needs: Meds- the messy meds draw.
It was a pile of bottles, boxes and scripts in the middle of the bench. I transferred them to a tray. The tray inherited hair ties, payslips, elastic bands and pens. It was cleared to the drop zone under the microwave. The meds changed and were stored with bits of unread advice from the pharmacist. Then came the blood and imagery referrals. Afterall, the scripts and referrals were important so they must be in a good place if they were all together with an old lotto ticket, a screw driver, currency from a country we had never been to and instructions to a fish tank for dearly departed Lorelei.
And her vitamins, and then all our vitamins were added to the mix because, birds of a feather, right? After a cranky little outbreak of worms that disgusting chocolate joined the fold, and obviously the dogs worm treatment followed suit. In a flurry, the box was cleared away and papers were filed never to be found again. It became a box of meds and pain relief. Then cold and flu season hit and the box took on Vicks inhalers, lozenges and other snot suspects that enlisted the vitamins again. Finally, all the other bottles, all the other mothers had said would change the world …. came to stay.
Everything in that over-crowded box was important at some stage, but meds are different. They are always important, and other items in my house can’t piggy back on their significance.
How I store the meds is not indicative of how well I care for my girl but it does shape how I feel I am meeting her needs. That feeling is big, not decisive, but it cannot be ignored. I also know my feelings around meds are strongly repeated with each dose. So, I changed the chaos to feel better. It’s a good thing right?
Hell yes. This is on the right side of letting my crazy need to control this wild ride. Tending the organisation garden makes me feel better about the things I cannot control. For me, organising the meds, takes the mean out of meeting her needs. It also means my beloved can tag in and dish them out.
So where is the best place to organise things?
means: Kmart my darling, Kmart
- Seriously where was I before Kmart?
- Kmart has these bamboo cutlery draws in different shapes and sizes.
- I choose a draw near the med must haves: food and water- so it’s a kitchen draw for us.
- A kitchen draw can be easily accessed, and a draw can be easily locked.
- At the very front, we have a current meds row- just a strip (no box)
- Behind that, ready to pick up the baton, we have the containers and remainders of current meds.
- Boxes and bottles with prescription information about Dr. and dose are essential for camps, hospital and travel.
- We have a section for general pain relief, cold and flu, a section for vitamins – this normalises the med draw for the whole family.
- We have a section for pens because they were going to gate crash anyway.
- We have a section for pill boxes, plastic syringes and those little cups.
- We don’t have a section for paperwork – scripts and referrals do not belong here.
And when I open the draw I feel good. And when she sees the draw she knows it’s sorted. And when there is a change in meds they join the party easily. And when someone has to step in, it is clear and easy to follow.
