Mixing medications

[AK Granola]

When you pack pills for a trip, do you pack them in separate containers or all in one? Some of mine are in blister packs, such as a small number of antihistamines or diarrhea meds, so I cut the blister pack to just the number I want to bring, and just bring them sealed. But others that I’m more likely to use, like otc pain relievers, or decongestants, I am pulling from larger bottles. Any reason not to toss these others together in something smaller? They’re pretty easy to distinguish. I’d save a bit on bulk and on weight by combining them. Assuming they stay dry, they won’t really mix.

[Jerry Adams]

I take a container with one compartment per day.  Mix all the different pills together in each compartment.  Hopefully they don’t interact since they’re dry.  There are 7 compartments labeled “S”, “M”,…

I use it all the time so I remember whether I took the pills on any particular day.  Otherwise I’d sometimes take two days worth of pills on the same day, or take no pills on a particular day.  Maybe I need a pill to improve my memory : )

[Tom K]

“When you pack pills for a trip, do you pack them in separate containers or all in one? Some of mine are in blister packs, such as a small number of antihistamines or diarrhea meds, so I cut the blister pack to just the number I want to bring, and just bring them sealed. But others that I’m more likely to use, like otc pain relievers, or decongestants, I am pulling from larger bottles. Any reason not to toss these others together in something smaller? They’re pretty easy to distinguish. I’d save a bit on bulk and on weight by combining them. Assuming they stay dry, they won’t really mix.”

I’d keep them separate if it were I.  The times when you’re most likely to need them are when you’re going to be under varying degrees of stress and least inclined to sort them out.  It is much easier to put each kind of medicine in the very small zip lock type bags sold at REI, along with their dosage instructions, and consolidate them into a slightly larger baggy in your first aid kit labelled medicines.  The weight penalty, if any, will be minimal and far outweighed by the reliability and convenience of accurate usage in stressful conditions.

[Bruce Tolley]

I put over the counter remedies that I take only occasionally such as those that you mention into a very small zip lock all together. For a longer trip, into an empty 35mm film cannister (you can buy them on Amazon). They are stable enough for shelf life of 18 months or more so I figure they are not interacting in the bag or container. But for prescription meds, I pack them separately in small zip lock bags for the reasons mentioned by Tom above.

[Jerry Adams]

ohhh…  I was thinking of something you take daily

I have some antihistamine in blisterpack, aspirin in single dose sealed package (intended for traveling?), and put them in first aid kit which is a 1 pint zip top bag

[Dean F.]

As long as the pills look different, I’d mix any daily meds together for more compact packing.  But I’d keep the Motrin separate.

[David Thomas]

I put them all together in a semi-waterproof container.  They aren’t going to react with each other.  I (and my MD wife) can tell an Advil from an Aspirin from a Benadryl from Imodium.  Sometimes, I’ll use a particular brand (I expect Benadryl to be pink & white, but someone makes a yellow gelcap.  I don’t use that kind).

While a plastic 35 mm film canister works pretty well, I prefer a container for diabetic test strips.  The lid fits on more firmly, it has a little tab so you can, with one hand, hold it and flick the lid open with your thumb, and the lid is on a hinge so you can’t lose it.  The volume is similar to a 35mm film canister, just a bit slimmer on one axis (it’s a bit elliptical rather than circular in cross section).

If you have any doubts about remembering which is which or the dosages or indications, write a note to yourself, fold it, put it in the canister and let it expand to line the inside perimeter.  If you want the note to hold even more info, cut & paste info and images into a Word document, print it (laser or xerox, not inkjet) at 20-25-30% or whatever is the smallest you can read, and put that inside the canister.

[Rex Sanders]

I don’t mix meds for reasons already cited, plus this:  someone else   might be looking for meds in your kit when you can’t help them. They won’t necessarily be able to tell Aleve from Benadryl from Imodium on sight, with potentially disastrous results.

A pile of tiny zipper bags barely registers on my scale, and they have room for labeling with name and simple dose instructions, e.g. Aleve 3/day.

Blister packs are a PITA for many reasons. With over-the-counter drugs, I pop them out at home and put them in a zipper bag. For prescription meds. I grumble and carry them in their original packaging, with the box cut down to just the prescription label.

— Rex

[Roger Caffin]

With over-the-counter drugs, I pop them out at home and put them in a zipper bag.
Which may result in the drugs losing their effectiveness after a few days as moisture gets to them. Yes, moisture can get through the plastic used in zipper bags – slowly of course. An unwise action imho.

Cheers

[Rex Sanders]

Hi Roger,

In USA, the exact same Benadryl pills we bought in a bottle are now almost exclusively found in blister packs. The same with (real) Sudafed, Imodium, and a few other meds I can’t recall now.

In those cases, it’s for abuse prevention, not moisture proofing. Blister packs make it a little harder to mass-produce stronger doses or derivative drugs. Imodium might join Sudafed as a behind-the-counter product in the near future, due to abuse.

Sometimes you see a mix of small quantities sold in blister packs, and larger quantities in bottles. When you rarely use the med, a $4 blister pack of 12 that expires in 2 years is cheaper than a $6 bottle of 30 that expires in 2 years. Same med, same expiration date, different packaging and profit margin.

— Rex

[Roger Caffin]

Hi Rex

Interesting stuff. My comment was more as a generality: care needed.

Has this trend reached Australia yet? I don’t know: we don’t buy any of those drugs any more. Healthier without imho.

Cheers

[AK Granola]

Roger you say healthier without, but do you not treat a beesting or diarrhea with anything? I’ve had both happen to me, once each. I was glad to have something along for the 2nd scenario. I had nothing for the sting – actually 11 bald faced hornets stung me in the face and neck, when I stepped on a nest I couldn’t see in tall vegetation. My fellow hikers were terrified watching my face expand as we hiked the 5 miles out (no trail). Since then, I’ve carried the Benadryl.

i see your point about keeping them dry, otherwise, useless.

[Roger Caffin]

Hi Karen

No, we would do nothing about diarrhea. Let it run its course and flush out. But we are rather careful about our foods.

Bee stings – can’t say as it is decades since we kept bees, but ant bites, wasp bites and spider bites we just leave alone. Yes, there can be a painful immune response sometimes. Can’t say we ever noticed any of the ‘treatments’ ever helped.

We carry BFI powder for cleaning dirty wounds and butesan picrate for burns – but only very small quantities of each. Haven’t used either for a decade or more. Mostly, Band-Aids and micropore tape (and some TP) are what we rely on – and fresh water.

Personal detail: I do carry a Ventolin inhaler as I can have a severe asthmatic response to a few things. After 5 years I replace the unit.

Cheers

[Diane Pinkers]

I second the response about keeping meds separated and labeled.  When I took a Mountaineers course, we were taught to use the injured person’s first aid kit on them.  So, if I’m injured, someone is going to be looking through my first aid kit, and I don’t want them mistaking this for that.  I keep daily meds in my personal kit, not the first aid kit.

[Roger Caffin]

You should also consider that pills packaged in a bottle may be formulated or coated in a slightly different way to pills in blister packs. The latter expect to be in a dry sealed environment until used.

My 2c
Cheers

[Jerry Adams]

I’ve got yellow jacket bite and used antihistamine and it seemed like maybe it helped

I always carry some in blisterpack.  It’s been years, I should discard and replace.  I’m pretty sure opening the blisterpack would shorten it’s lifetime as already mentioned

Once I got bit and it swelled and I didn’t do anything.  It hurt like xxxx but wasn’t debilitating or life threatening.  I was focused on eliminating that nest in my yard.

Maybe if I had a stronger reaction it would be nice to have.  Maybe there’s no reason to carry it at all.

[Rex Sanders]

Perhaps I spent too many years as a whitewater raft trip leader, responsible for the safety of dozens of guests. I’ve treated many strangers on rivers and trails.

I carry half-a-dozen potentially life-saving OTC meds as much to take care of others as myself. But I don’t want to get into the whole “my FA kit is bigger/smaller than yours, and therefore better” debate.

Some of us carry more, and keep our meds separate, to meet a variety of needs.

You might choose otherwise.

— Rex

[Roger Caffin]

responsible for the safety of dozens of guests.
Guests = customers?
Either way, a totally different situation from just accepting responsibility for ourselves! (including legally.)

Cheers

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