"You have lupus...but with medication and treatment, you should be able to live a full life."
When I got the diagnosis, I don't know what scared me more, the word "lupus" or "medication". You see, despite the fact that once upon a time I wanted to be a pharmacist, I really shy away from taking any type of medication or drugs. The primary reason for this is because I can't swallow pills! Physically, yes, I know I swallow food all the time, but psychologically, it freaks me out! I think it is just the thought of swallowing something whole without chewing it.
Every time I need to take medicine, I'll need to either ask for the liquid form or if it isn't available, I'll ask the pharmacist if it is okay to crush or chew the medicine first. I've been lucky in that most of the medication I've had to take can be crushed, but the taste is usually horrible and makes taking it a real pill! (pun intended, har har!)
Anyways, the thought of having to take a number of pills every day for the rest of my life seriously had me worried. When Dr. K told me what medications he was prescribing me, my first question was, "Are they all pills?" When I told him about my situation, he said that I would need to learn how because it could be a problem. He even suggested seeing a speech pathologist to help. I will basically be taking pills every day for the rest of my life.
Luckily, both the hydroxychloroquine and prednisone he prescribed can be crushed, so I have been chewing them before swallowing. They are both bitter, but not as bad as others I have tasted. I'm slowly working on getting myself to swallow the pills whole. Right now I can do the prednisone and my levothyroxine (sometimes - I tend to chew this one because it is first thing in the morning and it isn't bitter, so I don't mind as much). Eventually I will work my way up to the hydroxychloroquine, which is about the size of a children's chewable Tylenol.
Maybe I should make a goal for myself. Life would be so much easier if I could just swallow my medication...
- a little lupie -
I remember this about you. You are just like Jenni. Hope its getting better.
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