Oh Shit, You Suspect You Have Bed Bugs
This past week, a group of us gals took a trip to Chiang Mai together and decided to stay at an Airbnb. It was a gorgeous villa with a pool and 6 various rooms to choose from. It was a luxurious place to stay at, so bedbugs weren’t at top of mind for us at all.
Towards a couple days into the trip, one of my friends woke up with bites all over her arms, and then showed us a couple of bugs she found in her bed. We told her to document everything and take photos since we would need to figure out what was going on. She later showed us two small bugs that we couldn’t identify, as well as saying there were some black debris in the corners of the bed.
In the end, she ended up moving to another empty room to stay for the next couple of days, but bedbugs will follow you regardless. She ended up with bite marks near her stomach, armpit, and all along one arm. The thing is, none of us had bed bugs so we weren’t sure where she got bit. Whether it was a bug who followed her on a tuktuk or during traveling from place to place, we really have no idea where it came from.
I realized it was a bit insane to not go to the doctor’s or get this checked out and I was to be rooming with her towards the end of our trip, so I urged her to go to the pharmacy and get things checked immediately.
How to Check if it’s Bedbugs
- They usually bite in 3s or in bunches.
- Go to a local pharmacy or doctor to get it confirmed that it is indeed bedbugs. They can prescribe you the right medicine and give advice on next steps too.
- If they are bugs in your bed or there is blood on certain spots, then you can safely say there are bedbugs.
- Check under the mattress and see if there are any remnants of bug trail, which are usually dark and have dark stains of blood.
The other issue is that other travelers will bring them via their luggage, clothes, and in other spaces. It is impertinent to keep your items or clothes away from everyone else’s until the situation can be dealt with.
Do Laundry Right Away
Do your laundry as soon as possible. If you can, send it over to a nearby washer and let them know you’re washing your clothes due to bed bugs. They have probably dealt with similar situations multiple times and will know to wash it at high temperatures, as well as leaving it in the sun to kill off any bed bugs. Think high heat when washing and high heat when drying. Keep your old clothes away from the newly washed clothes as far as possible.
Treatment and Medicine
We went to a pharmacy store in Chiang Mai and the pharmacist agreed it was bed bugs. He’s seen too many of these cases before, and said he could prescribe an oral antihistamine or a cream to help with the itching.
He didn’t seem too surprised nor shocked, so I’m sure this happens often at certain places in Chiang Mai.
He also mentioned that bedbug bites don’t usually need treatment, as they usually disappear on their own within a week or two. My friend mentioned it looked worse than it was, and the itching was quite mild. However, the bites definitely looks worse before they get better. A lot of them looked like they had a bit of water in them.
Final thoughts
I’m not the kind to fuck around and find out, so I definitely would take it seriously if there were any reasons to check up on bites or get things fixed asap.
Always put your luggage or bags AWAY from the bed. Keep them separated in case anything happens.
Switch rooms immediately in case you find yourself getting bitten or having bedbugs in your room.
Even the nicest places could potentially have bedbugs, but you need to check them in case. Check under mattresses, on the bedsheets, pillows, etc. Even until today, we’re not sure how she got bedbugs, but it could’ve been brought in from someplace else.
Best of luck when traveling! And hope you don’t have to deal with bedbugs ever.
