# Disgusting question about treating a boil **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 6, 2006, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-question-about-treating-a-boil/347212 "2006-03-06T02:19:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![slaphead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9bcb4/32.png) [@slaphead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slaphead)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2006, 11:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-question-about-treating-a-boil/347212/21 "2006-03-08T11:25:22Z")
> [@Qadgop the Mercotan](#): > > That was weird. I only hit “post” once. Clearly the hamsters reckon that a post from you is worth reading twice. 😃 > [@Sampiro](#): > > In either case I’m making an appointment for tomorrow (the first time I’ve had the chance) to have it looked at. The suspense is killing me. What was the verdict? ---
**Author:** ![MizGrand](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/cdc98d/32.png) [@MizGrand](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MizGrand)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2006, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-question-about-treating-a-boil/347212/22 "2006-03-08T14:28:21Z")
Ewww. I once had a _something_ (I think it was an ingrown hair) in that location near me girlie bits. It was as swollen as a hazelnut. At the time, I was in a live-in facility (half-way house) on my way to being sober and getting to a doctor was difficult to say the least. My dad came and picked me up and took me in to be seen _somewhere_ and they were amazed at the size of it. I insisted on seeing a gyno. Didn’t want some silly intern eyeballing the bits, you know. Well, on topic, they lanced it and put in a wick to help it drain. Quite the unpleasant experience. To this day, I still get that same ingrown hair flaring up once in awhile. While it hurts like hell to squeeze it, that’s some damn satifying pus once it comes out! ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2006, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-question-about-treating-a-boil/347212/23 "2006-03-08T18:06:24Z")
Yep. Go see a medical Professional. Soon. A real boil would look and feel exactly like a large zit that hasn’t “come to a head” yet . If it was a real boil (which I doubt), then doing the old “hot water treatment” (soak it in water as hot as is safe and you can stand) might be OK if it wasn’t “there”. However, the smell (boils don’t smell until they burst/are drained, in which case it’s all over very quickly), the intermittant pain (boils hurt a lot), and the appearance- all seem to indicate “not a boil”. Let us know what they say. ---
**Author:** ![rpinrd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b3f665/32.png) [@rpinrd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rpinrd)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2006, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-question-about-treating-a-boil/347212/24 "2006-03-08T22:57:52Z")
I want to know how the Doctor visit came out, but you know what they say about boils: A watched boil never pops! ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [March 8, 2006, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-question-about-treating-a-boil/347212/25 "2006-03-08T23:27:33Z")
> [@RSSchen](#): > > Ewww. I once had a _something_ (I think it was an ingrown hair) in that location near me girlie bits. It was as swollen as a hazelnut. At the time, I was in a live-in facility (half-way house) on my way to being sober and getting to a doctor was difficult to say the least. My dad came and picked me up and took me in to be seen _somewhere_ and they were amazed at the size of it. I insisted on seeing a gyno. Didn’t want some silly intern eyeballing the bits, you know. > > Well, on topic, they lanced it and put in a wick to help it drain. Quite the unpleasant experience. To this day, I still get that same ingrown hair flaring up once in awhile. While it hurts like hell to squeeze it, that’s some damn satifying pus once it comes out! I think that I’d avail myself of a little electrolysis in that area if I had a recurring ingrown hair. Ingrown hairs, especially inflamed ingrown hairs, can be a real pain in the…anatomy. And I too am anxious to hear how the OP fared at the doc’s. ---
**Author:** ![Amazon\_Floozy\_Goddess](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/779978/32.png) [@Amazon\_Floozy\_Goddess](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amazon_Floozy_Goddess)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2006, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-question-about-treating-a-boil/347212/26 "2006-03-09T05:11:54Z")
Yes, when come back, bring gratuitous descriptions. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2006, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-question-about-treating-a-boil/347212/27 "2006-03-09T15:53:04Z")
Actually it turned out to be an odd (and relatively harmless) combination of two things. I had an insect bite of some sort that accounted for the little bump _AND_ I had a yeast infection. The two (according to the doctor) were probably not related and just coincidentally in the same place. I already had the teeny tiny bump from the insect bite (I noticed it with disinterest Saturday) then got really sweaty after cleaning my house the next day and crashed before bathing good which he said probably caused or hastened the yeast infection. I’m still not sure why the smell was so bad but it’s mostly dissipated now, and he gave me a cream and pill to add to my collection. The only bad news was that the number of people who have seen me frontally naked doubled in one day and I didn’t even get a phone number. By the time the fourth person came into the room (first the nurse, then the apprentice-doctor, then the doctor, then another nurse who evidently heard this was the closest she’d come this year to realizing her childhood dream of seeing Burl Ives expose himself) I simply said “Pardon me for not rising”, then looked like :mad: when I realized “You could take that more than one way” (which is also a loaded comment, so I’ll go now). ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2006, 6:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-question-about-treating-a-boil/347212/28 "2006-03-09T18:00:05Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Actually it turned out to be an odd (and relatively harmless) combination of two things. I had an insect bite of some sort that accounted for the little bump _AND_ I had a yeast infection. Good, glad to hear you’re OK. Now, unless the MD also gave you or told you to consume Probiotics/Acidolpholus, I will suggest that you do so. Live Culture Yogurt is a good way of getting those useful commensal bacteria(they also sell pills down at the Health Food store). They _do_ help in Yeast infections. Yeast infections in guys (sometimes mixed up with “Jock itch”) smell pretty bad. Wash all your undies in hot water and either Pinesol, Lysol or Bleach. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2006, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-question-about-treating-a-boil/347212/29 "2006-03-09T18:12:10Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Tea Tree Oil, while a very good antisceptic, antibiotic, antifungal anti-everything, is also rather harsh and anti-mucus membrane and Little 'Piro will NOT appreciate an errant tea tree splash. My best friend’s boyfriend burned all the skin off his little friend that way, trying to treat a genital wart. He was an idiot. Jesus, but this is a disgusting thread. I use Tea Tree Oil soap in my daily bath. I don’t know what percentage the active ingredient actually is, but I wash my face with it and haven’t had a big trauma. And I’m the queen of getting soap in my eyes. Maybe that’s what the original suggestion was getting at. Good luck with that, Sampiro. (must…vomit…) ---
**Author:** ![Tristan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tristan/32/18058_2.png) [@Tristan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tristan)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2006, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-question-about-treating-a-boil/347212/30 "2006-03-09T18:43:58Z")
About 2 years ago, my wife had this hard lump down by her girlie bits. It was painful, but did not appear to have a head. The skin was hot, and hard. I told her to go get a rag as hot as she could stand and place it on it… our theory was that it was a deep skin zit, or something foolish. She held that rag on for about 20 minutes. She she took it off, it had come to a head. It wasn’t a zit. It was a CLUMP of ingrown hair. You could see a small ball of dark hairs in the head (which was slightly bigger than a pea. She ducked off to the bathroom, and came back 15 minutes later with a bloody rag pressed against her girly bits. We then went to Urgent Care, so the dr. could make sure all was well. She was a bit traumatized… the dr. actually called another dr to come look at the crater next to her bits. It has healed, and not recurred. I \ **Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2006, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-question-about-treating-a-boil/347212/31 "2006-03-09T20:01:41Z") > [@DrDeth](#): > > Good, glad to hear you’re OK. Now, unless the MD also gave you or told you to consume Probiotics/Acidolpholus, I will suggest that you do so. Live Culture Yogurt is a good way of getting those useful commensal bacteria(they also sell pills down at the Health Food store). They _do_ help in Yeast infections. > > Yeast infections in guys (sometimes mixed up with “Jock itch”) smell pretty bad. Wash all your undies in hot water and either Pinesol, Lysol or Bleach. I love probiotics. I can’t stand the taste of yogurt (and I’ve tried to eat it many times, in many ways) but I can tolerate the little edible tablets. They’re good for yeast infections and for the diarrhea that antibiotics often cause. Yeast infections in women can smell pretty bad, too. ---
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2006, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-question-about-treating-a-boil/347212/32 "2006-03-09T20:05:53Z")
I’d have a doctor look at it, it might even be [this](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pilonidal_cyst). If that is so, you really should let the doctor help it heal properly. ---
**Author:** ![Zabali\_Clawbane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/ecd19e/32.png) [@Zabali\_Clawbane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zabali_Clawbane)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2006, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-question-about-treating-a-boil/347212/33 "2006-03-09T20:09:50Z")
That’ll learn me not to reply before I’ve seen if there are any updates by the OP! :o ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2006, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-question-about-treating-a-boil/347212/34 "2006-03-09T20:49:56Z")
> [@Lynn Bodoni](#): > > I love probiotics. I can’t stand the taste of yogurt (and I’ve tried to eat it many times, in many ways) but I can tolerate the little edible tablets. They’re good for yeast infections and for the diarrhea that antibiotics often cause. > > Yeast infections in women can smell pretty bad, too. Have you tied the Acidolphlous milk? There is also Dannon LaCreme Mousse, which tastes just like cheesecake (and is also pretty high in fat). Probiotics also help with canker sores and (I have been told) mild cases of IBS. In general, they are a Good Thing. Yep. (here’s where we _really_ need that “yuck” emoticon) Oh, and Tea Tree based soap would also be good for washing underwear exposed to a Yeast infection. Some dudes & dudettes tolerate it in their “nether regions”, some don’t. Try it \*very carefully \* 1st. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2006, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-question-about-treating-a-boil/347212/35 "2006-03-09T21:02:22Z")
> [@Kalhoun](#): > > Jesus, but this is a disgusting thread. > > I use Tea Tree Oil soap in my daily bath. I don’t know what percentage the active ingredient actually is, but I wash my face with it and haven’t had a big trauma. And I’m the queen of getting soap in my eyes. Maybe that’s what the original suggestion was getting at. > > Good luck with that, Sampiro. > > (must…vomit…) Tea tree oil soap is fine, and probably around 5% tee trea or so. It probably wouldn’t even sting on your genitals. What my friend’s boyfriend did is dabbed pure essential oil of tea tree onto his penis with a cotton ball. Did I mention he was stupid? Didn’t want to see one of my favorite posters taking the advice too literally and doing himself some damage. ---
**Author:** ![Excalibre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/898d66/32.png) [@Excalibre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Excalibre)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2006, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-question-about-treating-a-boil/347212/36 "2006-03-09T21:17:03Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > Tea tree oil soap is fine, and probably around 5% tee trea or so. It probably wouldn’t even sting on your genitals. What my friend’s boyfriend did is dabbed pure essential oil of tea tree onto his penis with a cotton ball. Did I mention he was stupid? > > Didn’t want to see one of my favorite posters taking the advice too literally and doing himself some damage. Too many people assume that natural means harmless - seems to me anything capable of killing bacteria probably poses a strong risk of irritating mucus membranes. At any rate, hope your friend’s boyfriend’s penis recovered. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/disgusting-question-about-treating-a-boil/347212.md?page=1)