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When should I see a doctor when experiencing flu-like symptoms?

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Hi! I am 20 years old with no known medical conditions. I do not currently have health insurance or I would have already seen a doctor because I get a lot of anxiety around being sick or having physical ailments and stuff. On Sunday, my boyfriend began to experience flu-like symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, fever, chills, headache, and cough. He does have health insurance so he did a teladoc appointment and they said his symptoms were flu-like and that they have been getting a lot of people with the flu that week so they prescribed him Oseltamivir Phosphate and Ondansetron, he began taking both on Sunday evening and took them accordingly until yesterday where he stopped taking the Oseltamivir because he was getting stomach cramps and thought it could be from that. His symptoms have improved slightly and he went to school today but said that he feels a bit woozy and that the cramps are still there. My symptoms began on Monday evening but were just a slight cough that continued onto Tuesday, where after work I took a shower and it felt like all my symptoms hit me at once. I began to experience the same symptoms as him, minus the nausea and vomiting, as well as postnasal drip, itchy ears and throat, and as of yesterday my ears have clogged a bit every once in a while. Since I do not have health insurance I have been taking 400 mg of ibuprofen once in the morning and once in the evening to combat the fever. I did not feel well enough to attend my classes yesterday but I did go to work today because I did not have sick time even though I have not felt much better. I wake up at 4 am for work and took 400 mg of ibuprofen, since then I have returned home and as of 1 pm to 2 pm it feels as my fever has begun to return. I also feel like my cough has become more frequent and it feels like my upper middle of my chest (above my breasts) is burny or tight. It’s not at all a debilitating pain, it’s just kind of there. I have been staying hydrated with gatorade and water, and have no problems with appetite. If I do cough up mucus it is clear/whiteish. At what point do my symptoms mean I need to see a doctor? Is the feeling in my upper chest caused by the coughing wearing my muscles out? Is there anything else I should be doing to combat the sickness? Also we do not own a thermometer so we have no idea how high our fevers have gotten.

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Subreddit
r/AskDocs
Posted
Feb 12, 2026 at 7:57 PM UTC
LeadScore: 45question

AI Analysis

Condition
flu-like illness, cough, fever, postnasal drip, chest tightness
Barrier
uninsured
Geography
us likely