Can You Feel Bed Bugs Walking On You?

Dealing with Bed bugs can be frustrating. It’s funny how an insect that is almost weightless could be causing devastating problems for us. Their elusive habits are the things that really gets to us. They seem to be nowhere and everywhere at the same time. They can hide in almost any space, making them very difficult to locate. We really would want to catch these insects in the act. The question remains, can you feel bed bugs walking on you? At least when we are aware of being attacked, we can respond adequately.

Are They Visible To The Eyes?

Bed bugs are tiny.  An insect that can hide in any space where a credit card can fit in goes to show to what length nature has equipped them to keep out of sight. Though their body size would vary throughout their lifetime, they cannot weigh beyond a certain limit. The size of an average adult bed bug is 4.5mm (0.18 inches). The size of the nymph is approximately 2.5mm (0.09 inches). For reference, their size can be likened to that of an apple seed, but in actual fact, the seed is slightly larger. While they may be tiny, you can actually see them. They’re not microscopic. It’s just that their size and structure has made them able to evade detection. Now they can look almost invincible.

Can You Feel Them On You?

Can you feel bed bugs walking on you? Because of their tiny size, you may not feel these insects walking on you. Well, the level of your skin sensitivity may play a role, and again, it depends on the part of the body they’re actually creeping on.

Being nocturnal insects, they’ve taken advantage of our sleep patterns to get to us. Since they’re very small and almost weightless, they may not arouse you from sleep. What about when they bite us? It is very unlikely that you will feel that also. Their saliva has an anaesthetic property. So, during their act of feeding, the skin sensitivity of that particular area is greatly reduced.

So, you will be forgiven if you don’t feel these critters on you. It’s not just you. It happens to a whole lot of us. Therefore, don’t freak out when you wake up in the morning and see bite signs on you, and be left wondering why you never seemed to notice their presence at all. In fact, you should be grateful for these bite signs on you. It means you have a fresh infestation waiting to happen and you can respond adequately. For most people, around 30 to 60% of the population, they react mildly to bed bug’s bite or don’t react at all. A bug infestation can catch them unprepared.

To cap it up, can you feel bed bugs walking on you? It is possible to feel bed bugs on your skin, but not all the time. As mentioned earlier, we seem not to notice them crawling on us because they do so while we sleep. And even when they do bite us, we’re less likely to notice that also. Nature, or should we say evolution has given them the right tools to feed on us and get away with us. Deal with it!