It got bad before I realized. I did my research— bought the bed covers, put everything near the bed in clear plastic bags, and bought a steam cleaner.
The bugs infest your bed, reproduce, and spread out. To get rid of them you do the reverse—kill them on the bed with steam. Wait a day or two for the commuters to repopulate the bedding, repeat.
Most important thing is don’t panic. If you panic, throw out your bed, then you will prolly end up dragging your bed through your home and spread the bugs everywhere.
A year later I was volunteering at a community program teaching adults to use computers. The topic of bed bugs came up. A person said the Cedarcide product was absolutely the best product. I’m adverse to using any poison on or near my bed, so I gave it a try—it’s just cedar oil.
Well, I tried it and shared the product with my neighbors. I didn’t see any direct effect on the bugs. What I did realize was the smell of the product is distinct (and pleasant). Living in an apartment building, when you smell the product, you know someone has the problem and you can catch an infestation early. This is key.
Also, once you find and deal with the issue, best to continue to check your bedding twice a week. I found spring through to early summer is the worst. If you can get past that time, and you know your neighbors are clear, then you’re good. But as long as your neighbors have a problem, then you too have a problem.
There is a lot of irrational shame when people have the bugs. They deny and deny, so communication is key—even if it’s coded communication as the smell of whatever spray people use to treat and kill the bugs, or empty bug spray cans.