Chronic Bartholin Abscess and Cysts - My Experience
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After roughly 5 years of experience with these beasts I opted to have my gland removed. I feel as though I've been through hell and back and almost feel a sense of obligation to share my story to those who may be going through the same thing. I know I wanted to know everything about them, so the least I can do is contribute my knowledge of the topic.
*I am NOT a medical professional and I am not dishing out medical advice, just sharing an experience*
I got my first abscess towards the end of my senior year of college. I'm now 27. I had the abscess drained by OB and it did not reappear until several years later. And guess when it decided to return? My honeymoon. My honeymoon was completely ruined. We were in the Dominican Republic and I noticed it starting to swell up the morning after we arrived. By that afternoon I was already starting to feel sluggish and almost like I had the flu. By the third day I was in bed with a 102 degree fever. I was too embarrassed and nervous to see an actual doctor in the Dominican so we went to the resort clinic and I faked a sinus infection knowing they would give me antibiotics. The antibiotics did not help (cephalexin) and I still had several days until I could get a flight back to the states. I writhed in pain for days, I didn't sleep for 3 days straight. I made a half-assed attempt at popping it WITH A NEEDLE. That is what desperation will do to you! The pain was so bad I had to stop and LAY DOWN IN THE AIRPORT when we were trying to get home. Do you know how disgusting and humiliating it is to lay down on the ground in an airport? I refused to get help until we got home. There is just something about getting cut open by someone you don't know in an unfamiliar place that is just unsettling...I cried for the entire day during the course of our 2 flights home. My husband rushed me to the ER as soon as we landed. The doctor lanced the abscess and gave me a word catheter. I felt amazing afterwards. It hurt to sit, but I could work from home and within a week I was back to normal. Story should end there with a happy ending, right?
Wrong.
Fast forward to a few months later and it's back. I tried the sitz baths, but it did not change. When it got big enough and I started to feel that awful flu-ish feeling, I saw my OB GYN who once again lanced it and inserted a catheter. Went home, did my sitz baths, back to normal in a week...
Fast foward another two months and I feel another one coming on. Once again, I got the catheter. Except this time my OB stated she made a larger incision than before. It hurt extremely bad this time. I cried at the pharmacy waiting for my pain meds and cephalexin. I almost couldn't make the drive home. That night, I got chills and noticed I was bleeding way more than normal. I also developed another high fever. By that time I was a veteran with the word catheter so I knew something was wrong. Me and my husband called local hospitals trying to figure out how to classify "too much blood loss". I toughed it out and tried to sleep through the night. I was sure it was infected and that it was bleeding too much. 3 days of bleeding with chills and fever, puss burst through the catheter, almost as if it had re-burst again after it was lanced. It was a horrible, horrible experience.
Later that winter it came back once again...like clockwork, I swear. This time I had a marsupilaization. The procedure seemed almost TOO good to be true. I felt way better afterwards than when I had the catheters. We even went out to eat that night! This blissful feeling lasted for 3 whole months! I know it seems odd, but when my husband and I were intimate after the incision healed and the stitches dissolved, it was better than it was before this whole mess started!
Too good to be true, you say? You are correct.
Here we are...summertime, a little over a year after my honeymoon disaster. On a holiday weekend I felt it coming back. I went and saw my OB and she said she would lance and insert a catheter. At that point, I finally took control of what I thought should be done and declined the catheter. I requested a lancing instead because at that point - I already know it will come back, so why go through the extra pain of the catheter? She lances it, it got infected (despite the antibiotics) and re-burst again a few days later. Same fever, same pain, no sleeping, etc. I cried once again, but this time not just because it hurt, but because I felt broken. I felt like it had officially taken over my life.
Before I left my OB's office the day I got it lanced again, we talked about a more permanent solution. I mentioned removing the gland entirely (because like you people, I troll the internet looking for all possible solutions to this thing) and she shrugged her shoulders and gave me an uneasy look suggesting that removing the gland was not something she would advise.
The fact that she wouldn't even hear it out made me feel a bit less comfortable with her even though she had been my OB for 14 years! I once again took to google and searched for the BEST gynecological surgeon in my area. I settled on one and set an appointment for a second opinion. My visit with her was borderline inspiring. She was so confident, she expained that I was considered an ideal candidate for the surgery and even went so far as to draw pictures of the actual procedure for me. It sounds weird, I know, but it helped. She sent me on my way and said to call back when I was ready. I called back two months later when I just barely felt another abscess coming on and she put me on the surgery calendar. I met with her the night before and even sat down with the anesthesiologist to get a very clear picture of how everything the next day would run. The surgery went great. I'm 3 weeks post-op and feeling really well. There is still a little pain, but definitely no bleeding. I'm used to healing really quickly so I keep expecting it to not hurt at all, but that is just unrealistic considering a gland was removed from my body.
I'm not going to tell anyone on here to go out and do the surgery. It is up to you.
Below is what did not work for me.
Sitz baths
Tea tree oil
Epsom salts
Silicia
Serrapeptase
Probiotics (these are good for you anyway)
Drawing salves
Massaging the area
Steam/warm compresses
Ice packs
Antibiotics
Calamine lotion
The Bartholin Cyst Miracle e-book
Here is a little procedure cheat-sheet for those who may be unfamiliar:
Lancing - the area is numbed with a topical anesthetic, again with local anesthetic and a small incision is made into the abscess/cyst to allow the built up puss to drain. **soooo gross**
Word Catheter - incision is made similiar to the above, except a small tube with a balloon on the end is inserted into the hole. This allows the hole to remain open and encourages the cyst to continue to drain. My first doctor said the catheter should stay in place for a few days. The internet told me 4 weeks. My second doctor that performed my excision also said it should have stayed in for at least a few weeks.
Marsupilization - incision is made per the above and instead stitched open to allow the hole to remain open. From what I've heard, this has been a permanent solution for some! Not for me, but I definitely preferred it over the catheter.
Gland Excision - exactly that. The entire gland is removed. Recovery time is around 6 weeks, pain is mild, I was also warned that disfigurement is a possibility, but that was not the case for me. Yes, I've looked at it.
It may be too early to tell if my surgery has a good prognosis, however, my doctor did say she was able to remove almost all of the gland. It is important to know that the gland is so small and the area is so vascular, that it can sometimes be difficult for the surgeon to remove the entire mechanism. Understanding how much was removed will help you better figure out your chance for reccurrence.
Well friends, I wish everyone on here the best of luck with this awful condition. It blows my mind that this disorder doesn't get a whole lot of attention considering how life altering it really can be. I leave you with just a few of my mantras for battling this crap: you are not alone, you are not broken, and you are not crazy. Do your research, don't be afraid to get second opinions and do what you feel is best for your body and your well being.
12 likes, 230 replies
tiffanym80 megan38992
Posted
I'm glad to have found your story. I'm in tears as I'm reading it because it's happening to me again. I'm so angry. I just noticed this morning as I took a shower. I'm so scared to go through this again. I'm embarassed to have to tell my new boyfriend about it. Obviously its going to be an issue since I have to deal with this crap before I'm going to want him to be intimate with me. I have to take care of myself though. I need to get the gland removed. I cannot do this again. It will be the 12th time that it's going to be bad. I can already tell with the pain thats already occuring and its just been one day. I'm scared.
sophy82113 tiffanym80
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meredith10011 megan38992
Posted
Hi Megan,
I was just wondering whether you'd be able to pass along the name of the surgeon here in NYC that did your surgery. I have a wonderful OBGYN but after an unsuccessful surgery of marzupalization + partial gland removal (she removed only the wall of the gland .. I have absolutely no idea why she didn't just removed the entire gland while she was in there! Kills me!) just a few months ago (late July), my cyst is back. Not infected, but it's growing and know it's only a matter of time and I just want it removed completely. That being said, I have found it nearly impossible to find a "Bartholin" specialist here in the city. I spend a lot of time researching and selecting my doctors and it's driving me mad that I cannot find an expert here in the city that knows how to do a successful gland-removal surgery ... with minimal scarring.
Hope you are still cyst-free
Thank you and hope to hear from soon (trying to get surgery in before end of year)!
megan38992 meredith10011
Posted
Hi Meredith,
My surgery was in Texas. I'm not sure why, but several people have stated it was in NYC.
Sorry I can't be of more help!
yanna83685 megan38992
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Paris32612 megan38992
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joanna69280 megan38992
Posted
Hi Megan,
I've been suffering from recurrent bartholin cysts/abscesses for 3 years now. I've done multiple word catheters and two marsupilizations. I was hoping you could update me on how you're recovery has been post your gland removal?
megan38992 joanna69280
Posted
I'm sorry to hear about your situation! I'm still cyst/abscess free since my gland removal surgery. I was just thinking the other day how I'm still very glad I had it done.
joanna69280 megan38992
Posted
That's so great Megan! My current gone has advised me
To avoid doing the surgery due to potential risks of postoperative pain and less lubrication. It's so reassuring to hear you are doing so well as I am really considering the surgery. I feel like if these cysts keep coming for me
Than clearly that gland isn't functioning properly anyways. Did your surgeon review with you probability of postoperative complications? If so, what were they? Thanks so much for your guidance on this matter. I feel so alone in this struggle!
bev98647 megan38992
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cjpower megan38992
Posted
Megan,
I had my sweat glands removed in my groin area over 10 years ago. I was given a choice of a medication that could do major damage mentally (I already had/have mental disorders) or have my sweat glands removed. I was informed that having the surgery would not leave much scaring, actually very minimum, and that I would not have the recurring cysts/abscesses. I was unfortunate with the scarring and the cysts/abscesses came back within a year, but they are in a different location...They do not show up on my scar. I'm now trying to figure out what to do in order to eliminate the amount of times I go through this, at least once per month.
Thanks for your post because I do feel like I've been the only one going through this type of thing!
SSottc megan38992
Posted
amanda87580 megan38992
Posted
For starters sorry you went through hell. Thank you for posting. I had a cyst form a little over a year ago and it went away on its own but at the start of March I developed another and like most of us I went straight to Internet to find out what it may be. After hurting for a week I finally went to ER, great Doctor that confirmed what I thought though he only injected the numbing agent once and a small dose before squeezing and having me climb walls I got relief. Now not even 2 months later another in same spot came back. I tried primary care doc they wouldn't touch it. Back to ER this doctor numbed me up good and gave a pain pill before making a larger incision and packed it to keep open. Now I am no expert but I still feel a knot. 1st thing Monday I am calling my GYN to ask about removal. Like you I want to seriously reduce the risk of recurrence as this is more painful than childbirth. I can not tell you how much I appreciate your thread and input on this.
Prayers and many thanks hope life has been much better for you.
Amanda
megan38992 amanda87580
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betzLA megan38992
Posted
I want to thank you and the rest of the women on this forum for sharing your stories. I've been feeling so overwhelmed and nobody I know in person has experienced this. I wouldn't wish these cysts on my worst enemy.
I got my first cyst a year ago. I had recently moved to a new city and was not yet established with a gynecologist. So when I suddenly had a swollen, excruciatingly painful lump the size of a gofball between my legs, I had absolutely no idea where to turn.
I started at an urgent care facility. They explained the cyst, drained it and told me they wanted to pack the area to allow it to continue draining. But after poking and prodding and sticking me, after so much blood and so many tears, they still couldn't pack it. So they sent me home.
Of course, the next day it had closed up swollen even bigger. I went back again and they drained it. This time, they were able to pack the wound. They told me to return in two days to have it repacked.
By that time, I was exhausted and terrified and in so much pain that my mom insisted on taking me to the ER to have the packing changed and get a culture to rule out a staph infection. They were able to quickly change the packing and send me on my way (which landed me with a $900 ER bill- I should've just gone back to urgent care but my mother insisted and I didn't have the energy to argue).
I was able to find a gynecologist in the next town over who could see me a couple days later. She told me we could probably let it heal up but I didn't want to risk it swelling again so I had her pack it one last time. She said a catheter should have been inserted from the start. The packing fell out a couple days letter and I let the incision heal. It did not swell up again and I was just left with some scarring and PTSD from the whole ordeal.
I made it almost exactly one year without a recurrence. Then a couple weeks ago, I felt that familiar tenderness. Since the last cyst, I've found myself a very nice gynecologist, so I called and he was able to see me a couple days later. He said the cyst was the size of a fat grape and was definitely turning into an abscess. He said he could drain it and insert a catheter or he could prescribe some antibiotics and we could wait it out with regular baths.
The antibiotics worked, though they were intense- the kind they use to treat anthrax. I took probiotics to try to keep my gut from going crazy and to keep myself from getting a yeast infection. I went back to my gyno eight days later and he said the swelling was down and the cyst had shrunk to the size of a large jellybean. He said to just keep an eye on it.
I continued baths and waited it out, avoiding any situations in which I might get turned on as I didn't want to cause any swelling from my body trying to create lunrication.
The worst part of it all is the stress and fear. The first experience was so bloody and scary that just the thought of going through it again is enough to have me feeling dizzy and worked up. I think this is my new normal and there's a good chance I'll be dealing with these cysts for the rest of my life.
I wish there was more we could do to prevent this. I also wonder if there's a correlation between bartholin cysts and our predisposition to cysts elsewhere in the body. I've always had very cystic breasts and it sounds like a few of you have also experienced other types of cysts.
Anyway- stay strong, fam. You're not alone!
megan38992 betzLA
Posted