Chronic Bartholin Abscess and Cysts - My Experience
Posted , 91 users are following.
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
glory96064 megan38992
Posted
hello Megan I'm glory I've been suffering from bartholins cyst abscesses since 2013,then I was 14years old am Currently 19 I had a surgery done when I was 14 the doctor promised it wouldn't show up again but it did and it's really painful have tried several medications but the one that seems to work for me are ibuprofen (pain relief) and lincocyn how long have your gland been removed is it really helpful in any way reply back
Thanks
megan38992 glory96064
Posted
It’s been a little over three years since I had my gland removed and it was probably the best medical decision I made for myself. I’ve had no recurrences.
Lauraalicetom megan38992
Posted
megan38992 Lauraalicetom
Posted
kim_27874 megan38992
Posted
Hi Megan, your story about this problem is amazing. I am 57 and I had my gland removed 2 years ago. I had never had a problem with this before and had never even heard of Bartholins cyst. Mine started with a bad UTI and during the night I woke up and felt this huge lump. I was scared to death and went to the ER. They knew right away what it was and the doctor lanced it only for it to fill back up. He called in the on duty gynecologist and she recommended removal so that's what I did and went back to work two days later. To have to have lived through this multiple times I can't even begin to imagine. Thank you for sharing and helping those of us searching for answers.
kenzy56857 kim_27874
Posted
As a fellow sufferer of BC, and a new found one at that, I am in desperate search of answers; I know it is very personal but if you don't mind me asking, after having the gland(s) removed have you noticed significant dryness "down there"??
I ask because I would really like to have mine removed as I have suffered over 7 years now, but am afraid to do so because I have read on other sites that once they had them taken that they then suffered from dryness.
Thank you for your time!
Lauraalicetom kim_27874
Posted
megan38992 kim_27874
Posted
I am glad you were able to get the help you needed. Thank you for sharing your story with us. Every little bit on this forum is helping another BC sufferer in some way.
kenzy56857 megan38992
Posted
My question for you is: how is life (sexually and otherwise) for you since having your glands removed? I am considering requesting mine be taken too, but have read that a lot of women who have also had theirs removed now suffer from vaginal dryness?
Totally understand if that is too personal of a question! But like you I am all kinds of confused and hurting and looking for a permanent fix. I am not comfortable with having to use lubrication the rest of my life, however.
Thank you for your time!
megan38992 kenzy56857
Posted
I try to stay as involved as I can on this thread. I did not experience any additional dryness due to the gland excision. Granted, I’ve always struggled with hormonal issues so dryness was always something I sort of struggled with regularly. It was, and still is, one of the best decisions I made for myself. 4 years later and I’m doing well and even went on to have my first child with no issue. I hope you find relief soon and it’s great that you are doing your research!
Amydee82 megan38992
Posted
He was not able to reach the tip of the gland, and I noticed the cyst had returned a few months later.
Rewind to the lancing. It was hell bc the dr who did it made the incision on the labia majora (outer lips) instead of the mucosa of the labia minora (inner lips). The incusion is never supppsed to be on the outside. I received no discharge instruction other than “don’t ride a bike or anything like that for about six weeks, bye.” I hopped up, still numb, blood pouring out of me into a pad, to get my meds.
About an hour later, during the drive home, I realized why I was prescribed a narcotic pain killer. Thank god I read the bottles and didn’t take it until I got home. I was an excruciating pain by the time I arrived, and has developed a hematoma the size of a softball.
Was driven back to the dr, where she made a second cut into the wrong part of my V, and was sent home. Lost my job because they disagreed that it was bad enough for me to miss a week of work. They didn’t fire me... I got called in to have a talk about how I had put them in. bind, saw the slip, and quit on the spot. I bled into the chair but no one cared.
The cyst came back within weeks. I tried everything. I spent loads of money on herbal remedies, I stopped biking, I broke up with my boyfriend, I took boiling hot baths in all manner of convictions, tried some pills marketed to cure it. Popped it manually when it looked like it was getting infected. I even got off birth control thinking maybe it was contributing.
It kept coming back faster, bigger, more inflamed, and harder to pop each time. Eventually, it would bleed and hurt for days. And then eventually I could no longer pop it at all.
I went to several dr who basically said well, it’s no big deal if you can still pop it. Maybe try hotter baths. Ugh. Really. Finally found the surgeon who said he wanted to take the cyst and gland out.
Had the excision surgery. He said I bled so much, he didn’t get it all but it shouldn’t come back. After that surgery, I had another huge hematoma, bigger than the first, as well as an ulcer near th incision site. A week after the surgery and being literally unable to move from flat on my back in spreadeagle position, he cleared the hematoma. The tissues were so swollen and inflamed, he couldn’t numb me. He tried and it didn’t work. So he strapped me into some weird stirrups that trap each ankle like an upside down noose, had four nurses hold me down, and cut me open. Horrible experience but it did finally speed up my recovery and relieve the awful pressure from the hematoma.
I got married and had two kids after this surgery, despite the cyst.
Pregnant with my first baby, it cane bsck. When I emailed him to tell him the cyst was back a few months after the surgery he flat out said it wasn’t possible. Well, I struggled for another seven years. Great for my marriage (not). At first, it was almost asymtomatic but about two years ago, caused pain during and after sex. I also developed inflammation in adjacent tissues, causing a varicose vein and constant discomfort.
It took me the entire two years to find a surgeon who would try the removal a second time. All the other dr wanted to just lance it, catheterise it, or do nothing. I felt I was beyond such basic measures and just wanted the job done.
I saw six drs this year. Two said they would do it, but only one said she felt confident she could do it correctly after the amount of trauma. I picked her. She was very thorough, drawing pictures, giving me best and worst case scenarios, telling me the recovery would be long and painful. Telling me I will have a scar. I went for it. She said she got aggressive with the amount of tissue she took so I would have the least chance of recurance.
A week post op, I am healing better than I did for either of the other procedures. Pathology was normal, and she felt confident she got it. There is always a risk that she didn’t and I really hope that’s not the case.
The pain was intense for the first 3-4 days, and I am still lying down a lot. Bruising and swelling initially was horrible but no large hematoma. Got off the strong pain meds three days post op and now am taking Tylenol. I took a ten minute walk, very slowly, and then had to sit a while. I still have pain and a numb spot where the incision was made. I will have a visible scar. But if the cyst is finally gone, it is all worth it.
That’s my story so far. Hoping and begging god my bartholins gland story ends here, and my life can finally just be some kind of normal. Someone needs to find an easier cure or a less invasive method of doing this surgery that works. No one realizes the hell these are until they get one.