| Take your medicines exactly as your doctor, nurse, or pharmacist tells you to. |
| Use a daily or weekly pill box to organize your medicines. |
| Keep your medicine containers in a place you will see them every day. |
| Create reminders for yourself to take your medicines. You can use a calendar, a smartphone app, a digital watch, or whatever works to help you remember. |
| Read the prescription label and printed patient information that comes with each medicine. |
| Do not skip pills, change doses, or take extra pills unless your doctor tells you to. The dose your doctor prescribes is based on your age, weight, health problems, and other medicines you take. It can be dangerous to take different amounts. |
| Learn the names of each of your medicines, how it works, and why you take it. |
| Learn what each of your medicines looks like (shape, size, color). When you get a refill, you might get a new generic version that looks different from the last time. That is OK as long as the new medicine has the same ingredient as the one it is replacing. If you are worried about a refill looking different, talk to your pharmacist. |
| Tell your doctor or nurse about any side effects you have. They might have ways to reduce or get rid of the side effects. |
| Tell your doctor, nurse, or pharmacist if you can't afford your medicines. There are often ways to lower costs. |
| Make a list of all the medicines you take, plus any medicines you are allergic to or have had problems with in the past. Keep 1 copy at home and 1 in your wallet. |
| Bring a bag containing all your medicines with you to your doctor's office, every time you go. If you can't do this, bring the list of your medicines. Have your doctor or nurse go over your medicines or list with you. |
| Talk to your doctor, nurse, or pharmacist before you take any cough, cold, allergy, pain, or other extra medicines. The same goes for supplements and herbal medicines. Over-the-counter and herbal medicines can affect the way prescription medicines work. |
