TALKING ABOUT SSICKNESS AND SYMPTOMS

Objectives:

After completing this lesson, you should be able to:

 Ask about somebody’s health

 Answer questions about one’s health
 Describe sickness
 Describe symptoms
 Express sympathy
 Gives advice
 Identify parts of body

Dialogue 1
Mary : “How are you, Sinta.”
Sinta : “I don’t feel well.”
Mary : “What’s wrong with you?”
Sinta : “I don’t know. I just feel dizzy and cold.”
Mary : “Let me touch your forehead. Oh, it’s very warm.”
Sinta : “Yes, I have. I’ve tried several kind of medicine.”
Mary : “I think you should see a doctor.”
Sinta : “Yes, I will. I came here actually to ask for permission.”
Mary : “you’d better jusst gop now. Don’t worry, I’ll tell our boss about you.”

Dialogue 2

Doctor : “Please sit down there.”

Patient: “Thank you.”
Doctor: “Can you tell me what your problem are?”
Patient: “I feel very cold, but my body is very warm. And it’s hurting when I
swallow something.”
Doctor: “How long have you had this sickness?”
Patient: “I’ve had it for three days.
Doctor: “All right. I’m going to give you an injection and after that I’m writing a prescription for you.
So,now please lie down on the bad.”
Patient: “All right.”

Questions:

1. What’s wrong with Sinta?

2. What are the symptoms that she has?
3. Why did she come to the office?
4. What problems does the patient have?
5. How long has he had the problem?
6. What will the doctor give to the patient?

To ask about somebody’s health:

 How are you?  How do you feel today?
 What’s wrong with you?  Do you feel okay? You look sick.
 What happened to you?  Do you feel better today?
 What’s the problem?  Are you sick?
  What are the problems?  Are you okay?
 What seems tobe the problem?  Are you feeling okay?
 What do you feel?  Do you need to see a doctor?
 What are the symptoms?  Do you need some medicine?

To tell symptoms with verbs or adjectives.

 I don’t feel well.  I’ve got a nagging pain in my shoulder.” (nagging

 I am not feeling well. = a pain that won’t go away)
 I feel dizzy and cold.  I’ve got a sore throat.
 I’ve got pains all over my body.  I’ve got a slight headache.
 It hurts when .................................  I’ve got a pain in…
 I am sick.  I’m not sleeping very well at the moment.
 I am feeling sick.  I am under the weather.
 I feel sick.  I feel as sick as a dog.
 I think that I am getting sick.  I feel awful.
 I might be getting sick.  I feel terrible.
 I am in a lot of pain.  I am dizzy.
 I feel a bit under the weather.  I am nauseous.
 I’m not feeling very well.” / “I don’t feel very  I think I am going throw up.
well.  I need to vomit.
 I’m not feeling a hundred percent.  I'm shivering.
 I think I’m going down with a cold.  I'm cold.
 I feel a little faint.  I feel weak.
 I feel a bit dizzy.” (when your head is spinning)  My body is tired.
 I’ve got a splitting headache – I hope it’s not a
migraine.

To describe your sickness/symptoms:

 HAVE GOT + SICKNESS/SYMPTOMS

- I’ve got a headache/ a stomachache/ an earache/ a toothache
- I think I’ve got a bit of a temperature.
- I’ve got a nasty cough.

 PART OF BODY + ACHES/IS ACHING

- My head/ stomach/ ear/ tooth/ leg aches/is aching

 HAVE GOT + SORE + PART OF BODY

- I’ve got a sore eye/leg/lip/arm/foot/ear

 PART OF BODY + IS + SORE

- My eye/leg/lip/are/foot/ear is sore

 PART OF BODY + IS + SICKNESS

- My leg is broken.
- My nose is stopped up.

 HAVE/HAS + SICKNESS (to be specific about the disease or symptom)

 - I have a cold.
- He has the flu.
- I have a fever.
- He has a bad cough.
- I have a sore throat.
- I have an earache.
- I have a stomachache.
- She has a headache.
- I have a toothache.
- My grandmother has diabetes.
- I have skin cancer.
- I have a bit of a stomach bug.”
- I have a touch of (the) flu. (Flu = influenza)

 PART OF BODY + HURTS

- My head hurts. (I have a headache.)
- My knee hurts.
- My tooth hurts.
- My shoulder hurts.
- My finger hurts.
- My stomach hurts.

 PART OF BODY + IS KILLING

- My neck is killing me today!
- My back is killing me!

To express sympathy:
- I hope you feel better soon.
- I’m sorry to hear that.
- Actually, you don’t look very well.
- You look a little pale.
- Get better/well soon.
- Take care of yourself.
- Shall I get you an aspirin?

To give advice:

- Make sure that you get lots of rest.

- Get some rest.
- Make sure to drink lots of water.
- Try to drink some tea.
- You need to get lots of sleep.
- Take some medicine.
- Go to the hospital today.
- Maybe you should go home and get some rest.
- Why don’t you go home and have a lie-down.
- Is there anything I can do?

REMEMBER:
1. Common Disease:
1. Allergies 13. Headaches
2. Arthritis 14. Cancer
 3. Diarrhea 15. HIV/AIDS
4. Heart Disease 16. Conjunctivitis
5. Stroke 17. Infection
6. Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary 18. Salmonella
Disease 19. Epilepsy
7. Flu 20. Gonorrhea
8. Common cold 21. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
9. Meningitis 22. Ebola
10. Asthma 23. Mononucleosis
11. Tuberculosis 24. Sexually transmitted infection
12. Diabetes

2. Diseases caused by virus / Viral Diseases

 Chickenpox
 Herpes
 Influenza
 AIDS
 Mumps
 Measles
 Viral Hepatitis

3. Diseases caused by bacteria - Most Deadly Bacterial Infections

 Tuberculosis
 Anthrax
 Tetanus
 Leptospirosis
 Pneumonia
 Cholera
 Botulism
 Pseudomonas Infection
4. Diseases caused by fungi / Fungal Diseases
 Aspergillosis. Aspergillosis.
 Blastomycosis. Blastomycosis. ...
 Candidiasis
 Candida auris
 Coccidioidomycosis
 Fungal Community-Acquired Pneumonias.
 C. neoformans Infection
5. Human diseases causative and mode of transmission

Diseases Causative microorganism Mode of transmission

Tuberculosis Bacteria: Mycobacterium tuberculosis Air

 Contaminated food and
Typhoid Bacteria: Salmonella typhi
water

Measles Virus: Measles virus Air

Contaminated food and

Cholera Bacteria: Vibrio cholerae
water
6. Communicable diseases
 Tuberculosis.
 Coronavirus infections.
 Dengue.
 Climate Change and Health.
 Measles.
 HIV/AIDS.
 Hepatitis B
 Malaria
 Hepatitis C
 Dengue
 Chickenpox / Shingles.
 COVID-19.
 Ebola.
 Ending the HIV Epidemic (EHE)
7. Non-communicable diseases
 Parkinson's
 Autoimmune
 Strokes
 Heart diseases
 Cancers
 Diabetes
 Chronic kidney
 Osteoarthritis
 Osteoporosis
 Alzheimer's disease
 Cataracts, and others. NCDs may be chronic or acute.
 Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) (also called Lou Gehrig's disease)
 Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
 Autism spectrum disorder (ASD)
 Bell's palsy.
 Bipolar disorder.
 Birth defects.
8. Most Common School-Age Illnesses
 Stomach Flu/Gastroenteritis (caused by a virus and can spread rapidly)
 Strep Throat (caused by a bacteria called Streptococcus pyogenes that lives in the nose and throat)
 Hand, Foot and Mouth Disease. ...
 Pink Eye
 Head Lice
  Influenza
 Chickenpox
 Meningitis

10. Common infectious diseases caused by bacteria:

 Strep throat.
 Salmonella.
 Tuberculosis.
 Whooping cough (pertussis).
 Chlamydia, gonorrhea and other sexually transmitted infections (STIs).
 Urinary tract infections (UTIs).
 E. coli.
 Clostridioides difficile (C. diff).

11. Viral infections Diseases

 COVID-19.
 Influenza (the flu)
 HIV, which can lead to AIDS.
 Meningitis (there is also bacterial meningitis)
 Pneumonia (there is also bacterial pneumonia)
 Human papillomavirus (HPV)
 Herpes.
 Rotavirus.

Discussion on health
1. Are you a healthy person? How often do you get sick?
2. What are the best ways to avoid getting sick?
3. Do you take vitamins? Do they really help people, or do they just have a placebo effect?
4. How often do you get a medical check-up? How often should people get a check-up?
5. Do you ever wear a face mask in public? Do you wear it to protect yourself or others?
6. What healthy habits do you have (such as washing your hands before eating)?
7. Have you ever broken a bone? What happened?
8. Kids get injured often and seem to recover quickly. How well do you recover from bumps and
bruises these days?
9. Do you trust doctors? Completely? Why or why not?
10. Who is the healthiest person you know? What do they do to stay healthy?
11. What is more important to take care of: mental health or physical health?
12. People sometimes say that 'laughter is the best medicine.' What do you think this means? Do you agree?
13. In your country, which traditional remedies or herbal medicines are popular?
14. Acupuncture, a treatment in which thin needles are inserted into the skin, is common in traditional
Chinese medicine. Have you tried it? If so, did it help you? If not, would you like to try it?
15. Have you ever been faced with a medical emergency? What did you do?
16. How do you feel when you see blood?
17. Some people oppose vaccinations because they believe they are risky. Do you believe in being
vaccinated?
18. How do you feel about surgery? Would you consider having surgery that isn't completely necessary,
like plastic surgery?
19. What foods are good for your health? How important is healthy food to staying healthy?
20. Lifespans are getting longer. How long do you expect your generation will live on average?
21. How do companies in your country treat sick workers? Do employees receive paid sick days to help
with recovery from sickness?

Exercise 1

1. Not being able to sleep at night is called ……….

A. rash B sneeze C. hay fever D. insomnia

2. Some people are …….

A. allergic B. allergy

3. A doctor who operates on people is called ……

A. cardiologist B. dentist C. opticia D. surgeon

4. My nose has been ….

A. run B. running

5. I …….. a fever

A. am having B. have

6. I have ……. throat.

A. sore B. ache

7. I have a stomach --------

A. ache B. sore C. bad

8. I’m feeling a little under the ----------

A. run down B. weather/temperature

9. Doctor: What are your ……………

A. wrongs B. problem C. symptoms

10. Take this …………. to the pharmacy and get your medicine.
A. chemist B. prescription C. patient

Exercise 2

Fill in the blank with the following words.

hurt sick aches pains problem wrong take

how sore medicine have injection terrible a
pills doctor examined stomach appoinment prescription

Last time when I was sick I went to a doctor of course, I made an appointment before hand. In the
doctor’s room, the doctor examined my body. Then I had an injection after that. The doctor was very kind.
He asked me lots of questions. This is some of the conversation we had.
Doctor said: “You look terrible. What’s wrong with you?”
I said : “I have got aches all over my Body?”
Doctor said: “What seems to be the problem?”
I said: “I don’t know , Doc. But my back hurts My chest is sore I feel sick and I always want to vomit.”
The doctor then touched my stomach and asked me again.
Doctor said:”How does it feel? Does it feel?”
I said : “Yes, Doc.”
Doctor said: “Have you taken any medicine?”
I said: “Yes I have. I bought it from a stall.”
Doctor said : “Now please buy this prescription. They are pills Please take them three times a day.”
I said: “All right, Doc. Thank you very much.”

Exercise 3

Determine whether the sentences below should be expressed in the present perfect or simple past tense.

For example:
I had an accident in 1987
I have a car accident twice.

1. I took medicine in the morning.

2. I have been in hospital since the fourth.
3. I have had a computer for two years.
4. I have studied English since SMP.
5. I visited the doctor last june.
6. I have been to Bali four three times.
7. I visied the USA last year.
8. I have at Poyechnics for two years
9. I had an accident last month.
10. I have been here since 1945.

Exercise 4

Ask your friends about who often gets the sickness listed below. Ask them why he/she got the sickness and
how he/she recorved from it.
For example:

U : Have you ever had a stomach-ache?

Adi : Yes, I have.
U : Why did you have it?
Adi : Because I ate food that was too spicy.
U : How did you recover from it?
Adi : I took medicine called ‘Promag’.

No. Sicknesses Name Why did he have it? How did he recover it?
1. Stomach-ache Adi He ate spicy food He took a medicine
2. Toot-ache Nora there are holes due to damage she taking medicine
to tooth enamel
3. Fever Novi She had viral infections such she gets enough rest and
as flu and cough takes medicine
4. Ear-ache Eunike She his ears were filled with she uses drops
water
5. Sore-eye Olivia She his eyes were covered in She uses artificial tears or
 ash and smoke lubricating eye droppers
6. Rash Elenita
7. Measles Ananda
8. Flu Nadila
9. Stopped-up nose Jihan
10. runny nose Ruth

Exercise 5

Answer the following questions:

I : “Have you ever had an anemia?

U :

I : “What about a sore eye? Have you ever had it?”

U : .........................................................................
I : “Why did you have it?”
U : .........................................................................
I : “How did you recover from it?”
U : .........................................................................
I : “Have you ever been hospitalized?”
U : .........................................................................
I : “Can you tell me about it?”
U : .........................................................................
I : “I think I’ve learnt from you how to recover from a sickness?”

Disease List:
 Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome  Haemophilus  Invasive
(AIDS) infection meningococcal disease
 Alkhurma haemorrhagic fever  Nephropathia  Invasive
 Anaplasmosis epidemica pneumococcal disease
 Anthrax  Nipah virus  Japanese
 Arenavirus diseaseNorovirus infection encephalitis virus
 Avian influenza virus  Paratyphoid fever  Lassa fever
 Babesiosis  Pertussis  Legionnaires’
 Bordetella (pertussis)  Piroplasmosis disease
 Borreliosis  Plague  Leishmaniasis
 Botulism  Pneumococcal  Leptospirosis
 Brucellosis disease  Listeriosis
 Campylobacteriosis  Poliomyelitis  Louse borne
 Chickenpox (varicella)  Q fever relapsing fever
 Chikungunya virus disease  Quintan fever  Louse-borne
 Chlamydia infection  Rabies diseases
 Cholera  Respiratory Syncytial  Louse-borne
 Ciguatera fish poisoning (CFP) Virus (RSV). typhus
 Clostridioides difficile infections  Rickettsiosis  Lyme disease
 Congenital rubella  Rift Valley fever (borreliosis)
 Congenital syphilis  Rotavirus infection  Lymphogranulom
 Rubella a venereum (LGV)
 Coronavirus
 S. pneumoniae  Malaria
 COVID-19
 Salmonellosis  Marine biotoxins
 Cowpox
 Sandfly-borne related diseases
 Coxsackievirus
diseases  Measles
 Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD)
 SARS-CoV-2  Meningococcal
 Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever
disease
 (CCHF)  Schmallenberg virus
 Cryptosporidiosis (SBV)
 Cutaneous warts  Seasonal influenza
 Dengue  Severe acute
 DHF respiratory syndrome (SARS)
 Diphtheria  Sexually transmitted
 Ebola virus disease infections
 Echinococcosis  Shigellosis
 Enteric fever  Sindbis fever
 Enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli  Smallpox
(EHEC) infection  Streptococcus
 Enterovirus pneumoniae
 Epidemic louse-borne typhus  Swine-origin
 Escherichia coli infection influenza
 Febris recurrens  Syphilis
 Flu  Syphilis, congenital
 Food- and waterborne diseases  Tetanus
 German measles (rubella)  Haemorrhagic fever
 Giardiasis  Haemorrhagic fever
with renal syndrome
 Hantavirus infection
 Hepatitis
 Hepatitis A, B, C, D,
E 
 HIV infectionHuman
papillomavirus infection (HPV)
 Influenza in humans,
avian origin
 Influenza in humans,
pandemic
 Influenza in humans,
seasonal
 Middle East
respiratory syndrome coronavirus
 Mosquito-borne
diseases
 Mpox
(Monkeypox)
 Mumps
 Tick-borne
diseases
 Tick-borne
encephalitis (TBE)
 Tick-borne
relapsing fever (TBRF)
 Toscana virus
infection
 Toxoplasmosis,
congenital
 Trench fever
 Trichinellosis
 Tuberculosis (TB)
 Tularaemia
 Typhoid and
paratyphoid fever
Vaccine-
preventable diseases
 Variant
Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD)
 Varicella
 Viral
haemorrhagic fever
 Viral hepatitis
 West Nile virus
infection
 Whooping cough
(pertussis)
 Yellow fever
 Yersiniosis
 Zika virus disease
 Zoonosis