I believe I have a Bartholin's cyst. Yesterday, I noticed a small, spherical lump near my vaginal opening, just slightly larger than a pea. It is not red or painful. When researching the Bartholin's gland, I came across horror stories about the gland becoming infected and abcessed, requiring marsupialization or catheterization. Naturally, I hope to prevent my cyst from developing into an abcess.
Given that my cyst is small and is not causing me pain, what is the best course of action? Some sources say to take sitz baths and/or apply various solutions to the area to cause the cyst to come to a head and burst. I worry that bursting the cyst will increase the likelihood of infection (since that's what happens with pimples!). Should I be trying to get the cyst to pop at this point?
It may be worth mentioning that I noticed some greyish-white vaginal discharge a few days ago that I am fairly sure was bacterial vaginosis. I used a product called RepHresh vaginal gel to try rebalance my vaginal pH.
What is the best way to prevent the cyst from turning into an abcess? Is it safe to engage in sexual activity at this point?
Thanks so much.