Learn Hardcore Swedish: Tandläkaren skickar henne till sjukhuset, men hon fortsätter att vara lugn. - The dentist sends her to the hospital, but she continues to be calm.

So in Tandläkaren skickar henne…, the dentist is the subject and “her” is the object. Later, in …men hon fortsätter…, she is the subject again, so hon is used.

Could this be gender‑neutral? What is the equivalent of “they/them”?

Yes. Swedish has the gender‑neutral pronoun hen, which is used for both subject and object:

Subject: hen
Object: hen
Possessive: hens

So you could say: Tandläkaren skickar hen till sjukhuset, men hen fortsätter att vara lugn.

Why is it att vara and not är after fortsätter?

After many verbs that take another verb, Swedish uses the infinitive with att. Fortsätta is one of those verbs. So:

Correct: hon fortsätter att vara lugn (she continues to be calm)
Not correct: hon fortsätter är lugn

Do I need the att in fortsätter att vara, or can I drop it?

With fortsätta, att is optional before the infinitive. Both are correct:

hon fortsätter att vara lugn
hon fortsätter vara lugn

Including att is slightly more formal or careful; omitting it is very common in speech and modern writing.

Could I say Hon är fortfarande lugn instead? Is there a difference?

Yes, that’s natural Swedish. Nuance:

Hon fortsätter (att) vara lugn highlights the continuation of the state (she keeps on being calm).
Hon är fortfarande lugn states that the state still holds (“still calm”), without focusing on the process of continuing.

Why is the adjective lugn and not lugnt or lugna?

Predicative adjectives agree with the grammatical gender/number of the subject:

Common gender singular (e.g., hon): lugn
Neuter singular (e.g., det): lugnt (e.g., det är lugnt)
Plural (e.g., de): lugna (e.g., de är lugna)

Here the subject is hon, so lugn is correct.

Why is there a comma before men?

You’re joining two main clauses. In standard Swedish punctuation, you place a comma before men when it introduces a new main clause:

Tandläkaren skickar henne till sjukhuset, men hon fortsätter att vara lugn.

What’s the word order after men? Is Swedish using verb‑second here?

Yes. After men, a new main clause starts. Swedish main clauses are verb‑second (V2): the finite verb is in the second position.

…men hon fortsätter att vara lugn. (Subject hon first, verb fortsätter second.) If you front an adverbial, you still keep V2:
…men ändå fortsätter hon att vara lugn. (Adverbial ändå, then verb fortsätter, then subject hon.)

Why is it till sjukhuset and not på sjukhuset or i sjukhuset?

till is used for movement “to” a place: skicka någon till sjukhuset.
på is used for being at an institution: hon är på sjukhuset (she is at the hospital).
i sjukhuset (“in the hospital building”) is rare and only used when you literally mean inside the building, not the institution.

Why the definite form sjukhuset (“the hospital”)? Could I say till ett sjukhus?

Both are possible, but they mean different things:

till sjukhuset = to the (specific/known) hospital (often the local one or one known from context).
till ett sjukhus = to a hospital (unspecified, any hospital).

Unlike British English “to hospital,” Swedish requires an article, so you choose definite or indefinite based on specificity.

Is skickar the right verb in a medical context, or should it be remitterar?

Everyday Swedish often uses skicka: Tandläkaren skickar henne till sjukhuset. In more formal/clinical language, you’ll see remittera (“to refer”): Tandläkaren remitterar henne (till sjukhuset) or skriver en remiss.

Does skickar mean “is sending” or “sends” or “will send”?

Swedish present covers simple present and present progressive:

skickar = “sends” / “is sending.” It can also imply a scheduled/decided near future. If you need a clear future:
ska skicka or kommer att skicka = “will send.”

Could I use other ways to say “stay/keep calm,” like håller sig lugn or förblir lugn?

Yes:

hon håller sig lugn = she keeps herself calm (implies deliberate self‑control).
hon förblir lugn = she remains calm (more formal/literary). All are acceptable; pick the nuance you want.

What’s the difference between vara, är, var, and varit?

They are forms of the verb “to be” (vara):

Infinitive: vara (to be)
Present: är (am/is/are)
Past (preterite): var (was/were)
Supine (used with har): varit (been)
Imperative: var (be!)

Example: Hon fortsätter att vara lugn. Hon är lugn. Hon var lugn. Hon har varit lugn. Var lugn!

Why not use the reflexive sig after skickar?

sig is used when the subject and object are the same person. Here, the dentist sends another person, so you use henne. Reflexive would be:

Tandläkaren skickar sig (själv) till sjukhuset. (The dentist sends themself…)

Where would the negation inte go if I wanted to say “she continues not to be calm”?

Place inte before the infinitive:

…men hon fortsätter att inte vara lugn. If you drop att, it’s still: …hon fortsätter inte vara lugn (now it can also mean “she doesn’t continue to be calm,” i.e., she stops being calm). Using att inte vara is the clearest if you mean “continues not to be.”

How do I pronounce tricky parts like sj, sk (before front vowels), and gn in these words?

sj-/sk- before i, y, e, ä, ö (as in sjukhuset, skickar) is the Swedish “sj‑sound,” a voiceless, breathy sound somewhat like a hushed “sh.” Many learners approximate it with English “sh.”
In lugn, the g isn’t fully pronounced; you get something like “lunn” with a brief “ng‑n” sequence. An approximate guide: lugn ≈ “loongn” (short and light).