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truth10
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Trig Sep 26, 2019 at 04:52 PM
  #1
Just joined this. I hope someone can help!

I am having a great deal of anxiety involving entomophobia. It stems from a recent experience involving bed bugs. I hope I don't seem as if I'm longwinded here, but let me give you the basics of the situation. I rented one room of a house for many years. Bed bugs infested the room across the hall from me a few months ago and a few made it into my room. I decided to move in with my grandmother, who let me into her home with full willingness. I did NOT tell her about the bed bugs, thinking it would be best not to put that into her head. Before moving in, I did everything I felt I should do to prevent them from following me. I did not bring any bedding (no mattresses, blankets, sleeping bags, or pillows) nor did I bring any furniture. The only thing from that house that is currently in hers is my TV, a plastic hamper, and two plastic containers full of clothes. I took all of my clothes to a laundromat (as opposed to using her washer and dryer) before I moved in, and naturally I made sure to wash and dry them in the hottest temperatures for at least 40 minutes. While at the laundromat, I was sure to clean all of my plastic containers with bleach and hot water. I have several of those containers in the garage as well as contatiners of books, DVDs, etc. there (all of which I also cleaned with bleach). I even sprayed every inch of the inside of my car with rubbing alcohol. On top of all of that, I had a representative from Orkin come on a day in which my grandmother wasn't there and inspect every room of the house, every piece of furniture, all of the beds, my car, and the garage. He found nothing and even gave me an official report. So far, with the exception of a dead one on my back seat a week ago, I have found nothing myself. I've slept quite well, never seen anything crawling on my bed, don't have any itches or bite marks (my feet swelled the last month I lived at the old house, they have since gone back to normal), and my grandmother has never complained of anything (and she has even ridden as a passenger in my car).

It's been roughly six weeks since I moved in. And yet, almost every day, I have an anxiety attack. I feel that formication- the sensation that insects are crawling on me- all the time! I go to my car wondering if they're hiding-ditto for my bed, my work office, the couch in the living room, just about everywhere. I worry excessively about the scenario of them infesting my mattress, my grandmother's mattress, the houses of friends and family I've visited, all of that. Even though everyone's told me that I did everything right and by now their eggs would've hatched and they would've need blood feedings to survive, I can't shake it. This is true even though everyone I've visited says they have found nothing (I even stayed at a friend's house for four nights before I moved-and they have an eight month baby, giving them much to worry about. THEY even said that I need to relax). Seriously-no blood found, no itching, no fecal spots, no shedded molts, no complaints from anyone-friends, co-workers, family, etc. Yet, it's ruining my life. I can't go anywhere without wondering if I'm seeing one out of the corner of my eye or feeling one on my skin. When I go home, I IMMEDIATELY check the couch and my bed for anything wrong as well as the basement (where I keep my clothes). As I mentioned, I'm very weary when I go to my car as well, checking all the seats and under them.

If anyone can help me, I greatly appreciate it. I can't take much more of this.

Last edited by atisketatasket; Sep 26, 2019 at 07:24 PM.. Reason: trigger added
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Smile Sep 27, 2019 at 01:02 PM
  #2
Hello truth: I see this is your first post here on PC. So...welcome to Psych Central. Here are links to 2 articles, from Psych Central's archives, that discuss treatments for specific phobias:

Specific Phobia Treatment | Psych Central

What is Exposure Therapy?

Also... family therapist, Kati Morton, has a video on her YouTube channel on the subject of exposure therapy. Here's a link to that video:

YouTube

I hope you find PC to be of benefit.

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Default Oct 02, 2019 at 06:23 PM
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Default Oct 03, 2019 at 05:02 PM
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I had bed bug issues with a few roommates I stayed with over a year ago as well. They are not fun. And I understand that they can give people fear sometimes, especially after a major infestation. What I would suggest is to take a few deep breaths, remind yourself that you haven’t seen any since moving in and that most likely means you don’t have a bedbug issue, and then come up with preventative measures to take if you do happen to find any of those ugly bastards in the house (ex. Call an exterminator, do laundry, bleach treatments, etc.) Remember you are in control here, not the bugs. Most importantly if you have a panic attack, take it easy on yourself. Don’t blame yourself for it or start saying things like: ‘it’s so stupid.’ Your fears are valid, and you just need to give yourself time. I would also reccomend seeing a therapist to work on coping skills for your anxiety.

Hope this helped! My bedbug issue never traumatized me to the extent that you have been, but I know how it feels to be anxious about even the smallest things. Keep us updated. <3
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cygne
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Default Oct 06, 2019 at 04:00 PM
  #5
Plug-in insect repellent? It must be very tough to be going through all that you've mentioned and I can't say if it's going to get any better. I do hope the best for you. I think you should definitely try some sort of plug-in repellent which you can leave on before heading out (maybe it'll make you feel more safe) and maybe you could just think of leaving the lights on at night?

If you've bleached everything, there's no chance for dust mites to survive. Remember to wash laundry above 140 degrees since that kills both nymphs and eggs. I bet you do all of that. No bugs left. They've left your place for good cause of the good scare you gave them . It's just irrational fear at this point. Therapy will help to isolate the fear and find the root cause.

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