Medicines

Side-effects or interactions between medicines may cause confusion, memory loss, insomnia, nervousness, hallucinations, or depression.

If you think your medicines are causing problems, notify your doctor. Always follow these guidelines:

• Make sure to take in the prescribed dose at the scheduled time, including weekends and holidays.
• Medicine should not be stopped because you are “feeling better.”
• Never take more than has been prescribed, believing that “if so much is good, more will be better.”
• Use a commercial medicine dispenser to help keep track of the medicine schedule.
• It’s wise to carry some form of medical identification with you in case of an accident or emergency.
• If you have trouble remembering when to take your meds, consider buying some timer caps for your pill bottles.

Your doctor is the best source to advise you or give you info about medicines, but the Internet also offers lots of info -- unfortunately, much of it false! If your want the find out something about a drug, stick to reputable sites like the following:

• FDA
• Drugs.com
• Mayo Clinic
• WebMD

The National Stroke Assoc. has a helpful page on medications, which talks about the importance of taking medications as prescribed, plus links to prescription assistance programs offered for stroke-related medications. (Because one reason for not taking meds is not being able to afford them.)

This article lists and tries to solve the most common obstacles to good medication management:

1. cost
2. denial
3. side-effects
4. effectiveness
5. forgetfulness
6. inconvenience
7. multiple drugs

Also see:

• Understanding Common Post-Stroke Medications
• prescription assistance programs 
• managing the cost of prescriptions
• 9 Ways to Save Money on Prescription Drugs
• If you are enrolled in a Medicare Prescription Drug plan, you can also get extra help to pay for the monthly premiums, annual deductibles, and co-payments by applying here.

Also note these links to the common meds that stroke survivors often take (and see this article) :
for lowing cholesterol:

• statins (e.g., Lipitor, Zocor, Crestor)

for anti-clotting (a helpful booklet about blood thinner pills):

• Coumadin (warfarin)
• Plavix (clopidogrel)
• Xarelto (used with people who have atrial fibrillation)
• aspirin and Aspirin and Stroke and When Can Aspirin Be Used?
• Aggrenox (aspirin with extended-release dipyridamole)

for high blood pressure:

• many choices

for spasticity:

• Botox

for depression/PBA:

• many choices, but Celexa has also benefits with treating PBA
• Nuedexta (for PBA only)
• Ritalin for Stroke Patients: Is It Appropriate?

for motor function, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) improve movement and coordination:

• Citalopram (Celexa)
• Escitalopram (Lexapro)
• Fluoxetine (Prozac)
• Paroxetine (Paxil, Pexeva)
• Sertraline (Zoloft)
• Vilazodone (Viibryd)

And finally, some tips on swallowing pills.