Tips to remember to take your dose - reminder ideas

[ChessieCat]

Some ideas.  Set a reminder on your phone.  Carry a dose with you if convenient.  Use a day pill box or count out a week's worth of doses into a container so you can see if you have missed a dose.

 

The last suggestion actually worked for me the other day because I couldn't remember taking my capsule.  I was able to count the remainder and knew that I had taken it.

 

Another suggestion.  Have a "tick off" chart or calendar so that you actually have to do something to indicate you have taken your dose.

 

[carefulprayerful]

I starting doing all of the above and have not missed a dose since.

 

I noticed I never missed a dose of the drug I am tapering because the ritual of diluting it is so lengthy it is impossible to forget, so I developed a drawn-out ritual to take the doses of the drug I am not tapering:

 

1. Set a phone alarm, the same tone each time of day I need to take a dose so there is no confusion.  In fact I don't set alarms for anything else on this phone so there is no confusion at all.  I hear an alarm, and I think, "dose."

2. When the alarm goes off, do not turn if off until AFTER I have completed the rest of this list.  That way I can't get distracted.

3. Take the dose (which I keep in my purse).  I have a pill box with a removeable piece for each day of the week:  https://www.amazon.com/AUVON-iMedassist-Moisture-Proof-Compartments-Supplements/dp/B074MC6HJR/ref=sr_1_9?keywords=pill+box&qid=1554511148&s=gateway&sr=8-9. 

4. Put a smiley sticker on a mini-calendar.  I keep the stickers and mini-calendar in my purse.

5. If it is the last dose of the day, I put the removable piece from the pill box for the next day in my purse.

6. Finally I turn off the cell phone alarm--task complete!

 

Tapering symptoms have been less since I stopped missing doses.  

 

💜

[RachelSusan]

One thing I did to remember was every I took my dose I would open up the calendar in my phone and write Took Medication and indicate the time. That way if I couldn't remember later I would go look.  In order to remember to put it in the phone I would lay the phone next to my medication as I was taking it.  One could also do this with a paper calendar as well. But the marking in the calendar has to be at the same time as taking the medication. Oh yes, I made sure to take the medication the same time every day.

[HardWork]

The real best way is to ask pharmacy to do blister packs. Comes in separate compartments for each dose, just like the old-fashioned gum that you see each individual piece through a plastic window and push out through foil on opposite side. I just date them in pen on the foil side (some pharmacies print the date along with am, pm). This way I can clearly see if that dose was taken without having to do things like pillboxes or anything at all!

The best invention for brain challenged people!!

I also have a Med reminder clock from Amazon that has 4 day settings. I need to turn the ringer off after I take my meds.... otherwise it buzzes in my head. Phone ringers did not work for me as it was to familiar. This is a very distinct sound

[j1290]

On 8/21/2022 at 3:15 AM, HardWork said:

The real best way is to ask pharmacy to do blister packs. 

I had no idea this was even possible.   Just looked up on Amazon and there are some that are really affordable for DIYers.    Great solution!

 

I take doses 3 times a day, and the second dose while I'm at work.   Historically I've been inconsistent with times of dosages and constantly having anxiety of wondering if I took a pill or not before I left for work.   I'm pretty happy with my current regimen.  It sounds a little over the top even to me, but I've found it worthwhile so far.  

 

Alarms:  I have 2 phone alarms, and one alarm in an app for each dose.  Often I'm at work and get distracted after the first alarm, so if the second one goes off I know it means business and I have to drop everything and take a pill heh!  I also have a pill tracking app with an alarm that is the last failsafe.   Before I take a pill I photograph it, take it, then press the button on the app so it knows I took the meds and disables the alarm.  Later at night or during the day I reset the previous phone alarms I've turned off.  I don't have that so regimented yet, maybe I should do that at 9PM every day or something.   

 

Containers:  At home I use weekly pillboxes that I put my morning and night dose in.  At work, I have another weekly pillbox, plus a bottle with extra meds in my briefcase, just in case I forget and run out, which sure is handy in a pinch.  I also keep meds in my center console of my car in case I forget and need to take something while I'm out and about.   I have some pocket pill cases as well that come in handy to bring more pills to my car or grab some to go.   

 

Recordkeeping:  One of the best changes that I've made is to simply take a photo of the dose every time I take it.   I'm reducing, so I don't take equal doses, so it's really nice to be able to refer to a photo to verify I did it right.   I've been taking meds for ages, sometimes I space out and can't remember if I took 2 pills or a pill and a half.   Also when I get to work and panic that I forgot(I'm half asleep in the morning) I have a photo to know it was done.   So my phone gallery is full of pictures of the palm of my hand with pills in it, but so be it LOL  I find it really helpful.    I also have a large 4" 3 ring binder that I keep all my data sheets of the daily withdrawal checklist.  I actually hardly use the symptoms, because mine really aren't too varied, but I write down at the top what MG dose I took and at what times, so I can track to see if the time between doses has any effect.   I also write down if I took any other meds that day for headaches or something, so I know how many days I have to use those.   Then in the margins I write down whenever I think of it how I feel from 1-10 and jot a little note of the time and what effects I'm primarily having.   I use those numbers to roughly take the day's average to mark the rating at the bottom of the page , and of course I'm tracking the dosage reductions and what day it is, etc.  I've found this indispensible.  Being able to see trends, lessening of symptoms and their severity, all of that has made the whole process more clear and easier to wrap my head around.  Really pleased I started doing this.  

 

Come think of it I should throw some pills into my hiking pack so I have them just in case.   

 

I've been using this system 6 weeks or so and all the failsafes have saved my bacon more than once.   It's so worth it not to have to make an excuse to drive home from work and check my pill box, or heaven forbid miss a dose or mess up my dosage schedule.  I can assess my W/D symptoms or just A/D side effects with at least some variables removed.   I only wish I'd taken more time to study this website sooner.