Speaking French

How to describe a symptom at the pharmacy, in French

If you are in the chair right now

J'ai mal au ventre depuis hier. Vous pouvez me conseiller quelque chose ?

My stomach has been hurting since yesterday. Can you recommend something?

If that gets brushed off

Je ne sais pas comment ça s'appelle, mais c'est ici.

I don't know what it's called, but it's here.

French pain runs on avoir mal à: you have pain at a place, and the place takes the article, not a possessive — au ventre, à la gorge, never «à mon ventre». Point while you say it. The pharmacist is trained to work from exactly this much.

The pharmacy is where language learners get sick twice: once from whatever is wrong, and once from discovering that «it hurts» works completely differently in French. The good news is that one sentence shape covers nearly everything, and the person behind the counter is professionally obliged to meet you halfway.

If you need more than one line

neutral

J'ai mal à la gorge.

My throat hurts. Swap in: à la tête, au dos, à l'estomac, aux dents.

neutral

Depuis hier. / Depuis trois jours.

Since yesterday. / For three days. Depuis takes the present tense — «j'ai mal depuis hier», never the past. The pain is still going, so the tense stays too.

neutral

J'ai déjà pris du paracétamol, mais ça n'a rien fait.

I've already taken paracetamol, but it did nothing. What you have tried is half of what they need.

firmest

Il me faut une ordonnance pour ça ?

Do I need a prescription for that? The question that sorts what they can hand you today from what needs a doctor.

Two things worth knowing

The vocabulary is findable. The sentence shape is what catches people.

You have pain at places

English things hurt; French people have pain at them. «J'ai mal au ventre» — I have pain at the stomach — with the definite article, because your body parts are assumed to be yours. Learn the one shape and every symptom you cannot name becomes «j'ai mal ici» plus a pointed finger, which is diagnosis enough for a pharmacy counter.

The pharmacist is the first doctor

In France, asking the pharmacist before any doctor is the system working as designed — «conseiller» is literally part of the job, and for anything sold sans ordonnance their recommendation is the consultation. Describe it, say how long, say what you tried. You will walk out with something, or with clear instructions to see someone.

What Sophie actually said

What you have to get done

  • Explain the issue without naming it
  • Share what you have tried so far
  • Confirm usage instructions after asking

Sophie

Bonjour, comment puis-je vous aider aujourd'hui ?

Hello, how can I help you today?

You

Bonjour. J’ai une sensation étrange ici : c’est comme une brûlure accompagnée de démangeaisons, mais je ne sais pas comment on appelle cela.

Hello. I have a strange sensation here: it's like a burning with itching, but I don't know what it's called.

Sophie

Je comprends, cela ressemble peut-être à une irritation de la peau. Qu’avez-vous déjà essayé pour vous soulager ?

I see — it might be a skin irritation. What have you already tried for relief?

You

Je n’ai encore rien essayé, car je ne savais pas s’il s’agissait d’une irritation ou d’autre chose.

I haven't tried anything yet, because I didn't know whether it was an irritation or something else.

Sophie

Je comprends, merci de me le préciser ; je vais vous proposer quelque chose de doux pour apaiser cette sensation.

I understand, thanks for clarifying; I'll suggest something gentle to soothe it.

You

Merci, c’est gentil. Je n’ai encore rien essayé, car je préférais avoir votre avis avant d’appliquer quoi que ce soit.

Thank you, that's kind. I haven't tried anything yet — I preferred to get your advice before applying anything.

Sophie

Je comprends, c’est prudent ; que souhaitez-vous savoir sur la façon de le prendre ?

I understand, that's sensible; what would you like to know about how to take it?

You

Je voudrais surtout savoir comment le prendre correctement : quelle dose dois-je utiliser, à quelle fréquence, et pendant combien de temps ?

Mainly I'd like to know how to take it properly: what dose, how often, and for how long?

Sophie

Je peux vous expliquer la posologie, mais il me faut d’abord le nom du produit choisi et l’endroit précis à traiter.

I can explain the dosage, but first I need the name of the product chosen and the exact area to treat.

You

D’accord, je vais vous montrer le produit choisi et vous préciser exactement la zone à traiter ; pourriez-vous ensuite m’expliquer la posologie et me faire répéter les instructions ?

All right, I'll show you the product and point out exactly the area to treat; could you then explain the dosage and have me repeat the instructions back?

Sophie

Bien sûr : montrez-moi le produit et indiquez la zone, puis je vous expliquerai clairement la dose, la fréquence et la durée ; au revoir et prenez soin de vous !

Of course: show me the product and the area, then I'll explain the dose, frequency and duration clearly; goodbye and take care!

The whole conversation, unedited

A real run in the app, nothing scripted on the pharmacist's side. The transcript above is taken from this recording, and the objectives tick off on screen as they are met.

Turn sound on to hear it.

Now say it yourself

Reading that is not the same as producing it with someone waiting, which is the entire difficulty. You can have this exact conversation in the app: Sophie is a third of the way through, and you have three things to get done.

It is free, it takes about a minute to start, and the first attempt is allowed to be terrible.

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