... without treatment? I had a benign cyst removed from my throat 7 years ago and this triggered my burning tongue syndrome. What hell! I've been to countless dentists, ENTS, oral surgeons, GPs and NONE of them know what to do. I've had my teeth ground-down, capped and night guarded, all to no avail. This site helps me feel I'm not so alone and suffering in silence. I can't stand to think I will live with this the rest of my life. Is it possible for it to just dissappear and resolve on its own? Thanks all
Burning Mouth Syndrome - I've had BMS for seven years. Has anyone had this go away on its own?
Question posted by gonzo jen on 5 Sep 2013
Last updated on 16 January 2023
140 Answers
I’m so sorry you have suffered with this for so long. I did too…for 15 years. Always searching for help from dozens of doctors and anything new on the internet. One night, I read an interesting article by a doctor in California. She said if doctors took the time to do an oral swab, they would see that BMS is a herpes derivative and VALTREX pills help take the pain away. After 15 years, I took Valtrex and in 5 days, it was GONE. FOR GOOD. I don’t know why more posts don’t talk about this. These pills literally saved my life. No more burning, rancid taste, sleepless nights etc. I pray this post helps others. If it helped me…it could help you, too. Good Luck.
VALTREX for BMS - Congratulations on Valtrex working for you, that is Fabulous! I had read 1-2 years ago about a woman with BMS who went to a Neurologist in Colorado. The Neurologist had published her case of patient with BMS that she treated with Valtrex. Fortunately, within 4-6 days, her patient was free of BMS symptoms entirely. Her BMS was caused by the virus herpes simplex per the Neurologist's own explanation in her publication. I was SO excited to read about it, I went to see an Infectious Disease Physician with the Publication in hand. He read it with me sitting there. He immediately prescribed VALTREX 500 mg. twice a day for me. I took it for 8 days and unfortunately, I had zero relief. However, the Oral Facial Pain Specialist who evaluated me in another state, told me my BMS pain was the result of damage to the Sensory Portion of 3 cranial nerves and the BMS was permanent. He did say there was a 1-2% remission rate for some.
I'm moving into my 9th year and no remission to date.
I also used Baking Soda to swish, spit and brush with for a while but started getting intense Thrush infections. When I asked a doctor why all the oral thrush was happening, I was told that the normal PH of mouth is 'acidic' (preventing thrush) and baking soda changes the ph to 'ALKALINE' which in turn is a welcoming matt for thrush. Once I stopped using baking soda, I never had another oral thrush infection. Anyway, kudos to any and all that find anything that works for their pain or Cures their BMS. I embrace anything that helps. I do think more BMS people should be tried on Valtrex as it clearly has helped others with BMS and there are medical publications that substantiate it. Best to all. K2Z
I suffer from trigeminal neuralgia and had gamma knife surgery 5 years ago to kill off the trigeminal nerve. The surgery and the neuralgia are typical triggers of BMS which started about 3 years ago and are a two of the major contributors of BMS. It started with a numbness on the lower right side of my lip, then to the tip of my tongue and now the entire soft palate and my tongue. My neurologist has told me there is no cure but through research I’ve discovered that Baking Soda and water help calm it down. Any toothpaste with tarter control aggravates it so I now only use the baking soda solution. Also, ice cream held in my mouth helps to calm it down. I only get it at night and must stay away from acidic and spicy foods. I hope this helps because I agree, this is awful!
Several people on here have recommended Dexamethasone as being very helpful with BMS. My cardiologist finally prescribed it for me but I am confused as to how to use it. Do I swallow after rinsing with it or spit? Also my druggist put on the bottle "take with food or milk". I am confused. Help.
Hi Buster... mine is a rinse only. If I'm having a flare-up, I use it several times a day. If I dare to eat blueberries or strawberries or apples (the main foods I am allergic to) I rinse immediately and often with the dexa. I would doubt they'd recommend it for swallowing. It's an anti-inflammatory so it helps keep your mouth from over-reacting, but maybe you should give your doc a call to confirm that it needs to be a rinse as it just needs to keep your mouth from over-reacting. If you are in a lot of pain, give it a few days to do its work and I hope and pray it helps you as much as it helped me. Like I said, I also had to pay attention to what foods I was eating and it took me quite awhile to i.d. them given the pain almost never showed up until a good 12-24 hours after eating the offending food. Let us know if it helps! Fingers crossed.
i’m sorry to hear food aggregates your bms. eating has always made mine go away. the very best thing i’ve found is cbd oil. i put .05 drops twice a day, plus inject b12 shots weekly and try to manage stress. the cbd tincture has given me my life back. find a strong dosage. go to your local health food store and ask the person in supplements for their recommendation for tongue phantom nerve pain. best of luck
I am sorry to share that I have had BMS for over 20 years. Sometimes it is bearable, other times it makes me crazy. I take low doses of klonopin- that helps. How do you use cbd oil on your tongue? How much? How often?
I am trying to compile a list of foods that tend to activate BMS. From personal experience, I have found red wine, anything with chocolate and tomatoes to be real killers. Your thoughts on this would be appreciated.
First of all, I cannot say enough about the oral rinse called DEXAMETHASONE. Your dentist or doctor needs to prescribe it. Using this rinse, in conjunction with avoiding foods I discovered I was allergic to, has allowed me to live without anymore flare-ups. It was difficult to associate the foods to which I had developed allergies, given the reaction doesn't become noticeable for a good 12-24 hours after eating the offending food. Here is my list of foods that I have to avoid, in order of severity and predictability of reaction: tomatoes (boo hoo, I love them!) blueberries, strawberries, (again... boo hoooo) and perhaps walnuts in that they are dry and scratchy and can rough-up my mouth. There is information online about oral allergy syndrome explaining how our systems mistake a protein in the offending food with similar proteins that are in airborn particles that cause the typical respiratory allergies. I am able to eat chocolate without any problem.
I had "burning mouth" for more than a year and it took SO long to figure out what was causing it and to find a dentist who cared enough to figure it out with/for me. I cannot say enough about the effectiveness of the DEXAMETHASONE and highly recommend it in clearing up outbreaks if you do eat the offending food and notice a reaction coming on.
I feel for all of you, besides myself who's suffering from this awful burning mouth! I've been everywhere to everyone, Johns Hopkins, oral surgeons, rheumatologists, neurologists, dentists, periodontists, and no one had really any relief for me. I chew sugarless bubble gum, drink a lot of water, take Zoloft, and was prescribed a drug for dry mouth. I rinse with ACT or Biotene, I take anxiety meds and the highlight of my night is getting so tired so I can sleep. All of this happened when I had a tooth extracted for a dental implant. That was in 2018. I do know that anxiety makes mine worse. I'm glad, too, that I have this site to go to...
Check out my answer to the post above yours, and see if your dentist or doctor will prescribe dexamethasone rinse. Avoiding tomatoes, blueberries and strawberries, along with using this rinse, pretty much saved my sanity and made my burning mouth symptoms go away completely. You may have oral allergies to different foods than I, but the rinse should help a great deal once you identify the offending foods. Best of luck to you, it's a horrible affliction.
I had a crown removed and a dental bridge done my mouth has never been the same since it’s been a daily nightmare, the dental practice said nothing to do with my treatment, but my local hospital said I had classic symptoms of BMS although they did not know much about it, he referred me to the Dental Hospital who did various tests and finally I was diagnosed with Oral Dyseathesia which is Nerve Damage which they said was caused by the placement of a dental bridge. They said No Cure and suggested CBT or Anti depressants which I was quite shocked at for a mouth problem. I’ve tried everything I can myself to no avail lastly writing to NHS England who said we’ll use your case going forward, but sorry for my condition. I have had a fresh referral from my GP to the dental hospital again I’m really clutching at straws but I hope they can help me in some way as my bridge still feels awful and my mouth too mainly my palate and tongue, sometimes numb lips and burning in cheeks, I wish I’d never had the bridge done !!
I have had BMS for about 3 yrs. At one point, I thought, I had licked it. Three months with no signs of burning (side of tongue) but it came back. This has occurred about three times with the most recent a month ago. Why the BMS goes away for a period of time and then comes back, I have no idea. I also have a horrible metallic taste in my mouth. Unless you have BMS, no one knows how awful it is. Does drinking carbonated beverages and eating chocolate tend to make it worse? Trust me, you are not suffering alone.
I've had it for 15 years and have tried everything. I hate to tell you this. But mine has only gotten worse year after year. I pray for a miracle for you.
Thank you for your concern. Hopefully a cure can be found soon for BMS sufferers
. I pray for you also. 15 years with this awful BMS has to be "hell on earth".
I just returned from seeing my ENT physician for another issue and asked him if he knew about BMS. He suggested I try Magic Mouthwash which can be a mixture of different medicines. Has anyone had luck with using this type of medication?
FYI: My health insurance carrier did not pay for it.
Yes I have tried it. Blend of lidocaine, maalox, Benadryl. It calms an outbreak but only has a numbing effect. Pain returns.
Yes I have tried it. Blend of lidocaine, maalox, Benadryl. It calms an outbreak but only has a numbing effect. Pain returns.
Thanks for your info. I am keeping my fingers crossed. At this point, it is better than nothing but I can't imagine you could stay on it forever.
It will numb your mouth for a minute or two, don't last long. Pain is still there.
I did use Magic Mouthwash before my dentist had me try the Dexamethasone and it did little for me. :-( As I mentioned in a couple of other answers above, the DEXAMETHASONE was the answer for me, along with avoiding the foods I had mysteriously developed allergies to at age 63. (WTH, right?)
Through more investigation I am now assuming the cause of my pain is due to my wisdom teeth extraction which was about 2 years prior to when the pain started. I guess the question is why did I not feel the pain straight after the procedure rather than 2 years later. The pain on my tongue seems to be on my left side which is where one of my back molars were extracted. D did anyone else have their wisdom teeth pulled out and then had pain a year or so later?
Hi, Yoda1976. In Dec. of 2018, I had a tooth pulled top right side, beside my eye tooth. The periodontist then began to build up my bone for a tooth implant. The following month I noticed my tongue moving around to the place where the tooth was pulled. By the summer of 2019, my mouth became dry and burning. I went to several specialists, only to be sent again, to another specialist. In Sept. of 2020, I saw a doctor at Johns Hopkins who leaned to Sjogren's Syndrome. I finally have an appointment in March 2021 with several specialists at Johns Hopkins. An ophthalmologist, radiology, and a rheumatologist who specializes in this condition. I'm still not ruling out that it was caused by the extraction of the tooth.
I have had (self-diagnosed) BMS since last year (mid 2019). I don’t feel I have as extreme a situation as others are experiencing and I feel so badly for them. Mainly, my tongue burns and I have had one overnight experience of my entire mouth burning unrelentingly. I refuse to accept that prescribed meds are the place to start. I’ve begun by boosting my vitamins which I have been inconsistent with in the past. I will try other non-Rx approaches first. Last week I began taking Goli Apple Cider Vinegar gummies. I take 2 in the morning and 2 in the afternoon when I feel the burning return. I have found a great deal of comfort in these and, no, I am not receiving these free nor am I sponsored by them in any way. It did take a long time to receive the order, but I will definitely be ordering more. While I can’t attest to the inner workings of ACV it does seem to be offering a significant amount of relief thus far. Good luck all.
Is there a significant moment you think may have caused your condition? I was contemplating some of the events which may have caused my pain and one of them was when I had a deep tissue massage in 2009. I remember the massage giving me a headache for weeks. It's it possible that I trapped a nerve somewhere? One nerve is the Vargas nerve, which I believe can cause this issue. One other thing I get is ringing in my left ear which also happens to be the side my mouth and tongue hurts the most. I thought it would be good to share some of this as it might also remind you of an event and help join the dots.
I, too thought of a significant moment shortly before my mouth started getting very dry and burning. I saw a periodontist to have a tooth pulled and the following month, he began the tooth implant process. From this time on, which was 2 years ago, my condition became worse. After dozens of doctor visits with specialists, I was referred to Johns Hopkins, I saw an Oral surgeon and he referred me to one doctor at Hopkins. Not long after, I received a packet in the mail with the dates and times to be seen by several different specialists, but all appointments are within a 2 day span, so I will stay overnight and see these doctors.
Hi there! So I’m knew to this ailment. Not sure I have it as I haven’t been officially diagnosed. For me, my symptoms began towards the end of June this year. For me I could only describe is as a menthol feeling on my tongue. Today it feels like a slight burning but still mentholated. I will say, I had intense anxiety during the onset of Covid. Mom of a toddler here and my mind has been overwhelmed with keeping my family safe. I have a variety of symptoms leading up to this. Along with the anxiety and stress, gut problems developed in May, i began losing hair. My doctor thought it was thyroid or diabetes problem but all blood work came back normal. I need to confirm if I was tested for Vitamin B levels.
So then June comes around and here comes this weird symptom/menthol sensation on my tongue. Next problems were intense inflammation in the body, just over all aching. And intense low back pain. After seeing the chiropractor religiously, my back is just starting to feel better. However, this tongue thing is still here and as of recent I’ve developed a “nerve pain” in my elbow. I literally feel as if I am falling apart. I’m beginning to think this is a nerve issue maybe brought on by the overwhelming stress. Maybe my body seize up so tightly it’s pinching on nerves.
So now begins my journey. I see my PCP next week, and will get some referrals from there. My chiropractor suggested I get an MRI done. I did a search on YouTube and found a chiropractor who claims to have success curing patients of this by stabilizing the neck with prolotherapy. It is his belief this has something to do with the Vagus Nerve being compressed. He will be my last resort. Lol
Hi, I have had my condition for 2 years. I finally have an appointment with a doctor at Johns Hopkins in March 2021. I would suggest you find a doctor who really knows about this mouth thing. Mine turned out to be Sjogren's Syndrome.
Hi, I have had my condition for 2 years. I finally have an appointment with a doctor at Johns Hopkins in March 2021. I would suggest you find a doctor who really knows about this mouth thing. Mine turned out to be Sjogren's Syndrome.
Did your BMS go away I am also a mom of a toddler and have been battling this for 4 months with no true relief .
Hi all, please check to see if you have an intolerance to fructose. I believe this is what the issue is for me. I'm going to be referred to an allergist/immunologist, I'll see what comes out of it. Thanks
I read about you using CBD oil, I just happen to have purchased it on trial and I put the drops in my morning tea. How do you use it, thanks for the additional info about B 12 and zinc
My tongue was torturing me for over a week this time,
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burning mouth syndrome, burning, mouth, tongue, throat, treatment, syndrome
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