It is common to find, especially on social networks, queries or questions about medications. If someone tells us that, for example, they have a cough and phlegm, to everyone, always with the best intentions and desire to help, we sometimes feel capable of guiding what we consider to be happening: cold, flu, COVID, asthma, COPD …. And endless more.

But it is important to note that the diagnostics, they should always do healthcare professionals. From the outset, this profession implies that people have studied a career and specialty for 10 years. But also, professionals cannot do it just with sensations or comments, they need a series of medical tests that help us to know the cause of these symptoms and that it is the professionals who know interpret them.

There are many diseases that have similar symptoms but do not have the same treatments; since the treatment will vary depending on whether the cause is genetic, caused by a microorganism, by a bad habit such as tobacco... or countless other factors

Having the internet does not always help, since all of us, at one time or another, have asked the Dr Google, about certain symptoms to see what could be causing what we were feeling, instead of going to the doctor who is the person who can really help us. It is true that it can be tempting to have information immediately, but it is important to know that there are dangers to health.

On many occasions, in the case of having a diagnosis, we tend to ask people with the same disease what they take to see if I feel better with that medication. Support groups are great, and social media has helped spawn large support communities, but it's important to note that comparing treatments is also a mistake.

Diseases go through various phases throughout their evolution that require different treatments in each case and the pill or inhaler necessary to treat a disease in a mild phase has nothing to do with the medication and precise doses to treat it in a mild phase. more advanced phase or exacerbation. That is to say, and let's take an example: although my neighbor has the same pathology as me, the evolution phase in which he finds himself may differ a lot from mine, so the necessary treatment will be different. In addition, people, on many occasions and as the years go by, do not have just one disease, but we have several related ones.

Sometimes there are medications that cannot be taken due to this other pathology or that interact with other medicines that we are taking, giving rise to strong side effects.

For all these reasons, we once again emphasize, for the sake of our health, the need not to self-diagnose or self-medicate. If we have any doubts about our health, we have to go to a health professional to get a correct diagnosis and, consequently, a treatment that helps us, instead of harming us.

If you want you can contact our coaches (a team of physiotherapists specialized in respiratory) who will advise or refer you when necessary through our Awareness line, possible thanks to the support of Boehringer Ingelheim Spain.