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Husband dispenceing my meds

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Posted 5/14/2014 5:23 AM (GMT 0)
It makes me Sad to know I can't dispence my own meds to myself right now. My husband sets up my meds in a med set. I usually can take them well. For some reason the last 2 weeks I have been taken them wrong. I would notice when I go take them that something wasn't right. So my Coumadin level was very high today. So now my Dr. wants my husband to monitor me. As a retired nurse it hurts that my brain has come to this. It can actually can be kind of scary.

Post Edited (ak angel) : 5/14/2014 1:08:33 PM (GMT-6)

Posted 5/14/2014 7:37 AM (GMT 0)
I know that's frustration.
I sometimes wish I had someone helping me keep track of my medicines. I have a tendency to forget my evening lasix. My ankles get so huge because of it. :-(
Posted 5/14/2014 9:59 AM (GMT 0)
Yeah, I used to chuckle when I'd visit some of my aunts and their dinner or kitchen tables would hold all their meds. I don't do it anymore. I've come to the conclusion that the kitchen table is the only place they know they will be during the day/night and if they put their medicine there, they will remember to take it. In fact, when I start getting ready to go to bed at night, I set my various meds out for the night and the morning. I have an annoying habit of forgetting to take my thyroid medicine first thing in the morning.
Posted 5/14/2014 12:19 PM (GMT 0)
I use a pill box and on Saturday fill it up for the whole week. That helps a lot. You can see what you have taken and what you haven't.

I hope that you feel better soon.

Hugs, Karen...
Posted 5/14/2014 12:46 PM (GMT 0)
I use both a morning pill box (clear) and an evening pill box (blue). I also take meds with dinner, but my husband does, too, so we keep those meds in the kitchen and make it part of our evening dinner ritual.

There have been two times when I've STILL taken the wrong meds, and both times were during "flares" when I'm not thinking 100%. Once I took my evening meds (Ambien, amitriptyline, and Zanaflex) instead of my morning meds. That was a BAAAAAAD day. So now I put a box of dental floss on top of the medication box so that I actually have to literally think twice before I open it up (plus, I'm more likely to floss!). Then, a couple of weeks ago, I was lying in bed and I thought I remember taking meds, but I'm not sleepy. So I got up...and I had taken my morning meds for the following day (Nuvigil, 2 thyroid meds). So I took my evening meds on top of them, but it was a LONG night, and I wound up having to call in sick the next day. So now I put a hair clip on top of my morning med box.

Before I got into the pill-box routine, and I was on fewer meds, I just put all the meds in one place with a small clock, a pad of paper, and a pen next to them, and each day I would write down the time, what I took, and how much.

It's miserable to not feel like you can rely on your own brain. It's one thing to have our bodies betray us, but our minds, too? Awful. *gentle hugs*
Posted 5/14/2014 12:52 PM (GMT 0)
The days begin to run together. That's the problem. Doesn't mean we're not smart, or creative, or that any number of other good attributes still belong to our brains. It's just a glitch of having rather repetitive days and memories that won't always cooperate. Just can't diferentiate one time of throwing back meds from another. How many doses have we taken in a lifetime--- thousands, for me.

I saw a picture of a bottle with a sheet attached with a calendar and X's thru the days. I lke my dispenser, but sometimes get behind filling it.
bwfm. I also had to come up with a method for taking my hypothyroid dose each morning. I set my thyroid dose out everynight on an overturned bottle lid, so that the next day I know if I took it or not. But while on my trip, I completely zoned out and without even noticing, I tossed it back that night, instead of setting it in the bottle lid. I was a little hyperthyroid that night.
Posted 5/14/2014 2:41 PM (GMT 0)
Look on the bright side. Maybe between the monitoring and the doctor, they may figure some things out. Every evening, I lay out my meds for the next day. Even then, once I took a double dose of effexor by mistake.
Posted 5/14/2014 4:21 PM (GMT 0)
Try not to panic; it has happened to all of us. And the more meds you take, the more likely it is to happen it seems. I've definitely had days when I can't remember if I've taken my meds before, and I have double dosed. Fortunately, with the meds I take, a double dose isn't harmful (if only done on occasion).

I second the suggestion of morning and night daily pill boxes. I have used them in the past when I've been on certain meds. And, truly, that's what spouses are for - to look out for one another. It doesn't mean you "can't" do it; you may just need a little extra help right now. You have been dealing with a lot of health stuff; your mind is probably preoccupied.
Posted 5/14/2014 7:07 PM (GMT 0)
Wow, I am glad I am not the only one that makes errors in their med taking. It might not be so bad if I wasn't taking Coumadin. I guess it kind of hard on me because I use to do nursing and I can't even give myself my own meds correctly.
Posted 5/14/2014 7:34 PM (GMT 0)
Angel, don't be so hard on yourself. This is easy to do. Many times I'll forget whether or not I just took a medication or supplement five seconds ago but, when I'm in doubt, I skip it for that dose. It's better to have less than too much

I went out and bought four weekly pill boxes. Once a month I set them up with my medications. I take the pills in a order, too. This way I know exactly what I'm taking. I've had days where I thought I forgot to take my pills so all I have to do is check the pill box. I use the pill boxes primarily for my prescription medication.

I take a lot so supplements, too, so I keep them in a round basket...around the edge. I keep them in the same order and I could take them blindfolded this way. If I just tossed them in the basket any old way, I'd be in trouble too.

Lastly and most importantly, it's extremely important to pay attention when you are taking your medications. It's so easy to be thinking of something else and then forget what you have taken. I've done that too. When you are doing important things we need to focus on what we are doing.

So, don't stress over this. There are good techniques to help you so you won't have any problems handling your medication. All you need now is a dose of confidence. You are as intelligent as you have ever been and don't forget that. It's too easy to give fibro power.

Sherrine
Posted 5/14/2014 7:49 PM (GMT 0)
Yep. I count the pills for every dosage. For instance, mornings I take 9 pills, dinner I take 6, and bedtime 2. And I lay them out every night as I am cooking dinner.

I use a sharpie and mark the caps of the bottles with the name of the drug, and then line up the bottles in the order of dosage. I really started being ultra-careful after the accidental double-dosage.
Posted 5/14/2014 9:36 PM (GMT 0)
We all have these times... Its not just you...even with a good system in place we sometimes get it wrong. We are busy, with a lot on our minds ..i keep a smaller bottle with 7 days of pills.. So i. Can count and know if i took ..
Posted 5/14/2014 9:38 PM (GMT 0)
I have a weekly pill dispenser too. I have to be careful when I fill it up. I have a set method in filling it and if I am interrupted or don't follow it I mess up in some way.
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