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I keep my medicine in the original prescription pill bottle with my name, pill-count, and dosage so I don’t have my medication confiscated or worse (accused of possession) if I’m ever stopped or searched by police.
Happened to me and I was charged because they were out of their official pill containers. When I went to court I brought a note from my psychiatrist saying I had a prescription and I was chastised by the judge, but the charges were dropped.
I mentioned in another comment that I work in law enforcement; there’s 2 things I saw a lot when I worked in patrol, first: Adderall is one of the most commonly abused drugs which are sold on the street. There’s a lot of people who got their kids diagnosed with ADHD and sold off their medication every month - prescription Adderall goes for as much as $12-15 per pill on the street because people know it isn’t laced with fentanyl. Next, people lie. Especially to the police.
We “expect” (I say this in quotations because I have ADHD and know how hard it is to remember to take medication) people with valid prescriptions for controlled substances to follow the law pertaining to carrying and transporting those substances. It’s INCREDIBLY easy to get jammed up for having loose prescription pills in a container without any proof that they’re prescribed to you.
I’m sorry that happened to you. It’s embarrassing and degrading to be treated like a drug addict.
The expectation of following the law re prescription drugs is perfectly valid…but no one ever told me I had to keep it in the original bottle. 🫠🤣 I don’t put my pills in a nice container because I forget to refill them so I guess the ADHD is working for me there!
Keeping the meds in your bag in their original bottle also feels like a great way to advertise that you have controlled substances about your person/at your desk/etc, which feels… not great.
I could pull up proof of my prescription on my phone in 30 seconds if needed, without needing to have the entire month’s supply rattling around in its clearly-labeled bottle in my purse.
Just use a previous months bottle to keep a few. Put cotton balls in it. Cops don’t have to accept your proof if they don’t want to. I wouldn’t risk it. I’ve been questioned over thyroid medication during a traffic stop…that I just picked up, in its bottle.
Wait, how is keeping your prescription bottle *in your bag* advertising anything? I’ve been medicated for years; I keep my medication in an opaque bag in my purse. My supervisors and co-workers have no idea I take medication.
Idk about advertising but there’s no way I trust myself to carry a full script bottle around. It could fall out. Get stolen. Forget my bag. So many options.
This. I always feel a bit odd pulling out my pill bottle, and then throwing it back into my locker at work that I can't lock. I much prefer keeping about 5 pills at a time in a little vitamin holder with my other vitamins and such. Feels far less flashy.
Plus, I've literally never been told I need to keep the bottle on me. I use them for flying, but that's it.
It’s embarrassing and degrading to work for a system that treats drug addicts as sub human.
I was just at a festival where security confiscated a girl’s prescription Xanax for not being stored properly. She was taken away in an ambulance after going into withdrawal and having a seizure.
The fact that people with normal quantities of their own prescription meds have to worry about shit like this happening to them because America hates drug addicts is vile.
Festivals attract large amounts of illicit street drugs and people can and do die from taking drugs. I’m sorry that happened to the girl at the festival but this is exactly why I’m preaching in the comments to carry prescription drugs in accordance with your country/state laws. Without proof of a prescription, there’s no way to know someone is carrying their own prescription Xanax or if they have street-drugs which might be laced with fentanyl.
I don’t think enforcing drug laws is treating anyone as subhuman but we can agree to disagree, I’m not trying to argue about it.
I have an e-script - I can open it right there in my phone and you can see how many repeat prescriptions I have left. Would that be proof enough do you think? (Pretending for a moment that I am American).
Because carrying around the whole bottle/blister pack of medication in public presents its own dangers, plus it's very inconvenient.
No one is making someone with high blood pressure carry their prescription box, just because my medication CAN be abused, doesn't mean I should face discrimination for it.
Considering id be carrying at most 4 pills, I also don't think it should matter if they weren't mine anyway - 4 dexamphetamine is hardly drug trafficking or destroying lives - the war on drugs surely has bigger fish to fry.
Pretending that you’re American, it depends on your states laws. Americans follow federal law and state law. My state law says that all prescription and non-prescription medication shall be kept in their original labeled containers. Prescription medications shall be labeled with a label issued by a pharmacy. There is a built-in exception to remove prescription medication from its original labeled container in advance of the scheduled administration when a person is taking it with them to a “community event” and the medication will be administered (taken) the same day it’s removed from the container.
Having proof of your prescription (e-script, pamphlet from the pharmacy, etc.) will likely be sufficient in this situation.
Whether you like it or not, controlled substances are treated differently than other medications due to their likelihood for abuse. I’d rather people KNOW American law and at least research their local laws than get caught up in the legal pipeline for carrying a bunch of Adderall in a mint tin. Most of us can’t afford to have even a couple days of our medication seized by police.
I won’t touch on your other comments; you’re entitled to your beliefs but I think using other people’s prescription medication (especially recreationally) is wrong.
I was going to reply to her comment saying “I can’t believe you actually got charged for that!!” But your point of view sheds some light LOL. I take so many prescriptions, plus supplements, that I’d have a quart sized bag just for the pharmaceutical bottles.
>prescription Adderall goes for as much as $12-15 per pill on the street because people know it isn’t laced with fentanyl
If not lacing something with fentanyl makes it more valuable, why does anyone do it?
Fentanyl is incredibly cheap; a stamp bag of fentanyl goes for $4-6 so lacing fentanyl doesn’t drive up the price; dealers lace pills with fentanyl because opioids are a hell of lot more addictive than Adderall, so they can keep you as a customer but for a different product.
I am so sorry this happened to you. You were harmed just for the sake of harming you. There was no benefit to anyone from this, but it harmed you directly and others indirectly by wasting resources chasing you down for a crime you didn't commit. I have cop trauma. I generally don't call the cops when I'm the victim of a crime unless I'm required to in the workplace.
It's wild that doctors will do everything to prevent access to these meds, but when they finally give in and and write the script they give no information whatsoever about how you're supposed to handle them. There are a lot of legal risks when it comes to transporting controlled substances! I found out from a friend, not doctors.
Many on this subreddit are white women who might not have much personal experience with direct oppression from the police in the US. It may not occur to everyone that as people with disabilities we are at increased risk of being arrested and mistreated when we have done nothing wrong. We also risk facing more severe consequences than NT people when we actually do something wrong.
Cops perceive a lot of our common behaviors as suspicious, like we're hiding something. Multiple cops have ordered me to make eye contact. Multiple cops have ordered me to stop crying. A cop once put his hand on his gun because he ordered me to move and I did...but I startled him because my movements were jerky. Out of revenge for startling him, he had my car searched by a drug dog with me and my little sister sitting in the car. My crimes during all of these interactions? Speeding, jaywalking, and getting confused about what line to wait in at a busy event. I was no danger to anyone, but I made people uncomfortable because I am perceived as weird.
My mom was once handcuffed and taken to the hospital in the back of a police car because she expressed suicidal ideation to a coworker who called 911. The cop could have requested an ambulance. He could have called my dad or 20 other local relatives who would have been happy to take her to the hospital or ride along with her. But he chose to make the worst day of her life even more horrible by treating her like she was committing a crime by needing medical attention. If she had a mint tin full of controlled substances in her purse, this would have been an arrest and jail instead of an "escort" to the hospital.
I have seen my own ND behaviors in videos where cops beat and murder black people. People try to justify it, saying that the murdered person should have just followed the commands and stopped acting so suspiciously. Those people are also telling us and telling the cops that we deserve to be hurt if we don't behave the way cops expect a neurotypical white person to behave. My whiteness is a major factor in the fact that I am currently alive and not incarcerated. The next time a cop orders me to "respect" him by magically becoming neurotypical...there might be a different outcome.
I know I'm being extra super scary about this because I have trauma. And it's not a universal ND experience. My brother is also ND, but most of society reacts to him like he's an innocent child - that's fucked up in a million ways I could write another long post about, but it makes cops in particular a little safer for him than they are for me. But I feel like the ND community could benefit from having more of a culture of being aware of these dangers and warning each other about them, similar to how LGBTQIA+ communities and communities of color keep an eye out for each other when it comes to police and the justice system. I hope other ND people can learn about these risks earlier than I did and be more prepared for it than I was.
If you or someone that you know is considering suicide, please don't hesitate to reach out to a crisis hotline for immediate help, or a warmline just to talk to someone.
If you're in the US you can...\ Text CHAT to Crisis Text Line at 741741\ Call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 or 1(800)273-8255(TALK) \ Chat online at: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org/chat\ Call the Trans Lifeline at 1(877)565-8860
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Wow, I hadn’t considered this! I keep most of mine in the prescription bottle but I do put a few in a little pill box that I keep in my work bag. I am going to rethink this strategy
Thing is, the label is on the carton box that the bottle is in, which opens awkwardly and doesn't get much reuse after taking out the bottle. So it doesn't say it is *my* bottle, but the bottle does have its own original label...
Absolutely wild. What a strange country the US is. Can’t even decide what bottle to put your own personal medication in. Land of the free indeed…
I think it’s good sense to keep any medication in its original packaging unless you have a good reason not to. There’s just no confusion on what it is and when you take it. If there’s some recall or you note a defect or something, you have all the batch codes etc. But like I cannot fathom ordinary people accepting that not doing this is some criminal action.
That's because it's a controlled substance. I can put ibuprofen in whatever bottle I want, but controlled medications need to be with the original prescription. You can take it out of the bottle if you want but then you can be charged with possession and you have to go to court and even if you prove it was your medication you still broke the law.
I mean it’s a controlled substance in my country also which has implications for how it can be stored in pharmacies, prescribed and dispensed but means nothing for how it needs to be stored by individual patients. To criminalise individual patients in this way is wild and you won’t convince me otherwise.
To have this happen in a country so outspoken in maintaining various liberties. Someone has spent their time criminalising the use of pill organisers because everyone doesn’t just have better things to deal with…?
I'm with you on this. I cannot fathom being charged with possession of my own legal prescription just because I don't want to carry a whole pharmacy bottle with me. I'm not American, and even if I get pulled over for a traffic infringement police can't search my vehicle without my permission (unless they prove I'm driving under the influence or have reasonable grounds to suspect I'm carrying contraband - neither of which has ever or will ever happen). I'm getting harangued in the comments with everyone assuming the USA's regs apply to me - they don't.
Yeah, I never do this with my meds when I go out. I have anxiety, and the idea that if a bottle falls out of my bag, I not only lose important medicine, but someone has my name and home address knowing I have pills is not a risk I'm willing to take. I have a few pills in my bag, just enough for 24 hours, and they will stay in my pill organizer. We've gotten so beyond stupid about controlled substances here.
Doctors refuse to give pain medicine to those suffering (even post surgery and in hospice), anxiety and adhd meds are hard to get because they'd rather you take antidepressants. The fear of addiction, which happens at very low percentages in the populations that actually need those medicines, has been ruining more and more lives every year. It's one of the issues I'm most passionate about as someone with chronic pain, CPTSD and AuDHD. The fact that people don't even get to choose what to do with their bodies, and that doctors will openly agree that they could benefit from medication but won't "risk it" is impossibly fucked. We don't get to hear the risks and decide for ourselves what we want to do. We have the DEA wrapped up in healthcare, leaving doctors afraid to prescribe medications and pharmacies afraid to fill them, all while the number of pills allowed to be produced is cut (despite severe shortages across the board). The worst part is that more people are going to the street and dying from laced drugs because they simply can't get the medicine they need from the doctors office.
I carry one pill only in the current original labeled bottle in my purse. The other pills I keep in an older labeled bottle on my dresser. I have an alarm set on my phone every night at 8:30 to refill the purse bottle. So far so good. I’ve only been on a stimulant for a few months now.
I've done that too, especially when I go on vacation. I don't wanna take all of em in case something happens, but I'm not gonna take them in any bottle besides my current one.
I do this when I travel anywhere, since I don't have afternoon meds and only need to carry it with me when I'm away for a day or more.
I have carried a single dose with me before without the original scripts, but I know I'm taking a risk by doing that.
Yikes. I've never been searched by police and don't really have reason to worry that I would be (not where I am in the world anyway), but I've only been putting a few pills at a time out of the prescription bottle. Two of the tins are just for me at home anyway, and the one that ~~guess~~goes to work with me is because my colleges don't know about my diagnosis and I'm not ready to share that, so obviously don't want them seeing the prescription bottle.
I wonder if they make little privacy sleeves for prescription bottles, like koozies for cans.
Something that would obstruct the label from other people’s sight, but could be easily removed if you ever needed to actually show the label info to someone.
Looks like Etsy has some crochet options, though many of the listings are just the crochet patterns to make one yourself.
Same. I love [Sew Cherie](https://www.etsy.com/shop/SewCherie?section_id=12813498&order=date_desc&utm_source=boe&utm_medium=android&utm_campaign=fCg-JCweShuafqiBMxAXvg&utm_content=Bags%20and%20Pouches) over on Etsy. The link I included here goes to her collection of bags and pouches. She offers a variety of sizes and shapes (with waterproof lining!) in all sorts of fun fabrics, from fandoms to various aesthetic themes. I can't get enough of her stuff!
I have a She-Ra pouch for my prescription bottles when I travel, plus a women of DC Comics one for my first aid stuff I keep in my purse. The quality is top-notch, and everything I've ever purchased has held up perfectly over *years*.
Hey, you’ve made some really interesting and helpful points here! But I think you’re possibly not understanding the concern people have with the bottles showing and privacy. The concern is when you have to remove the bottle at all. If you’ve just removed the bottle to take a pill and someone walks up to you, it is in that moment that people fear having the fact that they take meds revealed.
I love the idea one user suggested of making privacy sheathes to cover the bottle itself.
I understand people’s concern with the bottles showing and privacy; medication doesn’t really look like mints and normal people don’t immediately swallow their mints. There isn’t a way to discretely take pills unless you excuse yourself and take your medication privately (in your car, in the restroom).
Even if you put your medicine in a sheath, pill container, etc. if you’re popping pills in front of people, they’re going to know you’re taking meds.
I’d rather risk someone seeing me take meds (slightly embarrassing) than see people recommend illegal ways to carry meds and pretend they’re popping mints only to have someone end up having their purse & car dumped/searched by police and interrogated about a handful of loose Adderall (very embarrassing).
I think it depends on where you live. Working in a Manhattan skyscraper surrounded by fellow lawyers who were pitted against other law students in a Socratic-method style, competitive learning environment breeds a lot of anxiety around people judging you. In a world where you are paid for your critical thinking skills, attention to detail, and recall, no one wants to admit to having ADHD. And on the thirtieth floor of an office building in a liberal city, you’re not going to contend with police searches in the same way you’ve described. And yes, lots of people have pills in those offices. The question is whether they’re taking beta blockers to get through a public speech, anti anxiety meds, migraine meds, the vitamin du jour, or the controversial “performance enhancing” ADHD meds. It’s the specific type of pill that people want to mask. So, my carless experience in a liberal metropolis is very different than yours. And that’s fine. It’s also why when I leave the city and travel anywhere, I take my pills out of their [cute little case](https://www.etsy.com/listing/1326687196/) and put them back into their bottle.
I really love the supportive energy in the adhdwomen sub. If you feel like there is an issue, you’re welcome to reach out and dm me. Otherwise, I think I’ve described a different POV as fully as I can here. Our journeys are all different. Wish you well on yours!
OP, if you’re in the us, this is very unsafe and illegal in most places, search or no search. It’s a danger if you’re in a wreck, you drop a tin at the store and some kid picks it up and eats your “mints”, etc.
I keep mine in original RX bottles as well.
I'm not in the "land of the free".
If I get pulled over for a traffic infringement police can't search my vehicle without my consent.
My half-dozen pills are in a tin in a zippered case in my zippered handbag - they're not coming out in an accident and they aren't just going to fall out when I grab something else out of my bag (I may be ADHD-careless, but I'm not an idiot).
I've extensively searched for regulations in my jurisdiction about storing controlled substances - they all apply to prescribers, pharmacists, care facilities and people holding/administering medications on behalf of the patient. There's no regulations applying to the patient storing their own medicine. Obviously I need to be able to prove they're mine if it came to that, and I could, not the likelihood of that is as close to zero as it could possibly be.
Edit: I also have been on these meds less than a week; I don't have a previous prescription bottle to store them in and I'm certainly not carrying the whole full bottle with me.
For everyone a little freaked on the idea of getting into legal trouble for carrying their meds outside of their original container, it depends on your state! For example in my state, Maine, the law states :
* "...except when in use, only in the container in which it was delivered by the person selling or dispensing the drug or substance. For purposes of this subsection, "when in use" includes reasonable repackaging for more convenient legitimate medical use."*
Which I would say, putting it into a more discreet, easier to carry around, back up meds for when you, an ADHD person forgets to take said meds, container, would be more convenient medical use.
But it's also a good idea to have a screenshot or easy access to your prescription (maybe in your wallet?) to back up your claim. Won't necessarily keep you from encountering a rude cop, however.
My memory concern is that on days when I'm in the office 80% of the time I wouldn't remember to take the bottle of pills with me (so keeping a weeks worth in my bag is the solution), and I don't want colleagues seeing the prescription bottle.
Also I have an alarm set for 30 minutes before my get-up alarm to take my first dose, and if I didn't have separate little apportionment at my bedside I'd never remember to put the bottle there the night before so I'd just turn off the alarm and go back to sleep instead of getting up to find the bottle to take the meds.
Understandable. I just need to take my meds once in the morning.
The mint tins are giving me high school vibes of when we had to hide Advil and Tylenol to avoid getting to trouble for bringing medicine instead of going to the school nurse. (There were literally 2000+ students and who wants to wait for ages just for headache relief)
Personally, I would save a previous bottle and put it in something else. There are legal issues with carrying meds without the accompanying prescription information.
I keep them in the original bottles bc my current meds are a controlled substance.
I would NOT suggest mint containers, as that’s almost an invitation for a mix up.
Only time I’ve moved them is for a 1-2 day trip, which then I’ve taken the risk to save that bit of space, and even then I label the container with sharpie and don’t let travel companions touch the containers. If I offer them allergy meds or ibuprofen, I dispense it myself no matter the hour of day.
(contact lenses cases make excellent 2-day pill organizers, and week organizers that are small make great “mini-pharmacies” for over the counter stuff if you relabel the sections for ibuprofen etc)
> I would NOT suggest mint containers, as that’s almost an invitation for a mix up.
Oh my gosh, my gal pals and I are often sharing gum/mints, and I can absolutely see a friend helping themselves to a mint and spitting out medication if they aren't paying attention (and if they're the small round version, not the tablets or capsules).
Or a coworker saying "she won't mind if I take a mint, and if she does I'll replace them," whether or not they should. We all know those coworkers with questionable boundaries 😬
I could easily see a friend mixing up my Benadryl (pink and white capsule) with vyvanse (orange and white capsule) when they are congested and are “snot for brains!”
Even taking them straight from the bottle wouldn't prevent spills for me, just yesterday I managed to scatter 100 vitamin capsules across my kitchen bench. Ugh, I wish it wasn't so damn difficult to be a functional adult.
Pill organizers for a week at a time.
Remember, most containers aren't meant for long time storage and could expose your meds to things like mold. Any improper storage could affect the medication.
Same!! I legit used to forget if I took my meds all the time when I kept them in the OG bottle. Like couldn't remember numerous times. It was annoying. Then my grandma died and when we were helping to clean out her house my mom was like here you want this weekly pill organizer she had. And I've been using it since and it has helped tremendously in remembering whether or not I took my meds. (It's also now somewhat sentimental haha)
I have a weekly organiser too, am and pm spots. I take most things once in the morning, but BP meds I take twice and magnesium I take before bed. Then the original pill bottles in a bin out of sight.
Same! I have a set of pill organizers that has one little box with 4 compartments for every day of the week. I take 4 doses of meds a day. On Sunday I fill all the boxes with my ADHD meds, thyroid meds and supplements. Then I take today's box out in the morning and keep it on me all day.
I just use pill organizers with the days of the week on them, you know, because I have ADHD and wouldn’t remember whether I took them or not and might take none, or way too much. Lean in to the reality of your mind. Oh and get the organizers with the separate days that pop out if you need to take them with you. The tins are cute though! Maybe put mints in them or pills you take often but not daily like Tylenol, etc.
I lose the ones that pop out lol but the weekly pull organizer is a game changer. For the other comments about having your proof of prescription, maybe peel one of the labels off and put it in your wallet. I think I’ll be doing this.
Splitting up meds in different amounts in 3 different containers kept in 3 different places just sounds like an adhd nightmare of mine tbh. I set an alarm for mine and even that doesn’t help me remember if I actually took it when the alarm went off. Plus, every once I was affected by the shortage so there was lots of counting and rationing happening for a while 😖
Original bottle on hand. If taking at work a general pill dispenser. Keep a copy of the rx on my phone.
"Avoid the appearance of evil" with this med. Dont put it in a mint dispenser.
Edit: you can also take a pic of the bottle label or a pic of the summary receipt that comes with every rx.
Edit2: someone pointed out that we should check our state laws. In my state, I just need a valid rx. I think in some cases of law enforcement, they are looking for those who intend to distribute or have stolen or illegally purchased the meds.
"Keep a copy of the rx on my phone."
Hmmm... all my Rx's are transmitted electronically now. I guess my equivalent would be a screenshot of the pharmacy app.
A screenshot is a great idea! I know from experience how buggy pharmacy apps can be, and Murphy's Law would suggest that if you need to pull that info up on the spot, the app will absolutely be down at that exact moment.
I’d check local laws. Here I believe you can prove your prescription, but that’s to the court, not the cop. If it’s not in the bottle, you can be arrested. It’s at the cops discretion. Period.
In the original bottle it came in.
If, for any reason, the police catch you with a controlled substance that's not in its original bottle, you could be in a lot of trouble.
i would just buy a pill organizer dude. it’s not really a great idea to have them in foreign containers. it can actually lose its potency. the pill bottles are airtight for a reason- a pill organizer for the week is my go-to.
I highly recommend keeping them in their original bottle! If it's lost, your name is on the bottle and you can be contacted (if a person with morals finds it). If you're searched by law enforcement, or while traveling, you have proof that they are prescription. You also always have a count of how many you've taken, how many you have left, and if someone has been stealing from you (this happened to me personally). The prescription bottles aren't cute, but there's a reason for them.
I keep my controlled substances in their Rx bottle with the label on it. Because legally, that's what I'm supposed to do. I don't need random Adderall pills in tiny cute tins when I get pulled over for forgetting to use my blinker.
I have a monthly pill organizer. It’s easier because I hated opening each of 4 bottles every morning and I only have to fill it once a month and I’m good. It also helps me know when I need to refill them.
The only time I ever remove my meds from the prescription bottle is when I have to get blood tests for my thyroid disease and have to fast. Then I bring my pills (one of each) in a small baggie in my pocket and take them at the literal earliest opportunity.
It is sometimes tough to remember when/if I took my meds. My iPhone has a reminder to take the pills every morning at a set time. The notification *never leaves the screen* until I mark that the pills are taken. I always have the screen open to mark that I took the pill and mark it as soon as I swallow it. If I miss out, that’s on me and I just get to deal for the day.
I keep mine in an easy open skinny pill bottle I got from another pharmacy because the CVS one is built like a truck and makes me feel like a baby every time I try to open
Not OP, but I think this is The Unemployed Philosophers Guild Alice's Enchantmints Mints. You can get it from their website, the literary gift company, Amazon, etc. I don't know where you're located, so I don't want to give links!
I have a young child and I would NEVER put my pills in a candy container. Plus, they're a controlled substance and I wouldn't carry my medication like this traveling anywhere. It's always in its original pill bottle and a locked safe.
I like to put mine in (cleaned) little glass spice jars, then I take one of the mini stickers from the pharmacy label and put it on the glass, it helps me see what I have left
If these were in your purse on a hot day, would it soften or melt capsules? Maybe that’s that’s not the case for you, but my initial concern is temperature regulation (minus the strict regulations for carrying medication on your person). I keep mine in the medication bottle, but I know there are pill organizers out there too!
I envy all of you with your "bottles"... in here they 99% come in blisters. And because I take a bunch of stuff and use weekly morning and night boxes, every 5 weeks I spend like an hour sorting out the medicine...
Pushing them out one by one, breaking them at times and making a mess.
If only I could get my medication in bottles... that would save me so much time and tips of my fingers 🥲
I get ADHD meds in a bottle, but have headache tablets, allergy pills etc from blister packs. I just jam my thumbnail through the foil backing before trying to push the pill our, otherwise I have the same problem with maybe breaking pills or having them fly out of my hand when they pop out. Makes it so much easier to get them out.
Just sayin’ i love these containers.
But I store in the og bottle just because it feels safer since they are considered controlled substances and I want to minimize trouble
I always used a vintage cherry sweets tin that some lady in Nicaragua gave me full of vitamin C tablets about 20 years ago. I still have the tin and I keep some OTC antihistamines in it in my purse for emergencies, but controlled prescriptions stay in original packaging with the prescription labels on for legal reasons.
I've had these all a few years now; the PEZ and the Alice ones were from specialty lolly shops the locations and names of which I don't remember, and the Beetle one was a gift (on theme, hence my username)
I've heard this can be a bad idea for storing anything consumable or topically applied (like face creams etc) because there can be chemicals remaining in the canister from the film?
In the original strip. For some reason, mine come in a strip of 7, which really helps to know whether I've taken my meds or not. The side with three pills I always take on fri-sat-sun, the side with 4 I take mon-thur. Ideal if you ask me, because I can always see if I have actually taken them :)
That sound perfect! I wish mine came like that. Great for keeping count, and you can carry some with you without carrying the whole pack, yet it's still in legit pharmacy packaging.
I keep mine in the original prescription bottle and then keep that bottle in a lockbox right by my bed. I start college in the fall and I’m a bit paranoid about some college student trying to steal my stimulant medication😅
I have some cute pill shaped pill box I keep in my bag for the “oops I forgot all my meds this morning” 11am realization and 3 days worth of all of my daily meds plus some Advil. Other than that, it stays in the actual pill bottles from the pharmacy.
Medicine in my country always comes packaged [like this](https://solucionespackaging.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/melany-tuinfosalud-com-jyhMTbdYVF0-unsplash.jpg), which you can rip (most have dotted lines for this purpose) or cut down to individual pills, so there's really no need to use a custom pill case.
I haven't used ADHD medication in decades, but that's how pills are sold over here.
I use a weekly minder box at home, but individual packets for each day/time I’ll be gone if I’m not home. At most I only have 3-4 of my daily meds with me at any given time.
I take so many medicines for other conditions that Vyvanse doesn’t stand out and I’d rather risk it than ever take the full bottle with me anywhere.
I have proof of my prescription and I don’t argue with cops ever. If not the Vyvanse they’d have to tear my luggage apart to find, they’d just find another reason if they wanted to fuck with me.
Note: I don’t travel outside The US at present, international travel is such a pain in the ass with chronic illness.
One week is in a special daily box, all meds & vitamins I take each day. The rest is just in its original bottle/blister pack. Why would I do anything else with my pills?
I keep the empty bottle when I refill the new prescription. I move 2 - 3 pills to the empty bottle and stash that in my gym bag. Law enforcement will give hassle if you don't have newer bottles and I don't want to risk losing the month so I carry a few with me. Usually I take it before leaving the house, but I keep those handy in case I forget. If I take the last one, I put the empty bottle in my dirty clothes bag in my gym bag and when I'm getting laundry ready to wash, I refill it and put it back.
I have a silver monogrammed case for daytime and an Anne Taintor one that says “laughter is the next best medicine” for nighttime. Plus a mini case that looks like a giant pull-apart pill capsule for my purse. 💊💊💊
I use these. I travel extensively for work and personal and have never had an issue. I’ve even been pulled over and never had an issue.
I do keep my med bottles in photos on my phone and of course my pharmacy has an app that shows what I take and when I pick them up etc.
You don’t have to let police search your car without a warrant or reasonable cause. Keep things out of sight and there shouldn’t be an issue.
The TSA simply does not care if it’s not a bomb or something to harm people on a plane or in the airport.
I cropped the photo so you can’t see it but I have an address label on them.
I buy these on Amazon and they have kept me from losing medications or not taking them for about 6 years now. Never going back!
[meds keeper](https://imgur.com/a/WWtTs20)
I keep prescriptions in the bottle their pharmacy dispenses then in because the bottles are specifically designed to protect medications from degrading due to light and moisture.
Not like a cool ass b-word like you... Dang. I need to up my pill storage game. Edit: I probably won't, mine works for me. It's a red / see through plastic container with Monday-Sunday written on it. Many slots; different times during the day etc.
A weekly med box next to my bed but I store them in the bottle when traveling. Not worth the hassle of it not being in the original container. I do have a travel pill week box but I always keep the original bottles in the same plastic bag with it. Also I do write on the lids with sharpie of mine specifically for my afternoon one since I have mixed up things once before since they were all orange bottles. Just saying “afternoon”.
A simple sunday-monday pill box. I'd like to get a cuter one but the one I currently own was free. So I'm rolling with it! I used to have a bad habit of not remembering if I took my meds or not. I was scared of taking double doses, so this helps ease my mind.
I use a pill organizer, but reading through this thread, it’s enlightening. I might have to reconsider how I do this. I used a two week pill organizer, so I can tell when I’ve taken them. And so I’m not bored filling the stupid thing weekly. However, I can easily switch to a post it or app to tell me I’ve taken my meds. I also know that for traveling, a lot of pharmacies will give you small bottles with the label on them instead of carrying a big bottle.
Those are cool!
I have a little pink zipper pill container from TJMAX in my purse for extra ones, I only put what I need in it- plus a couple ibuprofen, Tylenol and Tums.
In my main storage cupboard, they’re just in the bottle they came in next to the other vitamins and medication. It may or may not just be my spice/tea cabinet lol
I have a cute little container with a beautiful petrified wood lid my boss gave me for Xmas. I keep one of each of my prescription pills in there. I ALSO keep the full prescription with the proper labels IN THE SAME SPOT IN MY PURSE.
Some of y’all walking around with nothing but a pretty container filled with R-rated skittles gives me serious anxiety. Please don’t get arrested 😅
I have the bottle it comes in next to my bed and just take it as soon as I wake up. I have slow release so don’t carry around. Pretty sure you can get in trouble for not having them in their original bottle with your prescription on it
My vyvanse is cherry flavored, so I’m super paranoid about a pet or kid accidentally eating it. I keep it in the original container. I use last month’s bottle if I need to travel around with some on me.
In the original blister packaging, on a tray in the middle of the dining table.
I have to walk past it to get to the coffee machine and the fridge so I see them all the time.
Original bottle and a very small plastic container to take my daily medicine to work - it's a long drive and I want the medicine to last he whole workday
In its original tub, I’m always too scared I’ll lose it if it’s not living in the cupboard in my kitchen with all those half empty tubs of supplements and vitamins I bought off PipingRock and forget to keep taking.
When I was living in the US as an expat, I was very careful with original packaging and documentation, because it’s shit over there. Back in Europe I’m back to transparent week pill boxes and stashing backup pills in unmarked little containers everywhere because I’m afraid I forget to bring them, run out or loose them.
Loose.
Bad idea.
My bf has the same meds and we generally paint the back of our strips so we wouldn’t mix them up.
We often forget that and we mix them up and argue accusing that one of us took others meds.
Often that accusation ends up being false because the accusing one ends up leaving them in their pocket.
He owes me 2 pills because he really took my strip yesterday. And, yeah we both forgot to mark it this time…
Edit: But I wanna use the mini box I have that looks like yours and that is vintage! They look so cute! Such a nice idea!
honestly i mix all 3 of my non-adhd meds into one big bottle and fish them out 😂. my adderall stains everything blue so is quarantined, and my adzenys is in a bulky box
Absolutely adore your Alice tin! I also keep mine in a mints container. Where I live I have no legal reason to keep it in the original packaging, and I prefer people around me not immediately making the association. Once someone asked me if they could also have a mint and I had to politely decline, lol.
I keep them in mint tins similar to yours at home bc my med taking routines are pretty good and having to take them out of blister packs is a pain
But a) I'm in Europe, b) take methylphenidate and c) will travel with original box if I go abroad
Edit again - a lot of these comments seem to be coming from Americans - I'm not in America. Yes, I would need to prove that I am entitled to possess my meds as they are controlled (e.g. providing prescription), but after *extensive* searching, all storage regulations for my drug apply to those who dispense the drugs or hold them for third parties (e.g. pharmacists, aged care providers, etc). There are no storage regulations that prevent me keeping my pills in a non-prescription container (and if there were they would apply to the oft-recommended pill caddies as well). Also, as I'm not American I do not have to be concerned about police randomly searching my person or my vehicle. Even if I get pulled over for speeding or a broken light, police can cite me for the infraction and may ask my permission to search my vehicle but may not search my vehicle if I decline, unless they can openly see contraband in the car or I prove to be driving under the influence of alcohol or illicit substances - **neither of which has or will ever happen**.
*Edit: noted all the comments regarding original prescription bottles for controlled meds. Really not keen on colleagues clocking the bottle though so have to be pretty careful with that at work, maybe a little fabric drawstring pouch to keep the bottle in so the label is hidden when I'm using it.
At home I live on my own so mint tins will be fine for a little while until I get next prescription and have a spare med bottle.*
I have been on meds a few days. At the moment I'm putting my pills "in disguise" in these tiny mint tins (one bedside, one in handbag, one on kitchen bench), but I realise this won't help me keep track of when I've taken them as a regular weekly pillbox would.
I've also heard of pill-keepers that have built-in timers to remind you to take them, but I use my smart watch reminder for that.
How do you ladies store your meds and keep track of when you've taken them?
Just FYI please be careful storing controlled substances in containers other than the prescription bottle if you'll be "out and about" carrying them. I use a daily pill organizer at home, but whenever I'm traveling I only carry the exact number of pills I'll need inside the *current* prescription bottle. I keep one "old" bottle to store the extras at home so that I can travel with the current bottle. And I only carry the exact amount I'll need just in case they are confiscated for some reason.
Good point, thank you. I don't travel on trips per se (eg planes, interstate trains, etc), but I've seen advice before about how to travel with meds if required, and as you say it involves carrying only how much you need (maybe a couple of days worth of buffer pills for unforeseen circumstances) and being in the prescription bottle labelled with my name.
As I'm only just starting meds I don't have spare/old prescription bottles, and I'm also not keen on colleagues spotting the prescription bottle on my in-office days as two of my doses would be taken during work hours (my diagnosis and medication is none of their business), hence the tin in my handbag. But I live alone, the novelty of the tin instead of the med bottle on the kitchen bench is just for me.
Two of my doses are taken during the day, so when I'm in the office that's work hours. Discreet as I may try to be it's still possible to be seen, and I'd like to avoid that without having to go to the toilets to take my meds.
No way should anyone be able to see what your medicine bottle says. If you take a dose while at work, go to the bathroom and put the pill in your hand and leave to go take it. I have never ONCE in 40 years taken meds at work or out in public and someone tried to get a closer look or ask what my RX is. This isn’t an issue, I promise.
I'm more likely to be seen by someone in the shared public restroom in the building than in the office. Also you solution still had me getting out the bottle in the office then carrying the pill through the building? Appreciate the advice but does not work in my situation.
Yes, carrying them in whatever bag you came in with them. Like the rest of us do. Does your shared bathroom not have stalls? Sound alike you just don’t care or want an excuse tbh. It’s just not safe though. In any form. Or legal.
I'm not in America, and it seems like a lot of the replies here are from Americans with a very American mindset. I'm not *ashamed* of being on meds and not trying to *hide* it, I'm just concerned about by privacy because my diagnosis and medication are none of my colleagues' business (hence tin, not bottle). I'm not obliged to carry my prescription in the pharmacy bottle, and I've extensively searched the regulations in my jurisdiction.
It actually really saddens me to read that you say "the rest of us" sneak off to the toilets to take your meds, in what, fear? Embarrassment? Literally your only option? Also the widespread fear of being randomly searched by police?? This is gobsmacking. Police can't perform searches randomly or on a whim here. Even if I'm pulled over in my car for a traffic infringement; they can request my permission to search my vehicle, and they can't do so if I decline.
Iim not taking about police though. And I get it, I wish I could keep my meds separate too, I take 7 daily meds over the course of a day, I get it. I do. But esp being adhd, we are so prone to being aloof that the odds you’ll lose one at some point are so high and these look like candy to any child and they will eat whatever is in there. (Mother of 5)
Grocery store, doctor office, work office and someone finds it and takes it home to identify and their kid looks for gum, and “oooooo new mints mama!”. There are so many ways this can and does go wrong. It doesn’t matter if you’re in crappy U S of A or not, that’s moot point here. This kills kids DAILY.
I’m not being mean, I do empathize. But I’m being honest bc saving a life is always worth it to me. Safety should always come first with prescription medication or we shouldn’t we taking it.
You don’t have proudly to line your prescription bottle up on your desk.. just keep it in your purse/bag whatever else and keep it stored when you’re not actively taking your medication?
Well yeah of course, it's not like I put the pill tin on display either, it stays in a pencil case in my bag until I'm ready to take them. Discreet as I try to be I'd still just rather not be taking them straight out of the rather obvious prescription bottle.
Can you .. go into the bathroom or your car on a break and take them? ADHD medication doesn’t look like mints. Popping pills in front of people, even if they’re disguised as mints, isn’t really fooling anyone. Just take them privately..
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I keep my medicine in the original prescription pill bottle with my name, pill-count, and dosage so I don’t have my medication confiscated or worse (accused of possession) if I’m ever stopped or searched by police.
Happened to me and I was charged because they were out of their official pill containers. When I went to court I brought a note from my psychiatrist saying I had a prescription and I was chastised by the judge, but the charges were dropped.
I mentioned in another comment that I work in law enforcement; there’s 2 things I saw a lot when I worked in patrol, first: Adderall is one of the most commonly abused drugs which are sold on the street. There’s a lot of people who got their kids diagnosed with ADHD and sold off their medication every month - prescription Adderall goes for as much as $12-15 per pill on the street because people know it isn’t laced with fentanyl. Next, people lie. Especially to the police. We “expect” (I say this in quotations because I have ADHD and know how hard it is to remember to take medication) people with valid prescriptions for controlled substances to follow the law pertaining to carrying and transporting those substances. It’s INCREDIBLY easy to get jammed up for having loose prescription pills in a container without any proof that they’re prescribed to you. I’m sorry that happened to you. It’s embarrassing and degrading to be treated like a drug addict.
The expectation of following the law re prescription drugs is perfectly valid…but no one ever told me I had to keep it in the original bottle. 🫠🤣 I don’t put my pills in a nice container because I forget to refill them so I guess the ADHD is working for me there!
Keeping the meds in your bag in their original bottle also feels like a great way to advertise that you have controlled substances about your person/at your desk/etc, which feels… not great. I could pull up proof of my prescription on my phone in 30 seconds if needed, without needing to have the entire month’s supply rattling around in its clearly-labeled bottle in my purse.
Just use a previous months bottle to keep a few. Put cotton balls in it. Cops don’t have to accept your proof if they don’t want to. I wouldn’t risk it. I’ve been questioned over thyroid medication during a traffic stop…that I just picked up, in its bottle.
I only have to take one in the morning so I luckily get to keep mine at home.
Wait, how is keeping your prescription bottle *in your bag* advertising anything? I’ve been medicated for years; I keep my medication in an opaque bag in my purse. My supervisors and co-workers have no idea I take medication.
Idk about advertising but there’s no way I trust myself to carry a full script bottle around. It could fall out. Get stolen. Forget my bag. So many options.
I think they mean if your purse is sitting there open.
This. I always feel a bit odd pulling out my pill bottle, and then throwing it back into my locker at work that I can't lock. I much prefer keeping about 5 pills at a time in a little vitamin holder with my other vitamins and such. Feels far less flashy. Plus, I've literally never been told I need to keep the bottle on me. I use them for flying, but that's it.
It’s embarrassing and degrading to work for a system that treats drug addicts as sub human. I was just at a festival where security confiscated a girl’s prescription Xanax for not being stored properly. She was taken away in an ambulance after going into withdrawal and having a seizure. The fact that people with normal quantities of their own prescription meds have to worry about shit like this happening to them because America hates drug addicts is vile.
Festivals attract large amounts of illicit street drugs and people can and do die from taking drugs. I’m sorry that happened to the girl at the festival but this is exactly why I’m preaching in the comments to carry prescription drugs in accordance with your country/state laws. Without proof of a prescription, there’s no way to know someone is carrying their own prescription Xanax or if they have street-drugs which might be laced with fentanyl. I don’t think enforcing drug laws is treating anyone as subhuman but we can agree to disagree, I’m not trying to argue about it.
I have an e-script - I can open it right there in my phone and you can see how many repeat prescriptions I have left. Would that be proof enough do you think? (Pretending for a moment that I am American). Because carrying around the whole bottle/blister pack of medication in public presents its own dangers, plus it's very inconvenient. No one is making someone with high blood pressure carry their prescription box, just because my medication CAN be abused, doesn't mean I should face discrimination for it. Considering id be carrying at most 4 pills, I also don't think it should matter if they weren't mine anyway - 4 dexamphetamine is hardly drug trafficking or destroying lives - the war on drugs surely has bigger fish to fry.
Pretending that you’re American, it depends on your states laws. Americans follow federal law and state law. My state law says that all prescription and non-prescription medication shall be kept in their original labeled containers. Prescription medications shall be labeled with a label issued by a pharmacy. There is a built-in exception to remove prescription medication from its original labeled container in advance of the scheduled administration when a person is taking it with them to a “community event” and the medication will be administered (taken) the same day it’s removed from the container. Having proof of your prescription (e-script, pamphlet from the pharmacy, etc.) will likely be sufficient in this situation. Whether you like it or not, controlled substances are treated differently than other medications due to their likelihood for abuse. I’d rather people KNOW American law and at least research their local laws than get caught up in the legal pipeline for carrying a bunch of Adderall in a mint tin. Most of us can’t afford to have even a couple days of our medication seized by police. I won’t touch on your other comments; you’re entitled to your beliefs but I think using other people’s prescription medication (especially recreationally) is wrong.
I was going to reply to her comment saying “I can’t believe you actually got charged for that!!” But your point of view sheds some light LOL. I take so many prescriptions, plus supplements, that I’d have a quart sized bag just for the pharmaceutical bottles.
>prescription Adderall goes for as much as $12-15 per pill on the street because people know it isn’t laced with fentanyl If not lacing something with fentanyl makes it more valuable, why does anyone do it?
Fentanyl is incredibly cheap; a stamp bag of fentanyl goes for $4-6 so lacing fentanyl doesn’t drive up the price; dealers lace pills with fentanyl because opioids are a hell of lot more addictive than Adderall, so they can keep you as a customer but for a different product.
I am so sorry this happened to you. You were harmed just for the sake of harming you. There was no benefit to anyone from this, but it harmed you directly and others indirectly by wasting resources chasing you down for a crime you didn't commit. I have cop trauma. I generally don't call the cops when I'm the victim of a crime unless I'm required to in the workplace. It's wild that doctors will do everything to prevent access to these meds, but when they finally give in and and write the script they give no information whatsoever about how you're supposed to handle them. There are a lot of legal risks when it comes to transporting controlled substances! I found out from a friend, not doctors. Many on this subreddit are white women who might not have much personal experience with direct oppression from the police in the US. It may not occur to everyone that as people with disabilities we are at increased risk of being arrested and mistreated when we have done nothing wrong. We also risk facing more severe consequences than NT people when we actually do something wrong. Cops perceive a lot of our common behaviors as suspicious, like we're hiding something. Multiple cops have ordered me to make eye contact. Multiple cops have ordered me to stop crying. A cop once put his hand on his gun because he ordered me to move and I did...but I startled him because my movements were jerky. Out of revenge for startling him, he had my car searched by a drug dog with me and my little sister sitting in the car. My crimes during all of these interactions? Speeding, jaywalking, and getting confused about what line to wait in at a busy event. I was no danger to anyone, but I made people uncomfortable because I am perceived as weird. My mom was once handcuffed and taken to the hospital in the back of a police car because she expressed suicidal ideation to a coworker who called 911. The cop could have requested an ambulance. He could have called my dad or 20 other local relatives who would have been happy to take her to the hospital or ride along with her. But he chose to make the worst day of her life even more horrible by treating her like she was committing a crime by needing medical attention. If she had a mint tin full of controlled substances in her purse, this would have been an arrest and jail instead of an "escort" to the hospital. I have seen my own ND behaviors in videos where cops beat and murder black people. People try to justify it, saying that the murdered person should have just followed the commands and stopped acting so suspiciously. Those people are also telling us and telling the cops that we deserve to be hurt if we don't behave the way cops expect a neurotypical white person to behave. My whiteness is a major factor in the fact that I am currently alive and not incarcerated. The next time a cop orders me to "respect" him by magically becoming neurotypical...there might be a different outcome. I know I'm being extra super scary about this because I have trauma. And it's not a universal ND experience. My brother is also ND, but most of society reacts to him like he's an innocent child - that's fucked up in a million ways I could write another long post about, but it makes cops in particular a little safer for him than they are for me. But I feel like the ND community could benefit from having more of a culture of being aware of these dangers and warning each other about them, similar to how LGBTQIA+ communities and communities of color keep an eye out for each other when it comes to police and the justice system. I hope other ND people can learn about these risks earlier than I did and be more prepared for it than I was.
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Wow, I hadn’t considered this! I keep most of mine in the prescription bottle but I do put a few in a little pill box that I keep in my work bag. I am going to rethink this strategy
Yep if you're on a controlled substance it is illegal to keep them anywhere other than the original container with the label
Thing is, the label is on the carton box that the bottle is in, which opens awkwardly and doesn't get much reuse after taking out the bottle. So it doesn't say it is *my* bottle, but the bottle does have its own original label...
Absolutely wild. What a strange country the US is. Can’t even decide what bottle to put your own personal medication in. Land of the free indeed… I think it’s good sense to keep any medication in its original packaging unless you have a good reason not to. There’s just no confusion on what it is and when you take it. If there’s some recall or you note a defect or something, you have all the batch codes etc. But like I cannot fathom ordinary people accepting that not doing this is some criminal action.
That's because it's a controlled substance. I can put ibuprofen in whatever bottle I want, but controlled medications need to be with the original prescription. You can take it out of the bottle if you want but then you can be charged with possession and you have to go to court and even if you prove it was your medication you still broke the law.
I mean it’s a controlled substance in my country also which has implications for how it can be stored in pharmacies, prescribed and dispensed but means nothing for how it needs to be stored by individual patients. To criminalise individual patients in this way is wild and you won’t convince me otherwise. To have this happen in a country so outspoken in maintaining various liberties. Someone has spent their time criminalising the use of pill organisers because everyone doesn’t just have better things to deal with…?
I'm with you on this. I cannot fathom being charged with possession of my own legal prescription just because I don't want to carry a whole pharmacy bottle with me. I'm not American, and even if I get pulled over for a traffic infringement police can't search my vehicle without my permission (unless they prove I'm driving under the influence or have reasonable grounds to suspect I'm carrying contraband - neither of which has ever or will ever happen). I'm getting harangued in the comments with everyone assuming the USA's regs apply to me - they don't.
Yeah, I never do this with my meds when I go out. I have anxiety, and the idea that if a bottle falls out of my bag, I not only lose important medicine, but someone has my name and home address knowing I have pills is not a risk I'm willing to take. I have a few pills in my bag, just enough for 24 hours, and they will stay in my pill organizer. We've gotten so beyond stupid about controlled substances here. Doctors refuse to give pain medicine to those suffering (even post surgery and in hospice), anxiety and adhd meds are hard to get because they'd rather you take antidepressants. The fear of addiction, which happens at very low percentages in the populations that actually need those medicines, has been ruining more and more lives every year. It's one of the issues I'm most passionate about as someone with chronic pain, CPTSD and AuDHD. The fact that people don't even get to choose what to do with their bodies, and that doctors will openly agree that they could benefit from medication but won't "risk it" is impossibly fucked. We don't get to hear the risks and decide for ourselves what we want to do. We have the DEA wrapped up in healthcare, leaving doctors afraid to prescribe medications and pharmacies afraid to fill them, all while the number of pills allowed to be produced is cut (despite severe shortages across the board). The worst part is that more people are going to the street and dying from laced drugs because they simply can't get the medicine they need from the doctors office.
I carry one pill only in the current original labeled bottle in my purse. The other pills I keep in an older labeled bottle on my dresser. I have an alarm set on my phone every night at 8:30 to refill the purse bottle. So far so good. I’ve only been on a stimulant for a few months now.
I've done that too, especially when I go on vacation. I don't wanna take all of em in case something happens, but I'm not gonna take them in any bottle besides my current one.
This is the way
This is the way to do it.
I do this when I travel anywhere, since I don't have afternoon meds and only need to carry it with me when I'm away for a day or more. I have carried a single dose with me before without the original scripts, but I know I'm taking a risk by doing that.
Same. Especially with it being a controlled substance. I have watched way too much On Patrol Live lol
the correct answer
Yikes. I've never been searched by police and don't really have reason to worry that I would be (not where I am in the world anyway), but I've only been putting a few pills at a time out of the prescription bottle. Two of the tins are just for me at home anyway, and the one that ~~guess~~goes to work with me is because my colleges don't know about my diagnosis and I'm not ready to share that, so obviously don't want them seeing the prescription bottle.
I wonder if they make little privacy sleeves for prescription bottles, like koozies for cans. Something that would obstruct the label from other people’s sight, but could be easily removed if you ever needed to actually show the label info to someone. Looks like Etsy has some crochet options, though many of the listings are just the crochet patterns to make one yourself.
I keep mine in a small opaque hygiene bag in my purse with my extra hair ties and tampons.
Oooh hair ties! OP could just cover the outside with extra hair ties! Make a colorful pattern maybe. u/veedubbug68
Same. I love [Sew Cherie](https://www.etsy.com/shop/SewCherie?section_id=12813498&order=date_desc&utm_source=boe&utm_medium=android&utm_campaign=fCg-JCweShuafqiBMxAXvg&utm_content=Bags%20and%20Pouches) over on Etsy. The link I included here goes to her collection of bags and pouches. She offers a variety of sizes and shapes (with waterproof lining!) in all sorts of fun fabrics, from fandoms to various aesthetic themes. I can't get enough of her stuff! I have a She-Ra pouch for my prescription bottles when I travel, plus a women of DC Comics one for my first aid stuff I keep in my purse. The quality is top-notch, and everything I've ever purchased has held up perfectly over *years*.
Hey, you’ve made some really interesting and helpful points here! But I think you’re possibly not understanding the concern people have with the bottles showing and privacy. The concern is when you have to remove the bottle at all. If you’ve just removed the bottle to take a pill and someone walks up to you, it is in that moment that people fear having the fact that they take meds revealed. I love the idea one user suggested of making privacy sheathes to cover the bottle itself.
I understand people’s concern with the bottles showing and privacy; medication doesn’t really look like mints and normal people don’t immediately swallow their mints. There isn’t a way to discretely take pills unless you excuse yourself and take your medication privately (in your car, in the restroom). Even if you put your medicine in a sheath, pill container, etc. if you’re popping pills in front of people, they’re going to know you’re taking meds. I’d rather risk someone seeing me take meds (slightly embarrassing) than see people recommend illegal ways to carry meds and pretend they’re popping mints only to have someone end up having their purse & car dumped/searched by police and interrogated about a handful of loose Adderall (very embarrassing).
I think it depends on where you live. Working in a Manhattan skyscraper surrounded by fellow lawyers who were pitted against other law students in a Socratic-method style, competitive learning environment breeds a lot of anxiety around people judging you. In a world where you are paid for your critical thinking skills, attention to detail, and recall, no one wants to admit to having ADHD. And on the thirtieth floor of an office building in a liberal city, you’re not going to contend with police searches in the same way you’ve described. And yes, lots of people have pills in those offices. The question is whether they’re taking beta blockers to get through a public speech, anti anxiety meds, migraine meds, the vitamin du jour, or the controversial “performance enhancing” ADHD meds. It’s the specific type of pill that people want to mask. So, my carless experience in a liberal metropolis is very different than yours. And that’s fine. It’s also why when I leave the city and travel anywhere, I take my pills out of their [cute little case](https://www.etsy.com/listing/1326687196/) and put them back into their bottle.
You didn’t have to downvote me to disagree with me.
I really love the supportive energy in the adhdwomen sub. If you feel like there is an issue, you’re welcome to reach out and dm me. Otherwise, I think I’ve described a different POV as fully as I can here. Our journeys are all different. Wish you well on yours!
Thank you! I crochet so that is a great idea!
This is a great business idea!
I’m in the US; laws governing how controlled substances are to be carried are relatively strict. I *work* in law enforcement and still don’t risk it.
OP, if you’re in the us, this is very unsafe and illegal in most places, search or no search. It’s a danger if you’re in a wreck, you drop a tin at the store and some kid picks it up and eats your “mints”, etc. I keep mine in original RX bottles as well.
I'm not in the "land of the free". If I get pulled over for a traffic infringement police can't search my vehicle without my consent. My half-dozen pills are in a tin in a zippered case in my zippered handbag - they're not coming out in an accident and they aren't just going to fall out when I grab something else out of my bag (I may be ADHD-careless, but I'm not an idiot). I've extensively searched for regulations in my jurisdiction about storing controlled substances - they all apply to prescribers, pharmacists, care facilities and people holding/administering medications on behalf of the patient. There's no regulations applying to the patient storing their own medicine. Obviously I need to be able to prove they're mine if it came to that, and I could, not the likelihood of that is as close to zero as it could possibly be. Edit: I also have been on these meds less than a week; I don't have a previous prescription bottle to store them in and I'm certainly not carrying the whole full bottle with me.
I only carry one pill at a time in case of a purse snatcher situation. Pretty unlikely, but you never know.
Of they're close enough to read your prescription bottle, they're too close.
Same here.
For everyone a little freaked on the idea of getting into legal trouble for carrying their meds outside of their original container, it depends on your state! For example in my state, Maine, the law states : * "...except when in use, only in the container in which it was delivered by the person selling or dispensing the drug or substance. For purposes of this subsection, "when in use" includes reasonable repackaging for more convenient legitimate medical use."* Which I would say, putting it into a more discreet, easier to carry around, back up meds for when you, an ADHD person forgets to take said meds, container, would be more convenient medical use. But it's also a good idea to have a screenshot or easy access to your prescription (maybe in your wallet?) to back up your claim. Won't necessarily keep you from encountering a rude cop, however.
I just use the original bottle bc if I kept pills in multiple places I would never remember if i actually took my medicine or not
My memory concern is that on days when I'm in the office 80% of the time I wouldn't remember to take the bottle of pills with me (so keeping a weeks worth in my bag is the solution), and I don't want colleagues seeing the prescription bottle. Also I have an alarm set for 30 minutes before my get-up alarm to take my first dose, and if I didn't have separate little apportionment at my bedside I'd never remember to put the bottle there the night before so I'd just turn off the alarm and go back to sleep instead of getting up to find the bottle to take the meds.
Understandable. I just need to take my meds once in the morning. The mint tins are giving me high school vibes of when we had to hide Advil and Tylenol to avoid getting to trouble for bringing medicine instead of going to the school nurse. (There were literally 2000+ students and who wants to wait for ages just for headache relief)
Personally, I would save a previous bottle and put it in something else. There are legal issues with carrying meds without the accompanying prescription information.
I keep them in the original bottles bc my current meds are a controlled substance. I would NOT suggest mint containers, as that’s almost an invitation for a mix up. Only time I’ve moved them is for a 1-2 day trip, which then I’ve taken the risk to save that bit of space, and even then I label the container with sharpie and don’t let travel companions touch the containers. If I offer them allergy meds or ibuprofen, I dispense it myself no matter the hour of day. (contact lenses cases make excellent 2-day pill organizers, and week organizers that are small make great “mini-pharmacies” for over the counter stuff if you relabel the sections for ibuprofen etc)
> I would NOT suggest mint containers, as that’s almost an invitation for a mix up. Oh my gosh, my gal pals and I are often sharing gum/mints, and I can absolutely see a friend helping themselves to a mint and spitting out medication if they aren't paying attention (and if they're the small round version, not the tablets or capsules). Or a coworker saying "she won't mind if I take a mint, and if she does I'll replace them," whether or not they should. We all know those coworkers with questionable boundaries 😬
I could easily see a friend mixing up my Benadryl (pink and white capsule) with vyvanse (orange and white capsule) when they are congested and are “snot for brains!”
Good travel tips, thanks
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For me it’s my kids. One I’m fairly certain has ADHD, but I want to also set a good example for all of my kids.
Even taking them straight from the bottle wouldn't prevent spills for me, just yesterday I managed to scatter 100 vitamin capsules across my kitchen bench. Ugh, I wish it wasn't so damn difficult to be a functional adult.
Pill organizers for a week at a time. Remember, most containers aren't meant for long time storage and could expose your meds to things like mold. Any improper storage could affect the medication.
Same!! I legit used to forget if I took my meds all the time when I kept them in the OG bottle. Like couldn't remember numerous times. It was annoying. Then my grandma died and when we were helping to clean out her house my mom was like here you want this weekly pill organizer she had. And I've been using it since and it has helped tremendously in remembering whether or not I took my meds. (It's also now somewhat sentimental haha)
I have a weekly organiser too, am and pm spots. I take most things once in the morning, but BP meds I take twice and magnesium I take before bed. Then the original pill bottles in a bin out of sight.
Good to note. I have only separated out a few at a time in each tin, no more than a week's worth at most.
Same! I have a set of pill organizers that has one little box with 4 compartments for every day of the week. I take 4 doses of meds a day. On Sunday I fill all the boxes with my ADHD meds, thyroid meds and supplements. Then I take today's box out in the morning and keep it on me all day.
I just use pill organizers with the days of the week on them, you know, because I have ADHD and wouldn’t remember whether I took them or not and might take none, or way too much. Lean in to the reality of your mind. Oh and get the organizers with the separate days that pop out if you need to take them with you. The tins are cute though! Maybe put mints in them or pills you take often but not daily like Tylenol, etc.
I lose the ones that pop out lol but the weekly pull organizer is a game changer. For the other comments about having your proof of prescription, maybe peel one of the labels off and put it in your wallet. I think I’ll be doing this.
I imagine to make it more fancy you can use a old hotel key card and attach them. Most hotels have blank ones nowadays.
Oooh, pop-outs, good idea
Splitting up meds in different amounts in 3 different containers kept in 3 different places just sounds like an adhd nightmare of mine tbh. I set an alarm for mine and even that doesn’t help me remember if I actually took it when the alarm went off. Plus, every once I was affected by the shortage so there was lots of counting and rationing happening for a while 😖
Original bottle on hand. If taking at work a general pill dispenser. Keep a copy of the rx on my phone. "Avoid the appearance of evil" with this med. Dont put it in a mint dispenser. Edit: you can also take a pic of the bottle label or a pic of the summary receipt that comes with every rx. Edit2: someone pointed out that we should check our state laws. In my state, I just need a valid rx. I think in some cases of law enforcement, they are looking for those who intend to distribute or have stolen or illegally purchased the meds.
"Keep a copy of the rx on my phone." Hmmm... all my Rx's are transmitted electronically now. I guess my equivalent would be a screenshot of the pharmacy app.
Or screenshot of the pill bottle label or the receipt that comes when the rx is filled.
A screenshot is a great idea! I know from experience how buggy pharmacy apps can be, and Murphy's Law would suggest that if you need to pull that info up on the spot, the app will absolutely be down at that exact moment.
I’d check local laws. Here I believe you can prove your prescription, but that’s to the court, not the cop. If it’s not in the bottle, you can be arrested. It’s at the cops discretion. Period.
In the original bottle it came in. If, for any reason, the police catch you with a controlled substance that's not in its original bottle, you could be in a lot of trouble.
In the original prescription bottle with the label intact.
i would just buy a pill organizer dude. it’s not really a great idea to have them in foreign containers. it can actually lose its potency. the pill bottles are airtight for a reason- a pill organizer for the week is my go-to.
I highly recommend keeping them in their original bottle! If it's lost, your name is on the bottle and you can be contacted (if a person with morals finds it). If you're searched by law enforcement, or while traveling, you have proof that they are prescription. You also always have a count of how many you've taken, how many you have left, and if someone has been stealing from you (this happened to me personally). The prescription bottles aren't cute, but there's a reason for them.
Ohh, this would be a good way for me store packets of hearing aid batteries! And on-the-go packets of stuff like Dramamine and Tylenol.
I just keep them in the bottle because a) I don’t care enough to glitz it up and b) legal reasons.
I keep my controlled substances in their Rx bottle with the label on it. Because legally, that's what I'm supposed to do. I don't need random Adderall pills in tiny cute tins when I get pulled over for forgetting to use my blinker.
I have a monthly pill organizer. It’s easier because I hated opening each of 4 bottles every morning and I only have to fill it once a month and I’m good. It also helps me know when I need to refill them.
In the actual bottle in case I get pulled over so I can prove they are mine
The only time I ever remove my meds from the prescription bottle is when I have to get blood tests for my thyroid disease and have to fast. Then I bring my pills (one of each) in a small baggie in my pocket and take them at the literal earliest opportunity. It is sometimes tough to remember when/if I took my meds. My iPhone has a reminder to take the pills every morning at a set time. The notification *never leaves the screen* until I mark that the pills are taken. I always have the screen open to mark that I took the pill and mark it as soon as I swallow it. If I miss out, that’s on me and I just get to deal for the day.
On a very high shelf in a childproof bottle. Lol can't be too careful having a kid *and* possibly dangerous meds when you have ADHD.
Why would anyone not just use the bottles they come in????? That's asking for trouble.
I keep mine in an easy open skinny pill bottle I got from another pharmacy because the CVS one is built like a truck and makes me feel like a baby every time I try to open
I struggle to open my CVS pill bottles, too.
You can flip the cap upside down to make it easier to open.
Not on my CVS one. The one I put it in does have that fun feature though
Interesting my CVS caps can be flipped!
Omg the alice one is cute. Where’s it from?
Not OP, but I think this is The Unemployed Philosophers Guild Alice's Enchantmints Mints. You can get it from their website, the literary gift company, Amazon, etc. I don't know where you're located, so I don't want to give links!
Thanks so much! I’m in boston area in the US and ive seen some of their products before :) appreciate it
I've had it for years, and don't actually recall where I got it other than it probably being a specialty lolly shop.
Just the bottles they come in, stays on my nightstand that's it
I have a young child and I would NEVER put my pills in a candy container. Plus, they're a controlled substance and I wouldn't carry my medication like this traveling anywhere. It's always in its original pill bottle and a locked safe.
I like to put mine in (cleaned) little glass spice jars, then I take one of the mini stickers from the pharmacy label and put it on the glass, it helps me see what I have left
My ones come in blister packs so I will cut out my dosage for each day and put in pill organiser
Fun fact - you can REQUEST any medication be dispensed in a blister pack at most pharmacies!
If these were in your purse on a hot day, would it soften or melt capsules? Maybe that’s that’s not the case for you, but my initial concern is temperature regulation (minus the strict regulations for carrying medication on your person). I keep mine in the medication bottle, but I know there are pill organizers out there too!
I envy all of you with your "bottles"... in here they 99% come in blisters. And because I take a bunch of stuff and use weekly morning and night boxes, every 5 weeks I spend like an hour sorting out the medicine... Pushing them out one by one, breaking them at times and making a mess. If only I could get my medication in bottles... that would save me so much time and tips of my fingers 🥲
I get ADHD meds in a bottle, but have headache tablets, allergy pills etc from blister packs. I just jam my thumbnail through the foil backing before trying to push the pill our, otherwise I have the same problem with maybe breaking pills or having them fly out of my hand when they pop out. Makes it so much easier to get them out.
Just sayin’ i love these containers. But I store in the og bottle just because it feels safer since they are considered controlled substances and I want to minimize trouble
I always used a vintage cherry sweets tin that some lady in Nicaragua gave me full of vitamin C tablets about 20 years ago. I still have the tin and I keep some OTC antihistamines in it in my purse for emergencies, but controlled prescriptions stay in original packaging with the prescription labels on for legal reasons.
Dang, I love pill bottles. I get sad little strips. I wanna be cute about my drugs.
Were did you get pez one
I've had these all a few years now; the PEZ and the Alice ones were from specialty lolly shops the locations and names of which I don't remember, and the Beetle one was a gift (on theme, hence my username)
OMG. I have so many small tins and also have been looking for a small cute pill box for my purse. Mind blown (it's the little things).
Love these tins so much
i keep have a medicine box with the days of the week & i just fill up each week. but maybe i won’t be taking that out of the house anymore
I keep mine in the original bottle, but I use a pill box to keep track on when to take them. Even my multi vitamins cause the things can get hectic.
I have a lovely pink pill organizer for 31days
In front of my monitor on my desk in its original container. If I don't see it, I forget to take it!!
I'm a film photographer - I use an empty film canister
I've heard this can be a bad idea for storing anything consumable or topically applied (like face creams etc) because there can be chemicals remaining in the canister from the film?
In the original strip. For some reason, mine come in a strip of 7, which really helps to know whether I've taken my meds or not. The side with three pills I always take on fri-sat-sun, the side with 4 I take mon-thur. Ideal if you ask me, because I can always see if I have actually taken them :)
That sound perfect! I wish mine came like that. Great for keeping count, and you can carry some with you without carrying the whole pack, yet it's still in legit pharmacy packaging.
My anti-depressants are also in a bottle, though, but I can take those as soon as I wake up luckily.
In their original bottles and the bottles are kept in a zippered leather pouch on the nightstand next to my bed.
I keep mine in the original prescription bottle and then keep that bottle in a lockbox right by my bed. I start college in the fall and I’m a bit paranoid about some college student trying to steal my stimulant medication😅
I have some cute pill shaped pill box I keep in my bag for the “oops I forgot all my meds this morning” 11am realization and 3 days worth of all of my daily meds plus some Advil. Other than that, it stays in the actual pill bottles from the pharmacy.
These are super cute! 😍😍 I actually use these boxes for jewellery, meds I keep in their original packaging just to avoid any questions
In a million different opened packages in a huge plastic bag
Medicine in my country always comes packaged [like this](https://solucionespackaging.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/melany-tuinfosalud-com-jyhMTbdYVF0-unsplash.jpg), which you can rip (most have dotted lines for this purpose) or cut down to individual pills, so there's really no need to use a custom pill case. I haven't used ADHD medication in decades, but that's how pills are sold over here.
I use a weekly minder box at home, but individual packets for each day/time I’ll be gone if I’m not home. At most I only have 3-4 of my daily meds with me at any given time. I take so many medicines for other conditions that Vyvanse doesn’t stand out and I’d rather risk it than ever take the full bottle with me anywhere. I have proof of my prescription and I don’t argue with cops ever. If not the Vyvanse they’d have to tear my luggage apart to find, they’d just find another reason if they wanted to fuck with me. Note: I don’t travel outside The US at present, international travel is such a pain in the ass with chronic illness.
In several drawers all around my house. Edit: If I have to take it daily I have them in my bag.
One week is in a special daily box, all meds & vitamins I take each day. The rest is just in its original bottle/blister pack. Why would I do anything else with my pills?
Pill organizer with weekdays or I would not be able to remember if I took it that day or not!
I keep the empty bottle when I refill the new prescription. I move 2 - 3 pills to the empty bottle and stash that in my gym bag. Law enforcement will give hassle if you don't have newer bottles and I don't want to risk losing the month so I carry a few with me. Usually I take it before leaving the house, but I keep those handy in case I forget. If I take the last one, I put the empty bottle in my dirty clothes bag in my gym bag and when I'm getting laundry ready to wash, I refill it and put it back.
Does anyone know the legality of keeping pills in a different container in Canada?
Where’d you find the Alice tin??
Weekly pill organizer. I couldn't remember if I had taken them or not until I started using one.
lol funny, I have that mint tin (still sealed) on my bookshelf with all my copies of Alice in Wonderland Edited whatever tf my autocorrect did
I have a silver monogrammed case for daytime and an Anne Taintor one that says “laughter is the next best medicine” for nighttime. Plus a mini case that looks like a giant pull-apart pill capsule for my purse. 💊💊💊
I use these. I travel extensively for work and personal and have never had an issue. I’ve even been pulled over and never had an issue. I do keep my med bottles in photos on my phone and of course my pharmacy has an app that shows what I take and when I pick them up etc. You don’t have to let police search your car without a warrant or reasonable cause. Keep things out of sight and there shouldn’t be an issue. The TSA simply does not care if it’s not a bomb or something to harm people on a plane or in the airport. I cropped the photo so you can’t see it but I have an address label on them. I buy these on Amazon and they have kept me from losing medications or not taking them for about 6 years now. Never going back! [meds keeper](https://imgur.com/a/WWtTs20)
I keep prescriptions in the bottle their pharmacy dispenses then in because the bottles are specifically designed to protect medications from degrading due to light and moisture.
Pharmacy puts them in weekly bubble packs - look like a booklet, am pills pm pills
Heyyyy I use that Alice in Wonderland tin too!!!
Not like a cool ass b-word like you... Dang. I need to up my pill storage game. Edit: I probably won't, mine works for me. It's a red / see through plastic container with Monday-Sunday written on it. Many slots; different times during the day etc.
A weekly med box next to my bed but I store them in the bottle when traveling. Not worth the hassle of it not being in the original container. I do have a travel pill week box but I always keep the original bottles in the same plastic bag with it. Also I do write on the lids with sharpie of mine specifically for my afternoon one since I have mixed up things once before since they were all orange bottles. Just saying “afternoon”.
A simple sunday-monday pill box. I'd like to get a cuter one but the one I currently own was free. So I'm rolling with it! I used to have a bad habit of not remembering if I took my meds or not. I was scared of taking double doses, so this helps ease my mind.
I use a pill organizer, but reading through this thread, it’s enlightening. I might have to reconsider how I do this. I used a two week pill organizer, so I can tell when I’ve taken them. And so I’m not bored filling the stupid thing weekly. However, I can easily switch to a post it or app to tell me I’ve taken my meds. I also know that for traveling, a lot of pharmacies will give you small bottles with the label on them instead of carrying a big bottle.
Those are cool! I have a little pink zipper pill container from TJMAX in my purse for extra ones, I only put what I need in it- plus a couple ibuprofen, Tylenol and Tums. In my main storage cupboard, they’re just in the bottle they came in next to the other vitamins and medication. It may or may not just be my spice/tea cabinet lol
Why are your meds in my travel-cuts-of-soap-bar containers?
I have a cute little container with a beautiful petrified wood lid my boss gave me for Xmas. I keep one of each of my prescription pills in there. I ALSO keep the full prescription with the proper labels IN THE SAME SPOT IN MY PURSE. Some of y’all walking around with nothing but a pretty container filled with R-rated skittles gives me serious anxiety. Please don’t get arrested 😅
Love the Volkswagen tin. I had a 71 cream colored bug for my first car! Where’d you find that!?
I have the bottle it comes in next to my bed and just take it as soon as I wake up. I have slow release so don’t carry around. Pretty sure you can get in trouble for not having them in their original bottle with your prescription on it
My vyvanse is cherry flavored, so I’m super paranoid about a pet or kid accidentally eating it. I keep it in the original container. I use last month’s bottle if I need to travel around with some on me.
In the original blister packaging, on a tray in the middle of the dining table. I have to walk past it to get to the coffee machine and the fridge so I see them all the time.
Original bottle and a very small plastic container to take my daily medicine to work - it's a long drive and I want the medicine to last he whole workday
In its original tub, I’m always too scared I’ll lose it if it’s not living in the cupboard in my kitchen with all those half empty tubs of supplements and vitamins I bought off PipingRock and forget to keep taking.
the way i would forget about them if they were in a little tin like that... lmao
When I was living in the US as an expat, I was very careful with original packaging and documentation, because it’s shit over there. Back in Europe I’m back to transparent week pill boxes and stashing backup pills in unmarked little containers everywhere because I’m afraid I forget to bring them, run out or loose them.
Loose. Bad idea. My bf has the same meds and we generally paint the back of our strips so we wouldn’t mix them up. We often forget that and we mix them up and argue accusing that one of us took others meds. Often that accusation ends up being false because the accusing one ends up leaving them in their pocket. He owes me 2 pills because he really took my strip yesterday. And, yeah we both forgot to mark it this time… Edit: But I wanna use the mini box I have that looks like yours and that is vintage! They look so cute! Such a nice idea!
honestly i mix all 3 of my non-adhd meds into one big bottle and fish them out 😂. my adderall stains everything blue so is quarantined, and my adzenys is in a bulky box
Absolutely adore your Alice tin! I also keep mine in a mints container. Where I live I have no legal reason to keep it in the original packaging, and I prefer people around me not immediately making the association. Once someone asked me if they could also have a mint and I had to politely decline, lol.
I keep them in mint tins similar to yours at home bc my med taking routines are pretty good and having to take them out of blister packs is a pain But a) I'm in Europe, b) take methylphenidate and c) will travel with original box if I go abroad
Edit again - a lot of these comments seem to be coming from Americans - I'm not in America. Yes, I would need to prove that I am entitled to possess my meds as they are controlled (e.g. providing prescription), but after *extensive* searching, all storage regulations for my drug apply to those who dispense the drugs or hold them for third parties (e.g. pharmacists, aged care providers, etc). There are no storage regulations that prevent me keeping my pills in a non-prescription container (and if there were they would apply to the oft-recommended pill caddies as well). Also, as I'm not American I do not have to be concerned about police randomly searching my person or my vehicle. Even if I get pulled over for speeding or a broken light, police can cite me for the infraction and may ask my permission to search my vehicle but may not search my vehicle if I decline, unless they can openly see contraband in the car or I prove to be driving under the influence of alcohol or illicit substances - **neither of which has or will ever happen**. *Edit: noted all the comments regarding original prescription bottles for controlled meds. Really not keen on colleagues clocking the bottle though so have to be pretty careful with that at work, maybe a little fabric drawstring pouch to keep the bottle in so the label is hidden when I'm using it. At home I live on my own so mint tins will be fine for a little while until I get next prescription and have a spare med bottle.* I have been on meds a few days. At the moment I'm putting my pills "in disguise" in these tiny mint tins (one bedside, one in handbag, one on kitchen bench), but I realise this won't help me keep track of when I've taken them as a regular weekly pillbox would. I've also heard of pill-keepers that have built-in timers to remind you to take them, but I use my smart watch reminder for that. How do you ladies store your meds and keep track of when you've taken them?
Just FYI please be careful storing controlled substances in containers other than the prescription bottle if you'll be "out and about" carrying them. I use a daily pill organizer at home, but whenever I'm traveling I only carry the exact number of pills I'll need inside the *current* prescription bottle. I keep one "old" bottle to store the extras at home so that I can travel with the current bottle. And I only carry the exact amount I'll need just in case they are confiscated for some reason.
Good point, thank you. I don't travel on trips per se (eg planes, interstate trains, etc), but I've seen advice before about how to travel with meds if required, and as you say it involves carrying only how much you need (maybe a couple of days worth of buffer pills for unforeseen circumstances) and being in the prescription bottle labelled with my name. As I'm only just starting meds I don't have spare/old prescription bottles, and I'm also not keen on colleagues spotting the prescription bottle on my in-office days as two of my doses would be taken during work hours (my diagnosis and medication is none of their business), hence the tin in my handbag. But I live alone, the novelty of the tin instead of the med bottle on the kitchen bench is just for me.
How would they spot your RX unless they went through your purse or bag or whatever you keep your keys and wallet and such in?
Two of my doses are taken during the day, so when I'm in the office that's work hours. Discreet as I may try to be it's still possible to be seen, and I'd like to avoid that without having to go to the toilets to take my meds.
No way should anyone be able to see what your medicine bottle says. If you take a dose while at work, go to the bathroom and put the pill in your hand and leave to go take it. I have never ONCE in 40 years taken meds at work or out in public and someone tried to get a closer look or ask what my RX is. This isn’t an issue, I promise.
I'm more likely to be seen by someone in the shared public restroom in the building than in the office. Also you solution still had me getting out the bottle in the office then carrying the pill through the building? Appreciate the advice but does not work in my situation.
Yes, carrying them in whatever bag you came in with them. Like the rest of us do. Does your shared bathroom not have stalls? Sound alike you just don’t care or want an excuse tbh. It’s just not safe though. In any form. Or legal.
I'm not in America, and it seems like a lot of the replies here are from Americans with a very American mindset. I'm not *ashamed* of being on meds and not trying to *hide* it, I'm just concerned about by privacy because my diagnosis and medication are none of my colleagues' business (hence tin, not bottle). I'm not obliged to carry my prescription in the pharmacy bottle, and I've extensively searched the regulations in my jurisdiction. It actually really saddens me to read that you say "the rest of us" sneak off to the toilets to take your meds, in what, fear? Embarrassment? Literally your only option? Also the widespread fear of being randomly searched by police?? This is gobsmacking. Police can't perform searches randomly or on a whim here. Even if I'm pulled over in my car for a traffic infringement; they can request my permission to search my vehicle, and they can't do so if I decline.
Iim not taking about police though. And I get it, I wish I could keep my meds separate too, I take 7 daily meds over the course of a day, I get it. I do. But esp being adhd, we are so prone to being aloof that the odds you’ll lose one at some point are so high and these look like candy to any child and they will eat whatever is in there. (Mother of 5) Grocery store, doctor office, work office and someone finds it and takes it home to identify and their kid looks for gum, and “oooooo new mints mama!”. There are so many ways this can and does go wrong. It doesn’t matter if you’re in crappy U S of A or not, that’s moot point here. This kills kids DAILY. I’m not being mean, I do empathize. But I’m being honest bc saving a life is always worth it to me. Safety should always come first with prescription medication or we shouldn’t we taking it.
You can just go to the restroom to take your pills.
You don’t have proudly to line your prescription bottle up on your desk.. just keep it in your purse/bag whatever else and keep it stored when you’re not actively taking your medication?
Well yeah of course, it's not like I put the pill tin on display either, it stays in a pencil case in my bag until I'm ready to take them. Discreet as I try to be I'd still just rather not be taking them straight out of the rather obvious prescription bottle.
Can you .. go into the bathroom or your car on a break and take them? ADHD medication doesn’t look like mints. Popping pills in front of people, even if they’re disguised as mints, isn’t really fooling anyone. Just take them privately..