Red Patch on my tongue.. what is it?!?

[angela1982]

I am really concerned about this. Today i was looking at my tongue and i noticed a red patch to the left side of my tongue. You know that little bitty sort of hairy looking stuff on your tongue? Well on the patch on my tongue it looks like they have sort of rubbed off or something. I am really not sure what it is and when i showed it ot my mom she was very concerned and she kinda freaked me out even more. It's kind of a pretty big spot. I looked it up on the internet and It mentioned something called geographic Tongue. But from what i saw it looked like that is something associated with more than one patch, and i only have one. It doesnt hurt (though is kind of tender) and is flat (not bumpy) and it isnt bleeding or anything. Does anyone know anything about this? I am kind of scared.

[quincy]

Hi, does it have a raised white outline? If so, yes it's geographic tongue. I've had it for almost 20 years and freaked me out then as well.

I've had larger areas and very small areas. I make sure I keep my fingers out of my mouth, for that's what seems to trigger it. Stress, certain foods, meds...etc can also trigger it.

It's harmless, and the more you stress about it, the worse it can get.

When I get it I show my husband and he comments something like....hey, that one looks like Africa! or whatever.

Don't forget, they always show the worst on the internet...meaning the most extreme of things, but you may have that one day as well. Don't worry, please.

Check, is it outlined with white, if so, that's it for sure.

quincy

[angela1982]

Thank you so much for responding!
It does seem to have a bit of a white outline, but it isnt as clear to see (the outline) as the ones i saw on the internet. the spot looks really huge! Does that mean i will have patches like that for the rest of my life? Is there anything that can be done about it?
But, at least i am fairly certain that that's what it is and it isnt anything major. It could be a lot worse
I just relooked at it.. the outline isnt really raised, but it is kind of white around it.. i just dont know what else it could be... it did look like the pictures on the internet i saw, except the outline wasnt raised like that. And i have only one spot. Could that still be it?

[quincy]

Yes, I just got one last night. I obviously had it in contact with something it didn't like.

You could have it for the rest of your life, or it may just stop. It's one of those "mysterious" non-lifethreatening things that create inconvenience.

Please don't get worried about it. The extra anxiety isn't good.

Now, a few questions just to kind of help you figure out what the culprit might be:

Are you using any new toothpaste? new lipstick? are you using any new preparations on your face? do you lick your fingers when you're turning pages or sorting papers?

It never fails, if I touch my tongue (unless my hands are freshly cleaned) I get one.

If this is any consolation to you.....since figuring this out oh so many years ago, I don't get them often, and they're only small ones.

I can usually feel it when they start, and if I scrounge in my mind, I can pinpoint the event.

The timing of when they started is when I was using clindamyacin in a liquid preparation for adult acne. But, who knows.

Yes, one spot would still be geographic tongue. Just keep your fingers out of your mouth, and if necessary change products you use if you know it makes it worse.

I just think I'm allergic to myself ;-b

It should take a few days for it to go away.

quincy