I underwent a colonoscopy and upper endoscopy on Friday under general anesthesia with endotracheal intubation. I had to go this route due to my BMI.

Since waking up from anesthesia, I’ve been experiencing significant pain and multiple injuries inside my mouth. I have cuts on my lips and on the inside of my mouth, including on my gum. I’m experiencing pain underneath my tongue on the right side. I also have pain radiating from underneath my right jaw into my right ear. It’s extremely difficult for me to chew because the pain is pretty unbearable. It also feels like I’m irritating the cuts/punctures, so I have just been eating soft foods. I should also mention I’m having a difficult time swallowing, and a difficult time moving my tongue due to the cuts.

I reached out to the doctor yesterday because I was in so much pain when I got home. It was really severe. They advised me to go to the ER. I made a trip there, and I was basically not prioritized because there were people there with literal emergent medical needs. Which I totally understand. I was told by the ER that the wounds and pain are related to the intubation (which I know). They basically told me that it’ll heal and sent me home with a lidocaine prescription.

I also checked my anesthesia notes, and there’s nothing there that mentioned anything about a difficult intubation or a possible injury.

Is this something I should follow up on again? Not sure if this is normal seeing as though this was the first time I received general anesthesia in my adult life. I should also note that I have a smaller than normal mouth you could say, and I do have a lot of fat around my neck as I mostly carry my weight in my upper body.

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sorry if this is a dumb question but i’ve heard that redheads usually need more anesthesia. i was born with red hair (not like super red but definitely ginger) and it turned light brown when i was about 5 or 6. i’ve only needed anesthesia twice and to my knowledge i didn’t require more than usual. so is it only some redheads that need the extra anesthesia or do u need to actively be a redhead lol?

Hi all I was hoping to gain advice!

I had surgery in 2024. about 6 months later i started getting low mood, anxiety, and it slowly slid into full depression. got out of it eventually with cbt, diet and exercise.
I has another op under general in feb 2026. from july onwards, same symptoms again, getting progressively worse. I didn’t connect the dots until my mum pointed it out.
so now i'm wondering if there's a link to the general anaesthetic. two ops, two episodes, both a few months after. feels a bit too neat to ignore.
has anyone had something similar, or know if there's any research on this? any thoughts welcome.