01 · Open with the words that get you seen
Necesito ayuda.
I need help.
Three words, said clearly, move you to the front of a line. Don't overthink whatever comes after — this one does the work.
andbefluent.com/spanish/hypochondriac
Hypochondriac
Tell a doctor what hurts, how much, and since when — out loud, in Spanish.
The pattern is me duele + a singular noun, me duelen + a plural one: me duele la cabeza, me duelen los ojos — the verb agrees with the body part, not with you. Then sharpen it: dolor agudo (sharp) versus dolor constante, hinchado for swollen — locals just as often say lo tengo inflamado. And always attach a duration, because it's the first thing a doctor asks: desde hace tres días. With medical staff, stay in formal usted.
Below: how locals crank up pain by country, the pharmacy and emergency-room words, and a way to rehearse the whole clinic call out loud — no flashcards, no vocabulary lists to cram.
The warm-up pack
The lines a real symptom check sounds like — not a body-parts worksheet.
01 · Open with the words that get you seen
Necesito ayuda.
I need help.
Three words, said clearly, move you to the front of a line. Don't overthink whatever comes after — this one does the work.
02 · How the stomach word actually gets said
Me duele la panza.
My stomach hurts. (panza — the everyday word, not the clinical estómago)
Estómago is what you learned in class. Panza is what you'll actually hear and say out loud across Latin America.
03 · The low-grade fever word
Amanecí con calentura.
I woke up with a fever.
Calentura covers a mild fever without sounding like an emergency — the phrase for "something's off," not "call an ambulance."
04 · When the room won't hold still
Me ando mareando.
I've been feeling dizzy. (Mexico — the continuous andar instead of estar)
Swapping estar for andar signals it's been happening a while, not just this second. Small shift, more accurate symptom.
05 · Say the nausea plainly
Tengo ganas de vomitar.
I feel like I'm going to throw up.
More direct than náuseas, and it's what actually gets said at a pharmacy counter when you need help fast.
06 · The line that gets a doctor to move faster
Tengo un dolor que no aguanto.
I have pain I can't stand.
This is emphatic on purpose — it tells the nurse this isn't a wait-and-see pain. Save it for when you mean it.
07 · The word doctors actually use for swollen
Tengo el tobillo inflamado.
My ankle is swollen.
Inflamado is said just as often as hinchado in real clinics — either one gets you understood, but this is the one you'll hear back.
08 · The allergy line that matters most
Tengo alergia a los mariscos.
I'm allergic to shellfish.
Swap in any allergen after a los / a la — this exact frame is what a doctor needs to hear before they prescribe anything.
09 · Always add this, every time
Desde hace tres días.
For three days now.
Symptom plus duration turns a vague complaint into something a doctor can actually act on. Never leave this part off.
10 · Confirm before you leave the pharmacy
¿Cada cuánto la tomo?
How often do I take it?
More natural than asking about "la dosis" directly — this exact question gets you a clear answer before you walk out.
11 · The soft way to say you're not well
Amanecí malito.
I woke up feeling a bit off. (Caribbean — softer than me siento mal)
This undersells it on purpose — useful when you want a little sympathy without sounding like it's serious.
FLUENT
Finally, someone to talk to in Spanish.
Ten-minute spoken lessons. A teacher who answers back — and gently fixes what you got wrong.
First 10 lessons freeandbefluent.com/spanish/hypochondriacRegional Spanish
Textbooks teach one word. Locals use several — pick your region's and stay consistent.
Watch out
The part no drill site can do
Olivia
Your vocabulary teacher for this pack
In the Hypochondriac lessons there are no flashcards and nothing to fill in — you say the words where they matter, and Olivia plays the other side. You call a clinic with a fever that started yesterday and describe it: what, where, desde hace tres días. You stand at the pharmacy counter asking for something for your stomach. You sit in urgencias explaining a swollen ankle — tengo el tobillo inflamado — and before you leave, you confirm the dose out loud: ¿cada cuántas horas?
Blank mid-sentence and nothing bad happens — she waits. That's the practice, without unnecessary judgement.
Finish the 6 lessons and Hypochondriac is yours — earned, not given.
First 10 lessons free · 10-minute spoken lessons · your AI coaching team remembers you
Quick answers
It follows the body part. Singular noun → me duele (me duele la cabeza); plural noun → me duelen (me duelen los ojos). The most common slip is using me duele for everything.
Across Latin America: me duele un montón. Each country has its own intensifier — Mexico says me duele gacho, Argentina me duele mal, Colombia me duele full. For unbearable: tengo un dolor que no aguanto.
The textbook form is desde hace tres días — for three days. In conversation locals flip it: hace tres días que estoy así. Either way, never skip the duration; it's the detail doctors need first.
Urgencias is the base word — in Mexico, la sala de urgencias. Argentina says la guardia (me fui a la guardia anoche), and Colombia and Venezuela say emergencias.
You'll learn tengo alergia a, but in everyday speech soy alérgico a is more natural — say it early at any pharmacy or clinic, before anyone hands you la receta.