Getting Worse and Worse - 越来越严重了

Sophie is a French person who teaches English in Beijing. This morning when she got up, she found that her throat was very sore and her head felt a bit heavy. She thought it was probably just a minor cold, no big deal. But by the afternoon, her symptoms had become more and more serious. She started getting a runny nose and kept sneezing. She felt very anxious inside, because she still had three classes tomorrow and could not take the day off. She decided to go to a nearby pharmacy to buy some medicine.

Sophie walked into the pharmacy and said to the pharmacist: 'Hello, I have a cold. My throat is very sore and my head hurts too. I want to buy some strong cold medicine.' The pharmacist looked at her and asked: 'Do you have a fever right now?' Sophie shook her head and said: 'I don't know, but I feel more and more unwell.' The pharmacist nodded, walked to the shelf, took out a box of regular cold medicine, and handed it to Sophie saying: 'Try this one first.'

Sophie frowned and said: 'Last time I also bought this kind of medicine and it didn't work after taking it. I need something stronger.' The pharmacist shook his head and said seriously: 'Stronger medicine requires a prescription to purchase. Do you have a prescription?' Sophie was taken aback for a moment and said: 'No. I don't have my own doctor in Beijing.' The pharmacist said: 'So then without a prescription, I have no way to sell it to you. That is the rule.' After hearing this, Sophie felt both anxious and frustrated inside, not knowing what to do.

Sophie walked out of the pharmacy and stood on the street, taking a deep breath. She opened her phone and searched for nearby clinics. She found a clinic and called them. The call connected and a nurse answered, asking what her problem was. Sophie described her symptoms once through, and the nurse said: 'We can do a phone consultation for you. Please wait a moment, the doctor will answer shortly.' Sophie waited a few more minutes, feeling a little nervous inside, but she told herself to wait patiently.

The doctor answered the call, carefully asked about Sophie's symptoms, and then said: 'Your situation is not too serious, but you need anti-inflammatory medicine. I will write you an electronic prescription now. You can show it at the pharmacy.' Sophie said: 'Thank you, doctor!' After hanging up the phone, she went back to the pharmacy she had just been to. She showed the pharmacist the electronic prescription on her phone, the pharmacist nodded, and this time smoothly sold her the medicine.

After returning home, Sophie took the medicine according to the instructions and then lay on the sofa to rest. Thinking back on today's experience, she gradually felt calm inside. At first she felt those rules were troublesome, but now she understood that they also existed for everyone's safety. She said to herself: 'So then in the future when I face a problem, I should first stay calm and then think of a solution.' The next morning, her symptoms had improved a lot and she went to teach her classes without any trouble.