Search Engines Don't Know Everything

I absolutely love Google. I literally use it all day, every single day. I don't think there's a day that has passed in the last four years that I didn't Google search something or another. I love how quick and easy it is. You can put in lyrics and find your favorite song almost instantly. You can put in a question and have it answered within a matter of seconds! - It's amazing the power of technology and a good search engine, but it's not always perfect.

Google, not perfect, what do you mean!?

Google can be a great search engine and lead to amazing resources and things, but it can also do a lot of bad too. While Google does do a lot to try to ensure search results are timely and accurate, unfortunately that's not always the case. Anyone in the world can create a website. It's simple. Especially now. Anyone in the world store information on the world wide web. - Because of this, those of us with certain conditions have to be extra careful and sometimes take the information we find lightly, or on occasions even disregard it all together.

Google is not always right

Because anyone can contribute information to the web, there is still a lot of room for error. Searching a single symptom can now lead you down a rabbit hole that's nearly impossible to get out of. There is inaccurate information about a slew of different conditions, opinions, misconceptions, misinformation and some things even claim to cure even the deadliest of chronic conditions! People are writing entire medical research with no medical knowledge or professional training at all. People post things online as if it's a fact when the truth is, they know no more about the condition or question than you. They too are confused and trying to find answers.

We must be careful and remember to put our medical professional's advice first. If you don't trust the medical professional you've seen in the past, try a new one. Get a second opinion. Remember online medical suggestions are just that. - Online, medical suggestions. Before you consider trying a new product or medication you should always consult your doctor first.

Besides misinformation there are also just a lot of scams. People will make a product with water and lemon and claim it will cure whatever condition you have. They'll have you paying a small fortune for something they already know will not benefit you in any way at all.

It's not all bad

Search engines like Google pull up a lot of cool things too. Forums, personal experiences, blogs, you name it. I'm not saying I'm against using search engines. If you're looking for a support group or a cool costume for the halloween party, by all means, I think search engines can be really helpful. - But when it comes to your medical stuff, leave that to the professionals. In the time you spend searching all of your questions online, you could have spent that same time requesting a referral.