I am a 37 year old male who first came down with a pilonidal sinus after starting a new I.T job, which involved lots of sitting down.
I admit I was silly and ignored signs that something was wrong, like bleeding and discomfort for over a year. I didn’t know what was wrong and thought it was just dry, split skin or something like that. If anyone reading this has a suspicion that they have a sinus, please don’t be a “strong silent guy”, go to your doctor ASAP! It’ll only get worse if you don’t. Only a fool lets the fear of embarrassment of pulling his pants down for a medical examination stop him getting medical treatment.
Antibiotics did not work for me and surgery was recommended. I was fortunate that health insurance covered all the bills for the operation, and I was able to have six days off work to recover. I was anxious before the surgery, but the relief once the lousy sinus was gone was so great that everyone out there should know it is definitely worth going through with it. “Feel the fear and do it anyway”. I had problems with painful bending over with stitches, and uncomfortable constipation from the painkillers I had to take, but it was still definitely worth it. I have to admit, the follow-up visits to the specialist surgeon were not so great. I would visit him every 4-6 weeks after the operation, and he would do something like remove pieces of dead skin from the incision. This would tear the wound up a little, and it would take whole 2-3 weeks to heal back to the state it had been again.
I’ve had to struggle with feeling of futility and anger at someone who was meant to be helping me heal. I have put my faith in the local nurses at a clinic instead, and have been blessed by receiving their wonderful treatment twice a week. About two weeks ago I had another lump appear and a new small tract. Luckily the nurses and my local doctor have dealt with this new issue fantastically. Antibiotics this time seem to have prevented another nasty sinus developing, and I am so relieved. I would like to put a positive spin on my having to face a nasty illness like this.
The experience has made me learn so much that can only make me wiser (learning through my stupid mistakes). I have learnt to navigate the medical system; how to get in touch my spiritual side as part of the healing process; how to stay upbeat and not let an illness become a dominating feature of my life and be resilient to overcome it; and I’ve learnt so much about my own body and how to take care of it I’m almost grateful.
I have found this book has helped me greatly as I’ve gone along: “The Wisdom of the Healing Wound” by David Knighton, and you might too. It’s been 3.5 months since my operation, and my incision wound has almost healed.
What hasn’t killed me has made me stronger.