My story is just a beginning really. I noticed soreness when sitting for long periods of time on day one.
On day 3 I noticed quite a bit of discomfort and thought it was a small infected hair issue and thought to sit in a bath for a few minutes when I was in the most discomfort. I did this twice at the hotel that afternoon and later that night. By day 4, I was in excruciating pain after driving a total of 8.5 hours over the course of a 24 hour period. The lump turned into a ping pong ball sized mass so I decided to go to the hospital. I couldn’t sit straight and had to lean very far to the right as the sore spot was on the inside of my left side. I was so embarrassed I couldn’t even bring myself to ask for someone to drive me to the er so I did it myself, crying all the way there as I couldn’t bare the pain any longer.
I live about 30 minutes from town where I work and have access to the hospital. You can imagine the trauma from it all. I finally reached the er and it was packed. I couldn’t sit if I wanted to stay conscious, therefore I stood for what felt like 45 minutes with a pain that could only be described as a constant pressure as if I were being stabbed by something very dull with unimaginable force. I have had pain before from all sorts of things but never this… I kept googling things and it all led to these horror stories about pilonidal cysts and I hoped it was nothing of the sort.
I finally get back and the er staff were very kind and the doctor was wonderfully respectful despite the intensely awkward exam. He confirmed an infection, an abscess, and that I must have lots of pain. (Obviously) He said that he could lance it but that may not do much as much of the infection is quite hard with only one tiny soft spot… I didn’t know what that meant and originally assumed that lancing was the only course of action. He offered me to wait a week while prescribing a low level pain medication and a very strong antibiotic with some precautionary things like probiotics. The goal was to wait a week, follow the same routine of cleanliness, hot baths, compresses, then follow up with a family doctor. Heat was great to relieve the pain during but please be prepared if there is no draining of the cyst do not be surprised by the sudden intense pain as your skin cools and the pressure returns. It took my breath away every single time.
I slept solely on my stomach and moved very carefully. By that point I knew driving was out of the question and organized drivers when possible. I spent a lot of days at my boyfriends as I couldn’t drive myself home let alone pseudo sit for more than 5 minutes without wanting to cry. I spent days 5-7 struggling to even work. I laid on my stomach in the office whenever possible and left a couple of the days and spent them at my aunts or my boyfriends as I couldn’t drive in my condition. Medicine touched none of my pain but I dared not ask for more than I had already been given as they were very strong already…
On days 6-7 scheduled my family doctor appointment but couldn’t be seen until Monday. I argued with them long enough to beg for a Friday appointment. By day 8 I was calling again begging to be seen that day bc nothing helped, I couldn’t sleep, I couldn’t eat and the lump had grown to the size of a golf ball. It was huge. It was clear To me the antibiotic was not working. I had more than enough time to see something better but it was only worse.
Everything I read online was very clear that it got worse before it got better so I tried to trust what I had been told and pushed on. Day 9 came around and I went to the family doctor. The office didn’t have me fill out any paperwork and didn’t even ask me for my insurance card despite never seeing me before. It was weird and I showed up earlier expecting this… I waited 50 minutes waiting to be seen after checking in and they claimed running behind. I understood and was polite despite all the pain but I just wanted it to stop, never would I have dreamed I would go through what this lady did to me.
She explains that it is a pilonidal cyst. I explain that I didn’t think the antibiotic was working and my needs at this point… However the whole thing is lost on me as she began pushing on me using “gentle pressure” but I can only describe it as physical torture as each press was a new high on my pain scale experience. She tells me she will be lancing it but will use a local anesthetic, wonderful! I never thought i would welcome something of the nature but i seriously couldn’t wait. She waited all but 30 seconds and set to work. I don’t want to scare anyone but it was the worst 20 minutes of my life. I’m not sure if it was hers despite my screaming and carrying on as she continued to tell me that I would need surgery and that I should have been in sooner… I refrained from kicking her like a ticked off dairy cow so i think she came out much luckier than I… She basically made me feel like it was my fault for waiting and that I somehow caused this…
This woman with such wonderful bedside manner even tried to convince me in the middle of my screaming that “You want me to get all of it don’t you?! Just a little longer….” It was the most callous thing I have ever heard, but I could be biased after feeling such excrutiating pain while in her care. I don’t think anything anyone says to You matters after they take part in causing you that much pain. She finished up the conversation with telling me I was on the right antibiotic and she was sending my cultures to a lab. I said it really wasn’t working in my mind and she said it took time… Ok then. So I dropped it. Right after this the office needed to charge me for the office visit and remember how they didn’t take any of my info in the beginning? Now they needed me to find my insurance card in my purse as I wept in embarrassment and intense pain with no follow up care print out or the referral to a surgeon as she so wanted me to have…
Did I mention I drove myself to this appointment because no one else could? I cried all the way back to work but slightly better able to sit. I seriously never want to see this woman in my care ever again. My heart races at the sheer thought. However by the end of of day 9 my abscess was now double in size. I assumed by the excitement of the day and I couldn’t bare it anymore so I took my medicine and went to bed. By 1am I was woken by shooting pain that wouldn’t stop. By 8am I was calling the clinic and begging to come back in because something was very very wrong. They let me come into the other clinic and I met the actual doctor I was referred to when they were otherwise unavailable at the clinic location the day before. I explain my pain but out of fear of offending anyone I leave out all of the trauma from the day before. I didn’t need to muddy the waters before I was examined.
He looks at the paperwork examines me and is by far the most positive spirit I had a chance to meet this far! Also while giving me the terrible news that it was very bad and I may need surgery he was very kind. He didnt choose to continue to drain it any more and explains why not as it wouldn’t do any good since the softest tissue was cleared the day before and the hard lump and swelling I was talking about was the bacteria in my tissues not the cyst itself. Mind blown he asked me if I thought the antibiotic was working and I said no, finally happy to have someone listen to me. He changed it. He also gave me stronger pain medicine but I still don’t think I needed as much as he gave me. He explained what I should continue to do and I was happy to understand it better. Day 10 ended with lots of real rest and by day 11 ending I started to see progress. Real progress. The lump dropped in half the size and by the end of day 11 I’m typing this happy to report that things are clearing out and I didn’t need any strong medicine to lay down tonight. After two compresses and a bath I think day 12 will start out much better than expected.
If only someone would have listened to me on the days I begged to get in sooner or changed things like I asked on day 9. Oh well, you live and learn. I go back on Tuesday and surgery may still be in my future. However, I no longer feel that it will be an emergency procedure and can not review the options, If you are In the midst: Epsom salt is your best friend. Baths and compresses. Lots of them. Rest. Lots of it. Go to the doctor. You can’t wait on this if it’s hot to The touch and inflamed.
Beware of doctors that talk to you while lancing and rush the procedure. There really is no excuse for waiting on the local to take effect, not like I was going anywhere? Take your medicine on time. You should see changes or at least small progress within a day or so, speak up if you don’t. Maybe I’ll have more to add but I certainly hope this is the end for me and inflamed infections.
Good luck!