Taking someone else's medicine......

by lisavegas420 12 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  lisavegas420

  I know it's never a good idea to take a prescription that has been prescribed for someone else, but this was totally an accident.

  Every morning for the past 15 years or so, my husband sets out vitamins for both of us. These cocktail of pills have changed over the years depending on what I've been reading and have diagnosed that we need. Currently there is a multi vitamin, for people over 50, a calcium, and 500mg of Vitamin C.

  Added.....to my husbands side of the pile for the past 7 or so years is also a pill for his prostrate, and on my side of the pile is a an anti-depressant, currently lexapro...a very low dose, that seems to be working for now.

  Yesterday, after laying the meds out, he grabbed the wrong pile and took mine. As soon as he did it, he realized what he did. He went on to work, I called him about 45 minutes later to see how he felt, he said ok. I talked to him several times through out the day and he seemed fine......When I got home from work, he was already home, and was extremely quiet, and just wasn't quite himself. I kept asking if he felt ok, and he'd say, yes. But I knew he wasn't himself.

  This morning, he didn't make that mistake. That's is ...just sharing.

  lisa
• 

  quietlyleaving

  He's very fortunate you weren't taking anything stronger. I remember when my elderly dad took my elderly mums tablets by mistake - but that's a whole other story whew.
• 

  bem

  Lisa maybe he won't have cramps or PMS either, and maybe his nails and hair will grow longer and stronger<thinking of the things female vitamins claim to do)

  Just kidding ya know, a one time deal should be okay I would think???

  Dorothy
• 

  WTWizard

  Taking someone else's medication is not a good idea, unless you have the same condition(s) and the same or similar medication. Vitamins may be an exception, since those are supposed to be in your body anyway. Some medication errors of this type are not very serious, assuming they are common like Tylenol or Advil.

  However, isolated mistakes can happen to anyone. Usually when you take the wrong pills once, you will not notice any major problems. That is because different drugs have side effects that can take weeks or months to accumulate, and a single dose is not likely to cause serious problem. However, if you take more than you are supposed to, that's a major problem that should result in a trip to the doctor or emergency room depending on how serious you OD'd on the medicine.

  If you make this type of mistake once, it is no worse than forgetting to take a dose. You will have the wrong medicine in your system (unless they are vitamins, in which case serious problems are very rare). However, if you are regularly messing up and taking the wrong drugs, you should develop a system of putting a stop to it. You do not need someone else's drugs, which are for problems you do not have, and they can create serious health problems after a while.

  One exception: You should never take an old antibiotic for a new infection, especially someone else's prescription. This almost always results in ineffective treatment, plus contributes to resistant strains. And the drugs are usually out of date, which can be very dangerous especially with the tetracycline antibiotics. And the infection may not be what you think it is, especially with resistant strains coming up these days. If you have an infection that is bad enough to warrant a trip to the doctor, and natural remedies have been tried without success, then you should get a new prescription.
• 

  ex-nj-jw

  One Lexapro once will not cause any damage. It takes about 7-10 days of consistant dosing of this medication for a patient to see a difference.

  Don't worry, he's fine - by the way men should also take calcium supplements, they too can develop Osteoporosis especially if they have a family history. I'm a research nurse in the Osteoporosis research and treatment center at a University Hospital we also do studies on new medication and existing medication for other health conditions.

  If you want more info on Osteoporosis PM me.

  nj
• 

  merfi

  Thank goodness you didn't take HIS pile... Not sure what a prostate pill would do to us girls. lol

  Glad he's ok.

  ~merfi
• 

  nelly136

  could have been worse, at least you weren't on any molotov laxatives
• 

  lisavegas420

  Thanks for the replys ya'll.

  He seems fine today, but he said, he felt strange yesterday, and couldn't concentrate very well. And was really tired.

  He also had diarrhea most of the day.

  He takes calcium same as I do....he breaks a rib at least once or twice a year. Always doing something stupid...by stupid, I mean, I think he forgets he's not a young man anymore.

  lisa
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  bem

  Happy to hear he's no worse for the mistaken med,

  Dorothy
• 

  smellsgood

  Oh, I can't imagine a one time popping of a low dose lexapro, a drug alot of people I know have taken, would do anything at all. It's almost medically impossible. It takes 6 weeks for that stuff to build up in your system anyways til it really "starts" working.
  
  If he was not himself, you may rule out a one time lexapro as the cause of it.