I recently got an abscess on my forearm. It formed for four days before I was able to see a doctor. After having the pus drained, I had to pack my wound with gauze so that the wound heals from the inside out. This is supposed to prevent any future collections of pus to appear in the infected area. However, I experience a lot of pain during packing. Having to stuff your open wound with eight inches of gauze every morning is most times unbearable. I read that packing an abscess is unnecessary, that this process prolongs healing and causes worse scars, not to mention the fact that, for me, I have to go to the doctors every 2-3 days for an indefinite length of time (it's been a little over a week) so they can check on it, causing me to miss meetings, school, and work. I'm not about to go against my doctors orders so I pack it (reluctantly, with tears). Is there really a benefit to packing abscesses?