective covers, especially zipped ones, helps keep the bugs from reaching you.
Utilizing Heat Treatments
Bed bugs cannot survive at temperatures above 113 degrees Fahrenheit. Employing heat treatments such as steam cleaning or placing bedding and pajamas in the dryer at high temperatures can significantly aid in reducing the bed bug population. Repeating these heat treatments several times a week is necessary to maintain a level of control over the infestation.
Employing Essential Oils as Repellents
Certain essential oils like lavender, peppermint, and eucalyptus can act as repellents against bed bugs. They can be applied to the skin or sprayed around the bed to deter bed bugs from approaching, thus offering some relief from the bites.
Covering Up to Prevent Bites
Wearing full, loose clothing to bed can help minimize the area of exposed skin, which in turn reduces the chances of bed bug bites. This practice coupled with changing and washing clothes and beddings at high temperatures daily can help manage the situation until a permanent solution is found.
Seeking Professional Pest Control Assistance
If the infestation is severe or if self-help measures fail to provide adequate relief, it’s advisable to seek professional pest control assistance. Professionals have access to chemicals and treatments that can effectively eradicate bed bugs and provide a long-term solution to prevent re-infestation.
Understanding Bed Bug Behavior
Bed bugs are resilient and can spread to other rooms and furniture easily. They are not deterred by light and their activity is primarily triggered by the presence of a host. Hence, containment and thorough cleaning are crucial steps in managing a bed bug infestation.
Conclusion
Dealing with bed bugs can be horrifying, but doing the bed bug treatment as soon as you suspect them is essential. You can get rid of bed bugs and regain your peaceful, bug-free sleep by taking some simple steps.
If everything is soon under control, you may not even need pest controllers. Deep cleaning, steaming, and vacuuming are a few perspectives that you can apply. It won’t take long to refrain from the bed bugs. So, if you come in contact with these creepy crawlers, make sure you take action ASAP.
References:
https://medlineplus.gov/bedbugs.html
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22232375/
https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/bedbugs/faqs.html
Where To Sleep If you Have Bed Bugs? FAQs
Can You Sleep On The Same Bed That Has Bed Bugs?
It's not entirely impossible to sleep on a bed with bed bugs. If you have nowhere else to sleep, consider some tips to help you sleep better, even with bed bugs. You can use essential oils as they repel bed bugs. You can cover your body properly so that less skin is exposed.
Finally, grab a protective cover for the mattress and the box spring if you sleep on one. These hacks will provide some relief from the biting of the bed bugs till you get rid of them completely.
Can You Sleep With Bed Bugs With The Lights On?
Lights do not affect bed bugs. You are wrong if you believe these creatures only crawl out in the dark. Their activity depends entirely on their host, which is you.
No matter what time of the day you sleep or whether the lights are on or off, they will find their way to your body. Once you are in bed and have not taken any preventive measures, the needle-like mouths will eventually find their way to you.
Do Bed Bugs Follow You To Other Rooms?
Yes, they do. If bed bugs affect only one bed or a room, avoid sleeping in other places and spaces. This makes it easier for them to go anywhere from an infested mattress. Any fabric becomes their leverage to shield and spread.
Your clothes can carry them off to the room on the other floor your shoes can carry them to your office. Your purse can bring them to the gym, and the list continues. If you find out that these critters have taken over your bed, start steaming and vacuuming and call for help.