Pills, Pills and More Pills

Someone in my building came to me distraught and crying. She is an older women who had always been healthy. She had never needed pills and now she has a health problem that requires medication. This can be a tough transition to make.

Let's talk pills. There are people who rely on pills and think nothing of taking a handful for this ailment or that ache. I was not one of those people, but now I take an average of thirty pills per day. I feel like a junkie and am always trying to get off them. That is the dilemma my friend was facing.

She had begun having panic attacks and back pain. She had come upstairs with a half a pain pill, for me to reassure her it was okay to take it, and to hold her hand and distract her as she took it. Her reticence in taking medication is admirable. I know far too many people who gobble pills like candy.

Let's look at the kinds of pills we can be faced with. First there are over-the-counter pills such as pain killers, sleeping pills, cold pills and diet pills. I worked for over 20 years in Hospice and so pills don't bewilder me. Don't run to a pill first thing. If you have a headache, drink a cup of soothing tea and put a cold cloth on your forehead - maybe lie down for a few minutes. However, the OTC pills such as Advil, Aspirin, and Ibuprofen can be taken without worry...IF you take them as recommended on the bottle.

It is easy to fall into the trap of grabbing a pill just so pain won't inconvenience you. You can then have stomach problems and other physical problems, plus you are building up an immunity to that medication by relying on it. Most pain medications are taken every four to six hours, but read the bottle carefully! Aleve has a much longer lasting affect and you could easily take too many. Each pill is unique and always thoroughly read the labels before taking anything.

If you do not what a pill is - consider it poison to you. Never, ever take a pill you might have found or one that a friend has and assures you is safe. You are an individual with your own system, which may or may not tolerate something someone else is taking. Always consult a doctor if you are having problems for over a week. . . something may be wrong that you are not aware exists.

Now, to speak of vitamins: these are basically safe compounds, if used wisely. Don't take any unknown type of vitamins without checking with a physician. Don't order pills over the internet or through catalogs unless they are well known and widely used. A good general daily vitamin offers us the nutrition supplement we all need in our busy day diets. But never think every vitamin is benign - be careful what you put in your body.

Diet pills don't work. Some of them have drastic and even fatal side affects. If you want to lose weight, eat a healthy, balanced diet and get exercise. There are natural supplements that are far preferable if you just have to use something. Those capsules with green tea and hoodia are not stressful on the body, however, read carefully, they contain caffeine and if you take them late in the day, you may find yourself up all night with the jitters!

Pills are meant to help us. They are certainly not the only answer to our problems and can cause more trouble than we had to begin with. If you are taking prescription drugs your doctor says you need, heed his advice. Some pills keep us alive or in better health. Be pill-wise when faced with a new medication.