Comments on: Oh my god it burns -- but not in the right place...

Question: Oh my god it burns -- but not in the right place...

Anonymous — Thu, 01 May 2008 07:54:31 -0800

My tongue tingles when I have the urge to urinate. Is this normal?

Really folks, this is a serious question. I'm a relatively healthy woman in my early 20's and I've been experiencing this phenomenon for as long as I can remember. I asked a doctor about this once many years ago and my concerns were more or less blown off. I haven't really wanted to bring it up again for fear of seeming like a hypochondriac. Is there something horribly wrong with my nervous system or is this within the range of normal?

By: dobbs

dobbs — Thu, 01 May 2008 08:34:57 -0800

I can't answer your below the fold questions but to your above the fold question... no, I don't think it's normal. At least, it isn't for me and I'm the epitome of normal.

By: kimdog

kimdog — Thu, 01 May 2008 08:51:25 -0800

Heh... I am at a conference today, and I was just wondering the very same thing. When I have to pee really badly, I get a tingly sensation in the teeth and gums and the base of my tongue. I've never talked to a doctor about it. But you aren't alone. I'm a woman in my mid-30's.

By: gt2

gt2 — Thu, 01 May 2008 09:04:48 -0800

Yes, if I have to pee really badly, I also get a tingly, achy feeling in my jaws and gums. Is this a woman thing, and if it is, how could that be? I just asked my boyfriend if he gets this and he pretty much said it sounded insane.

By: binocularfight

binocularfight — Thu, 01 May 2008 09:07:02 -0800

don't freak out! you're fine. or at least i'm assuming you're fine. do you have any actual nerve problems? like, inability to sense in different parts of your body? being hyper sensitive in others? getting chronic weird pains or numbing sensations? if yes, go see a doctor. if not, really, don't worry. the body is much more connected than we'd like to think. just look at any acupressure or acupuncture website (a good one is here ). you can relieve all sorts of different things by pressing on a point on the body that you wouldn't think would correspond to the issue you're having.

the point of all this - stay calm. you're fine. if you start peeing out of your mouth, though, go see a doctor immediately.

that was a poor attempt at a joke. you're fine!

By: restless_nomad

restless_nomad — Thu, 01 May 2008 09:15:50 -0800

Huh, when I have to pee I start thinking about sex. Like, a lot. I just figured things get crosswired sometimes. (Note: I have no golden shower fetishes or anything, the act of peeing is not a sexual one, etc)

By: jrishel

jrishel — Thu, 01 May 2008 09:57:51 -0800

I have the exact opposite problem. When i use my electric toothbrush, I need to pee, urgently. Even if I just peed before starting to brush my teeth.

By: jamjam

jamjam — Thu, 01 May 2008 10:18:35 -0800

Fascinating.

I think you (and jrishel) are experiencing crosstalk in your brain.

Take a look at these images of the sensory and motor homunculi superimposed on the motor and sensory cortices of the brain. You can see that the area devoted to the tongue is right next to the area of the intra-abdominal in both the sensory and (I think, but it's not as clear) the motor cortex.

By: konolia

konolia — Thu, 01 May 2008 11:25:15 -0800

If I have to pee really really really badly, my teeth itch.

I'm sure it's normal.

By: roofus

roofus — Thu, 01 May 2008 14:34:20 -0800

I can't find the related paper anywhere, but last year I saw a scientific presentation at a urology conference that showed that people feel strong urinary urgency in a variety of bodily locations. In the study participants had their bladders filled until they were desperate to go, and then marked on a map of the body where they felt the sensation. Most people, most of the time, feel it either in the lower abdomen, or in the perineum, but some people feel it in all sorts of odd places. I think your tingling tongue is quite unusual, but not abnormal.

By: ThePinkSuperhero

ThePinkSuperhero — Thu, 01 May 2008 19:55:25 -0800

I had never, ever heard of this before I read this question today. AND THEN, tonight on the train, I'm sitting next to 3 young guys on their way to a party, and one really has to go to the bathroom. They're all laughing and joking about it, and then he yells out, Dude, man, I have to go so bad, my teeth hurt! So I guess it's relatively normal?

By: goo

goo — Fri, 02 May 2008 00:17:07 -0800

This happens to me. Do you carry tension in your jaw (grind your teeth when stressed, etc)? I do, and thought the tingling was related to that - my body is tense cos I need to wee and that's how it manifests because I carry tension in my jaw. I may well be totally wrong, however.

By: edtut

edtut — Fri, 02 May 2008 03:09:13 -0800

are you hydrated well?

By: Bruce H.

Bruce H. — Fri, 02 May 2008 14:36:28 -0800

I experience it as itching on my palate, behind my front teeth.