Well, now that may be one of the most unusual titles I've had for a blog post yet! But, you people know I am all about a good Public Service Announcement!
Seriously, are chiggers the WORST part of summer? I mean, at least a mosquito you can see and swat away. But chiggers--they are the invisible little terrorists that quietly jump onto a nice, unsuspecting girl's legs, and patiently wait until bedtime to inject their evil poison, causing that formerly nice girl to claw away at her formerly pretty legs, and also cause her to think words that a nice girl just doesn't think (or say.)
Are you with me on the evils of the chigger? Can I get an amen?
Just tonight, we were enjoying a cookout with friends, when my husband looked across the yard and uttered those time-stopping words, "Sara Beth is SITTING in the GRASS!!" For me, the conversation all stopped in that moment while I screamed out, "NOOOOOO!!! GET UP OFF THE GRASS!!! HURRRRRYYYYY!!!"
Okay, I didn't really scream those things...but I DID wince, close my eyes, and just imagine the itching and scratching drama we will surely witness over the next several days. Because, although all chigger bites are bad and terribly uncomfortable, for some children they are just WORSE. Terrible, no good, bad, worse. Trust me. And, for Sara Beth, chigger bites are from the devil.
During my wincing and eye closing and imagining the chigger scratching drama, my friend sitting next to me calmly said, "You know, just get that girl in a bath with a little bleach, and it'll kill those chiggers right away!"
After I kissed my friend for her life-saving information (not really, I'm not even a hugger, much less a kisser) we started talking about chiggers, and what things work and don't. I had not heard about the bleach trick--but I sure as heck gave it a try! In fact, I asked my friend if we could just bathe Sara Beth right then and there!
We'll see tomorrow morning if the bleach water trick actually works! My friend said to add about 3/4 cup of bleach to a full tub of water. I had Sara Beth sit in the water, and I made sure to scoop up the water and pour it all over her shoulders and back.
Of course, when I got home, I looked up the evil chigger online. Contrary to popular belief, the chigger does NOT burrow into the skin. It does insert a feeding structure (GROSS) into the skin and inject enzymes that cause destruction of the host tissue...Um, yeah--from all the SCRATCHING I'm sure I destroy lots of "host tissue!!!"
The article I read said the most common symptom is pronounced itching...Ya think???!!
The article also de-bunked the bleach remedy:
Many home remedies for chigger bites are based upon the incorrect belief that chiggers burrow into and remain in the skin. Nail polish, alcohol, and bleach have been applied to the bites to attempt to "suffocate" or kill the chiggers. But because the chiggers are not present in the skin, these methods are not effective.
Treatment for chigger bites is directed toward relieving the itching and inflammation. Calamine lotionand corticosteroidcreams may be used to control itching. Oral antihistamines, such as diphenhydramine(Benadryl), may also be used for symptom relief.
HOWEVER. I feel that many home remedies DO work... Even if they do not make medical sense, sometimes they work anyway. The reason these remedies may be so popular is because they DO relieve some of the symptoms, and people tell others about how it helped them...
I'm REALLY hoping that the bleach home remedy works for Sara Beth tonight. She is sound asleep right now--and smells amazingly fresh and clean!!! And bleachy! Let's just pray those EVIL CHIGGERS are not right now injecting any evil enzymes into my baby girl.
Cause, if they are...heaven help me...I am going to need more than 1 Coca-Cola tomorrow morning...
What chigger remedies work for you?
