Pillbox

[Guest]

Hi Everyone!

I've been on Warfarin for almost 3 years now and I definitely think that having a dedicated weekly pillbox helps me with taking the right dose at the right time. I just find the plastic ones so bulky and ugly. What does everyone else use here? Do you carry yours around with you? Do you have one of those daily pillboxes instead? Or do you leave all your pills at home?

I'm thinking about making a custom one out of wood, just big enough to hold my warfarin pills but still be able to carry it around for the whole week. I would love to hear your experiences/issues with how your store/carry your warfarin with you.

 

[dick0236]

A pillbox for warfarin is definitely is a good idea. I use a seven day rectangular plastic box(1"x1"x 6") and take all my pills(6) at the same time......in the AM when I wake up. I have seen small round pill boxes(2"-3" dia.) that would work well as a dedicated pill box......should be available at a good pharmacy.

 

[djacq]

I have packed my Warfarin in weekly, plastic med boxes for many years. Have often wondered if a degradation of ingredients would occur when not in sealed med bottle?

 

[Arne]

I'm wondering the same thing about degradation of potency/efficiency. My assumption is that light does more damage to the pills then does the container (if not light sealed). I've been using a wood pillbox and have not noticed any changes in my INR values since doing so. I also take Vit K tablets with the warfarin so that helps to keep my levels consistent.

 

[pellicle]

I have packed my Warfarin in weekly, plastic med boxes for many years. Have often wondered if a degradation of ingredients would occur when not in sealed med bottle?

If you were to store them in a pill box for months, perhaps something measurable may occur, especially in a tropical environment. My pill box is weekly, so no degradation would be found

The blister packs are not about freshness, they are about convenience.

Best Wishes

 

[Arne]

Pellicle, you use a plastic pillbox as well?

 

[LondonAndy]

I am diabetic, and on several other medications too; in fact I take 11 tablets and 5 vitamin type things per day! So a weekly pillbox would be too large to carry around and I use a daily pillbox with 5 compartments and 5 alarms. It has a clamshell design, so no light issues.

Example: http://www.medimax.co.uk/shop/tabtime_5/1_2_0_13/default.aspx (I am not on commission!)

 

[pellicle]

Hi

Pellicle, you use a plastic pillbox as well?

I do ... AM / PM ... I put my 3 500mg capsules of amoxicillin in the AM (and then load it into a "film container" in the morning for taking the other 2) and the warfarin in the PM

London Andy outdoes me with drugs ;-)

 

[jwinter]

Another plastic pillbox user here. I only take warfarin and iron each morning so use the a.m. for one week and p.m. for another week.

 

[pellicle]

Hi

I've been a bit busy lately, so haven't had time to address this properly ...

I've been on Warfarin for almost 3 years now and I definitely think that having a dedicated weekly pillbox helps me with taking the right dose at the right time. I just find the plastic ones so bulky and ugly.

well ugly isn't in the equation for me (being a practical man) but bulky is questoinable. If one wanted to keep it on you pocket all the time then yes, but why would you want to do that?

Here is my pill box

its seen 5 years of hard use and I've had to use a marker pen to re-write the days on it ...

Do you carry yours around with you?

Not ordinarially, but when I travel I put it into my backpack or "shaving kit".

Do you have one of those daily pillboxes instead?

I don't understand what this means, I have a pill box (as above) that contains the week divides the week into days, with AM and PM.

As it happens I take 3 pills during the day and take my warfarin at home in the evenings (or wherever I am [say hotel room] when travelling). I need to divide the antibiotics every 8 hours (thus three of them) and load them together into the AM side, taking my warfarin in the PM.

I take the first of the three on getting up and load the other 2 into a 35mm film canister (a Fuji one which is translucent) so that I can shove that in my backpack side pocket (I always have a small backpack to hold phone, wallet, keys, swiss army knife ... ) so that when the phone alarm goes off

Or do you leave all your pills at home?

only when I am only going out for a part of the day ... so commonly the antibiotics come with me and the warfarin is at home (in the pill box (unless I'm travelling))

I'm thinking about making a custom one out of wood, just big enough to hold my warfarin pills but still be able to carry it around for the whole week.

nice thought , but with wood you will not be able to visually check as I can with the plastic one. I often just pick it up or look at it during the day as a secondary double check during the day that I've not made mistakes (such as ignoring an alarm on the phone, because I was in the middle of doing something).

To me plastic was entirely suitable for the drug company to store and transport the drugs in and if I was using wood I'd want to be sure that there were no "stains" or other stuff coming out of the wood (you know, like linseed oil) which may interact with the drugs.

I'm more Sparta than Athens in my style and shun ornate but useless things .. YMMV

Best Wishes

 

[Agian]

I made one out of galvanised iron left over from the fence. The pop rivets keep it together nicely, silicon for the edges.

 

[pellicle]

I made one out of galvanised iron left over from the fence. The pop rivets keep it together nicely, silicon for the edges.

Very streampunk

Pics please

 

[Agian]

Very streampunk

Pics please

 

[Agian]

I even threw in a wet cat for good measure.

 

[pellicle]

Very professional job

I can see why leaving that at home would be preferable

 

[ATHENS1964]

I bought this small bar that fits 2 doses of pills. The reason is that some days I am out of the house for work when it is time to take the pill, so I always have it in my keychain with a usb that I have some data that I need often and where I will not have a good network connection for cloud .

 

[Chuck C]

I bought this small bar that fits 2 doses of pills. The reason is that some days I am out of the house for work when it is time to take the pill, so I always have it in my keychain with a usb that I have some data that I need often and where I will not have a good network connection for cloud .

I think it's a great idea to have a stash of a few doses, just in case. I have not yet left the house without taking my warfarin, but have a prescription in the car ready just in case it ever happens, or if we slip away for the weekend and I forget to pack them. It may never happen, but no harm in having the back ups just in case.

My back up prescription came about because of a screw up between my pharmacy and the coumadin clinic, in which I somehow ended up with a prescription for 4mg tablets, which does not make sense because I take 7mg per day- 6mg + 1mg. When I tried to pick up my prescription for my 1mg tablets I was told "The pharmacist has a question for your doctor before he can fill it." Hmm. Perhaps I can answer his question: "No, no, he needs to speak to your doctor." I now know what was stumping him and could have easily shed light on it, it turns out. But, rather than calling my cardiologist, they called the Coumadin Clinic and two weeks later, (yes it took them 2 weeks to get it sorted) I get a text that my 4mg prescription is ready. 4mg??? So, I just paid the $ 7 and figure that will be my emergency back up- then ordered more 1mg tablets.
There is so much to be said in favor of self management. For one thing, it forces you to have an understanding of how your warfarin dosage affects your INR. If I just picked up my prescription when the pharmacy told me it was ready and "took as prescribed" as detailed on the pill box, without any other thought to it, there is a really good chance that I would not be here today. There have now been two occasions in which they completely botched the dosage. Fortunately, my cardiologist is on the same page with me and removed me from enrollment in the clinic upon my request that he do so.

Anyway, long story on how I got my warfarin reserve pillbox, but I think there is a message there for self management.

 

[ATHENS1964]

I think it's a great idea to have a stash of a few doses, just in case. I have not yet left the house without taking my warfarin, but have a prescription in the car ready just in case it ever happens, or if we slip away for the weekend and I forget to pack them. It may never happen, but no harm in having the back ups just in case.

My back up prescription came about because of a screw up between my pharmacy and the coumadin clinic, in which I somehow ended up with a prescription for 4mg tablets, which does not make sense because I take 7mg per day- 6mg + 1mg. When I tried to pick up my prescription for my 1mg tablets I was told "The pharmacist has a question for your doctor before he can fill it." Hmm. Perhaps I can answer his question: "No, no, he needs to speak to your doctor." I now know what was stumping him and could have easily shed light on it, it turns out. But, rather than calling my cardiologist, they called the Coumadin Clinic and two weeks later, (yes it took them 2 weeks to get it sorted) I get a text that my 4mg prescription is ready. 4mg??? So, I just paid the $ 7 and figure that will be my emergency back up- then ordered more 1mg tablets.
There is so much to be said in favor of self management. For one thing, it forces you to have an understanding of how your warfarin dosage affects your INR. If I just picked up my prescription when the pharmacy told me it was ready and "took as prescribed" as detailed on the pill box, without any other thought to it, there is a really good chance that I would not be here today. There have now been two occasions in which they completely botched the dosage. Fortunately, my cardiologist is on the same page with me and removed me from enrollment in the clinic upon my request that he do so.

Anyway, long story on how I got my warfarin reserve pillbox, but I think there is a message there for self management.

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