t monitoring for them, but, probably because I am a frequent vacuumer I managed to keep them from making an appearance while I was awake: until now. Though they obviously have been working their way to my apartment---and me---for a very long time. In any case, there is no doubt: I have bed bugs. I saw 2 bed bugs crawling on my bedroom wall near my bed last night (Friday,11/11/11). I managed to catch one and kill it, and the blood stain is still on my wall, the other escaped into the crack in the wall. Before I got out of bed this morning I killed and saved 2 dead specimens that I sealed in plastic and saved. I have been itchy and "rashy" and at least now I know the cause. So as of very early this morning, I have begun to follow the recommendations and instructions for Integrated Pest Management as formulated by Dr. Jody Gangloff-Kaufman, Cornell/NYS Integrated Pest Management Program urban entomologist and Chair of NYC's Bed Bug Advisory Board . Today, a friend came over to my apartment and we moved everything away from the walls in every room, vacuumed, cleaned with alcohol and Murphy's Oil Soap, deposited diatomaceous earth in the bedroom, and put Protect-a-Bed covers on my mattress and box spring, which is the brand recommended by Dr. Jody Gangloff-Kaufman. According to her, putting these on your bed is your first line of defense against bed bugs. When my friend and I placed the Protect-a-Bed covers on the mattress and box spring, we discovered bed bug fecal stains, blood stains, and many additional bed bugs--which were immediately vacuumed away and disposed of in vacuum bags, and then into trash bags that were sealed and labeled as containing bed bugs. I have labeled all my garbage stating that there could be bed bugs inside so that hopefully no one will open the trash bags. I have also put clothing in plastic bags (and am keeping the newly washed clothes sealed and out of the bedroom), as well as most of my other belongings. It is a monumental task and I am continuing to work on it. As you probably know, regular extermination does not work on bed bugs; often it makes the problem worse by simply driving them further into the walls, etc., and they will emerge again when they need to eat. I educated myself very quickly online at the Cornell website, since I was up all night. If you aren't already familiar with Dr. Jody, here's link to her 3 instructional videos; please pay particular attention to Video #3: How to Get Rid of Bed Bugs: http://nyc.cce.cornell.edu/UrbanEnvironment/FAQsHotTopics/Pages/BedBugs.aspx I also recommend the following bed bug info websites if you are not already familiar with them: http://www.nysipm.cornell.edu/whats_bugging_you/bed_bugs/bedbugs_faqs.asp and
http://www.habitatmag.com/Publication-Content/2009-JulyAugust/Featured-Articles-from-Our-Print-Magazine/How-to-Rid-Your-Building-of-Bedbugs#.Tr6E-PLNkxE

rsonal injury claim as I have been permanently scarred by the bites and emotionally damaged by my infestation.