Do’s and Don’ts of Taking Medication
Welcome back to my blog; this is the first blog posted in the year of 2022! I’m sorry for the long wait, but I’ve been working at least 11 hours a day plus weekends since January, as I have entered the busy season for my full-time job with Ernst and Young. The next blog that I will write about is the “Do’s and Don’ts” of taking medication for mental health treatment.
I believe that I am a good resource for advice for medication treatment (not prescription) because I have been taking medication daily since the summer of 2018, when I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. And I have never been hospitalized ever since I started taking my prescribed medication on a daily basis. Below are some “Do’s and Don’ts” suggestions that I have for taking medication for mental health treatment.
Do’s
Take your medication as prescribed, and on schedule. Your doctors are doing their best to treat your mental illness by prescribing medication with instructions. If you follow their instructions, you will likely feel better mentally.
Maintain a healthy lifestyle while taking medication. This means frequent exercise and a healthy diet. Getting good sleep is important too. Without maintaining a healthy lifestyle while taking your medication, your medication will not be as effective.
Keep track of your medication dosages and when you’re supposed to take your medication in a journal or in notes on your phone at the onset of when you’re taking your medications, at the very least. This is because it is important to be cognizant of when to take your medications and what kind of medications you are taking.
Report any side effects of your medications to your doctor or psychiatrist when you experience them. Not all medications work for everybody, so it’s imperative that you inform your doctor when you are experiencing harmful side effects. This way, your doctor can make the necessary medication adjustments to better treat your mental health without compromising your physical health to a great extent.
Don’ts
Skip any medication dose or reduce your dosage without a doctor’s permission. Do not miss taking your medication or reduce your dosage without the permission of your doctor because you are basically avoiding or limiting the efficacy of your treatment. In addition, do not stop taking your medications abruptly, as you will possibly enter a relapse and experience the same mental health issues that you were experiencing prior to taking medication. You may stop taking medications if your doctor gives you the permission to do so, or if you are prescribed a certain medication for a specific period of time.
Take your medication with drugs or alcohol. This should be self-explanatory. Never mix your medication with drugs and alcohol because you will suffer a dangerous, life-threatening reaction. I’ve personally witnessed someone going to the ER (Emergency Room) because that person drank wine with the medication.
Accept side effects from your medications. By no means should you be okay with having harmful side effects from your medications. This means you should report all of them to your doctor or psychiatrist who can then create a medication game plan that works best for you in terms of mental health treatment and side effect mitigation.
On the whole, thank you very much for reading my blog! I love writing about mental health and fitness, and I hope this blog is helpful to you. If you’d like to subscribe to my blog, please enter your email in the subscription part on the bottom of the home page. Also, please share my blog with friends and family!
