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As you get older, you may find yourself with a number of medications to take. It can be be a challenge to handle all your medications, but if you use the following tips, you will be able to manage your medications well, so that they are most effective in keeping you healthy.
Know Your Medication
It is important that you know the name of each medication you are taking, when you are supposed to take it and what the medication does. This will help you to ensure the medication works properly. For instance, if you are supposed to take a medication in the morning, it may be that it is most effective on an empty stomach. If you know you are already taking a medication for high blood pressure and your doctor prescribes another one, you can ask questions to avoid taking too much medication that could drop your blood pressure too low.
If you aren't sure what certain medications are for, write down a list of questions and talk to your doctor or pharmacist as soon as you can.
Don't Crush Pills
Many seniors crush large pills because they cannot swallow them, and that may not be a good idea. Some medications should not be crushed, because that can affect the effectiveness of the medication. If you are crushing tablets because you cannot swallow the pill you've been prescribed, talk to your doctor about having the medication made into a liquid by a compounding pharmacy. That way, you will get the full effect of the medication.
Avoid Using Too Many Pharmacies
In an effort to save money and time, some seniors get different medications at a number of different pharmacies. However, this can be a mistake. Because a pharmacist may only be aware of one prescription you get from their pharmacy, they can't help you monitor your all prescriptions for possible harmful drug interactions. Try to stick with one pharmacy and one compounding pharmacy, so that your pharmacists are fully aware of all the medications you are taking.
Keep a List of Medications with You
If you are seeing different specialists, it is important that every specialist knows what medications you are taking, so they don't prescribe medications that may not work well with other medications you are taking. While every doctor may have your medical records, be sure to bring a list of medications with you so that they can double check the list before prescribing anything for you.
Even when you aren't going to a doctor, it's a good idea for you to have a list of medications with you. You may even want to give a list to loved ones. If you have a medical emergency, a ready list of medications can give emergency doctors and staff a better idea of what could be causing the problem; they will also know which medications you shouldn't be given, or may need to be given.
Taking a number of medications can be challenging, but if you use the information in this article, you will be able to do so more easily. Make sure to talk to all your doctors and pharmacists (such as those from Camelback Pharmacy) about more ways to handle multiple medications in your day-to-day life.
Share28 January 2015
