I just recovered from a Bartholin cyst. I found the lump about three weeks ago. It remained a lump for about four or five days without hurting, just a tiny bit of itching. Then one day it was swollen and very painful. Webmd said it would go away with hot baths. It continued to grow for nearly another week and got to be the size of a tall, red, painful almond. One day the size wasn't much different, but somehow it seemed like it was getting better. The swelling gradually went down and the lump got smaller. It started itching again as it healed. I still have a tiny lump but it's so small I believe it could be gone tomorrow. Here's what I did to help the healing process.

I took a hot bath 2 or 3 times a day and put 7 drops of lavender and 7 drops of Juniper Berry essential oils in the bath every time. Lavender helps with swelling and healing, and Juniper Berry smells really good with Lavender.

I also put an oil on directly on the cyst several times a day. The oil was 1 ounce vegetable oil, 5 drops Lavender, 5 drops Chamomile (Roman or German), and 5 drops Eucalyptus. I used Roman Chamomile because that's what I had available. This doesn't smell as good as the bath, but Lavender and Chamomile are good for the swelling and Eucalyptus helps heal and disinfect. You could use Tea Tree oil in place of the Eucalyptus but I can't guarantee it will smell any better.

I found it was really irritating to just walk while wearing any type of clothing, and when the cyst was at its largest it was even hard to walk without clothing because it would rub on my leg. I'm cringing just thinking about it. I used a small cotton round that you might use to put astringent on your face. I placed it over the cyst and let the edge stick outside of my underwear (hard to describe). It stopped my clothing from rubbing on the cyst and it just rubbed on the cotton instead. ahh relief! I usually put the oil on right before I put on the cotton round. It served almost as a bandage without having any adhesive in that sensitive area.


One more thing, NO SEXUAL STIMULATION WHILE HEALING. The gland that is blocked produces fluids when aroused. From what I've read, producing more fluids while the cyst is blocking the duct would only make it worse.

I hope my experience can help someone. The worst part about this cyst was the fear. I was afraid to go to the doctor, but worried that I couldn't handle it myself. It was scary and painful, but I got through it. Some of the other posts on this forum about Bartholin cysts really frightened me. My intention is to give you hope instead of fear.

-E

It's been about 2 weeks since I had the marzup outpatient at my doctors office. It's not painful at all unless I poke around at it. The only reason i did that is because my disolvable stitches havent disolved! I am going to the doctors on Tuesday. I am just hoping this is the only surgery I need. I keep reading these horror stories. But everyone is different. I am holding on to that hope!!
Evette

Hi, i had marsupiliazation in April but unfortunately i started to noticed it swell again ... realy dunno what happened, does it not suppose to come back. what shall I do....tell me what was your experienced when you got it removed??? pls help

i finally got the gland removed yesterday and still very sore. My gynea was planning to do another marsup. earlier with different cut but suddenly change his mind and get it remove instead. I am so happy but the only thing is I am still bleeding. Anyone can tell me how long this bleeding will stop and what happen next? how long is the recovering process. I am quite worry about the bleeding , is it normal? just worry about this hematoma. Today i have to go again to see him to take out something he put in my vaginal...seems like a tampon...was realy worry to touch down there but try to make that area clean. Walking, sitting lying are all very sore.....please share some experience. good luck to all

KYNA I AM SO VERY HAPPY THAT YOU MADE THAT CHOICE. FOR ME IT TOOK ABOUT 3 DAYS FOR THE BLEEDING STOP BUT SEEING THAT IT HAS BEEN A WEEK AND A HALF SINCE YOU POSTED THIS REPLY IT PROBABLY HAS STOPPED. SO HOW DO YOU FEEL. I HOPE YOU FEEL BETTER BECAUSE I WAS A LITTLE SLUGGISH ALSO WHEN I GOT OUT.



ALSO IM NOT SURE BUT SOMEONE ASKED ABOUT HOW MY SEX LIFE HAS BEEN SINCE I GOT THE GLAND REMOVED. WELL I GOT IT REMOVED ABOUT 2 MONTHS AGO AND I WAS SCARED TO HAVE SEX BECAUSE I WAS SO USED TO GETTING THE CYST I THOUGHT IT WAS GONNA COME BACK. HOWEVER ABOUT 2 WEEKS AGO IT WAS MY BOYFRIEND'S BIRTHDAY SO YEH ... WE HAD SOME INTENSE SEX. NOT TO BE NASTY OR ANYTHING. IM STILL CYST FREE AND LOVING EVERY MINUTE OF IT ...

STRONG SUGGESTION ... GET THE GLAND REMOVED !!!!!

I am 29 years old now. I got my first Bartholin Cyst at age 19. It was so large that the ER MD's (2 male's) joked about it looking like a scrotum. They had no idea what it was or how to handle it. They called in the OBGYN MD and thankfully she helped me. Since then I have had 9 alternating on both sides. I've had atleast 6 more that I've self treated. At one point it seemed like I was having one on either side once a month. This is a total nightmare. I have one currently and it seems like I've gotten good at self maintaining it within 2-3 days its gone, but it is still very painful. I've been told that the surgery is the next route, some MDs tell me that after the first, I should've had the catheter in for a month and a half. But the first catheter wouldn't stay in that long. Its gotten so bad that I can't treat the cyst with a catheter at all due to the scar tissue. I feel like this is something that I will be dealing with for life. I don't know what I have done to cause this misfortune. I don't wear tight pants or panties. I have had only 1 partner since I started having sex and we're married now. It's just...a Nightmare that seems will never go away. So ladies...I feel your pain. The key for me is to start treatment with the onset on pain. Sometimes its just a tingle. Epson salt baths, pain reliever and just keep pushing on the cyst. The smaller you keep it, the quicker it will go away. Good Luck

curious from those who have had the gland removed: is it crazy for me to sit in a car for a four hour drive back home after the surgery? and what should i expect in terms of bleeding, pain, being able to walk or not......lie on the couch or in bed...?
thanks ladies!

Hi for those who wanted to know about the removal, im totally agree with Lagrimas...get those nasty cyst out of ya body.... Now it is almost 3 months after my removal... and im perfectly happy twith the choiced. It was painfull in about 2 weeks after but you will be fully recovered within a month with little tender feeling from the wound inside but other then that... everything just perfect like you never had one. ).. those who planning to get it remove I highly suggest get someone to drive you back home as you will be very painfull for at least 3 days under painkiller , well at least mine was only 2nd day...and lots of rest...hope for the best to everyone.

Hi Everyone,

Thanks so much for sharing your personal experiences with this horrible stuff. Tomorrow morning at 6:30, I am due at the surgery center for a marsupialization of my right Bart's gland. Needless to say, I am not thrilled about surgery but I'm really excited about the end of this pain!

I've had abscesses occur maybe 4-5 times, always on the right. The worst was in January 1999 when I was 7 months pregnant with my first child. It got HUGE in just a few hours. My husband and I were at a company retreat in Yosemite Park in, as I said, January. Not much going on in Yosemite in January. I called my doctor back home and she said I need to find the nearest emergency center and get my tushie to it right away. Hmm, that's kinda scary don't you think?? My husband was at an evening so I walked my lonely pregnant butt about a mile to the park's medical center...if it could justly be called that. I thought at first it was just another cabin. The sweetest doctor and nurse were there, thank goodness, but even their kindness and understanding couldn't do much to numb the pain I had and was about to endure. They had to drain it, and as others have said, the stench was unworldly. Good grief. I think I got brain damage from the smell (kidding of course). My husband arrived. No anesthetic was allowed at all, because of my pregnancy. I felt the blade, screamed horrible sounds (so bad that eventually my husband made them stop, done or not, because he just couldn't allow me to go through it any longer). It was still pretty big but because they had opened it, it did eventually drain and I was able to follow up with my regular doc. This is the only time in my history when I had it get so big and the only time I've needed a doctor's help overcoming it, until now. Oh, and that nurse in Yosemite...she said she'd had it done as well (which was very comforting) and said that the pain I was going through then was much worse than childbirth (and she was right). Yep....worse than childbirth. And without the precious little reward even.

I got swollen again a handful of years later, and now again. Actually a number of months ago I noticed a lump there but it didn't hurt or bother me, so my new doctor (since 1999 I moved to another state) said its best to let it be if it isn't bothering me. Now it's bothering me a lot and he wants to marsupialize it. I'm in so much pain (the painkillers just came up with my lunch a half hour after they went down, as painkillers always do for me), any form of relief is welcome. Baths and Advil have done nothing to help, aside from taking the edge off just a tiny bit. It's 9 minutes to midnight now and I'm not supposed to eat or drink after the top of the hour. I am eating pure protein so I don't have to deal as much with hunger in the morning. Oh and get this...today at my doctor's office he took a look at it (and it's only about golf ball or small lemon size this time) and said, "Boy, if you want sympathy from a doctor that's a sure-fire way to get it." I said I don't want sympathy, just relief. He said he promised he wouldn't do anything to hurt me. I could tell by looking at him and watching him take care of my issue that he really does understand how badly it hurts. Thank goodness for him - he's a really good doctor. I told my husband I bet I know what it feels like for a guy to get kicked in the you-know-whats.

Anyway, I just wanted to find out more about what I would be going through tomorrow and found this thread. Thanks to everyone for all your words. I realize I'll probably wish I had gotten the gland removed, but I'll take this step for now. Wish me luck?!

tjo

I don't want to say thank goodness, but thank goodness that i'm not the only one.

I'm in my 2nd week of recovery from marsupialization needed after a severe bartholin abcsess. It took three days to develop and lucky me, it became necessary to seek medical attention on my birthday. 34th. happy happy.

This pain was the worst I've ever felt. Ever. In fact, the gyno who saw me in the emerg said that the it was the worst case of bartholin abcsess that she had ever seen. She called in another gyno to consult and they did surgery on me the following morning. Drained the abcsess and put in the pouch to facilitate any further drainage.

What has made me so upset, aside from the obvious reasons of std testing, the initial emerg consult where I was made to feel like a dirty woman, and the general feeling of depression that exists after surgery, is the simple fact that it is so difficult to get any information on this condition. I've been back to my clinic three times since the surgery and each time left feeling like they know less about this than I do.

Today's visit was concerning the stitches, which I was told initially would dissolve within two weeks. It's been two and a bit and they are still there, with no signs of diminishing. Doc told me that he is wary to remove them in office because he is not the surgeon that put them there, to wait another week and see what happens. See what happens??? Great. Thanks.

After reading this forum, and realizing the chance of re-occurance, well, I'm not feeling too optimistic about seeing what happens.

Good thoughts to all that have suffered this. I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy.

Hi all just to update, its been 2 months almost now since the removal and I am feeling alright so far and started to go to gym... had plenty of rest for the first 1 months and tonight hubby is back from outstation and it has been 2 months since we had sex....(since had the removal) little wonder how would it be... )... hopefully everything is normal. Will keep update to share......

Yep, you're all singing my sad song.

Still have the catheter in from the drainage on Tuesday and even though this is the 4th time - I'M STILL SITTING HERE AT 3AM looking for answers on "why did it smell so bad this time and why did it spray out brown fluid all over the doctors office! It's never been that color, what does that mean? Will it ever stop draining? Why in the h..$# do I need it in so long and what is a 30 minute bath going to do at this point other than take up my entire day and put me to sleep?"

Seriously though... this time the horror of it was so bad that it took 3 nurses to run around just getting the room wiped up well enough that I could get up without tracking it everywhere. What is that! The nurse says "we deal with these all the time", okay than why haven't you learned how to drain them in such a way that at least allows the patient to retain some dignity?

And don't do the ER thing! Did that once and the guy knew nothing, it was like nightmare on Elm Street, the pain was like nothing I've EVER experienced...childbirth looks easy in comparison.

I'm 33 and this all started when I was 16...they always come at the most inopportune times and try answering "what happened?" to anyone other than your Mom. And everybody knows when you hesitate for a second or say "oh nothing, I'm fine" that you're dodging the question and who knows where their mind goes. I personally don't have the ability to lie but I will say "nothing"...okay sure, that's why I ran out of your most important day or my most important meeting at work ever, because of "nothing". Sure. Can this get any more embarrassing, painful, time consuming, and hopeless?


I read that medicine hasn't even advanced enough to even touch the surface of understanding the nervous system in the female anatomy. I'm guessing, if we don't even have a handle on the basic anatomy - our cyst malfunctions aren't on the top of anyones priority list. I say let's do our own "walk for a cure", I can just see it now...waddling women from all walks of life unite and emerge from their bedridden tortured slumber to shed some light on our misunderstood & mistreated ...(well you know).

One things for sure DOCTORS NEED TO GET IT TOGETHER!!! THIS ISN'T WORKIN'.....

I had a cyst marsupialized on May 4. I have yet to be able to have comfortable sex because the type of stiches the doctor used have caused granules to form around them. Has anyone had experience with this? My doctor is trying a steroid cream with the possibility of using silver-oxide later. Has anyone had that done? Has anyone has a CO2 laser used to resurface the scar? Please, any information would be appreciated!!

Hi everyone iam 33 years old and now i have my 14th barthonil cyst! They make you feel like you are going insane!The pain to me is worse than any surgery i have ever had! I told my mother I had rather have a baby than have one of those cyst! like the rest of you everyone around me has no idea what iam talking about or going through. This last one has ruptured on the inside and did not come out ! So iam in as much pain as ever and starting to have a slight fever. It sucks I have no insurance and dont know what to do. I think this could be a really bad thing . I hope the infection doesnt get into my blood stream . That would be really bad. Have a great day or as much of a great day as you can. Thanks!

I have had it dont and sence then mine has came back 3 or 4 times and that thing was painful.

Hi everyone, so glad to have found this forum. No matter how rare they say the B. cyst is, it's amazing how many people have responded with their stories. I really wish there was more help and info out there for us.

I got my first cyst this past May, in the middle of finals week (I'm a graduate student). I saw a new obgyn who wasn't sure what it was or whether it was infected because at that point, according to her, it was too small--it was the size of a pea. I then went back to my old OBGYN thinking she'd be of some help. She instead squeezed it a few times and said to continue warm soaks--according to her, it was not infected. Well, the very next day the thing grew to the size of a grape and i was upset! Upset that both doctors had in a sense, misled me. I ended up going to the first OBGYN and had the procedure done that afternoon, 5 days after the onset of this terrible thing.

I didn't know what to expect and I'm so squeamish and can't handle pain. Honestly, it was the worst pain I've ever been in, mainly because ''that area'' is so sensitive. She numbed it, lanced it, and squeezed the nuts out of it (this hurt the most). I was tearing and almost screaming, asking her to stop the pain. When she was done she inserted the word catheter and as that was blowing up---that hurt JUST as much as when she was squeezing the pus out. I survived the procedure thanks to the nurse to held my hand and kept telling me to squeeze her hand throughout the entire procedure.

Complete recovery took about a month. Since then I've also used baby wipes after every single bowel movement, and do a few soaks a week.

My update is, that a few days ago I felt a feeling ''down there'' again. I took a look with a mirror and noticed a pimple just a few milimeters from my first cyst. I panicked and saw a PCP who prescribed antibiotics. I HOPE these work. I'm also doing 3 soaks a day using some Epsom salt.

My questions are:
Has anyone had experience with the antibiotics (I was given Keflex). Did that stop the occurrence of the potential cyst?
Has anyone else used Epsom salt in their soaks? I can't find any information that proves how it helps the cyst and would really like to know.
Also, I've never had one pop on its own and it seems like a few of you have. How did you get that to happen? How hot is the water you use in soaks?

If I can be of any help to you, or would like to know more about the word catheter procedure, I'd love to pass on any information because I wish I had prior knowledge before going into the surgery.

This whole thing has put such a strain on my social life and sex life. There are moments I get depressed for fear of it reoccuring.If anyone knows of any tips to help prevent it from happening, please share!

Thanks, best of health to you all and may this never happen again to any of us!

I am so so pleased that this forum exists!!

I have been hunting on the net for the last few yrs and am not sure how i didnt come across this before.

I am currently on no 15!! I have had 5 operated on, the rest treated with anti biotics. It amazes me over here about how some docs dont know how to treat them at all. I generally have to request what anti biotics i want etc and I'm not the doctor! To answer the person above's qn. I am put on two types of anti biotic - Co-Amoxiclav and Metronidazole. But I know often tablets have a million names. And no, no anti biotics have ever stopped mine. I have seen 3 specialists none of whom are keen on removing the gland. I have had high dose anti biotics for 14 ays and low dose for a few months to try and clear it up. Nothing has worked. I have just got myself re refered to a specialist who i will be pushing for a removal. It is always in the same side for me and I've had it with these things.

I have been suggested to use salts but never really used them. Hot baths do bring them to the surface. One of the specialists said do not ever use anything perfumed in your bath - ie. too much bath foam or whatever that could irritate it. He explained it is imp to keep the PH level correct.

I've had one pop by itself. I didnt do anything different, it did it of its own accord although hot baths did encourage. Hot baths is all I've heard to encourage it. It wasnt massively nice! The temp of the water was like a normal hot bath you'd have.

Does anyone know any more about gland removal? Any problems people have had? How long did you have to take off work to recover? Without wishing to be crude, do the other glands compensate?

What other antibiotics have others tried?

Thanks. And so pleased I found this site!! It's fab! My specialists said they didnt know of anyone who'd had so many so you've all made me feel far more normal again! Thank you!

I had my first cyst (not abscess) in 2004. Although it was uncomfortable, it wasn't horribly painful. It also went away (the duct opened and the contents emptied out) after sitz baths and hot compresses to my relief.

My second cyst occurred in the first week of September 2007 while I was on vacation. The sitz baths and compresses DID NOT work. So I was forced to the hospital when it became painful to walk, sit, stand and lie down, even while on ibuprofin. The doc put 5 needles in me to anesthetize the area and then proceeded with an I D (incision and drainage) which provided immediate relief. After saline wash he packed the area. The packing fell out the following evening, although the area remains swollen and slightly firm/tight to the touch (as if packing were still there). I will go in on Monday for a follow up to ensure the area is healing well, and will revisit later with an update if/when the cyst comes back.

Please provide detailed updates of your episodes. It most certainly helps to communicate with the doctors/gynocologists.

I am hoping to learn about your experiences with the word catheter (how long does it stay in? how long does it take to heal the area?) versus marsupialization.

I am trying to avoid the painful experience. It was HORRIBLE when the baths and compresses did not work and I HAD TO go in for I&D. But what are our options? Does one make more sense than the others?

Thanks!

I am 36. I just got out of the hospital after becoming septic (getting bacteria in my bloodstream) from the incision and drainage of my sixth bartholin's duct abscess. I have been hospitalized only twice in my life; both times for the same reason. This condition is absolutely as miserable as others on this forum have described.

When I got my first cyst in fall 2004, I completely freaked out. I discovered it while having sex. It hurt. There was a large lump in my vagina interfering with penetration. I went to the ER and the female doctor, fortunately, knew what it was. She offered to open it, but when I found out that meant she would cut me with a scalpel, I took myself and painful abscess home, untreated.

Spontaneous rupture involves living with the infection and pain until the abscess opens on its own and the stinky infection comes out. I have been through this three times. The lump will continue to grow and get more and more tender. Each time, just when I thought I couldn't take it anymore, it would burst it's nasty contents. If you work in the home this is much easier than when faced with this happening at the office. For me, living with the pain of the lump is easier than living with the immune system response to the infection. I get so miserable with the infection that I can't function (feels like the flu with bone aches, etc), and this usually drives me to endure the scalpel once more.

This time after the incision and drainage I became septic and had to be hospitalized for intravenous antibiotics. The gyn who refused to place a word catheter, insists marsupialization is the best treatment, but a 5-15% recurrence rate is too much for me, thus I will not have it done.

Today, I am crying. I too feel the desperation and depression faced by others here. It is so frustrating to know that you can't control your own body. That diet, exercise, or hard work can't make a difference. Based on my reading elsewhere and on this forum, word catheters and marsupilization are temporary measures, and the more times we allow ourselves to be cut, the worse the outcome of future treatments will be, no matter what the treatment.

I am determined to have surgery, so have begun researching to find the latest and greatest technology and doctor to tackle this insidious problem once and for all. I am terrified. It is so nice to know I am not alone. No one around me understands. I am fortunate to have insurance. I can't imagine having to go through this without it.

Has anyone tried the lavender, juniper berry, chamomile, euchalyptus treatment that worked for an earlier poster to this forum?

I suggest you educated yourselves with this article, available online. I have found it very useful and carry a copy of it to every doctor I see about my condition:

Management of Bartholin's Duct Cyst and Gland Abscess
written by doctors Folashade, Simmons, and Hacker.

Im only 21 and i have now had a re-occuring bartholin's cyst for about 3 years. In these last three years it has come back over 11 times and each time more painful then the last. From the very first time it occured the cyst has grown over the size of a gulf ball in a matter of days. Leaving me almost ashamed and in massive pain quite often. I have had three removed and the rest drained by warm baths and all the other crap that doesnt work. The first time i started going into shock and went to the er where an rn drained it. The surgery took over an hour and i was givin absolutely nothing to numb or dull the pain. She told me that if she were to give me anything it would tighten things up down there. I was young and had no knowledge of what i actually had. About 9 cyst later i found that not to be true. In between the times of swelling the lump never has gone completely away. the last time it flared up i had to be rushed to er again and treated for shock. I had a fever was cold and couldnt stop shaking. I dont remember much from that night. i only recently have started talking to a obgyn about my options. So far she has only givin me one: marsupialization. Which to me sounds horrifying and from what im reading doesnt seem to work. So again im stuck locked in my house hiding my problem and dealing with the pain. I just dont know what to do but i cant keep living like this. It has really put a huge damper on my life. reading all the messages from all the other women who are going through the same things has really helped me. It is making this process less embarrising to me. and hopefully soon i will have my answer on how to fix this.. Thanks