Am I getting bitten by bugs?
September 14, 2010 11:17 AM Subscribe
I stayed in a hotel last night and started feeling a little itchy, like there were small bug biting me. What should I do?
From what I've read, it doesn't look seem bed bugs since the effects were not that serious and I didn't visually see any bugs, so maybe it is some other type of mites? It was not a severe itchiness but more like small tickles. There were no visible bites or anything. Part of me wondered if I was really feeling it, or just imagining it. When I came home, I immediately put all my clothes in the washer and took a hot shower. I felt fine after that, but later when I was walking near the washer at home and while driving I still felt a little itchy. Hopefully the bugs didn't spread there. I will try to avoid the bed and furniture as long as I'm feeling itchy. Is there anything else I can or should do?
From what I've read, it doesn't look seem bed bugs since the effects were not that serious and I didn't visually see any bugs, so maybe it is some other type of mites? It was not a severe itchiness but more like small tickles. There were no visible bites or anything. Part of me wondered if I was really feeling it, or just imagining it. When I came home, I immediately put all my clothes in the washer and took a hot shower. I felt fine after that, but later when I was walking near the washer at home and while driving I still felt a little itchy. Hopefully the bugs didn't spread there. I will try to avoid the bed and furniture as long as I'm feeling itchy. Is there anything else I can or should do?
Don't panic. Listen to this. IANAD, but you might just have the heebie-jeebies.
posted by Buffaload at 11:26 AM on September 14, 2010
posted by Buffaload at 11:26 AM on September 14, 2010
It might be from the soap/bleach on the sheets. Try some body lotion. I dunno about the "walking by the washer, or driving in the car " thing.
posted by lobstah at 11:30 AM on September 14, 2010
posted by lobstah at 11:30 AM on September 14, 2010
If you did not see any bugs and had no visible bites, odds are there were never any bugs to begin with. Bodies are weird; sometimes they itch for no particular reason, and oftentimes they itch due to such inocuous causes as dry skin, static electricity, or an errant thread in one's clothing. If you had been at home rather than at a hotel (and if it weren't for the current "ZOMG bedbugs" media frenzy) you probably would have just scratched yourself and moved on... which is what you should try to do now!
posted by purplemonkie at 11:35 AM on September 14, 2010
posted by purplemonkie at 11:35 AM on September 14, 2010
I'm not particularly delicate, but sometimes when I sleep in strange sheets, I do have a reaction to the soap that is used as if I have very sensitive skin
I do not think of myself as easily suggestible, but I'm getting itchy all over just reading your question.
As others have said, the brain and the body work in weird ways and I think it's most likely that if you don't see any visible bites or didn't seem any bugs and it's "not that serious", you may have the same reaction I do sometimes to strange sheets and then your brain is multiplying it.
Excuse me while I scratch all over.
posted by MCMikeNamara at 11:47 AM on September 14, 2010 [1 favorite]
I do not think of myself as easily suggestible, but I'm getting itchy all over just reading your question.
As others have said, the brain and the body work in weird ways and I think it's most likely that if you don't see any visible bites or didn't seem any bugs and it's "not that serious", you may have the same reaction I do sometimes to strange sheets and then your brain is multiplying it.
Excuse me while I scratch all over.
posted by MCMikeNamara at 11:47 AM on September 14, 2010 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Hmm... I am open to the thought that it might just be in my head, but I'm not usually very sensitive about those kinds of things. I'm not really picky about cleanliness and don't worry about getting sick much. Also, what if it's not? I've heard a lot of scary stories about bug infestations, so I'd rather be on the safe side. Is there anything else I should do?
posted by roaring beast at 11:48 AM on September 14, 2010
posted by roaring beast at 11:48 AM on September 14, 2010
Could be dust mites, as they are highly allergic, but pretty much everyone has those at home anyway.
My guess, though, is that you are imagining it.
posted by jrockway at 11:52 AM on September 14, 2010
My guess, though, is that you are imagining it.
posted by jrockway at 11:52 AM on September 14, 2010
I'm not usually very sensitive about those kinds of things.
Do you have bites? Without bites the most likely cause of the itchiness is dry skin, something unusual in the fabrics you were interacting with, or stress. I appreciate that you're trying to be rational about this, but without any concrete evidence that there were bugs on you it does not make sense to take any drastic anti-bug steps. Fleas and bedbugs bite you, with visible bites that you can see and feel.
posted by jessamyn at 11:56 AM on September 14, 2010
Do you have bites? Without bites the most likely cause of the itchiness is dry skin, something unusual in the fabrics you were interacting with, or stress. I appreciate that you're trying to be rational about this, but without any concrete evidence that there were bugs on you it does not make sense to take any drastic anti-bug steps. Fleas and bedbugs bite you, with visible bites that you can see and feel.
posted by jessamyn at 11:56 AM on September 14, 2010
2nding dust mites. I've slept in my share of filthy hovels, and sometimes mites just come with the territory. They often give me a really mild creepy crawly sensation. Not so much itchy, as just the sense that something tiny is moving on my skin.
Also, not to scare you, but sometimes bed bug bites don't show up as visible bites for a day or two. Might be best to wait and see.
As to what to do, just as a precaution against bed bugs, wash yourself and your clothes in hot water, dry the clothes in a drier hotter than 49 degrees centigrade (120 F ?), and spray your bags.
(Oh. On a reread, you've done most of that).
(Also, if the itching continues and you're certain it's not in your mind, scabies might be a slim possibility. But those little guys are pretty fragile, and I'm told they don't usually survive hotel laundries, so it seems unlikely)
posted by Ahab at 12:13 PM on September 14, 2010
Also, not to scare you, but sometimes bed bug bites don't show up as visible bites for a day or two. Might be best to wait and see.
As to what to do, just as a precaution against bed bugs, wash yourself and your clothes in hot water, dry the clothes in a drier hotter than 49 degrees centigrade (120 F ?), and spray your bags.
(Oh. On a reread, you've done most of that).
(Also, if the itching continues and you're certain it's not in your mind, scabies might be a slim possibility. But those little guys are pretty fragile, and I'm told they don't usually survive hotel laundries, so it seems unlikely)
posted by Ahab at 12:13 PM on September 14, 2010
I'm allergic to some ingredient in some detergents, and it manifests by random tiny little pin-prick itches, with nothing visible. Once I switched to the fragrance and dye-free stuff, it stopped. So echoing the possibility that it's in the detergent the hotel uses.
posted by telophase at 12:43 PM on September 14, 2010
posted by telophase at 12:43 PM on September 14, 2010
And if they are bedbugs, the bites (which can take a day or two to appear, as others have noted) are usually three in a row, AKA, breakfast lunch and dinner.
But usually the itching doesn't start until the bites appear.
And if you ever think you want to know about a bedbug's mating habits, think again. I know it's irrelevant to your question, but thought I'd throw it out there.
posted by angrycat at 3:12 PM on September 14, 2010 [1 favorite]
But usually the itching doesn't start until the bites appear.
And if you ever think you want to know about a bedbug's mating habits, think again. I know it's irrelevant to your question, but thought I'd throw it out there.
posted by angrycat at 3:12 PM on September 14, 2010 [1 favorite]
As someone who currently has scabies (ugh), I have to say, really don't worry about that possibility. It usually takes weeks to months between infection and itching with scabies, as the itching is due to an allergic reaction to the bugs' feces, not to bites directly. So you wouldn't be itching yet if that were it.
Dust mites are possible, but again, you'd probably know if you were allergic to dust mites, because it's hard to go your whole life without being in dusty places sometimes (again, I know this from personal experience with dust mite allergy).
I know nothing about bed bugs, but I think Occam's Razor suggests the most likely explanation is psychological. I spent weeks of intense head itching last year after hanging out with some kids who had head lice. Turned out it was all in (not on, ha!) my head.
posted by lollusc at 2:22 AM on September 15, 2010 [1 favorite]
Dust mites are possible, but again, you'd probably know if you were allergic to dust mites, because it's hard to go your whole life without being in dusty places sometimes (again, I know this from personal experience with dust mite allergy).
I know nothing about bed bugs, but I think Occam's Razor suggests the most likely explanation is psychological. I spent weeks of intense head itching last year after hanging out with some kids who had head lice. Turned out it was all in (not on, ha!) my head.
posted by lollusc at 2:22 AM on September 15, 2010 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: I guess now I'm thinking its maybe some combination of all the above - partly fabric/detergent and some psychological.
Ahab mentioned feeling dust mites crawling on him. Would this cause the same feeling? Is there anything to worry about with dust mites? It looks like it only causes problems if you're allergic, but not necessarily with them biting or spreading.
posted by roaring beast at 9:29 AM on September 15, 2010
Ahab mentioned feeling dust mites crawling on him. Would this cause the same feeling? Is there anything to worry about with dust mites? It looks like it only causes problems if you're allergic, but not necessarily with them biting or spreading.
posted by roaring beast at 9:29 AM on September 15, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
see Delusional Parasitosis.
posted by hermitosis at 11:25 AM on September 14, 2010 [1 favorite]