You've been waking up to itchy, red bites, and now you've finally spotted them - reddish-brown bed bugs have been living in your bed. Finding bed bugs is frustrating and perhaps a bit traumatizing. Once you get past that initial shock and anger, however, you're sure to have a few questions. Here are the answers to common questions about bed bugs.

More and more, homeowners are seeking to use fewer harsh chemicals around their home. Your apprehension regarding pesticide use in the home is understandable since certain pesticides have been linked to conditions like cancer and Alzheimer's disease. In your fear, you may be tempted to natural, DIY pest control tactics like peppermint, clove, rosemary, or lemon oil.

Sadly, research shows that these essential oils and pest removal products that contain them aren't effective. Using them in an attempt to remove bed bugs is a mistake; bed bugs replicate quickly, so by the time you realize your DIY efforts failed, you'll have even more bugs to eradicate.

Rely on professionals for bed bug treatment. If you prefer a chemical-free treatment, your pest control company can use heat treatment, raising the temperature inside your home to a level that kills the bugs.

The idea that you should throw away your bed if you have bed bugs is just a misconception. Throwing away your bed won't get rid of the bugs; they often live in the carpet and in other crevices, too. Plus, beds are expensive to replace, and there are cheaper ways to rid your bed of bugs.=

Once a professional pest control service has treated your space for bed bugs, encase your mattress in a plastic cover. This will trap any lingering bugs so they can't escape and continue to bite you. Leave the plastic case in place for at least a year.

In an effort to escape the bugs, you may be tempted to sleep in a different room temporarily. If you do this, you must do it very carefully so that you don't spread bed bugs to another room in the process.

Do not bring anything with you - clothes, bedding, furniture, or a mattress - when you go to sleep in the next room. Wear only freshly laundered clothes that were dried on a high heat setting to kill any bed bugs.

If you can bear it, however, your best option is to keep sleeping in the same room. This approach helps prevent the bed bugs from spreading throughout the home.

You may have friends who had bed bugs return after treatment. This happens sometimes because bed bugs are very resilient, good at hiding, and fast to reproduce. In addition to hiring a pest control company to treat your home, there are a few things you can do to reduce the risk of them returning.

• Launder all of your clothing, drying it on high for 30 minutes afterward to kill any bed bugs.
• Keep your freshly laundered clothing in a plastic bag until the pest control company has treated your home.
• Tidy up your room. Pick up clutter so that the heat or pesticides used to eradicate the bugs can penetrate to the carpet.
• Vacuum daily for a few weeks after treatment.