Bed bugs or fleas

[LisaSs]

Hi,

I have a bit of a problem, for a past 2 weeks I keep getting bitten- I’ll attached pictures of the bites. My son who sleeps with me or my partner are not- it’s only me. I got paranoia that we have bed bugs- but we stripped the bed out and looked closely on every inch of the mattress- nothing there. No black spots on the mattress or blood spots on sheets as well.

so I’m thinking flea? But we don’t have any pets 🥲 please help, what this bites looks like to you, they are very itchy

I think bed bugs bites are usually in a line.. They don't look like that to me.

Do you sleep with your leg out of bed, and do you have water in your garden?

Hi @Renamed no and no :(

@GreyAreas yiu think? I’m probably paranoid but the bites are starting to be unbareable on my legs

They look like flea bites. I have flea bag cats and have seen and scratches plenty over the years.

Bedbugs tend to do 3 bites (people call it the breakfast, lunch, tea indicator). I'd say hoover thoroughly and put down flea treatment. Boil wash the bedding just in case and keep your eyes peeled.

Hmm, my house had fleas due to cats and I was getting bitten mainly on ankles and calves - the main areas fleas target. I thought maybe bed bugs at first as didn’t see any fleas but no sign. I bought a spray from pets at home - Indorex, and sprayed the whole house and vacuumed every day. I also bought tea tree oil from Superdrug and put some on my feet legs and over rest of my body - haven’t been bitten since. Treated the cats too.

I’m not meaning to scare you at all. My mother did have bed bug bites from holiday they did look like this however that’s not to say these are! It may be nothing. I saw a really good hack online to check if you have bedbugs. Iron the top of your mattress and it brings them to the surface if you have any there.

The fact that they're on your ankles and lower calves makes me think fleas. The warm weather will have woken the fleas up. Just get some Indorex as mentioned upthread from Pets At Home or something, and treat the carpets.

You can't tell the difference from the appearance of the bites but generally if confined to ankles it's more likely to be fleas. Both can bite in lines of 3 or so.

Check the joints of the bed frame if there is one.

Have you moved in recently? We had a flea infestation from the previous tenant, but I expect bedbugs can live quite a long time without food too.

We knew it was fleas when we found them hopping on us. Sleeping in full PJs tucked in everywhere, including into socks, can help reduce bites while you are figuring it out.

If funds allow getting pest control in might be a good shout. Indorex is good but about £25 a can, and it can take multiple cans if you need to treat a big area, whereas if you pay someone to treat the house they will probably retreat for free if it doesn't work. Generally spray round the edges of the room where the wall and floor meet.

@cheekycee i did that! Nothing showed up

@Antonania we moved in 8 months ago, have no pets, however 2 weeks ago our new neighbours (downstairs) moved in- they have a cat. Bites are only on my legs, only 2 on my side 😭

Thought of having bed bugs scare me so much I can’t sleep properly!

I had this and everyone else in my house was fine. It was fleas from the cat, and a good treatment of the house sorted it. Some people react to the bites and others don't.

@pudseypie but we don’t have any animals:(

Did you have any bites before the down stairs neighbours moved in with their cat? If not then I suspect you've found the culprit.

Hm cat fleas sound not impossible if you share a hallway, but it does seem a bit of a stretch. Is there carpet in any shared area?

@Antonania no. We have upstairs flat, downstairs moved in about 2 weeks ago (about the time when it all started). We share a hallway but that’s it

Do you sleep alone? If with someone else do they also get bitten? If they don't get bitten it won't be bed bugs.

A few years ago I was getting bitten along my sock line as a bug had found its way in to my sock drawer. Stopped after washing everything on a hot wash.

@roses2 i sleep with my boyfriend and our 1 year old son, only I get bitten this much- my son had maybe 1 bite and partner none

If more than one person is being bitten and only in bed I think it's more likely than not a bed bug 😪

We had fleas last summer and only DS was bitten. The bites look similar tbh. Indorex works if applied properly.

I really hope this ain’t bed bugs, this gives me so much anxiety

Not everyone reacts to bedbug bites. My daughter and I shared a bed in a hotel. I got bitten but she didn’t. OP I think they look more like flea bites than bed bug bites.