How did I treat my cyst?

For a year and a half, I didn't.

My cyst began as a small bump near my vagina.  I never had any pain or redness.  This is because it was never infected - it never developed into an abscess.

For over a year the cyst did not bother me.  I had it diagnosed in an urgent care, where they confirmed what my online research had already told me: I had a Bartholin cyst.  The nurse was uncomfortable with the idea of draining it.  She gave me antibiotics, but since I had no infection, nothing happened.

The cyst did not get in the way for me.  It got a little bigger around my periods, or if I was standing with clothing rubbing against it for long periods of time.  A hot bath in which I massaged the cyst would release a little fluid.  It varied in size, but never went below a small grape.

In November of 2017 I began using a menstrual cup.  During this time my cyst became an annoyance.  It still did not hurt, but it would get in the way when I tried to insert or remove my cup.

In December I became sexually active.  Sex increased the size of my cyst.  When it was swollen I noticed difficulties with my boyfriend penetrating me.  Once he was inside we were fine, but the swelling around my vagina made penetration difficult.  It was cumbersome, and not quite uncomfortable.
Again, sex increased the size of my cyst.  Hot baths would reduce it somewhat, but it swelled to the size of a large grape and would not reduce.

In February I went in to see a gynecologist to have it drained.  I had researched, and expected her to insert a catheter.
She.  Was.  Terrible.
I'm in the process of filing a medical complaint against her.
She did not inform me of any treatment options, and did not provide me with aftercare instructions.  She ignored my pain as she positioned the cyst.  She did not give me a topical to numb me before she inserted a needle with Lidocaine.  The injection was the worst pain I've ever been in.  I cried.  I punched the wall.  The doctor ignored me, instead talking with her nurse about car insurance.
The cyst was drained, nothing was inserted, and I was told to leave.
The cyst was back within a week and a half.

I made an appointment with a different gynecologist.  He was fantastic.  He explained treatment options to me and highly recommended a marsupialization.  He said it had the best success rates.  He promised that I would be unconscious for the procedure.  He was horrified by my treatment at the hands of the first doctor.
My cyst was too small to operate on then, about the size of a marble, but he said if it got any bigger he could do the surgery.
Unfortunately, my application to Medicaid was approved that day, and his office did not accept the plan I was assigned to.

I flew out to Chicago to see my boyfriend.  Whether it was the stress, the plane ride, or the sex, the cyst tripled in size overnight.  My boyfriend spent two hours holding me as I wept with exhaustion.  I needed the surgery.

I got a referral to a gynecologist who specialized in vaginal surgeries.  He examined me and suggested that we try draining the cyst again, hoping that the first doctor just hadn't done it properly.  He gave me a topical to numb me first, then injected a local anesthetic.  He made a larger incision and inserted gauze to try and give the wound time to heal.
That was Thursday.  Friday morning the gauze fell out.  I was swollen.  I tried to convince myself that the cyst was gone all weekend, but by Sunday I knew it was back.  I called Monday morning.  He was able to fit me in for marsupialization on Wednesday.

My marsupialization was done on March 14th.  I had had three surgeries performed on the cyst within a period of a month.  The operation was far less painful than either drainage had been.  Other posts will document my recovery.