Keeping Track of Medications

Before I was diagnosed with cancer I took one prescription medication daily.  I also had an inhaler and few over the counter medications that I took as needed.

After my diagnosis, I found I needed one of these.

The one in the photo is similar to mine.  You can pull out each day's meds to take it with you if needed.

I now understand how difficult it is for older people to keep track of all of their medications.  I had multiple pills that I took each day.  During chemo weeks I had specific pills to take on specific days.  Most pills were taken in the mornings but during chemo weeks I also had evening pills.  During non-chemo weeks I had different pills to take.  In all cases, many pills were "as needed" so I didn't put them in the pill case but instead kept the bottles beside the pill case.  At first I tried using a black marker to label the lid of each pill bottle but that just didn't work as well as the pill case.

I also carried a bag of all my medications to each doctor's appointment.  They always want to know which medications you are taking.  There was no way I could remember them all so I just took the bag with me.  I also kept all of my over the counter medicines in the same plastic box as my pill box so they were easy to find when needed and easy to throw into the bag that went to the doctor's visit.

I am down to only 3 daily pills but I am being weaned off one of those.  I'm hoping to eventually get down to no daily pills.  I am not anti-pill but I prefer to take care of medical issues naturally if possible.  By eating healthier, exercising, and losing weight I hope to no longer need pills.  I will, however, discuss the situation with my doctor before making any changes.