Even brushing my teeth was so painful

Meghan Koziel | Breast Cancer Survivor

I was 26 years old when I was diagnosed with an aggressive form of breast cancer. I  knew from the beginning because it had spread to my lymph nodes that I would require chemotherapy.  Thus began my journey of mouth sores.

When I was going through chemo, one of the most annoying and painful side effects I had was pesky mouth sores! I honestly never even knew they were a side effect! I was familiar with the nausea, hair loss, weight loss—- but that morning when I woke up with a stinging tongue, then days following with little puss looking pimples lining the inside of my mouth, I was horrified!

I brought them to the attention of my doctor and they recommended rinses but there really wasn’t anything that gave me the relief I was looking for. I actually thought they were just something patients had to “deal with”— how incredibly crazy is that!

It made talking uncomfortable, eating unsatisfying... even brushing my teeth was painful if I were to touch my tongue or gums despite the fact that keeping the sores clean was of utmost importance!

Looking back now, I am so sad that I didn’t know all the information that I know now! Our mouth health in any person is soooo important but especially when going through a cancer journey!

You can connect with Meghan through her blog and on Instagram.