※Simon先生のシリーズ前回の記事「Simon先生の英語ブログで学ぶ使える英語表現ーOff to the Flicks 「映画館へ」」を見逃した方はこちらからどうぞ！

さて、今回のブログは、A Taste Of My Own Medicine 「しっぺ返しを食らう」！一体どんなお話なのでしょうか？

まず、Simon先生の英語ブログを読んでみよう！

Hello, this is Simon.

My daughter was diagnosed with possible strep throat recently. It was all quite an ordeal. The visit to the doctor was traumatic, as she had to endure a nose swab and throat swab. My wife and I had to use every ounce of strength we had to hold her while she was tested. She fought like her life depended on it, but we somehow managed hold her still enough to get the tests done. All the tests came up negative, but the doctor thought it was likely she had strep throat, so she was prescribed antibiotics.

The next hurdle was trying to get her to take the powdered medicine. The problem was the amount. There was huge amount of powder in each sachet, and we knew that she wouldn’t be able to take it.

We tried mixing it with water into a semi solid form , covering it in jelly, but she vomited it up. After that attempt, her face was so pale that she looked like she was at deaths door.

We tried a few other methods unsuccessfully and I became quite worried that she may not be able to take it. Then, how would she get better? My biggest worry was that she might develop something like tonsillitis and have to go under the knife.

It took me back to when I was a child. I remember after being given medicine, I used to sneak off and spit it down the sink. It must have been annoying for my parents, and now I was the one stressing out as a parent over the same kind of thing. It seemed like I was being given a taste of my own medicine.

We eventually found a way of mixing it with a soft drink. She was able to take small sips of it while holding her nose and washing each sip down with water. They were only half doses, but it was a start.

Over time she got used to it and I increased the dose until after a few days she was taking full doses, phew! I had been getting quite stressed, so for me, seeing her finally take full doses of medicine was just what the doctor ordered.

She started getting better as well. I could tell because she was getting her appetite back. It must have hurt her throat when she swallowed, so she had been eating very little. The biggest sign of her recovery was her getting her sense of humor back. She started joking around and playing little pranks on me again. It was so good to see her back to her old self and really got me thinking that laughter is the best medicine.

The whole experience of getting my daughter to take medicine reminded me of a few idioms related to medicine as well as a couple of others, which I’ll talk about below.

ーそれでは、本文の中からピックアップした英語表現を見てみましょう！

“at death’s door”

The expression “at death’s door” means to be on the verge of dying

(e.g. We were called to the hospital because our sick aunt was at death’s door.)

It is also used to describe someone in a hyperbolic way who looks very sick or unhealthy

(e.g. Are you okay? You look like you’re at death’s door.)

“under the knife”

To go “under the knife” means to have surgery

(e.g. If this rehabilitation work on my knee isn’t successful, I may have to go under the knife to fix it.)

I guess it is because you are literally lying underneath a knife in many operations.

“a taste of my own medicine”

The expression “a taste of one’s own medicine” describes a situation in which someone is suffering from an unpleasant experience that they have caused other’s to suffer in the past

(e.g. He is always playing pranks on others, but he got a taste of his own medicine when someone played a mean prank on him yesterday.)

“just what the doctor ordered”

The expression “just what the doctor ordered” means that something is just what is needed for a particular situation

(e.g. After a long hike in the mountains, a nice soak in a hot spring is just what the doctor ordered.)

“laughter is the best medicine”

This idiom means exactly what it says. Simply being happy and laughing about things makes us feel a lot better.

It is often used to talk about dealing with stressful situations, but there are people who believe that laughter is actually good for our overall health.

There are a lot of bugs going around at the moment. Please take care!

See you next month!

フルーツフルイングリッシュで英語表現の楽しさ感じてください 。初めての方には英作文添削チケット2回分をプレゼント。
「無料英語テスト800問（解説付）」メルマガも大人気。今すぐチェック！

Simon

Hello! My name is Simon.

I am from New Zealand, and have been living and teaching English in Japan since 1999.

My hobbies include movies, playing the guitar, gardening and hiking.