Select-an-Effort: Medicines & Supplements

Select-an-Effort: Medicines & Supplements. Seana with medicine bottles on her head.

Today is Monday. Never the easiest day, but it does offer the chance to start fresh with a new week. January offers this same optimistic feeling, doesn’t it? A chance to sweep out the old and start again. Today on “Select-an-Effort: Organizing Tasks for 2023” we will be considering your collection of medicines and supplements. Decluttering and organizing these supplies keeps us healthy and ensures we can find relief from unpleasant symptoms when they arise. Are you ready?

Here are a few options:

Low Effort

One simple step is to simply look at your containers and remove anything that is expired. Remember that an expiration date is basically a message telling you to get rid of something. Of course, we don’t want to just pitch medication into the trash. Instead, click here to see smarter ways to safely dispose of medication.

Medium Effort

To go a step further, take a moment to mindfully consider if you/your family will use each of the medications or supplements you have in your collection. Maybe you tried a supplement once, but it didn’t seem to help. Rather than pitch it, you stuck it back on the shelf. Today is the chance to get rid of it. The same applies for any prescription medications that you are unlikely to use again. Keeping things on hand for future use is fine but remember that there are benefits to having a bit more free space.

Carefully assess the likelihood of future use. I like to say that products need to “justify their real estate.”

High Effort

To improve the way you store medications and supplements, pull them all out and start again. Wipe out empty spaces, and sort by type.

A couple of principles to keep in mind:

  1. It is helpful to store commonly used medications and supplements close to where you are when you take them. This may be in a kitchen cabinet if you take them with breakfast, or in your bathroom or bedside table if you take them before bed.
  • If you need to store medication in a larger space, such as on a shelf in a linen closet or kitchen cabinet, consider purchasing a riser and/or some stackable plastic bins that you can label. For bottles, a turntable on a deep shelf comes in handy.
  • If you have small children, remember to keep all medicine out of reach, with safety caps on the containers.

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When your medication storage area is well organized, you will be able to quickly find what you need and tuck it back out of sight with ease.

How is your collection of medicines and supplements? Could it use a refresh?

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Select-an-Effort: Organizing Tasks for 2023
The post Select-an-Effort: Medicines & Supplements first appeared on The Seana Method Organizing & Productivity.