Telling doctor stomach hurts: Answering the doctor's questions about your symptoms

💬 Mexicans say en la noche, while Spain prefers por la noche. It works the same for the morning: en la mañana.

💬 Ayer en la noche is the everyday way to say "last night." Swap in hoy en la mañana for "this morning."

💬 The doctor says le duele, the polite "does it hurt you," so you answer with me duele.

💬 The opposite is abajo "down low." Together they help you point out where the pain is: abajo, a la derecha "down low, on the right."

💬 c before e or i sounds like s in Mexico, so centro is (SEN-tro), never (THEN-tro).

💬 Spanish says you "have" symptoms, with no "a": tengo fiebre "I have a fever". The same pattern works for tengo diarrea "I have diarrhea".

💬 Spanish uses tener "to have" for many body states where English might use "to be" or "to feel." For example, tengo frío means "I'm cold" and tengo sed means "I'm thirsty."

💬 Náuseas is plural in Spanish even though English "nausea" isn't. You say tengo náuseas, not tengo náusea.

💬 Comió is the polite "you ate" and looks the same as "he/she ate." To answer about yourself, switch to comí "I ate."

💬 Unos means "some" and changes to match the word after it. Use unas with feminine words: unas quesadillas.

🇲🇽 Street taco stands are everyday eating in Mexico. A doctor will ask about them without judgment, so be honest. Where and what you ate helps them figure out the cause.

💬 Spanish uses en "at" for where you ate, where English would say "from." Another example is comí en un restaurante "I ate at a restaurant."

💬 Receta means both "prescription" and "recipe." At the doctor's, it's the prescription.

🇲🇽 Clinics next to pharmacies like Farmacias Similares are common and cheap in Mexico. You can usually fill the receta right next door.

💬 Tomar is the usual verb for drinking, and it also covers taking medicine: tome esta pastilla "take this pill." Mucha matches agua, which is feminine.

🇲🇽 Mexicans address doctors directly as doctor or doctora, often without a last name. It's polite and expected.