מאז אתמול יש לי סחרחורת, ואני חושבת שאולי זאת התחלה של שפעת.

Hebrew usually expresses possession with יש + ל־.

• יש = there is / there are
• לי = to me

So יש לי סחרחורת is literally something like there is dizziness to me, but naturally it means I have dizziness.

This is the normal Hebrew pattern for have:

• יש לי זמן = I have time
• יש לו חום = He has a fever

The negative is אין לי = I don’t have.

Because in Hebrew, an action or condition that began in the past and is still true now is often expressed with the present tense, especially with מאז or another time expression.

So:

• מאז אתמול יש לי סחרחורת = Since yesterday I have been dizzy / I’ve had dizziness since yesterday

English often prefers the present perfect, but Hebrew does not need a special perfect form here.

מאז means since or ever since.

So:

• מאז אתמול = since yesterday

Yes, Hebrew can also say:

• מאתמול יש לי סחרחורת

Both are natural. Very roughly:

• מאתמול = from yesterday / since yesterday
• מאז אתמול = since yesterday, with a slightly clearer sense of continuity from that point until now

In the present tense, Hebrew verbs do not show person clearly.
חושבת can mean:

• I think
• you think, to a woman
• she thinks

Because of that, Hebrew often includes the subject pronoun in the present tense for clarity:

• אני חושבת = I think
• את חושבת = you think
• היא חושבת = she thinks

So ואני חושבת is very natural.

Because the speaker is female.

In the present tense, Hebrew verbs agree with gender and number:

• אני חושבת = I think, said by a woman
• אני חושב = I think, said by a man

So if a man were speaking, the sentence would be:

• ואני חושב שאולי זאת התחלה של שפעת

The ש־ here means that.

So:

• אני חושבת שאולי... = I think that maybe...

In Hebrew, ש־ is often attached directly to the next word:

• שזה
• שאני
• שאולי

In English, that is often optional after I think, but in Hebrew ש־ is very common.

אולי means maybe or perhaps.

Here:

• אני חושבת שאולי... = I think that maybe...

Its placement is natural because it softens the whole idea that follows. The speaker is not certain.

Hebrew is fairly flexible with אולי, for example:

• אני חושבת שאולי זאת התחלה של שפעת
• אני חושבת שזאת אולי התחלה של שפעת

Both are possible, but the first version is very natural.

Because התחלה is a feminine noun, and זאת agrees with it.

• זאת = this / this is, feminine
• זה = this / this is, masculine

So:

• זאת התחלה = this is a beginning / this is the beginning

In careful grammar, זאת matches התחלה.
In everyday speech, you may also hear זה used very broadly, even before feminine nouns, but זאת is the grammatically matching form here.

Also, in speech זאת is often pronounced zot.

Hebrew often uses a predicate noun without the definite article in sentences like this.

So:

• זאת התחלה של שפעת = This is the beginning of flu / This may be the start of the flu

Using ההתחלה would make it sound more specifically the beginning, as if a particular beginning is being identified very explicitly.

In this sentence, התחלה without ה־ sounds natural and idiomatic.

Both are possible.

1. התחלה של שפעת

   • very common
   • conversational
   • transparent for learners

2. התחלת שפעת

   • a construct chain
   • a bit tighter or more formal-sounding

So the sentence chooses the very natural everyday pattern:

• noun + של + noun

You will hear both in Hebrew, but של is often easier and more common in speech.

Because names of illnesses are often used without the definite article in Hebrew when speaking generally.

For example:

• יש לי שפעת = I have the flu / I have flu
• זאת התחלה של שפעת = This is the beginning of the flu / the start of flu

So שפעת without ה־ is very natural.

Using השפעת is possible in some contexts, but the article-less form is common when simply naming the illness.

סחרחורת here is being treated as a condition or symptom, not as a countable object.

So Hebrew naturally says:

• יש לי סחרחורת = I have dizziness
• יש לי בחילה = I have nausea
• יש לי חולשה = I have weakness

No ה־ is needed.

Also, the singular is normal here because it refers to the general symptom.
You might also hear a plural in other contexts:

• יש לי סחרחורות = I’m having dizzy spells / I get bouts of dizziness

But in this sentence, singular סחרחורת is the most straightforward choice.