Medication

Last week I called in a refill for one of my medications.  I didn’t have any refills left – so the pharmacy called my doctor to get the refill.  Every Sunday night, Dave fills my weekly pill container – so that I don’t have to go through all of the bottles every day.  I didn’t need any of the refills until yesterday.  When I took my pills last night – it struck me odd that the medication in question was twice as big as it had been.  I checked the bottle – and verified that the dosage was twice as much as I had been taking.  This particular drug – potassium – can have dire consequences if there is too much in my system.  It is the drug that the infamous Dr. Death (Dr. Jack Kevorkian) used to neutralize the electrical conduction of the heart and stop its beating.  It is also used as the last of the lethal injections in the execution of criminals.  Since I already have heart issues – not paying attention to this could be fatal.

I called the pharmacy this morning to check on it – and found out that the pharmacy made the mistake – the prescription was written for the dosage I had been taking.  She said that it is good that I’m paying attention – and that it is an easy fix – I can simply cut the pill in half – and then I will have two months’ worth.  I don’t even want to think about what could have happened if I weren’t paying attention.  One dose might not be a problem (and in fact – I cut the pill last night – and only took half); but if this were doubled for a period of time, the effect would be compounded and cumulative.  I wasn’t trying to get anyone at the pharmacy in trouble – but the pharmacist assured me that this issue would be addressed – to keep it from happening again.

I will be going to the cardiologist tomorrow – having my annual echocardiogram and checkup.  I do not anticipate any problems – in fact, I’m kind of hoping that this will reveal some improvement with my heart.  (OK, in reality, that isn’t very likely – any improvement would have manifested some time ago, but I still hope.)  At the very least, I am praying that my heart has maintained its current status.  I may not be able to blog though; after I get to work, I will have to play catch up.