I caught a cold... medical words part 2

Well, I seem to have caught a cold so I figured it was a sign from God to do part 2 of my medical vocabulary. So let's start with the common cold.



I caught a cold.



I have a cold.



She gave me her cold. (Wow! That's a gift I don't want ^_-)

Now, the other common sickness people get is the flu. In Japanese, you call it influenza. But, if you say "I have influenza" in English it means you are seriously sick! People will be scared of you! We usually think of influenza in terms of an epidemic.

Now what's the difference between a cold and the flu?

" Flu symptoms usually come on quickly (within 3-6 hours) and consist of a fever, body aches, dry cough, and extreme tiredness. Cold symptoms are less severe and people experience a stuffy nose, productive cough, slight tiredness, and limited body aches." (http://www.flufacts.com/about/cold.aspx)

For the flu, you will say:

I have the flu.

I caught the flu. (grammatically correct but it sounds a bit strange)

She gave me the flu.

Now, let's talk about our stomach and digestive systems! yay! hahaha

I have a stomach flu. (sick to your stomach, maybe vomiting, usually last 24 hours)

I have an upset stomach. (your stomach is bothering you, not seriously sick)

I have a stomachache. (your stomach is bothering you, painfully)

I have heartburn. (you have a burning feeling in your stomach 虫酸 [むしず])

Sometimes, when you have a stomach problem it might move to your digestive system. There are two problems you might have:

constipation: this is when you have trouble going to the toilet, 便秘 [べんぴ]

diarrhea: this is when you always have to go to the toilet 下痢 [げり]

Ok, there are just a few more words I would like to talk about. First, there is insomnia. This is when you are ill and can't sleep. In Japanese, it is 不眠 [ふみん].

Next, I would like to talk about the word fever. Be careful, fever is a noun so you must use the verb to have.

I have a fever.

I am feverish. (adjective)

Hmmm, ok that is enough. Have a great week people!

Phil