Over time and time again, self-medication has been advised against. It’s no brainer. The dangers of prescribing medication for the self can prove harmful and potentially life-threatening.

By a simple definition, self-medication can simply mean taking over-the-counter (OTC) medications without talking to a doctor first. It’s that simple. And many of us are guilty of it. Yes, because we have taken a medication at one point of our lives or another without consulting a doctor.

Understandably, we self-medicate to avoid going to the doctor. But what we don’t realise is that the consequences can be serious enough to land us in that same hospital we edge away from.

Take Some Medicine Without Consulting A Doctor?

When we take some medicine to treat symptoms without seeing a doctor, what we have just done is let an underlying condition go undiagnosed and properly so. For instance, symptoms like persistent fever or headache could mean some serious medical conditions if only we sought the expertise opinion of a doctor. But when last did we visit a hospital because of a fever? Very sure many of us consider it a small a case to see a doctor for. It’s wrong. We should see a doctor whenever we take ill even for small cases as fever and headache. Why? They can actually be symptoms for something more serious.

The Consequences Of Self-Medication

Really, the dangers of self-medication can be grave when we take inaccurate dosages. That’s right. Medical experts say, when we estimate our own dosages, we risk two extremes. 1. Not taking enough dosage 2. Accidental overdose. True. If we take a dosage that is rather too small, treatment won’t be as effective as we desire and we may even go sicker. Just when we decide to add some more dosage so we can get some relief from the symptoms we are experiencing, we end up risking an overdose.

Consult A Doctor Before Taking Any Pills

The truth remains that our physicians and our pharmacists are a team, working together to help ensure we live healthily. If we utilize that team by consulting them anytime we don’t feel too well, we will have all our health care questions answered so we can get well soonest.