Keeping your meds in order

[valeriedl]

I take a few different meds at different times a day and when I put them in my pill cases it can get confusing/hard to figure out what med, the dosage and when I take it. I wanted to give you some tips.

I take my meds 5 times a day. I use weekly pill cases and use a different pill case for each different time I take my meds. On each pill case I write down what time the meds in it are to be taken.

I have the instructions of how to take my meds typed out on a paper. The med name, the dosage and time taken An example:
111111111111111111117am111119am111113pm111117pm111119pm
Keppra 750mg 77777777 2 111111111111111111111111 2
Lamictal 150mg 111 11112 11111111111111111111111112
Lamictal 25mg 11111111 1 11111111111111111111111111
Depakote 500mg 1111111111111112 1111111 2 111111111111111 2

I add vitamins and any other meds I take to this list too

I highlight the med on my list in different colors and I highlight the pill bottle the same color. This makes it really easy to figure out what goes where.

I hope this helps some people out, it sure did me.

 

[CQ:)]

I’d be lost without my pill boxes but now I’m on so many meds I have webster packs which get made up by the chemists and I pick up every 2-3 weeks.

It makes it easier and I dont usually miss my meds

 

[Plasticmask]

I use a Pill Pro ("As Seen On TV!") it holds an entire week's worth of meds, and each day has four airtight compartments, Morn, Noon, Eve, Bed. That's how I manage mine. HIGHLY recommend. I don't recall what it cost, but I remember that it was NOT expensive at all because I bought three of them in case they quit making them and something happens to it like the airtight feature wears out or something. Again, HIGHLY recommend. With MY memory? I'd be missing doses EVERY DAY.
EDIT: They are sold at the local Drug Store.

 

[valeriedl]

I use a Pill Pro ("As Seen On TV!") it holds an entire week's worth of meds, and each day has four airtight compartments, Morn, Noon, Eve, Bed. That's how I manage mine. HIGHLY recommend. I don't recall what it cost, but I remember that it was NOT expensive at all because I bought three of them in case they quit making them and something happens to it like the airtight feature wears out or something. Again, HIGHLY recommend. With MY memory? I'd be missing doses EVERY DAY.
EDIT: They are sold at the local Drug Store.

I tried pill cases like this but they just didn't work for me. I they usually only have 4 compartments for a day's meds but I take mine 5 times a day. Some weren't big enough to hold all of the meds that I take at a certain time, I know you can but pill cases in different sizes though. Last but not least I was always loosing them. I've got a few Mondays, 1 Tuesday, no Wednesdays and so on.

For me it's easier to use one week pill cases for each time I take my meds. I'm almost always in the same place every day when I take my meds. Like in the bedroom for my 7am, in the kitchen at 9, office at 3 etc... So I keep the pill case there. By doing this I don't think I've ever lost a pill case. I could keep them all in one place too but I just don't want to get up and get them sometimes.

I do use the the daily pill cases that I still have for when I go out though. I take my first dose of meds at 7am and I'm usually home then. I take my other doses later in the day so I'll put them in one of the daily pill cases. They aren't that big and they fit in my purse or pocket too.

 

[CQ:)]

For me it's easier to use one week pill cases for each time I take my meds. I'm almost always in the same place every day when I take my meds. Like in the bedroom for my 7am, in the kitchen at 9, office at 3 etc... So I keep the pill case there. By doing this I don't think I've ever lost a pill case. I could keep them all in one place too but I just don't want to get up and get them sometimes.

Before I started doing webster packs I was finding sometimes I’d mix my meds up eg take my Am meds in the evening and visa versa. It was ok if my anti seizure meds were the same but my neurologist was still adjusting my zonegran to get me on the right dose. So sometimes my evening dose ages of zonegran would be different to the morning and I now take a cholesterol med in the evening.

My epilepsy nurse suggested seperating my meds and putting them in different spots so I didn’t mix them up. I had a am/pm pill box which you could click together or separate. I had the am pill box on my kitchen bench ready for when I was getting breakfast and the pm pill box in the loungeroom on my coffee table in the lounge room as I take my pm meds at night and used to take them after I’d settled for the evening.

 

[Plasticmask]

Before I started doing webster packs I was finding sometimes I’d mix my meds up eg take my Am meds in the evening and visa versa. It was ok if my anti seizure meds were the same but my neurologist was still adjusting my zonegran to get me on the right dose. So sometimes my evening dose ages of zonegran would be different to the morning and I now take a cholesterol med in the evening.

My epilepsy nurse suggested seperating my meds and putting them in different spots so I didn’t mix them up. I had a am/pm pill box which you could click together or separate. I had the am pill box on my kitchen bench ready for when I was getting breakfast and the pm pill box in the loungeroom on my coffee table in the lounge room as I take my pm meds at night and used to take them after I’d settled for the evening.

I wouldn't be able to do that for several reasons, separating meds would only ensure losing them and placing them anywhere like on a coffee table would risk the Dog being able to reach them. My bedtime meds won't all fit in the bedtime slot so I use the evening slot to contain those.
Isn't it interesting how we all have to find ways around these individual day-to-day issues, just to make certain we can get our poisons on board, and on time?

 

[Janus]

I have a pill box. I only take meds 2Xday. That has changed over the years. But still, sometimes I have a CLEAR memory of taking my morning meds butt still sometimes I panicked when I find the tray not empty. So we have a check system here. My alarm goes, caregiver's alarm goes off 5 min later. Then she checks that it's taken, so then marks of on the chart on the wall.

 

[Plasticmask]

So you and I need to talk because they're talking to me about a caregiver, or maybe we should start a new thread so I can learn some things?

 

[Janus]

Let's talk. I will PM you.

 

[Jake]

Between thousands of seizures & numerous comas from Status my memory is all but gone. My Neurologist said I could take my 10 AED's plus my other meds once a day. It has helped me immensely.
Although they may be taken at 5am or 5pm or anywhere in between at least now I rarely forget them. I use a 28-day pillbox. Makes me mad how doctors don't understand our memory difficulties. My ophthalmologist says just cross out the day on the calendar after taking your meds. Easier said than done. Neurologist says “theres no excuse for being non-compliant” I hate that phrase. Makes it sound like it's intentional.
Thank you guys for understanding.
Jake