El médico dice que también debo cuidar la muñeca cuando escribo mucho.

The doctor says that I must also take care of my wrist when I write a lot.

Breakdown of El médico dice que también debo cuidar la muñeca cuando escribo mucho.

• yo: I
• mucho: a lot
• que: that
• cuando: when

Questions & Answers about El médico dice que también debo cuidar la muñeca cuando escribo mucho.

Why do we say El médico dice que… instead of El médico dice:?

In Spanish, decir que introduces a subordinate clause (an indirect statement). Using a colon and direct speech (dice: “…”) would mean you’re quoting the doctor verbatim. Here it’s reported speech, so you need que.

What does también modify, and why is it placed before debo?

También means “also” or “too.” It modifies the whole obligation (debo cuidar la muñeca) and is placed immediately before the verb to clarify that taking care of the wrist is an additional recommendation.

Why use debo instead of tengo que or necesito?

Deber (debo) conveys a sense of moral or professional obligation (“I ought to”). Tener que expresses necessity or external obligation (“I have to”), and necesitar focuses on requirement or need. The doctor’s advice sounds more formal and duty-like with debo.

What exactly does cuidar mean here, and is it always transitive?

Cuidar means “to take care of” or “to look after.” In this sentence it’s transitive, so it needs a direct object (la muñeca). You can also use cuidarse reflexively (“take care of oneself”), but here the doctor tells you to care for a specific body part.