Hello. I am a 36 year old AA female. In the last 3 months, I have been having an issue with irritation/pain on the left side of my tongue just in one spot. Sometimes it feels like my mouth is burning. There are no evident lumps, bumps, lesions, sores, or anything else all that noticeable, except that this side is annoying me and is sometimes painful for no reason. I can speak and swallow fine and my tongue is otherwise pink and healthy. I have been seeing a dentist for gum cleanings, but don't know if that could have something to do with it. I was also perscribed medicated mouthwash for the scaling/deep gum cleaning procedure, but have since stopped using it. Food and liquor don't necessarily bother this side of my tongue, although it could be..hard to tell. I also used to smoke, but stopped a year and a half ago. I occassionally started back for 3 months then quit again, so doesn't seem to be a cigarette thing. Was never a heavy smoker to begin with, but I will say that since this sore spot has come about, the cigarette smoke made it feel worse, so it was easy to stop again. Haven't had another cigarette since, but the sore spot still there. Confused, as I know there are a lot of tongue-related issues out there...seems the older I get, the more stuff starts to go wrong. Any advice? My dentist told me he didnt feel as if this was anything alarming, but considering I still have these symptoms, I think it's worth looking into again. I see my dentist again on Dec 15 for a filling, and plan to bring it back up.