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Date: June 30, 2007
StoryHere is my
story....it was around 2003 when I started to notice a small red
bump on my back, that soon followed with pain. I ignored it for
awhile until the spot got bigger, I went to a walk in clinic and was
immediately told it was a pilonidal cyst, they drained it there and
sent me to a follow up the next day with a surgeon, sure enough I
had to have it cut open and have tissue removed, my wound was left
open and had to have a vacume pump attached to me, to drain it
daily, on top of that I had to have a nurse come to my house daily
for new bandages and cleaning, and couldn't work because the pain
was nearly unbearable, once a week I had to go to a wound clinic for
observations and measurements of the area, the outside was healing
but the inside began to tunnel all the way to the bone, so I had to
go back in for another surgery, I was only 20 yrs old at the time
and I am a female, who they say hardly ever get's these, I am a
clean freak and a germ aphob and couldn't understand this. I had to
put up with not working, the bandages, pain and daily visits from a
nurse for over 7 months, and now I am finally healed.
Fast forward 4 years later, the absess is gone but still get a
piercing pain from time to time, and fear it will come back. Not
only did I have to fight this pain, but at the end of the healing
process I had to get help for pain medication addiction, it went
from one embarassment to another, the doctors prescribed me 40mg of
oxycontin to take 3 times a day, at the time I never new what it was
and what it could do to a person, when I first started taking it I
would get really sick, but the doctors said my body just had to get
use to it, 8 months later my body was use to it, and then had to
stop cold turkey, I had the shakes and vomiting for weeks, my
parents wanted to sue the doctors, but at the end of the day, I
should have seen how it had overcome me. So if any of your are
currently going into surgery or are post op, just prepare yourself
for these are problems that can follow, I never thought something
like a cyst would cause me to go into withdrawls over a med that was
supposed to help me.don't let the pain releivers control you. Get
help- sincerly, once a pain in the butt......
Date:
June 28, 2007
StoryHi!I'm 20 years old and self-diagnosed pilonidal cyst 2
weeks ago.I should consult a surgeon in a few days.My current
problem is that I'm a FTM transsexual person and I should start
testosterone therapy soon (injections) and change my body from
female to male. Even now, before therapy I have facial and
body hair and with testosterone they'll become more dense..hope that
it won't worsen wound healing after cystectomy.I had removal of
ovarian cysts with complications 2 years ago...the worst period of
my life. I'm so glad I found this site and read other people's
experiences. Now I'm calmer as I know what to expect.All the
best!Andre
Date: June 27, 2007
StoryWell, I had my pilonidal cyst surgery about 7 weeks ago.
Luckily they were able to sew the wound together. The first week or
so was horrible and then it got better. Unfortunately, it stopped
getting better. The draining never subsided, and aparently the wound
never healed. Now im the lucky patient who gets to go back and have
the surgery a second time in one summer. but this time, i get to
have the wound left open. Im 19 years old. Im a college student. Im
stuck in one hell of a perdicament. Unfortunately, i dont have an
option but to have the second surgery, but if i could go back - i
would definately have left it alone. (I know its no fun to have, but
it certainly beats the unknown outcome of surgery) The recouperation
on these suckers is grueling. Good luck to anyone suffering from a
pilonidal cyst.
Date: June 26, 2007
StoryHi everyone, I'm now 23, and my first pilonidal prob
appeared when I was 12. It never drains on its own, I've only
developped tiny visible sinus holes this year, and it seems to bug
me a lot in the summer time (may it be increased humidity and/or
activity). I'm horrified about biking, though I used to enjoy it a
lot. I'm a pianist, so I tend to bounce around on a bench which
doesn't help either... and my day job requires a lot of sitting.
I've gotten a really really bad flare up around the age of 18, got
it lanced and drained... but I've never had the surgery. It still
comes back and forth, and when not visible, there's a constant
tenderness inside at the tailbone... My mom had it as well and had
surgery in her late teens - early 20s, and she never got a bad flare
up since, only tenderness with menstral cycle up to menapause. I'm
very discouraged this summer, and surgery isn't an option until it
flares up bad enough again. Until then, I'm playing the antibiotic
game, worrying about the eventualities... Very discouraged...
Date: June 25, 2007
StoryHi all, I too have had this problem in my 20s and 30s
although I did have symptoms in my late teenage years that cleared
up temporarily with antibiotics. Mine was real bad and infected when
I faced going to the Doctor (at the time I was not really sure what
it was!). I was told to keep it soaked 2x per day in a hot bath and
meet with a surgeon. Weeks Later I did have the surgery(1989) and
had the open method completed with 2 timer per day bath soaks and
gauze changes forever; maybe 5 months? I thought it slowly went
away, though any stretching or vigorous activity I could feel
drainage. To my dismay, 3 or so years later I had a new surgeon and
a re do procedure. The same method and follow up resulted in no
problem since that time.(1994). I still avoid hard surfaces to sit,
and some activitie that require stretching of that area in a certain
way, but have had no further signs of this. Unrelated to this, I
have had boils on my face of all places that I have self treated.
Iam not sure if a doctor could connect the two. Anyway, I now am a
certified health nut and multi-time marathoner in my early 50s, and
vigilantly treat my body as a temple. For those of you going through
this, I would say to keep positive and treating the open method to
me seems more logical than the others and the hot baths seemed at
the time to really help things along. My wife still reminds me how
she had to apply peroxide 2 times a day on my butt! Ron in Minnesota
Date: June 24, 2007
StoryI have had 4 long years of fighting with a pilonidal sinus.
I was a 43 yr old female and had something above my tailbone that
hurt and kept draining so I went to my Dr and she said it was a
pilonidal sinus. I figured she would just give me an antibiotic and
that would be that. WRONG!!!! I was sent to a general surgeon to
have surgery. He cut it out, left it open, packed it and sent me
home with instructions to take out the packing the next day and soak
in the tub once a day.
Well, it did not heal at all. I went back to the surgeon and he
spent the next 2 yrs using silver nitrate to try and get it to heal.
It didn't heal at all and one day I felt my backside rip open and
guess what - I had another large hole under where the surgery was. I
went back to the surgeon and he said he didn't know what it was from
but wasn't serious and would just cauterized that with silver
nitrate as well. It still didn't heal and I had 2 holes now that
were getting more and more sore. I went back to my family Dr and
told her that this wasn't working and I needed to see a colon rectal
surgeon. There was a waiting list of 1 yr to get in to see
him. I then was referred to a wound clinic. They told me immediatly
that the pilonidal sinus was tracking and spreading. There was a
third hole starting as well. It was also filled with bacteria. They
cleaned it out and then explained to me that it needed to be packed
twice a day to get it to heal from the inside out properly.
I used me-salt packing and was put on Cipro for antibiotics for
several months and things appeared to be working. It closed but kept
opening so still packing and then put on Clindamycin for 6 months.
Again, still closing and reopening. Finally I got in to see the
colon rectal surgeon and he told me that I needed to shave all the
area as the hair gets in it and it and causes it to fester. He even
showed me a little ball that he pulled out of the wound. He
explained how the movement of the butt cheeks draws hair up to the
area and that needed to be stopped. I was also told that the wound
had been open for so long that it would not heal and I would have 2
holes for good but I should be able to get them healed better than
they were. So I went home and shaved EVERYTHING and kept it shaved.
Well guess what - In 6 weeks one hole fully closed and 3 weeks later
the 2nd one fully closed. It has been 6 months now and still all is
well. I never thought I was going to get this thing healed but so
far so good. Good luck to all still doing battle. If I can help or
answer any questions my email is lgilland@hotmail.com
Date: June 23, 2007
StoryI am a 29 yr old female that has been embarrassed about
this as long as I can remember. In middle school I noticed my
tailbone hurting, and as the yrs went by it never really developed
into a cyst but would leak and be gross for a couple of days.
Finally in sep 05, it happened. It was THE most painful thing ever
and to top it of I was one leave (Im active duty Navy) visiting
family and we went to Yosemite,lol, I sucked it up and layed down in
the backseat and told noone what was really wrong.I just said my
back hurt.And I was doing everything to try and pop it, but it was
to painful, I almost took a needle to it, but couldnt, but did hot
wet washcloths and baths. While we were all watchin tv it burst and
it filled the room with a horrid smell and I started sweating. My
aunt asked me if I was ok and said I was. As son as it burst the
relief was immediate, and I didn't care that much about being
embarrassed.
Well fast forward to May 06, I am about 6 mos pregnant and was
having a awful time so far, it appeared again and this time, I said
"screw this, I am goin to medical "My OB/GYN sent me up to get it
lanced right away. Painful ..YES..worth it..HELL YES. Again the
relief was immediate and I was grateful and found out that I wasnt
the only one with this THINg, le talone the only women, so that made
me feel better. After the lancing, it didnt heal, I know it had to
do with me being diabetic when I was pregnant so I didnt worry.
Well, my son is 10 mos and it was still around, but drained from teh
scar tissue before it gets really bad. I finally opted for surgery
and had it the 18 of june 07. And I was really scared because I had
a c section and didnt want a spinal again. But it was great, no pain
and I stayed overnight, beca eu I live alone.But now is 5day post
surgery and it is just now starting to hurt, but 2 vicodin fixed
that. I m looking forward to being healed and for this to go away.
he said there was a 15 % chance of it coming back, but I will take
that odds. I am tired of hiding that part of my body from men or
having sex in the dark so he doest see a cyst.Even though I know i
isnt a hygiene thing, i still feel like I am dirty because of it,
and I hope that will change also, Oh my surgeon is also gettin me
appts for laser hair removal (all free!!)and I might be vain, but I
just didnt think it was something a pretty girl gets,lol, but they
do!
Date: June 23, 2007
StoryI had a Pilonidal Cystectomy on May 31st. I had the cyst
for a very long time. It started off as a bump that turned very
sore. It then opened up and popped so to speak. It would fill up and
pop about every 2 weeks for a few months. Finally it didn't fill
back up. But it was all under the skin then. Years went by and I
lived with it. Finally I could not. The drainage and pain became too
much.
My surgery was a closed, or stitched up, surgery. But the wound
didn't heal all the way and I have an open wound that is healing
from the inside out. I am documenting my journey with photos (yes it
is embarrassing but I'm still willing to do it for the greater
good!).
You can view my healing journey at
www.pilonidalcyst.bravehost.com I'm not sure if I'm allowed to post
a link here or if there is somewhere else to post it. Thanks for
reading! Gracie Six
Date: June 21, 2007
StoryIt was about a year ago that I had my first cyst to appear.
I didn't think anything about. I just assumed that I must have
bumped my butt up against something hard and just didn't realize it.
A couple days went by and the pain got worse. It was inferring with
my life. I'm a full-time college student and let me tell you, those
seats are not the softest. So I finally went to the doctor. They
gave me antibiotics. Luckily, this cyst went away in about a week. I
thought it was over but that was all very wrong.
So about 6 months later after my experince with the first cyst, I
had another one to appear. But this one vanished before it gave me
to much pain, so I didn't have to go to the doctor. I was very
relieved.
It was the first week of May and I was preparing for my finals on
Monday and throughout the week. I was at work and trying to study
when I felt some pain. I was hoping it wasn't what I thought it was.
I went to the bathroom and felt. There was that cyst again. It hurt
to sit down but it wasn't real bad. So I let it go and told my
husband that I have another cyst. So I made plans to go to the
doctor as soon as I could but at the time, I had finals to prepare
for.
So when Monday came around, my pain has increased. It was worst
than ever before. After my 1st final, I went to the doctors office.
The nurse practitioner felt of it and sent me into tears. She
prescribed me antibiotics, Bactrium. She didn't give me anything for
the pain so I just had to bare it. It was so sensitive. So I left
and began the medication immediately. I went on the take my 2nd
final. That night was horrible. I took warm baths hoping that would
decrease the pain and the cyst.
I awoke Tuesday morning and began vomiting. This was very strange
considering I don't ever get sick and if I do, I do not vomit. I
called the doctor's office and told them thinking that maybe I was
having an allergic reation to the medication. They said that was
very rare but wrote me another prescribtion anyway, amoxicillen. I
began taking that medication that day and discontiued the bactrium.
I continued to vomit all day. But I did keep the medicine down. I
assumed it was just a stomach virus. The pain was getting worse
though. I was taking more warm baths because that was the only thing
that relieved the pain. All Tuesday, I did not eat. I vomitied so
much that I burnt the inside of my mouth up. That night I slept in
the bath tub. With the vomiting and the pain, the bathroom was my
heaven.
The next day (Wednesday), I was still vomiting and the pain was
unbearable. I was crying and just couldn't take it anymore. I could
not believe that the cyst got this bad. My family was worried beyond
normal. They have never seen me in this bad of shape. I called my
mother and asked her to take me to the ER. This would be the first
time I had ever been to the ER in my life. I'm a very healthy person
and I'm always exercising and just being active. She took me. I was
as pale as a ghost and still vomiting and hurting. We finally got
there and saw a doctor. He said that the cyst was to soft to drain.
He said that it is highly doubted that I have an allergy to bactrium
and said that it would help the cyst more than the amocillen. He
said bactrium was my best bet for the infection also. He also
prescribed me lorcets for my pain . As with the vomitimg, he said
that it could be a stomach virus but to drink plenty of liquids but
he gave my vingrin for the vomiting. So I left and began taking my
new medicine. I went home with my mother because my husband was
going to be out of town coaching a baseball game and she did not
want me to be alone considering the medication I was on I hadn't ate
since Monday night. I was weak and scaried. I knew something was
really bad wrong. I shouldn't be hurting and vomiting like I did.
For two days I was like that and each hour I was getting worse. The
medicine did let me sleep for at least a couple of hours. That was
the most sleep I recieved in those two days.
Thursday came rolling around and my mother was scared to death.
She said I was pale as the dead and had these dark circles around me
eyes. I was still very weak. The lorcets help some. Somtimes the
worked good enough to get by and other times the didn't do anything.
I had to reschedule one of my final that was suppose to be on
Wednesday, so today I went to take my final. My professor looked at
me and asked if I was okay. I honestly thought I was dying. I could
barely walk. I wasn't even in my right mind sometimes. And still I
couldn't eat. And again, all that day I took baths and sleep. It was
all I could do. I didn't work go into work Thursday, which was my
first time in ever missing working, so my boss defiantly knew
something was wrong.
Friday: I had another doctor appointment that day for a follow up
on the one from Monday. The nurse and everyone there knew there was
something bad wrong. They have knew me for years and they were
worried. The nurse practiner looked at my cyst and again I screamed
and cried like crazy. It even hurt to have someone to blow on it.
She said that she couldn't drain it. She has drain others but she
wouldn't dare to drain mine because it looked so bad. My lower back
was beginning to swell really bad and it was moving up back. The
cyst was so large that it began to turn black and blue. I told her
that I've been vomiting since Tuesday morning and could not keep
anything down, not even my medicine. She gave me a pregnace test but
I wasn't pregnant. She told me that if I didn't get any better by
Monday to go straight to the ER. And I didn't get any better. I was
only getting worse. The nurse practinor made me an appointment with
a surgeon and talk about having it removed that comeing Tueasday.
So...I went into work Friday for some strange reason. I was training
a new girl that night. But I end up laying in a back room vomiting
untill my shift was over.
Saturaday came around and I could not even stand up. My husband
had to help me walk around because I was so weak that I couldn't do
it on my own. I was constantly crying. The pain was worse than ever.
My husband took a look at the cyst and told me that I was going
straight to the ER. He said it looked horrible. I again, I went to
the ER. Final, I got back in there to see a doctor and they decided
it was time to lance it. Thank God. I asked if it would be numb and
she said that they had a numbing cream but since my cyst and so
tender and hurt real bad that it might not really work. I asked if
there was anything else and she said no. A nurse came in that put a
genetric cream on me and said that it might work. Well, it didn't.
The doctor came in and cut a small incision in my cyst. I screamed
to the top of my lungs and cried as hard as I could. It was the
worst pain I had ever been in. My husband was right there holding my
hand and supporting me throught it all. The doctor talk me through
it for what words of her's could get though between my screams. She
then had to squeeze to get all the infection. This hurt as bad if
not worse than the cutting. Finally after I begged mercy, she packed
it. This was the least pain of it all. The doctor got a cup of green
infection of the cyst. I was already schedule to see a surgeon that
coming Tuesday. So she just told me to keep my appointment. I left
the ER feeling 10 times better. I was sore but my pain meds were
starting to kick in. I went home finally after being there for
hours. When I got home, I ate some pizza. This was the first thing I
ate in days, well since Monday night. I slept all that night. I
tossed and turned but I slept great compared to the nights before.
Sunday my family came over to see me. I was going much better. I
tried to throw up just gagged and all. Everything felt so much
better. I felt better. The reason I was vomiting was due to the
infection. Nobody did any blood work so no body knew that the
infection leaked out into my system. That was why I was so sick and
weak.
Tuesday came and I went and saw the surgeon. he told me that he
could not do anything with it because it was still really infected
and draining but to come back in two weeks and we would talk then.
So I went back in two weeks and he said it looked really good.
During those two weeks my husband had to change my packing 1 to 2
times a day. The first time was bad because it was sore but after a
while I was fine and didn't even notice or really feel anything. He
then told me my options. He said that I could continue with life and
probably be right back in the same shoes I was in having to go
through it all over again. OR.. I would have a surgery and it would
decrease my chances of ever going though this ever again. I of
course went with surgery. He explained everything to me and said
that he will do the surgery in two weeks. I was nervous but I knew
that it would help me in the long run. I know that there is always
that chance of me getting one again but at least I did do everything
I could possibly do to prevent on.
So on June 7, 2007 I had my surgery. I cam out and everything was
great. I got two doses of Morphine which was great. I had five
stiches on my butt. He used the lancing cut and then just kinda
curved it into my butt crak but away from my tail bone. Today I had
the stiches removed and I have to see him in about a month for a
follow up to make sure that the tissue form real nice. Having
stiches wasn't real bad. I was sore really bad for about a week. But
that lighten up alot and then perocets helped me alot too. I could
do much walking because of increase swelling. I had to take two
weeks off work. Today I'm still a little sore and not able to sit
right on my butt, I'm still having to lean...kinda sitting on you
hip. But I am so glad that I had this surgery. I am so glad that I
now feel back to my old self. I would recommend surgery to all, if
their case calls for it. Just don't let the cyst get out of control.
As soon as your get your first symptom, go straight to the hospital.
I've did tons of research and know that I will always have a chance
of one coming back but as long as I do everything in my possible
control to not every go through a lancing or ever let it get that
bad...I'm happy. The surgery was easier for me than the lancing
because the cyst and the surrounding area was so tender when the
lance it. But I promise that the pain form the lancing and the
soreness and the healing and every was completely worth it. I wish
everyone the best of luck with it because I know how hard it can
be....Sarah
Date: June 21, 2007
StoryMy first cyst was about 6 years ago. I was taking a bath
and I thought "wow" my tailbone hurts. At the time it was strange
because I don't do any kind of activity that would give me an injury
like that. I told my mother and she said, well if you hurt your
tailbone we better get you to the emergency room. I did't want to
go, I was a little scared. When the doctor examined me he said "oh
you have something on your tailbone but it is not from injury" I
also had a fever. He told me that this was just the beginning and
there was nothing I could do until it was ready to drain. I remember
thinking oh just like a pimple it will be fine.
WELL I WAS WRONG.... The most awful pain followed. I went back to
the emergency room three times.. I was mortified, thought soemthing
was wrong, and they just said this is the most painful part.. they
even gave me two perkidan leaving the ER. It finally was lanced, and
I had the surgery, the minor one... Five years later it came back,
same deal except no surgery... now it is back again, I am in a lot
of pain. I am scard to have the major one, so I am opting for the
minor one again. I think Pilonidal cysts need to be more widely
known, it is scary, and painful, and make you panic like crazy...
All I have to say to anyone who is not sure if they have it... is,
if you have pain on your tailbone.. you feel crappy with a fever, it
is red, go to the doctor immediately..
Date: June 20, 2007
StoryI have suffered with Pilonidal Sinuses since 1984. Since
then I have had many recurrent ones but mainly at the top of the
natal cleft. I believe that I have had around 10 operations on 5
sinuses in 4 different UK hospitals. I have had several different
procedures - from draining and suturing through to draining,
excision and packing or flap creation through plastic surgery .
I am currently undergoing daily packing for a PS that I had
excised on February 25th this year. It was initially excised and
then sutured together. Unfortunately 3 days after the stiches were
removed the wound parted. I then resumed a daily packing regime with
alginate dressing at my local Health Centre.
At the start the wound was quite deep and taking 40 cm strip of
dressing to pack it but now it is very shallow and should heal in 1
- 2 weeks.
I can honestly say that the worst part of the whole procedure is
the first time that the wound packing is rtemoved post surgery. In
the early days this was ribbon gauze soaked in saline - and I have
never experienced pain like it. I have even had morphine but I was
still in great pain. The best results were when I was given a local
anaesthetic of lignocaine to thw wound area - this worked really
well I could barely feel a thing.
Finally, if you have or think that you ghave one of these get
down to your doctors asap. The smaller the abcess means it it easier
to treat and it will heal up faster. Don't be embarrased about it -
it is a surprisingly common thing.
David
Date: June 14, 2007
StoryWow... It seems like everybody knows someone whose suffered
from a pilonidal cyst. I first got my signs way back in November of
2004.. I was a high school student enrolled in Florida Virtual
School, the very first high school to go fully online. Anyways I was
playing runescape at the time, I remember this in almost detail now,
and I felt this.. sticky mess in my crack.. and there was some blood
plus sensitive tissue, it was so weird. Like a tentacle coming out,
I felt like that guy in alien, when I touched it, BAM! I was hit
with like a bolt of pain, and then it vanished, like the flesh
string was pulled back into a bloody crevice. Life went on after
that incident, I was so scared past that night, I remember math
class was the only one I needed to physically attend, and I hated
it, because my cyst would constantly leak, I had to find ways of
mopping up all the ooze and blood coming from my backside.
In January of 2005 I still had said nothing about my problem to
anyone, just feeling depressed as hell... alone... but I found
outlets to escape my thoughts.. chess! I played this game so much I
joined a team and we event went to tournaments. My brother was also
attending, and you know how little brothers can be, always fooling
around and such. Well he thought it would be funny to "head-butt"
me, he was like.. what.. 8 years? Anyways, he hit my tail bone dead
on, and I swear it was like an explosion went off, I thought he had
just completely broken something. I ran to the restroom immediately
darting for the stalls. I pulled down my pants to see what the
damage was... horrific. The blood was everywhere, just as I had
experienced, although it wasn't all that painful anymore, just scary
as hell. I mopped it all up with toilet paper, even my bloody hands,
stuffed more in my boxers and went on my way. In February my little
sister was born, and for whatever reason I had the strange Idea I
had cancer, I mean I was completely devastated. With a new baby our
medical bills would be out of the ceiling, and I was in such a state
of shock I could do nothing. Most of my grandparents had died of
some form of cancer, it seemed like the only logical explanation...
about seven months later I finally brought myself to tell my family
the bad news, just balling the whole way, from the living room to
the hospital.
To make things a little shorter I got setup with surgery and the
thing was removed, leaving a grand canyon size hole where my ass
used to be.. seriously, I didn't even have an inch between my
"o-ring" and the 7 inch long cut going down to the bone. Turns out
waiting that long gave it time to nurse into a big beautiful pain in
the everything. Fortunately after the first week being post-op I was
rushed back to the hospital just in time to stop an infection that
had taken advantage of a weakened immune system. Later the hospital
staff got me on something called a wound-vac. The little machine was
amazing at reducing pain plus healing, but there was a downside...
it had to be changed every 3 days.. can you imagine that? we've got
a wad of foam shoved into a deep wound, which is then covered with a
HUGE sheet of super-stick plastic wrap and all sucked together for
48 hours. You can believe me when I tell you there is a hell.
To make things shorter.. took me 6 months to not even reach all
the way healed, when the doc discovered another cyst. had another
surgery, BUT! this time I ate steak, drank protein shakes, and
downed those terrible protein bars, all along side lazer hair
removal treatment, which by the way sucks ass. I'm all better now,
thankfully, but I am soo worried about the future. You see I've been
reading these stories and it sounds like the cysts are brought about
by long periods of sitting, probably in my case from doing 6 hours
of online school work each day in hardback chairs. It sounds like
however that the way to get around all this junk is to just keep
active, don't sit in funny positions, avoid getting kicked in the
ass, and just keep a balance between your feet and the seat.
Hopefully nothing like this has to happen again. Note..
anti-depressives are a great way to gaining health... you cannot
believe how hard things were. Lots of love, -Bill Kilpatrick
Date: June 13, 2007
StoryI had just turned 13 (I am now 30). Was at school playing
crab soccer. I fell and my butt hit the floor. I went home that
evening complaining of pain and told my mom I thought I might have
cracked my tailbone or something. My mother was against going to the
doctor over every little pain. So her answer to me was "they cannot
do anything about a cracked tailbone, deal with it". Yes my mother
was harsh, but that's another story and another chapter of my book
that I will not discuss here.
3 months later of excruciating pain of being barely able to sit.
All my school classes were on the 2nd floor with no elevator. I
finally decided that I had dealt with that pain enough. I called my
grandmother and told her I needed to see the doctor. She called my
mom at work and threatened her at work, or else! (Thanks grandma)
Finally was taken to the doctor and they told her I would more than
likely need surgery and sent me to a specialist.
I made for sure to see a female specialist because I did
not want a another man looking at my behind. The specialist lanced
it right there in the office. She said to wait a couple of weeks and
see if it gets any better and that if it didn't to make another
appointment and we would schedule a surgery. Well it helped but did
not fix the situation. So we went back and scheduled the outpatient
surgery. After the surgery the doctor told my mother that she got a
"wad of hair out of there that was the size of a baseball" Eww. She
also told my mom that a Open Healing is the best way to go, there is
a smaller risk of it every coming back again if you let it heal
instead of stitches or staples. So that's the route we went. The
good news is because of this surgery and the way they wanted my
wound to heal, I was off school for a month!
I am no 30 and have never had another episode. But I still have
the scar to prove I had it. LOL. It does not go away despite what
some people may think. It does not look as bad, but its still there.
A scar about 3 to 4 inches long right down my butt crack. My family
is a bit on the hairy side, even the females, so I do tend to blame
this on the genes. LOL.
To all the girls, teenagers, etc. Please do not worry about this.
Especially if you are in your dating years and are becoming sexually
active anytime soon. Be upfront about it, and if they love you, they
won't care what your butt looks like. If they do care, then you
didn't need them anyway, and move on. I always felt self conscience
about it, but realized years later that it didn't matter. I have
found the true love of my life and it doesn't bother him one bit, he
says its a part of me, and he loves every inch.
Date: June 11, 2007
StoryI'm 23 year old female and about a month ago around May 8th
I started feeling uncomfortable pain near my tailbone, I thought I
somehow could of fractured my tailbone or may have pulled a muscle
near my tail bone. the pain kept on getting worse and worse. I went
to my primary 2 weeks after experiencing the pain, told her all my
symptoms and she said nothing was wrong with me. The next night the
pain was worse, it was 1 in the morning and I could not sleep, I
ended it up going to the emergency room where they then told me I
had pilonidal cyst. They gave me antibiotics and percocets. I lived
with the pain and percocets till the following Thursday where I went
to see a rectal/colon surgeon. He informed me that I needed to get
surgery and it would be done for the next morning which was May
25th.
When I went to the hospital next morning for my surgery, the
nurses were pleasant and helpful. They gave me local anesthesia
which knocked me out right away, I was in surgery for only 20-30
min. and 2 hours later I was at a restaurant eating lunch and went
home. I only took percocets for 3 days. I had an open wound surgery,
no stitches involved. I refused to look at my wound for 2 weeks, I
went online to see pictures of open wound pilonidal surgery and they
did not look pretty. I finally decided to take a look at it last
Tuesday and it’s a really small whole about the size of a quarter or
even small. I don't have any pain, the surgery went smooth, its been
two weeks and I've been out partying and enjoying the summer. My
surgeon was incredible, it is very important you research the
surgeon and at best go see a rectal/colon specialist surgeon for
they are more experienced. I hear stories about how bad people’s
surgeries have gone and how deep and big the incision was and I am
so thankful and lucky for my surgeon.
It’s been 2 weeks and I'm healing the wound is closing hopefully
another two weeks to go, I highly recommend the open wound rather
then the stitching. The stitching will cause an infection and the
open wound most likely will not, plus no scarring. If you live in
the New Jersey area, my surgeon was Dr. Bruno Bufalini, he is
excellent!!!
Date: June 11, 2007
StoryI am a 35 year old female and the first time I remember
noticing my cyst was at 19. I had fallen while bowling (yes,
bowling) and thought that I had just hurt my tailbone.
Since that time, my cyst has gotten agitated 4-5 times a year,
but nothing I couldn't manage. If I slept on pillows, didn't sit
directly on it, sat on special cushion in the car, I could deal with
it. When it did get agitated, it would hurt really bad for about two
days and then get smaller and less agitated within a week. It never
drained. Or if it did, I was not aware of it (but based on the info
on this site, it seems like I would have been really aware of it
draining). My GP diagnosed me at 28 and told me to have it removed.
She had seen awful ones in residency and didn't want mine to get
worse over the years. Told me that pregnancy might complicate it,
etc.
I saw the surgeon the GP recommended within about six
months of that time. But by then I was 11 weeks pregnant with my
first baby. The surgeon was incredibly honest with me and said not
only would he not do anything while I was pregnant, but also said
something to the effect that he did not have a lot success with
removing pilonidal cysts and that they often came back after he
removed them... and if I wanted someone with a better history, I
should see someone else! Needless to say, I was scared to death.
So six years later, I still had the cyst and it was starting to
get agitated more often (once a month) and a little more painful
each time (however, still no draining). I was done having babies
(and my cyst was not agitated in either pregnancy), I had done a lot
of research here and felt it was worth a try again. I actually went
back to the same surgeon I had seen six years ago and he told me
that since I had last seen him, he had also done research because he
wanted to stop doing pilonidal surgery altogether unless he could
get them right. He contacted Dr. Bascom on several occasions and
learned the technique and felt he had perfected the surgery and had
not had anyone return with a reoccurrence since perfecting the
Bascom surgery.
So my surgery was 4 days ago. And so far so good. Not being able
to take a shower stinks and the tube coming out of my behind (for
drainage) stinks, but I am not in a lot of pain. In fact, I only
took 3 of the 60 pain pills I was prescribed. I am only
uncomfortable sitting/sleeping and I feel even that improving each
day. I had some trouble with the general anesthesia (should have
pushed for the MAC), but otherwise am in pretty good shape. I am
very active and physically fit so that may have been to my benefit.
The surgeon suggested that I would be back to my normal activities
(including “vigorous exercise”) a week after surgery. I am hoping he
is right.
My advice to all of you, find a surgeon you trust. Even if it
means waiting or seeing three or four until you get it right.
Reading some of the horror stories here seem basically like
malpractice suits waiting to happen IMHO and really scared me into
making sure my surgery was done right. Good luck to all of you and
speedy recoveries!
Not sure where to add my surgeon to the Hall of Fame, but his
name is Dr. James Dickey and he practices on the Monterey Peninsula
of California.
Date: June 10, 2007
StoryWell, i read some of these recent stories posted.. and it
sucks. ive had it for 4 years now.. 3 surgerys and seeing a wound
specialist... Ive been out of work for 2 years becuz of this.. and
some of u complain that uve been out of work for 2 months.. HA! I
just had another surgery in febuary and still seeing my doctor for
folow ups 2 times a week since then. I have a HUGE scar from my
lower area all the way ubove my underwear line..HUGE! Still on meds
for it.. hopefully its done this time.. but please, take this
seriouslly and dont complain u have it bad.. cuz i have it worse and
im only 23.. no kids and cant have kids until its 100%...
Date: June 09, 2007
StoryWanted: Single, 20-26 year-old male and fellow pilonidal
cyst sufferer from DFW area. Must have a good personality, positive
attitude and good listening skills. Deep dislike for hospitals is
optional. Must like movies, tv, and anything low-maintenance.
Whiners need not apply. Kelly kglass03@gmail.com
Date: June 08, 2007
StoryI have had a pilonidial cyst for about four years I have
only had breakouts about twice a year. In Jan.2007 i got a pretty
bad one and went on antibiotics after two weeks it was still very
painful so i went on them again for two more weeks. I started doing
a lot of research and realized how bad this problem was and surgery
did not guarantee you would not get it again. After meeting with
three doctors I found a plastic surgeon that was recomended by a
friend. When I called the office they told me about 80% of pilonidal
cyst that he sees do not need surgery.When I went in he simply said
to keep area clean and free of hair(i use nair every three days) and
so i have done for over four months with no out breaks. I am sure
glad i went to him instead of having surgery. Bottom line I would
advise everyone who has this to do everything they can before they
have surgery. Dennis If anyone would like to talk to me about this
you can e-mail me at paquetdev@roadrunner.com
Date: June 06, 2007
StoryI am a 30 year old female. I have had this for a long time
but like everyone else mine got about the size of a golfball and
drained. It was very painful up until the time it burst of course on
a weekend while my family doctor's office wasn't open. There was no
way I was going to the ER since I work in the hospitol already. So I
waited went in on the Monday after the weekend she swabbed it gave
me antibiotics about a week later I went back due to my daughter
having shots and told her it was still draining and she refered me
to a general surgeon. We live in a small town so thats all we have
here. He told me basically surgery and that was it. I had mine done
on May 17th. I was kinda prepared for what went along with all of
this from info on the web. I had my surgery went home the same day.
He told me it was a good thing I had mine done when I did because it
was starting to tunnel. It is now June 6th. I finally get to go back
to work next week working half days. So be prepared for boring days
ahead. They are now wanting to put a wound vac on me to speed up my
healing process. Due to my job requires so much sitting. I do
insurance follow up in the hospitol. I told them I expected a call
from insurance before we start hooking me up to this thing to see
what it will pay for. I knew it would be a long healing process but
did not expect to be off work as long as I have been. The dressing
changes are a drag which I tend to get bored with things pretty
easily. But my husband has done a wonderful job taking care of me.
So if you have one of these things get it taken care of because it
don't get no better the longer you put it off the worse I think it
will be. So good luck! Hope this helped.
Date: June 06, 2007
StoryHello, I first got this Pilonidal Cyst right after I had my
daughter. I continued to get them every 3-6 months! Mine were very
very painful. I couldn't sit, lay, or walk! It was bad! I even laid
on my living room floor one night with a roll of frozen
sausage....my boyfriend and my mother laughed so hard!! Anyway, this
last time I got one I had no choice but to my local clinic to a
general surgeon. She gave me an appointment for the following
morning. The surgery was a success! She took out 1 3/4 cup of pus
and stuff out of it! The whole I had was huge!!! My mother had to
stay with me everyday for 2 months to pack and clean my wound
everyday! I was getting some medicine but on it to make it scar up
for a month! After all this I though it would be healed up,
unfortunely I went back cause it was giving me problems it had
opened back up and was 2 inchs deep! She put the medicine on it
again and put me back on antiboitics. I went back today and it was
all healed up! My doctor told me that it might come back!! Sheena
Date: June 06, 2007
Story Hi all! I had my first (and hopefully only!) pilonidal
cyst lanced yesterday. My story is a bit complicated because I am
currently 29 weeks pregnant! Because of my pregnancy, I thought the
growing back pain was just my sciatic flaring up until I started to
get a bludge. The pain was horrible! I couldn't sit, stand, or lie
down. Sleeping became a memory because I could only lie on one side
and that made my hip hurt so I would consistently wake every 2-3
hours and need to get out of bed. I also have a one year old and
trying to bend to pick him up and chase him around the house...Oi!
My buldge went from non-exsistent to being about the size of a golf
ball in three days. I would say that the pain was comparable to
labor pains, maybe worse. I had my regular doctor visit yesterday
and the PA knew what it was immediately and I was sent to a surgeon,
who lanced it for me. The lancing hurt a hell of a lot less that
living with the damn thing! Thankfully, my mother is a RN and my
husband is a CNA so I have experienced, non-squeemish people to help
keep me clean and packed. The surgeon said that as soon as the baby
is born, I can have my cyst completely removed. With any luck, it
won't flare up again between now and the beginning of August!
Date: June 06, 2007
StoryHey Im a 21 year old graduate. After discovering a lump and
a pit at the top of my bottom i thought nothing of it. In fact apart
from becoming very itchy at times i felt little or no pain which was
strange because everyone who i talked to told me that normally i
would have been in serious pain or discomfort. After showing it to
my doctor during a routine visit he forwarded me on to a colo-rectal
surgeon who informed me that i had a Pilonidal abscess and two small
pits. Due to the required healing time (of approximately 2-3 weeks)
i couldn't go for surgery straight away because of college
requirements (I wasn't given the option of lancing or draining). 2
weeks ago i had my surgery and it was much worse than was expected.
A two inch long abscess had swiftly grown to over 12" long over a
period of five months. Everything was removed and i just got my
stiches out today. Its not a pretty picture down and i went through
a lot of stress and post surgery depression as well as a lot of
frustration. (Im pretty active so having to do nothing all day was
quite irritating).
My case was a rare one however as such infections are not
inclined to grow at such a speed (the surgeon was quite surprised
when she made th first incision). There is still a bit of discomfort
and the itching has died down a bit (it was really and literally a
pain in the ass prevoiusly) but im starting to feel a lot more
mobile. I reckon it won't be for another two weeks before before i
start feeling a lot better and another six weeks before im completly
healed. If you're going for a surgery, allow yourself two weeks
completly free from any sort of obligations. Anything stressful will
only make your situation worse. IF you want to contact me about
anything my email address is ianm032@hotmail.com. Ian
Date: June 05, 2007
StoryI am a female & just had surgery on 06-01-07 & let me tell
you that it was the BEST thing I ever did. I've had this for as long
as I can remember & it wasn't until I was 33 before it broke on me.
I assumed once it broke it was going to heal & be okay for the next
33 years but that didn't happen. I also had drainage for over 3
months of it opening & healing before I decided to have it removed.
I went in on Friday morning, I was on the treadmill walking 3 miles
on Saturday, Sunday, I'm at work Monday & today SITTING at my desk.
This is the end of day 4 for me & I feel NO pain! (Other than some
tugging of the stitches). I'm not big on surgery or needles but man
am I glad I did this! Driving isn't the best thing but tolerable.
Maybe I didnt' have a severe case I don't know but I know I was
supposed to be put under Genereal Anesthesia but only ended up with
Local so I'm assuming it wasn't the worst they've seen. It was a LOT
worse dealing with the drainage & constantly being uncomfortable. If
you're suffering, just DO IT!!!!!
Date: June 05, 2007
StoryHello... I am a 19 year old female and I am about to go
under my 3rd pilonidal removal surgery. I got my very first cyst
when I was 17 and in my junior year of high school. I didnt know
what was wrong with me. All I know is that I had a serious pain in
my butt. I didnt want to tell my dad cause I didnt want him thinking
I was playing a joke on him. I waited till I couldnt stand the pain.
It got so bad that the doctor was amazed that I wasnt seriously
sick. My first surgery was just to get it lanced. Nothing too
serious... Well the wound never healed. So the doctor that did the
lancing was transferred to another hospital (I live on a military
base). The new surgeon had to go in and close the wound from the
inside out. 2 years passed and now I have another flare up. I went
to go talk to my surgeon that did the last surgery and come to find
out that he had broke his hand the day before my appointment. Man
was I angry!! So my insurance made me go out to another hospital
close to home. So as of tomorrow (wed 6/6) I will be undergoing
another surgery to have the cyst completely removed. I am praying
that the cyst doesnt return.
Date: June 05, 2007
StoryI recently found out a friend has "joined the club" so to
speak and passed on this great site that sure helped me back on
9/11/01 when it ironically all started for me at age 37
(male/Seattle)! All our stories are so similar and glad people don't
have to suffer this silently and hopefully feel less embarrassed.
While out dining with friends to discuss our shock and horror of
that day's events, I couldn't get comfortable on the non-cushioned
seats. What I thought was just a pimple turned into that painful
nightmare none of us ever expected. Initially it broke while
showering, but never healed and tired of cramming tissue in my
shorts like everyone else! Within a week I was in agonizing pain and
could barely drive myself to the doctor. He knew immediately what it
was and lanced it (so painful, even with a local, I needed a shot of
bourbon and a tree branch to bite on like some cheesy western). I
couldn't believe it and he was suitably impressed by the affliction
as well. He hooked me up with an affiliated surgeon and the
operation was scheduled November 2001. This surgeon had never done
this procedure before, but had a sterling reputation. He told me he
was researching and wanted to try a new procedure that had just been
recently introduced to treat this. I don't recall the formal name,
but basically "the flap" is what I would refer to it. I felt a
little odd being the guinea pig for this guy, but he seemed very
dilligent and well regarded in his field.
The operation went very smooth, although it took me a while to
pass out and I could have done without the Nip/Tuck type music
cranking in the OR (Tool & Pantera for you young folks-this coming
from a 60 yar old surgeon!). All went very well and he said about
2-2.5 inches of tissue were removed. I had a large amount of cotton
packing sealed in with liquid skin sealant, which lasted for days
and daily showering, so that was great. Ask for this. I was stoned
on painkillers for about 3-4 days and each day got better. Actually
a nice break from a stressful job. Basically he wanted me on the bed
or couch for a week. After the packing wore out, I had a check-up
due. He placed a large adhesive bandage over it and I kept that up.
I had no issues at all healing and now I have this slight little
mini- fold over cleft to the right of my crack. It's kinda odd, but
you wouldn't notice it unless you really wanted to check out my
butt. My other half thinks it's cute and I am not the least self
conscious about it. I'd suggest you all inquire for this technique
should you require surgery for minimal scarring. Being a somewhat
hairy guy, my doctor advised me to keep my crack shaved to prevent
any future issues. I did for about a year, but to be honest, not one
of my favorite ways to spend time, so it went by the wayside.
It's now over 5 years later and I have not had one symptom since
the surgery and feel I was 100% cured. I'm told it could happen
again, but minimal chance. In closing, I just want to tell all of
you out there to please consider having surgery as soon as possible
to get over this and get on with life. Good luck and thanks for all
your input. It sure helped me out!
|
Date: May 31, 2007
Story
Hello and thank you to everyone who has sent in their stories. I
had my first flare up one week ago, I thought it was a zit or a boil
of some sort on my tail bone. When I was able to drain it I thought
my problem had come to an end. I just had my second flare up and was
informed by my father that he had his Pilonidal cyst at the age of
42, same age I am right now. With the old mans insight I stopped by
my dermotologist who stated it was in fact a pilonidal cyst and he
refered me to his surgeon. The surgeon will be giving me his
thoughts on this nasty little creature tomorrow at nine in the
morning. I feel for all those who have this darn thing because I
have the severe back pains as well, until it drains! What a relief
it is when it does drain! I also found out ten years ago that I had
spinal bifida (mild form) when I was involved in a severe car
accident and the hospital had performed a cat scan, checking for
other injuries. I was shocked to read that this is one of the causes
for the nasty creature, among other things. I will post how it goes
with the surgeon tomorrow, lord knows I am not going to let it go on
or let it get any bigger or deeper for that fact. As far as I am
concerned right now he can dig it out with a rusty railroad spike, I
just want the pain and drain to go away. Good luck to all...
Date: May 30, 2007
Story
HI , I am 28 year old male. Just came back from doctor to find
out that I also have a cyst. No idea what it means. It has just
started paining from last week and I have problems in driving and
sitting. Browsing on net brought me here ,I am afraid that it will
stay with me forever. I have taken an appointment with the surgeon
in next week and hopefully he will suggest me something to get rid
of this pain. Dont know what I should do ,just lance or have a
surgery. ,dont even know if the insurances cover this type of thing.
Will keep posted what happens as I start my trips to the surgeon.
Date: May 30, 2007
Story
Hello I'm a 22 year old nursing student, and I was diagnosed with
a pilonidal cyst a year ago. I'm currently going through my second
flare up so I'm typing this lying on my stomach, but you all know
how that is. I have always been thin and initially thought that I
had pain in my tailbone area occasionally as a result. I'm so glad I
found this site, because after my diagnosis I went to a website and
thought this was a hairy man's disease. I've now learned that it
isn't. I've been amazed with how much the nurses I work with
completely don't understand the pain from the cyst. I've been honest
about it all along. My first flare up was about 4 months ago and
this second one is much worse. The surgeon said the surgery was
worse than living with the disease and just sent me home. Tomorrow
he is going to do something about it. I'm scared and I hate missing
work because I love what I do. My family thinks it's a very wierd
fluke, and I found it impossible to explain this to my Japanese
grandmother! I'd love to hear some advice on special cushions,
remedies(hot baths haven't worked) or other things that I can do
until I have surgery. If you have some advice please message me on
yahoo messenger my screenname is japanese_lotus.
Date: May 28, 2007
Story
This is for the Girls! I'm finally having my surgery to remove
the sac on June 8. Wish me luck! They're going to do an open wound
heal and thankfully my mother will be there to change the packing.
I'm nervous about having general anesthesia but when I had the
consult my usually normal heart rate and blood pressure was off the
charts (I was scared, I thought they were going to remove it that
day). I had the worst flare up two years ago, about a week before I
started my first job out of college. Before I started work I was
sitting on my butt being a couch potato and got that itch. So of
course I scratched it! Then, within a day it seems, I couldn't sit
without leaning forward, I couldn't sleep on my back, it really was
excruciating. It was either a sharp pain or constant throb. I went
to the doctor who was of course was FINE. Seriously. Like an actor
or something. So, I turned away from him, pulled my pants down and
whimpered quietly. He took one look and said, "It's a Boil, you need
antibiotics." I turned beet red, pulled my pants up, grabbed the
perscription, and ran! I had seen Harold and Kumar Go to White
Castle so I definitley associated boils with 'other people'
The cyst drained for a good two days. Perhaps 3/4 of a cup.
Nayyystay. The sac extended clear on either side of my butt. And
foul smelling. So I had another flare up 4 months later but this
time closer to my crotch, and another 4 months later, and another 3
months later. I am a very careful girl but I was freaked that I had
caught an STD so I ordered every test imaginable. All negative. Now,
it's been there and ready for a flare up for the last 6 months. I
went to the dermatologist a month ago and he was the first one who
said pilonidal cyst and he immediately referred me to surgery. I
googled around and found this website. What a lifesaver! My sister
had a big fat mouth and told her friends but one of them came out of
hiding - the friend had had one but NO insurance and had a horrible
time. All she could afford to do was get it lanced and she knows and
can feel that it will be back.
ITEM OF ADVICE about sexual relations - I read on this website
that after it heals the skin where the cyst was is less strong than
other skin. I found out the hard way. I was having relations with
the ex and he had his hands on my hips, pressing down (I was facing
away from him). Girls, or Gay Guys, or Guys who like Strong Girls:
do NOT let your partner(s) press down on your butt cheeks! The skin
where the cyst had been stretched and BROKE and started to bleed. He
totally freaked out. "WHY IS YOUR ASS CRACK BLEEDING" He wasn't
grossed out really, but was just worried about my ass crack, like,
what is wrong with this chick who's seemingly fine ass-crack just
started to bleed. hahaha. So be careful out there in lust land!
As for work - I'm trying to navigate around why I'll be gone for
a week. I was talking to my boss and I said, "Oh I'm having lower
back surgery" He looked at me and said, "You haven't mentioned
you've had pain..." then I tried, "Oh, I've got a benign cyst right
on my spine" which is an interesting way to spin the truth. All the
secretaries know the deal but there's no way I either need to or
want to tell people what's going on. So I'm going with the benign
cyst on my spine story even though my friend thinks I'm digging
myself deeper into an implausible hole. So, surgery is June 8.
They're going to go in, remove the actual sack (it isn't inflamed
right now but there's def. stuff in there) and then 'probe' to check
for additional infected tissue and remove that if it's there. Peace,
and really: thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you! Signed,
Lovin' Jesus Cuz I Know He Loves My Butt No Matter What
Date: May 28, 2007
Story
I am a 28 year old male and my first indication of my cyst was at
the age of 23. I had gone river rafting a few weeks before and
though I had just bruised my tailbone floating down the river. I
waited for the pain to go away but the swelling kept building and I
eventually felt a golf size ball lump in the small of my back right
above my butt. I went to the ER and had it lanced and drained and I
immediately felt better. I had to have it packed for about 3 days
and it eventually closed on its own. I talked options with the
surgeon to see what to do. He actually wanted a removal with open
heal and possible cleft lift to alleviate the area. We talked
recurrence rates and I decided against the surgery for the time
being. I have had it flair up twice since then and it is about ever
2 years.
I am actually writing this during the most recent flair up. I
have successfully treated it with antibotics since the first drain I
had to have. Now we all know that antibotics will do nothing to rid
yourself of the cyst but if you practice good hygeine and you are
careful you should rarely if ever get flare ups. The antibotics can
treat the infection which is causing the pain and swelling. A full
spectrum of 10 day antibotics seems to work for me as long as I
catch it early. I routinely check that area for a hardening of the
underlying tissue. I am on day of my 10 day Kefelex treatement and I
have already noticed a reduction in the size of the inflamation.
Best of luck to all of you out there....its a hard and painful
disease to live with but we could all be worse off.
Date: May 23, 2007
Story
I am a 24 year old female. I attend college and am a part time
collections agent, so most of my life is seating down, whether
studying, at work or driving to the two. I now know this is the main
reason for this dreadful thing. About two months ago I noticed there
was an odd tingling on my tailbone. Shortly after, about two days,
and there was a pain I can not even describe. At first I thought
maybe I hit it on something, but I couldn't recall something that
would cause that much pain. I went right to my doctor, she took one
quick look and told me what I had, a pilonidal cyst, and that it
would get worse. I could not even fathom at the time that the pain
could get worse. Well I soon learned it could. The next day I was in
so much pain I couldn't do anything, I went to the emergency room
and was quickly treated.
The doctors drained some fluid and put me on antibiotics for ten
days. I was informed I should go to a surgeon. Well when I went to
the general surgeon, my doctor referred me to him, he told me I was
born with a hole in my back and basically not to worry. Something
told me not to believe him. I did some extensive research myself,
laying on my stomach in bed. I found out so much from this website,
it has been my savior. Shortly after my dose of antibiotics were
finished, my pilonidal came back again. I knew now that I needed to
do something. I went to another surgeon, this time a colon and
rectal surgeon, which by the way is definately the kind of surgeon
you want to see if you have a pilonidal cyst. Well I got trampled
that day, he also did an interal exam on me and found out I need
surgery on two more conditions as well as the pilonidal and that he
was also going to be doing a colonoscopy the day after Memorial Day,
I will be on a clear liquid diet on Memorial Day.
I am having the Bascom procedure done as well as the other two
internal procedures on June 15th. Let's just say that is going to be
a VERY bad day for me. I was told that I will need three weeks of
recovery after, which is okay with me because it will not interupt
with my education. I am very scared and find myself crying and
noticing the word BUTT a whole lot more than I did before this whole
nightmare. For all just remember, it could be worse. I feel so
crushed but am always trying to do things to cheer myself up. I just
donated my hair to Locks-of-Love which was very rewarding and it
made me remember that it could be worse. Well I would love if
someone would talk to me about this who has experienced it first
hand. I am getting a little tired of people saying I wish I knew
what you were going through or at least you found out what it is,
yeah but now I have to deal with it. Please email me at canalea531@aol.com,
include pilonidal in the subject please. I NEED SOME SUPPORT
Date: May 22, 2007
Story
Hi, I am a 29 year old woman from the UK. I had a pilonidal
abscess in December 2000 which, although it was quite possibly the
most painful thing I had ever had, healed well after surgery.
Shortly after, my pilonidal sinus developed. Although it was quite
alarming to look at, it didn't really give me too many problems,
perhaps one or two flare ups a year. My GP referred to me to a
specialist who recommended that I have an operation to remove it. I
had the operation in January 2006 which went very well and the wound
healed in around 6 weeks. Although I had been warned that it may not
solve the problem, I was confident that all was OK as my sinus had
not really given me many problems.
I naively assumed that I wouldn't have to worry about it again.
Well, I was wrong. It came back and now I am having extremely
painful flare ups approx every three months which take over my life
for a couple of weeks at a time. I have to take strong antibiotics
which make me feel sick and dizzy and it is practically impossible
to work during this time and I feel exhausted as I can't relax or
sleep properly. I am now on the waiting list for another, bigger
operation to remove the sinus. I have again been told that it may
not work but I figure that I have nothing to lose so I may as well
give it another go. I would, however, urge people to think carefully
about having surgery, particularly if their sinus isn't really
giving them much trouble. I have had more flare ups in the time
since my operation that I had in the preceeding five years and I
really wish now that I hadn't had the initial surgery. I just hope
that the next operation works that that I will finally be free from
this. Isn't it amazing how something so small can cause so much
pain???
Date: May 22, 2007
Story
Hi! I'm a 19-year-old college sophomore, and wow, this was an
experience. I'm a fairly private girl, so I definitely had to
overcome some issues with having strangers poking around my crack.
It's been 12 days since my surgery (excision with primary closure)
and things are going very well. I actually knew what pilonidals were
before I ever found out that I had one. I remember reading someone's
personal account on an unrelated message board and thinking, "God,
GROSS, I'm so glad that probably won't happen to me." And then,
April of my senior year, I felt a very unwelcome pain on my
tailbone. I pretended not to know what it was, while the pain
increased, until it drained (about a week after I first felt it). I
didn't go to a doctor--shame on me! I can't believe I could have
done this a year ago! I didn't have another flare-up for a year.
My cyst flared up just in time to wreck my spring break. Knowing
that it would be a looong drive back to school sitting on my angry
behind, I sucked it up and went to a dermatologist to have the cyst
drained. The dermatologist recommended surgery over the summer.
Before I knew it, I was meeting with the surgeon to have him look at
my cyst and fill me in on what his surgery entailed. He was very
friendly and explained the surgery simply and clearly, with just
enough detail. I was in surgery three days later. I love the whole
hospital experience, so I didn't have much anxiety going into
surgery. (The sedatives were great all the same, of course.) I was
in and out without any problems, and from what I could tell, the
surgery went just fine. I was at home a few hours later and slept
for the day. The next week wasn't too bad- I had a Percocet every
three hours and didn't feel much pain. Of course, I spent most of
the week lying on my side or stomach, avoiding sitting up at all
costs.
A little over a week into my surgery, I thought my rear looked
totally alarming. It was red around all the sutures and itched like
CRAZY. Fortunately, I was told that all of that is normal--the
itching is part of the healing process, and the sutures were fairly
large and irritating to my skin, causing the redness. I found that a
heating pad helped with the itching, and for a few days, I had to
take NyQuil to keep me sleeping through it. I had half the stitches
removed today, and I'll get the other half out in a little over a
week. The surgeon said he was tempted to remove all the stitches
today, but decided to play it safe. I'm sitting on my butt right now
with minimal discomfort, and I've been driving for a few days.
Here's my message to all the fairly private girls like me--forget
about your privacy for the sake of your health! It's not worth
sitting through the pain, and you've got to get it taken care of
anyway. It just gets worse as time goes on. Really. I've had around
10 people poking around my rear at some point in this process, and
they've all been totally understanding and professional. Plenty of
them know people who've gone through the same thing, and frankly,
they've ALL seen much, much worse.
Date: May 19, 2007
Story
Hi, I am a 30 year old female and have had a polynidal cyst since
college (10 years ago). I just had surgery 4 weeks ago. I was very
nervous because I had never had surgery before but they knocked me
out so I don't remember anything. When I woke up I had a ton of
bandages down there and it was very sore. I took a lot of pain pills
the first 3 days, but after that I was up and walking around. They
stitched it up and my stitches were removed after 12 days. It was a
huge relief having those removed. it felt much better. The skin is
growing back and i go back for my checkup this week, I am hoping
it's okay. I have been exercising and went back to work this past
week so I was off for 3 weeks total, i could have used another week.
I sit at a computer for 8 hours a day and that has been a struggle.
I put off surgery for years, but am so glad that I finally went
through with it. Overall, it wasn't too bad.
Date: May 19, 2007
Story
I am a 25 year old female. I first experienced the pain in my
butt when I was 20(I think). The first time I felt the pain I
thought it was because I wearing tight jeans. But a few days later
when the pain still didn't go away, I looked in the mirror and saw a
small zit like thing. And I am very acne prone and thought, "Oh god,
another zit?! And that too on my ass?!" And just waited for it to go
away. Eventually when the "zit" didn't go away and it started
becoming more and more difficult for me to sit for too long and
unable to slouch, I went to the doctor and he said it was a cyst. He
advised me to go to ER and see someone right away and I freaked out
and started crying thinking that I had some sort of a disease or
something.
I went to ER, waited for a doctor and they did a mini-operation
where they numb the area and cut open the absess to take out all the
pus. I was so relieved after that thinking,"thank God, the pain is
gone!!" Within a few months it was back and I got the same thing
done again, this happened 2-4 times before I gave up and just hoped
and waited for the cyst to go away on it's own. After about 4 years
of unbearable and uncomfortable pain in the ass (LITERALLY), I
started researching the net for the cyst and what to do about and
that's when I realized that I would have to make frequent trips to
the doctor to have them clean up the pus or get a surgery done, but
the cyst wasn't going to go away on its own. Sitting, standing,
sleeping, running, jumping, excercising, being intimate, relaxing,
walking, any and everything I did reguarly, I would have this stupid
cyst on my mind and I was at the point where I thought I should just
DIE!!
After much thinking and fear, I decided to finally go through
with the surgery. I had the surgery done by a specialist 8 days ago
and am in the process of healing now. I am seeing my doctor in 3
days for a follow up and will see how it goes from there. I WILL
come back here and post the follow up results. FYI - After the
surgery, the doctor may prescriber Tylenol 3 for pain, they have
codeine in them, be careful and pay attention to your diet, as it
causes EXTREMELY TERRIBLE AND PAINFUL constipation, I was stuck in
the damn bathroom for almost 8 HOURS!!!! I would like to thank the
creator of this Web site for all their support and making us
comfortable enough to share our feelings and pain, I definitely
don't feel alone in this anymore. See ya!!
Date: May 17, 2007
Story
Greetings, my name is Stan. I have battled pilonidal problems for
thirty four years. I have been lanced, closed surgery, open surgery,
and two months ago Bascom and Bascom (Father and Son) worked
together to do a cleft lift operation on me. Earlier on this page I
described the one month status. Now, at the two month point life is
great for me. No pain. No drainage. I have driven a sports car with
stiff suspension and low bucket seats for five hours with no
discomfort. I am hiking logging roads with steep hills for two hours
at a time with no problems. I just attended a conference with hard
wooden chairs where we met for ten hours a day for three days.
Before the procedure I would stand most of the time and still be in
pain. After the procedure I had no discomfort. I am golfing again
with no discomfort. Considering the lack of pain during recovery, (I
took zero painkillers,) I should have done this many years ago. Of
course, I have had pilonidal problems lay domant for up to ten years
before exploding. So final judgment is still a ways off but so far
so good. And finally the bills are all in. My cost will be about
$2,000.00 from a total cost of about $6,000.00. I had insurance. If
you have questions about this surgery, or my other ones, or recovery
times, or anything else contact me at stanbiles@aol.com. In your
title please mention "pilonidal". Stan
Date: May 15, 2007
Story
My story began when I was 17 years old. After taking a shower one
evening I was drying off with a towel. I started drying off at the
top of my buttocks when a sharp pain hit me. Looking in the mirror I
thought it was a pimple, however two weeks later it looked worse and
I had my father look at it. That's when we went to the surgeon and
he informed us that we were dealing with a pilonidal cyst. This was
the summer before my senior year in High School so I wanted to wait
to do anything about it- BIG MISTAKE. That November it had gotten
worse , and during Christmas break I had the operation.
The surgery lasted about 2 1/2 hours and I was in the hospital
for almost two weeks-this was in 1978. The post-op was long and the
bleeding and seepage seemed to never subside. About 3 months went by
and it started healing nicely. Talking to my surgeon later he
informed me that this was the 2nd largest pilonidal cyst he had ever
seen either in person or in text books-lucky me. I am 46 years old
now, married, with two sons. My cyst came back about 5 years after
the surgery. I take three showers a day and use anti-bacterial soap
to keep it clean. It is hard to wear light colored pants and tough
to tuck in shirts for fear of discoloring due to seepage. I figure
that I will die with this pilonidal cyst. This is the first time
that I have talked about this problem outside of my family. I
sympathize with any person that is dealing with this condition-hang
in there it could be worse.
Date: May 11, 2007
Story
Even now as a 35 year old male I remember my pilonidal cyst
experience like it was yesterday. I was a sophomore in College(1992)
when I first began to experience the pain associated with pilonidal
cysts. My problem was acute from the beginning with some discharge.
With some of the later cysts I had enough blood draining that it
would go through several gauze pads and my clothing. From the first
experience of pain to the one year anniversary of the last surgery
was a total of 4 years. My first surgery was done by a plastic
surgeon and was done as a closed wound. This began to heal but never
went away and was followed by another cyst.
The second surgery was done by the same surgeon as an open wound
and allowed to heal from the inside out. This wound healed but I
soon had another cyst. For the third and fourth surgeries I went to
another doctor. I believe the third surgery was done as a closed
wound and did not completely heal. The fourth surgery was a flap
rotation operation and this healed but I did shortly afterwards have
another cyst.
For the fifth and final surgery I went to Mayo Clinic, where I
saw a Colon & Rectal Surgeon. They were amazed at the number of
surgeries and were thankful I had come to them before having another
surgery. They informed me that if I had had another surgery they may
not have been able to help due to the amount of scar tissue in the
area. The surgery was a slightly updated form of the flap rotation
surgery I had on my fourth surgery. I was placed in a specialized
bed and stayed in the hospital for 12 days. I was in the bed for
about 10 of those days. When I left the hospital the doctors wanted
me to take a plane home but fortunately I was able to ride in the
very back of my mom's van and lay on the floor so she wouldn't have
to drive the 9 hours home alone. I went on the recover fine and have
had no problems in the 12 years since the last surgery.
Date: May 10, 2007
Story
Hi, I am a 22 year old female who battled the ooogly cyst for a
few years. I posted in October that I had a closed surgery for my
cyst and that it was healing well at the time. I had the surgery
done as an outpatient procedure in Portland Oregon by a Dr. Renee
Quarterman (I believe that is how it's spelled...she's part of the
providence network) She looked at my tailbone (or by butt crack,
sorry for the blunt words), as I was bent over a table with my knees
resting on a step...it wasn't uncomfortable or embarassing, proably
because I have given birth twice so I'm a little over getting upset
about people looking at "private" places.
She talked to me about what she thought she would do at that
point which was to cut it open and try to extract the follicles
causing problems. Her assistant gave me the local shot to numb the
area which was pretty uncomfy but not too bad. Then she began to cut
which was the most disgusting sound I've ever heard, I asked her
assistant to talk to me so I wouldn't focus on the sound. She was
done extracting what she needed to get out within about 25 minutes
and I was sewn up as well. She thought that in my case a closed
woulnd healing had a good chance because the cyst was not flared up
at the time of the operation. She explained that there is a risk of
infection but to follow her instructions, monitor the wound and that
you know the worst that would happen is that they would have to open
it up to let it heal, so might as well try to get it to heal closed.
I WAS SO GLAD FOR THAT> I spent a few days pretty out of it, by
choice, because I wanted to stay ahead of the pain so I took my meds
faithfully. I was driving not that long after and back to normal
fairly soon. I HAVE NO SCAR THAT IS VISIBLE.
She did an amazing job and while sometimes the area is still a
little tender and bumpy from healing, I feel great. I feel like I
have a life again and my immune system is recovering after battling
constant infections for over a year. Thank you so much for all of
your stories and support. I would say not to psych yourself out over
the surgery, you never know, it might go better than you think. My
heart goes out to those which chronic cysts even after surgery, I
hope I don't have to face that, but I guess you never know. For now
I am enjoying sitting again.
Date: May 10, 2007
Story
I am 20 year old Male that had been suffering from a Pilonidal
Cyst for about 6 months now. I was finishing up my Freshman year in
college when i noticed at first what seemed to be a lump near my
tailbone, and then eventually, a pea sized pimple where the lump
first was. In a matter of weeks, the cyst began draining into the
back of my boxers and made it quite uncomfortable to
walk/sit/exercise/etc. To manage the draining, i applied 4x4 inch
band-aids to the wound as needed to control it. The band aids
started with only being needed once a day, which quickly grew to
twice a day, and so on.
Eventually i consulted a doctor who quickly told me that a
surgery would be the only way to fix the problem (boy did that not
go over well! i had never had surgery before - and i didnt want to
recouperate over my summer). None the less, i was fed up with the
daily care that the cyst required. It is now my second week of of
summer, and i had the surgery. The surgery was a simple out-patient
surgery (got there at 6 for pre-op, surgery started at 8, i was home
by 10) As it turns out, i had 8 to 10 sinus's that ranged down my
butt crack, so of course, i have about numerous stitches with 2
layers. (the wound isnt all that deep - but im sure it depends on
your size) Im now days into recovery whith absolutely no problems
what so ever. The pain is minimal/non-exostant but i was given
Vicoden just incase. As it turns out, the doctor belives i had the
sinus's since puberty/child age. However, The wound seems to be
healing and the stitches come out in a week.
******CAUTUION- My biggest mistake in addressing this problem
was reading too far into this surgery. the only people that post
online about their surgeries are the people who had horrible
experiences and reoccurances, dont scare your self with other
people's stories...you have two options, Live with it, or fix it. I
couldnt immagine living with it***** having all that said; Good luck
to anyone with a pilonidal cyst, hope this story helps someone.
Date: May 08, 2007
Story
May 8, 2007 I had my first "flare up" less than a week before my
wedding day, 26 years ago. I remember feeling like I had fallen on
my tail bone and couldn't sit all of a sudden. I went home from work
and stayed in bed for the rest of the week. I remember running a
pretty good fever and knowing the honeymoon wasn't going to happen,
but the wedding was! On the Monday after the wedding I went to a
doctor and was told that I had a Pilonidal Cyst and it had to be
lanced and drained. They did it in the Doctor's office with NO pain
meds at all. Needless to say the entire world heard me scream. After
two weeks of antibiotics and a wick, I was told I was good enough
for surgery. Back then they put you in the hospital for a week
(1981) and I knew my husband was forever, he did all the packing etc
for the entire healing process. I don't remember how long it took,
but I believe it was a good 2 months before I could sit for long
periods of time comfotably. It was left to heal from the inside out
and was cauterized every couple of days.
No problems until about 3 years ago, started having "flare ups"
every few months. I was totally in denial because I was told it
would never come back! Last month I had had enough of the monthly
flare ups and having it lanced and going on meds all the time. I go
for my second surgery on Friday, May 11th. They tell me I can be
back at work on Monday.....aint happening!!! I will shoot for
Tuesday, but I guess I will play it by ear. I so do not want to go
thru this again, but I am praying for another 20 years of no
problems which will make it worth it. Thanks everyone for sharing
your stories. It is amazing how few people know this "disease"
exists. I guess if this doesn't work they are going to do the "flap"
surgery as a last ditch effort. Wish me luck!
Date: May 06, 2007
Story
I'm a 22 yr.old from Florida. I got a cyst when I was 13. It was
a very tramatic and painful year needless to say. I thought that I
had pulled a muscle doing heavy lifting but the pain didn't go away
and got steadily worse. I went to the doctor and they did x-rays and
conclude that I had bruised my tailbone based on the way I described
my pain. ( a sharp, shooting pain that went up my tailbone area) I
couldn't stand up once sitting without horrible pain. I can't recall
how long this went on. I later went on a trip with family to VA and
on the way I remember being in a ton of pain and very out of it. I
was very tired and nauseous as well. A few days after we arrived I
had these red welts on both sides of my but crack and had to go to a
doctor up there. All that was available was Physicians Assistant.
That woman saved my life. She told us withing minutes what was going
on and to go home immediately. We called my doctors back in FL and
left that night. We arrived in FL the next day in the afternoon and
went directly to the hospital. I had surgery the next day. The
Surgeon drained and packed the wound. He told my family that had the
cyst remained untreated any longer I would have died. He said it was
filled with a remarkable amount of black poison.
On the 2nd day in the hospital the most arrogant doctor on the
planet preceeded to show my parents how to pull out the packing by
yank a foot of it out very quickly. I still remember the pain. That
was some of the worst pain of my life. I cried for hours. I went
home after 3 days with the intention to have a second surgery within
the month. I HATED the whole packing process. I can still smell
whatever they used to drench the packing. After the packing was out
I had my second surgery within a week. My doctor told my parents I
would be in and out within an hour. The surgery took 3 hours.They
removed the entire cyst. They later told me the actual cyst was the
size of a grapefruit. The doctor was amazed at the size and severity
of my particular case. I had over 100 stiches on just the inside.
Recovery took about a year. I have very little actual recollection
of anything from that year. This has all been told to me except for
the pain. I could never forget the pain. It took me years to get
over the entire expierence. To this day I have little to no feeling
in the crack and top of my butt. I get a twinge now and then. It
scares the life right out of me. Thanks for reading my story. I'm
very thankful for this site because I have not been able to tell my
story to anyone who would understand.
Date: May 05, 2007
Story
I had a cyst for about 2 years and I'm sure its from being
suddenly immobile as I have been constantly on a computer chair for
studying. I'm sure this is probably very unsafe and dangerous, but I
was so fed up one day with a flare up that I put hand sanitizer on
the cyst and disinfected a needle used for sewing with the
sanitizer. I punctured the cyst with the needle and made a verticle
incision for the fluid to drain. I placed more sanitizer on the open
wound to prevent any infections for the next 3 days (ouch). Results:
I haven't experienced any problems for almost a year. Please do not
try this; I'm surprised that I'm not suffering from a major
infection right now. But, it worked!
Date: May 05, 2007
Story
Hi there, I wanted to give everyone an update. I had my surgery
last July, here it is almost a year later, and I have never felt
better. I had no problems with recovery, the wound is fully healed
with no reoccurence. I highly recommend anyone to do the surgery,
because you will be happy with the results.
Date: May 04, 2007
Story
This website is great, I can't wait to go home and show my
roommate. About a month ago, he had begun complaining to me about
his tailbone hurting, but he didn't remember falling on it or
anything of that nature. Well he went out and bought a donut because
it got to be too painful to sit on and he had no idea what to do.
Well then it must have went away for a couple of weeks, then last
week, he started talking about the pain again. He works at a pizza
place as a delivery guy so that could be why he has gotten this. He
didn't really tell me much about what exactly was wrong with him
yet, but he went to the doctor on Monday and was prescribed
antibiotics, and he said the Dr. offered to lance it, but my
roommate didn't want that route, so he just got antibiotics and then
the doc tried to drain/culture it a little which made pus come out
of course. I have a feeling that this won't be the end of his cyst,
I don't think he or the doctor knew what it was called but we'll see
how this turns out. I can't wait to show him this site, it is very
interesting to read and definitely opens my eyes up to keeping EVERY
part of my body clean and neat haha.
Date: May 03, 2007
Story
I am a 23 year old female, I have been livingwith this since is
was in the 11th grade( 2001.) The first time I had a flare up I was
on vaction with my family in VT and Canada. We went a slide that is
carved into the side of a mountain, and after I came down I really
noticed that there was a pain. I thought that maybe is was just from
the ride down. When I got home I put a heating pad on it and that
helped a lot. For the next 3 days, still on vacation, about to enter
my senior year, I was on bed rest with a heating pad in my backside.
When I got back home, I went to the doctor, was told that is was a
boil. I was freaking out. It still hadn't come to a head yet, so I
still had to suffer. When it was finally time, I went to the ER, and
the doctor began prepping me. I was crying so much, and the nurse
was so calm. I was telling her that the doctor was hurting me, even
after the anasteics, she reaction was that the doctor had to do his
job, adn it would be over soon. My mom and grandmother were there,
when they finally cut it, my grandmother said the pus just shot up
in the air. The doctor said that it was the size of a pear under my
skin, and I am not a big person. That is something that I will never
forget. He packed it, and sent me home, perscription in hand. Thank
God for sweatpants!!!
The second time, it was about 9 months later if that long, and I
went through the whole thing again. This time, I was a little more
prepared, but it still hurt. I inducted it again with the heating
pad and/or hot washcloth. When I when to the doctor, a different
one, he said with the fequency that they were coming that I might
have to have surgury, if it came back again. He lanced and packed me
up, and sent me home with percription in hand. And I thought I was
free, now almost 6 years later, I am feeling a very familure feeling
stemming from my backside, and i am freaking out, b/c this time
unlike that last, I don't have insurance until the 1st of next
month. But I know that I am not going to be able to wait that long.
Its only the 3rd. I am trying to figure out how I am going to juggle
work and recovery, hopefully, it will not take longer than week.
*pray for me* I just want to add that I am sooooo grateful for this
site, before I found it, I thought I was the only one going through
these motions. Thanks and to everyone suffering with me, a wish a
speedy and happy recovery.
Date: May 02, 2007
Story
Hi all. My name is Geoff and Im from Australia. I have had 3
pilonidal sinus operations and currently going though my 4th sinus
breakdown which so far does not need surgery (daily to every second
day needs to be dressed). It started when I was at University. 2001
- 20 years old. I would have a shower and notice I still stank. It
was my flesh decaying literally. I had noticed when i had sat down
for a while, it would be a numb pain. Not just for sitting down to
long and i had to have a feel to see what was going on. I felt a
lump which had a hole. I did not see any discharge on my undies but
i thought something was not right. I had a web cam luckily and of
course, pointed in that general direction and to my shock, a large
black area down from my but crack which made me go to the doctor the
next day. I do have black hair and lots of it. Grows back well.
That's when I had my first experience with Pilonidal sinus. Was
very embarrassed at first. Was told I had to have an operation. I
did and the surgeon had to take a piece out of me which had a ball
of twine basically of my hair which decided to go down, not up. The
body treats it as a foreign body and infection sets in. He had
stiched me up. Next check up, the surgeon presses firmly on the
operation site and blood and whatever else came gushing out. The
surgeon goes oh shit, i go oh what, he is yelling for nurses and i
stress. Basically the wound had made an airpocket in there which
doesnt allow it to heal. Basically got Golden staff infection. 2nd
operation had in 2002-21. Had to leave uni for this operation and
this was the biggest operation I had. 2 & a half meters of gauze was
used and the wound left open. Was getting close to my bowels which i
was afraid of. It had taken a good 6 months to heel. Dressings every
day with salt baths. Sill studied 4 subjects externally.
2003 - 3rd operation but cut out and stitched up in one go. Had
a pipe up my butt, to drain blood etc. 6 months to heel properly and
12months of work. Very depressed at this stage. Just didnt know
where my life was heading. Half way through 2004, was given the
green light with diploma and degree in hand. I just wanted to work
and prove myself because many people did not understand. Its just a
hair? How does that affect you! Well it does. I now work fulltime
but again, Pilonidal sinus rears it ugly head again. 2007 - 26 years
old. Wound breaks down and hairs are removed from this cavity. A lot
closer to my anus (opening). Since Christmas, 2006-7 and still
having polywick as a dressing, polymem as an absorbant layer with
tape to hold down. Would be nice to know when it will all end but if
anything I have learnt to be patient. Good luck everyone
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