Ha, I looked up some pictures of what they do. I'm good man. That's fricking terrible. How in the hell do you even know ya got'm before ya break out?
You don't. Maniacal itching for days.
Nail polish is a myth, as chiggers don't burrow into the skin.
Once you see and feel their presence, they're already gone, but the damage lingers.
I get relief from applying near scalding water to the area for as long as I can bear it, then icing it for a while. After that apply a topical anti-itch cream.
Chiggers, which are the
microscopic larvae of mites in the
Trombicula genus, feed on skin tissue. Like ticks, they're opportunistic parasites that grab onto any host that happens to wander by them. Unlike ticks, chiggers are rather bad at embedding themselves in your skin. They usually grab hold of a hair follicle or skin pore. Chiggers aren't particularly good at penetrating skin, either, so they tend to prefer areas of the body where the skin is soft and supple. People most often find chigger bites on their ankles, behind the knees, along the waistline, or in their armpits.
Once the chigger has secured itself to a hair follicle, it pierces your skin and releases some saliva, which is loaded with digestive enzymes.
The enzymes effectively liquefy your skin tissue, making it easier for the chigger to feed on your skin. A healthy human immune system will quickly detect the intruders, however, and take defensive action. A red, raised bump, called a papule, forms at the site of each chigger bite. The wall of this round welt is called a stylosome, and the chigger puts it to good use.
The little bugger uses the stylosome like a drinking straw, through which it slurps up a smoothie of skin cells.
To get a good meal, chiggers need to feed for 3-4 days. Unfortunately for them, they rarely have the chance to hang around that long on a human host. The slightest touch will brush them off. If they haven't already been dislodged when you remove your clothing, they'll get washed down the drain the next time you shower. In fact, if you suspect you've strayed into chigger territory while outdoors, a long, soapy shower should do the trick to remove any that hitched a ride. Chiggers fare much better on hosts with fur, where they can get a good grip and feed at a leisurely pace.
