Would you seek medical assistance online?

You are so right, there are plenty of so called experts that know nothing of what they propose.

@MALUSE And you can not be sure if they truly are experts as they claim to be. It is worrisome in itself.

@MALUSE Right, I was thinking either to 1) research symptoms to get an idea what you might be dealing with or 2) research a condition after you've been diagnosed to find out more information.

Research yes, advice no.

@dawnald Over here, you can get medicines without prescriptions written by doctors. Pharmacists and chemists many times diagnose and give medicines to anyone who ask for it.

@Daljinder ...True. Still not ok with the idea.

@vandana7 It is an unreliable as well as risky thing.

@vandana7 But the user is anonymous.

@Daljinder I agree. But then, as in my case, the doctors simply refused to prescribe me anything except surgery and I still do not want any surgery done on me. I had to research, read, prepare notes and find medicines. Definitely I have been into actual diagnosis, reports and consultations, it is just that they do not prescribe me any medication. And I have to survive. That leaves me almost no option. This is why I never consulted them, I only sought out answers to my queries, and if they had anything that I could relate with my research done elsewhere, I accepted their opinion. Decision to go with medications or no, is mine. let me explain - I found this X helpful for gall bladder (on Materia Medica which is considered the Homeopathy Doctors Encyclopedia). I (re)searched about it and confirmed its use. Then I sought out the real medicine. I found some locally here, some in Kolkata too but the combinations were not available. I searched on Internet, found the store. But before buying I did consult the doctors (theirs and other sites) about the composition, dosage etc - and when they confirmed (which matched my research and study), it was a go ahead.

@thesids I think those sites are good for research purposes and to get a general idea about one's condition . But for actual diagnosis and prescription? No way Jose!

@Daljinder Lol, thank God I don't get sick too often. When I do my husband drags me to the hospital-literally. I am the biggest baby when it comes to doctors.

@LovingMyBabies You are on the fence. You don't follow online advise and you don't like to go to doctors. Girl, you are in trouble! How do you manage it when you get sick?

@LovingMyBabies Wow! Dragging you to the hospital? LOL Do you go kicking and screaming too?

@Daljinder Sure but atleast you can get some information that you did not know

@Missmwngi Oh yeah for research and information it is fine. But better be careful about prescriptions and diagnosis.

@Missmwngi There is a possibility that the one giving you advise is not a professional.

@Daljinder I would be shocked if the person gave conclusive advice. That rash is ___________. Without seeing it in person? On help desk I found it wasn't easy to diagnose computer issues without sitting in from of the machine. Health issues? Gulp. Yeah you are right. Please submit your payment via credit card or... might be the expert.

@Bluedoll No, it isn't really reliable. First of all, we don't even know whether the expert is actually an expert or not.

@BelleStarr Yes It is risky business to trust on online diagnosis.

@Daljinder I search for the same reason, before going to the doctor I like to imagine what it's going on.

@LadyDuck I like to search the internet too. I look for the symptoms to get an idea of what could be causing a certain issue.

@Daljinder Exactly.

@jaboUK Online experts are unreliable at best. We are not even sure if they are professional / qualified or not.

@Daljinder , and cannot have a guarantee if their offer is safe.

@cacay1 so it's just another business venture

@ridingbet Yeah! You never know who is sitting there advising you over the internet.

@VivaLaDani13 yeah the supposed experts.....

@dbherald They could be confusing! Sometimes the symptoms are similar with many illnesses.

@just4him True! You can never be sure who is giving you advise over the internet!