For those of you watching me, you've no doubt noticed my utter lack of activity, journal or submission-wise. Welp, that changed today because I've come to make an announcement:

For the past 6+ weeks, I've been dealing with a perineum abscess. Started little more than a week into December. Got worse by the 11th onward, until I finally went to urgent care on the 18th to figure out what was going on.

After being deferred to a proper hospital once the issue was identified, I had it lanced and drained, which wasn't fun. And continued to drain for several days after the fact, while being prescribed antibiotics not just for the abscess, but also the cause of it: a case of e.coli! Just my luck, huh?

So I proceeded apace for the next couple weeks after that, but the abscess itself still didn't quite fade away. I went and saw my physician two weeks ago, and he prescribed stronger antibiotics for a 10-day period. And was told to come see him again today, which I have done.

It became very readily apparent, unsurprisingly considering how my luck tends to fluctuate wildly, that this wasn't about to go away on its own, leading to the inevitable conclusion that the abscess has developed into a full-on fistula. For those who know what that is, or have even experienced one yourselves, you're probably wincing at the memory of it surfacing,

For those who don't know, not to worry, I won't bore you with the details, just know that in situations like these, the most effective sure-fire treatment is an excision of the affected area. This does of course mean I'll be put under anesthesia for the first time in my life, while they effect the procedure, which I've been told shouldn't run more than roughly half an hour.

My doctor has already recommended a surgeon for me to contact, make an appointment, and hopefully one that my insurance will cover. (After all, gotta love America's shitty-ass healthcare system, am I right?) But when all's said and done, it'll be one worry I'll never have to cordon a section of my mind off to stressing the fuck out over.

So... Overall? Not the greatest start to my 2025, but here's hoping once I've dealt with all this bullshit that I can get back to a sense of 'normal'.