You woke up with some strange marks on your pillow case. Or, you’ve noticed mysterious red welts on your arms. Maybe you’ve spotted them right there in your bed. Bugs!

What do you do now?

Bedbugs have spread rapidly over the past two decades, and the prospect of infestation can strike fear into the most cool-headed of people. We understand—at least five of our staff members have battled bedbugs in the past few years, including me. When we were researching our guide to the best mattress cover, we found a real lack of levelheaded, practical advice on what to do if you suspect a bedbug infestation at your home.

To find out the first steps you should take if you think you have bedbugs, we talked to Molly Wilson, then the director of the Bed Bug and Urban Pest Information Center at Virginia Tech; Jeff White, technical director of Bed Bug Central, an educational resource on dealing with bedbugs; and Matt Kelly, owner of Philadelphia-based Prodigy Pest Solutions. We also put together some tips on how to avoid encountering or bringing home bedbugs when you travel.

Don’t panic

If you think you have bedbugs, don’t move furniture out of the room, don’t throw mattresses and other belongings away (we’ll explain why this is almost never necessary), don’t rip up carpet, and don’t use DIY pesticides on the bugs—all of this can spread the bedbugs further throughout your home.

Our experts were unanimous: Even if you know beyond a reasonable doubt that you have bedbugs, remain calm and don’t do anything hasty.

Bedbugs spread rapidly, may leave itchy bite marks, stain and soil bedding and furniture, are difficult and expensive to eradicate, and carry social stigma—all causing real psychological distress. But they don’t pose any immediate threat to your family’s health, because they don’t transmit disease. “They are actually much less of a threat than other blood feeders like mosquitos or ticks,” Wilson explained in an email.

Identify

There are many bedbug lookalikes, including carpet beetles, spider beetles, roach nymphs, and bat bugs, Matt Kelly explained.

Study guides show the size and appearance of bedbugs throughout their life cycle. Bedbugs typically hide during the day and are active from nightfall until an hour or two before dawn, clustering near a food source (i.e., you).

Wilson said to grab a strong flashlight and look for bugs, eggs, and cast skins in “cracks, crevices, nail or screw holes, furniture joints, seams, and under any mattress tags,” as well as on the bed frame and baseboards near your bed.

There’s nothing distinctive about a bedbug bite, so neither bite marks nor red or light-brown blood stains on your bedding are proof you have them. Look for their characteristic brown-black, dot-like fecal stains (digested blood) on your bedding, mattresses, box springs, or baseboards.

If you have bedbugs, you will find some visible evidence, Wilson explained. “Bedbugs, from eggs to adults, are visible with the naked eye. They are not microscopic, they do not fly, and they do not spontaneously generate.”

Bring in (the right) help

Wilson said you shouldn’t try to fight bedbugs on your own. “We do not recommend any DIY treatments that would be safe and effective.”

Bedbugs have developed resistance to many DIY insecticides. Spraying bedbugs with insecticides you buy at a hardware store or online will likely kill only some bugs and scatter the rest, making your problem significantly worse. Today, proven methods for killing bedbugs include using heat and steam (adult bedbugs, nymphs, and eggs die at temperatures above 113 degrees Fahrenheit), spraying growth-inhibiting chemicals, and dusting powders that physically injure the bugs. Recently, an insecticide that infects bedbugs with a deadly fungus has shown promising results. All these treatments require professional-grade equipment and training.

You may want to hire the first pest control operator (PCO) who can schedule treatment, but waiting a few extra days to research, ask questions, and vet companies can make a big difference. “Don’t assume all PCOs are created equal,” Wilson cautioned. Be wary of one-size-fits-all treatment plans, and make sure your PCO offers follow-up inspections and treatments. Effective treatment requires a “multi-pronged approach,” Wilson explained, including “at least three inspections and subsequent treatments at two-week intervals.”

Kelly said to avoid an exterminator who schedules treatment without inspection or proof you actually have bedbugs. Also beware of a PCO who tells you to throw away your mattress or other belongings. The National Pest Management Association, a nonprofit organization that sets standards for pest control companies in the US, states that in almost all cases, it’s never necessary to discard these items because treating them is part of the PCO’s job.

Clean and kill

Even if you have to wait a while for professional treatment, you should clean infested areas and kill any bugs you find. The secret weapon?

“Squish them,” Wilson said. “Every bug that you find and remove is reducing the population.” You can also pick up bugs with tape or a sticky lint roller, or vacuum them up. Remove the vacuum bag immediately afterward, and seal it in a plastic bag for disposal, to prevent any bugs from escaping.

If you want to save expensive vacuum bags and you’re using a hose vacuum, Wilson has a trick: Take a knee-high nylon stocking and pull the opening of the stocking over the hose attachment, with the stocking dangling over the end. Secure the stocking tightly with a rubber band, and turn on the vacuum. The suction will pull the stocking into the hose, and trap the bugs, cast skins, and eggs in the fabric (eggs are often sticky, and may require strong suction to remove). Turn off the vacuum and carefully remove the stocking, tie the end, and discard.

Heat-treat bedding, clothing, and other textiles in your dryer to kill bugs and eggs. Carry the items in garbage bags and loosely pack them in your dryer. Run the hottest cycle for 30 minutes (there’s no need to wash beforehand). “The dryer becomes your best friend,” said Kelly.

Encase mattresses and box springs in close-fitting, impermeable bedbug-proof covers. As we outline in our guide to mattress and pillow protectors, mattress encasements should cover all six sides of the mattress and have a zipper that won’t easily open to let bugs in or out. If you think you have an infestation, leave the covers on mattresses and box springs for 12 months (or as long as your PCO advises). Bedbugs don’t generally live on pillows, because they prefer quieter, darker spots where they won’t be disturbed.

Wilson suggested placing ClimbUp Interceptors—small, rimmed saucers dusted with talcum powder—beneath the legs of your beds, chairs, or couches to trap bedbugs trying to climb up or down. Remove other pathways by moving your bed away from walls and curtains, and don’t let bedding drape onto the floor.

Where you should sleep

“If you sleep in a different bed, different bedroom, or even on the couch, you could easily make the problem worse.” —Molly Wilson, entomologist, Virginia Tech

You might be grossed out by sleeping in the room where you found bedbugs, but if you can cope, it’s much better to stay put, even if it means a few more nights of anxiety. “If you sleep in a different bed, different bedroom, or even on the couch, you could easily make the problem worse, because hungry bedbugs will search throughout the home looking for a meal,” Wilson warned.

Jeff White concurred: “It’s easier to treat 500 bugs in one room, than 50 bugs in several rooms.” He said that it’s likely okay to sleep in another room for “one or two nights,” but eventually, the bugs will seek you out.

Communicate

We know from experience that you’ll probably want to hide your bedbug problem, but if you live in an apartment building or attached house, part of an effective treatment is coordinating inspections and treatments with your neighbors. Bedbugs can move easily between dwellings that share walls, so it’s crucial to inspect adjacent homes, treat any neighboring infestations, and put down barrier chemicals to prevent them from spreading. “It doesn’t matter if you’re the cleanest person in the world or the dirtiest or somewhere in between. If you have blood, they’re coming for you,” said Kelly.

How to keep from spreading bedbugs

To prevent sharing your bedbugs with co-workers, friends, family, and the public at large, Wilson said you should limit what you carry out of the house, and inspect those items carefully. Go minimalist (temporarily) and carry just a single bag in and out of your home. Before leaving, look over the bag’s exterior to make sure there are no insects on it. Wilson said it can be helpful to keep a clear, plastic bin with a lid near the front door and seal your belongings in it when you return home.