Conditions & symptoms · Cold and flu
Is it a cold or flu, and what can help?
Compare common cold and flu symptoms, understand what may help while you recover and know when to seek early or urgent care.
Is it a cold or flu, and what can help?
A cold commonly causes a runny or blocked nose, sneezing and a sore throat. Flu often starts more suddenly with fever, body aches and marked tiredness. Symptoms overlap with COVID-19 and other infections, so they cannot reliably identify the cause. Rest, fluids and symptom relief can help; seek medical advice early if you are at higher risk or getting worse.
Last updated 22 October 2026
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Respiratory symptoms you can talk through
Cold, influenza, COVID-19 and other respiratory infections can cause overlapping symptoms. Allergies and other conditions can also cause a cough, blocked nose, throat irritation or sinus pressure, so one symptom does not settle the cause.
You can discuss:
- cough, including whether it is dry or brings up mucus
- sore, scratchy or painful throat
- blocked or runny nose, sneezing or post-nasal drip
- facial pressure, headache or sinus-type pain
- fever, chills, aches and tiredness during the illness
- changes in taste, smell, voice or swallowing
- whether the symptoms are improving, persisting or getting worse
How long does flu last?
Most people start to improve within a few days to a week, but recovery varies. Cough and tiredness can last longer than the fever and aches, so there is no fixed day when everyone should feel back to normal.
Arrange medical review if symptoms are getting worse, improve then worsen again or are not beginning to settle. Seek advice early if you are at higher risk of serious illness, and do not wait for a time threshold if you have any of the urgent warning signs below.
How can a HerDoc GP help?
A HerDoc GP can assess how the illness started, how it is changing and how it affects your breathing, drinking, sleep and daily activities. You do not need to decide whether it is a cold, flu, COVID-19 or something else before booking. HerDoc consultations are by phone.
The GP can discuss practical symptom relief, review medicines you have tried and agree what to watch for. A HerDoc GP can provide a prescription or medical certificate when clinically appropriate. The assessment determines whether either is needed and what the doctor can support; neither is guaranteed by booking.
The GP can also request pathology testing or recommend local follow-up when it would help clarify the cause or guide care. Not everyone needs a respiratory test or throat swab. If you already have a result, have its date and details ready or upload it during intake.
What can help while you recover?
Mild symptoms that are improving can often be managed at home. Rest, regular drinks and simple measures may make you more comfortable while your body recovers. You do not need a GP appointment for every cold.
- Rest and drink regularly. If you feel sick, try small sips; follow any fluid restriction already prescribed for you.
- Warm or cool drinks may soothe a sore throat. Avoid smoke and other irritants, and rest your voice if talking hurts.
- A pharmacist or GP can discuss symptom-relief options and check them against your other medicines, health conditions, pregnancy or breastfeeding. Check before combining cold-and-flu products, as ingredients can overlap.
- Stay home while unwell, cover coughs and sneezes, wash your hands and avoid close contact with people at higher risk of serious illness.
Why antibiotics are not the usual next step
Colds and flu are caused by viruses, which antibiotics do not treat. Mucus colour, fever or the number of days alone cannot show that antibiotics are needed. A GP can assess whether another cause or complication needs different care.
What information helps your appointment?
Have a few details ready about when symptoms began, what is bothering you most and what has changed. Helpful information includes:
- your temperature, if you have measured it
- whether breathing feels different from usual
- whether you can drink and pass urine normally
- recent contact with someone who was unwell
- any respiratory test results you already have or upload during intake
- pregnancy, immune problems or long-term heart, lung, kidney or metabolic conditions
- current medicines, allergies and anything already tried
- How symptoms affect sleep and daily activities, what you have tried and whether it helped.
When is an earlier GP review useful?
Arrange review if symptoms are getting worse, improve then worsen again, or are not beginning to settle. A cough that keeps affecting sleep or daily life also deserves assessment. You do not need to wait for a particular number of days if you are concerned; use urgent care for the warning signs below.
Pregnancy, older age, a weakened immune system and significant heart, lung, kidney or metabolic conditions can increase the risk of a more serious respiratory illness. Seek medical advice early if these apply, and promptly if you are pregnant and think you have flu. These factors do not automatically rule out a phone appointment, but they can change how soon you need assessment and whether local checks are needed.
If you have asthma, mention wheeze, night waking or breathing that differs from your usual pattern. Follow your existing Asthma Action Plan and seek urgent help for worsening breathing; a routine phone appointment cannot replace care for an acute attack.
When testing, examination or follow-up may help
A phone conversation cannot look inside your throat or ears, listen to your chest or measure oxygen levels. An examination may be needed when symptoms persist or worsen, risk factors matter, or the GP cannot assess your breathing or general condition well enough remotely. The doctor can explain what needs checking locally and how soon.
Testing may be useful if knowing the cause would change your care. COVID-19, flu and other infections overlap, so symptoms alone do not reliably distinguish them. Discuss whether testing would help; do not delay care for worsening symptoms while waiting for a result.
Agree what improvement to look for and when to return if symptoms continue. Each later HerDoc consultation, including a results-review appointment, is booked separately. Eligible standard follow-up appointments can be bulk billed at $0 with no gap; otherwise, private fees apply. Follow any advice to seek local care sooner.
When should you seek urgent care?
Ordinary cold symptoms do not usually need emergency care. Act sooner if breathing, hydration or your general condition changes; do not wait for a routine online appointment.
Call 000 for emergency symptoms
Call 000 for any of the following. Do not drive yourself.
- Severe breathing difficulty, gasping or being unable to speak comfortably; blue or grey lips.
- Chest pain or pressure that is severe, persistent or unexplained, especially with breathlessness or pain spreading to the arm, jaw or back.
- New confusion, collapse, difficulty waking, or severe weakness with signs of serious illness such as cold, clammy skin or very little urine.
Seek urgent local assessment
Contact a local doctor or urgent-care service now for new or worsening breathlessness, repeated vomiting, inability to keep fluids down, much less urine, dizziness on standing or increasing weakness. Severe symptoms above need 000.
Seek urgent local care if you have difficulty swallowing, a severe or worsening sore throat, cough up blood, or are becoming significantly more unwell. If timely care is unavailable or you are deteriorating, go to an emergency department. If you cannot travel safely, call 000.
Sources and further reading
Australian sources supporting this guide; these organisations have not reviewed or endorsed HerDoc.
When to seek urgent care
Call 000 for severe breathing difficulty, blue or grey lips, concerning chest pain, collapse or new confusion. Do not wait for an online appointment.
Talk through cold or flu-like symptoms with a GP
Discuss what has changed, what you have tried and the next step for your care. Use local or emergency care for urgent symptoms.