Most of the time when people fall sick, the first thing that comes to mind is malaria, and I understand why. It’s the most common disease in our country. In fact, I was sick a few weeks ago, and my immediate thought was that it was malaria because of symptoms like yellowish urine, loss of appetite, and a bitter taste in my mouth. I decided to self-medicate by getting Amartem Soft Gel from the pharmacy, and I have been fine ever since. This shows that self-medication can sometimes work in certain situations.
However, in many cases, self-medication does more harm than good. When people fall sick, instead of visiting a hospital for a proper check-up, they often resort to using drugs or even herbal remedies to heal quickly—sometimes due to the high cost of medical bills. But this approach isn’t advisable. For instance, you might be suffering from insomnia but take drugs meant to cure typhoid. How can that possibly help? In cases like these, the real illness continues to spread and can lead to more severe health problems, or even death.
Another important issue to consider is that self-medication can be especially dangerous for women who might not know they’re pregnant. Taking certain medications without realizing it could harm the pregnancy, and sometimes leads to miscarriage (flushing of the child) or other complications.
Miscarriage is a major problem in a marriage and it occurs to women most times because some of them don't normally notice on time that they are pregnant and they will now be consuming different drugs that may end of the day be harmful to the child in the womb and even them. This is why it’s crucial for women to always consult a healthcare professional if they suspect they might be pregnant or before taking any medication.
I had an experience with one of the dangers of not seeking a medical doctor for help.
There was this woman who used to attend my former church. She had a shock one day and passed out. Thankfully, her husband was home and was able to revive her by pouring water on her. Later, they noticed she wasn’t feeling well—sometimes she would stagger and fall, and her speech became unclear. Her husband, who was a pastor, believed it was a spiritual attack, so they rushed her to the church headquarters in Ibadan for spiritual treatment.
They treated her with holy water, but her condition got worse. Her husband became so stressed that he lost weight. After days in the church, she was still unable to move or speak clearly. Finally, they decided to take her to the hospital to find out what was really going on. The doctors diagnosed her with a chronic stroke. Sadly, it had become too severe to treat effectively because she hadn’t sought medical help when the symptoms were still mild.
This shows the dangers of self-treatment and ignoring symptoms. If she had gone to the hospital earlier on, when the stroke was partial, it might have been manageable. Unfortunately, by the time she sought proper care, it was already too late.
Self-medication is a dangerous way to treat oneself, especially when it comes to serious conditions like stroke or chronic diseases such as diabetes. If not treated in time by professional doctors, these conditions can become much harder to manage.
It’s also important for people to be aware of symptoms of serious conditions like hypertension, kidney disease or asthma, so they can take action early. Many lives could really be saved if individuals understood when a medical emergency is really needed.
Thanks for reading.