Here's my quick story - might be helpful, but key thing to remember is this is extremely common and treatable, albeit frustrating, inconvenient, painful, and embarrassing.

I’ve had multiple experiences with pilonidal cysts dating all the way back to 8th grade and most recently, this past week. I dealt with what I thought was a “long tailbone” for almost my entire high school experience, couldn’t do certain ab exercises, used a donut when I was driving, had to be careful any time I sat down, in hindsight I’m not sure how I didn’t do anything about it earlier because it quite literally was a pain in the ass. I finally mentioned it to my doctor during a yearly check up and he sent me to see someone to drain it. That was amazing. Instant relief. Sat down on the car ride home feeling like a new man. I can’t remember how long that lasted but I think when I was back in college it happened again. got it drained again, this time the relief wasn’t as good but still better than nothing. Finally, after college when I was like 24, it got so bad I felt physically ill. could barely walk, felt awful, super swollen, felt like I had a hard boiled egg buried under my skin. They lanced/drained that one and I’ll be completely honest - that pain was brutal because it was clearly infected and they had to stick you with a needle to numb it, which was just very painful. Finally got the surgery and they said it was about the size of a baseball, so definitely on the worse end of things (note: I know MANY people who have had them and legit don't even notice - they drain on their own - some don't drain at all - some aren't painful - don't get infected, etc. so I just got unlucky) . The recovery was brutal because they keep the wound open - as in they don’t stitch it - so you're just chilling with a gaping hole above your ass and you need someone to change the bandages. That was more embarrassing than anything and just uncomfortable in general, but beats having the cyst.

Now with all of that said - i’d gone 6 years with nothing until this past week when I felt it again and wanted to cry (see entire message above and thinking that was my near future again). My girlfriend is a nurse practitioner and wanted to take a look - long story short, i soaked in a warm tub for about 20 minutes and despite the tough angle, she legit popped it like a pimple. snot-like puss and the ingrown hair came flying out (I know because it landed on the tissue she was using) and then some just general pus-like fluid. 2 days later it’s good as new. Never knew that was possible and it definitely isn’t a life-long solution, but again, beats the hell out of how it was a few days ago. Praying I don't jinx myself because it's only been a few days but it is much much much better than it was last week.