We’ve all forgotten to take our supplements or medication before, and there’s nothing more frustrating than remembering the next day! We’ve put together some simple ways to remember to take your pills, so you don’t get that dreaded feeling again.
1.Take your pills with a meal
Many supplements and medications require an individual to take their pills with a meal for an increased chance of absorption but surprisingly, this can help your brain to subconsciously form a habit. This is one of the simplest ways to remember to take your pills as many people have at least two meals a day, therefore it’s super easy! Remember to always take the recommended dosage on the packet and don’t over-supplement as this can usually do more harm than good.2.Set an alarm
Setting an alarm is one of the best ways to remember to take your pills, especially because it’s an auditory stimulus, meaning your brain can process the sound and remember what the sound is for. People set alarms for all kinds of reasons so why not set an alarm for your pill? You can use an alarm clock or your phone. A great reason for setting an alarm on your phone is that you can usually label what the alarm is for, and this can be super handy if you have a variety of medications that need to be taken at certain points in the day. Another advantage of setting a phone alarm is that you can customise the sound, this can also help you with different medications as you can associate the different sounds with the different pills, thus making it easier for you to remember!It's important to mention that setting an alarm isn’t just great for pills but can also be used for eye drops too! Imagine you’ve just purchased some Can-C eye drops or the Thealoz, and you keep forgetting to use them, setting an alarm will help you remember, and you can customise the sound so you can use them in combination with your supplement routine, making your life so much easier and you don’t have to worry about forgetting.
3. Make it a habit
Did you know that, on average, it takes around 2 months to form a habit? Forming a habit can be quite difficult for many individuals but once you form one, it’s as easy as brushing your teeth! The most important and difficult part is staying consistent, and it may seem like a chore to take your pills, but once you’ve battled through the first few weeks it gets easier and easier. To form a habit, you could use a combination of ideas from this blog, as this can maximise the chance of forming a habit early on. For example, you’ve got your MacuShield supplements, and you can’t remember to take them, the packaging advises you to take them with a meal, so you start to form a habit of doing so, making it easier for your brain to remember each day.4. Take your medication at the same time every day
Taking your medication or supplement at the same time each day can greatly benefit your habit-forming and can also aid in preventing over-medicating and over-supplementing as this gives your body 24 hours to absorb the nutrients and use them all up. Taking supplements daily and at the same time really helps your stomach acids and can be easier on your gut, especially if the pills you are taking are super concentrated. Always check the recommended daily amount if you aren’t sure, this information is easily accessible on the internet.5.Take your medication with a sweet
As silly as this may sound this can actually trigger a pleasure response from your brain and can act as a reward for taking your pills. This is extremely useful for those who don’t like taking their pills and can help with motivation as well, as your brain will subconsciously associate the sweet reward with the pill and therefore form a habit. It’s so easy and a tasty treat is an added bonus!6. Get an app that reminds you to take your pills
With the rise of smartphones, there is an app for literally anything, meaning there will be plenty of apps created to remind you to take your medication. These can be super handy as they can send a notification reminding you to take your pills as well as have additional useful information surrounding the topic. Another great thing about having a reminder app is that it’s completely free and easy to use (make sure you download a free app, they may say they have in-app purchases, but this doesn’t mean you have to spend money and can use some of the features for free).7.Pill Box
Pill boxes are a great and effective way of remembering to take your pills. These are cheap and can be found in most health and beauty shops. Some great aspects of the pill box are the letters on each section to indicate the day of the week and the compartments allow for more than one tablet to fit into, meaning you will remember to take all your tablets and won’t be left wondering if you took them already during that day. We recommend pairing the pill box with an alarm system, so you take your tablets at the correct times, for example, your Nutrof Total capsules say to take one daily and so you put a pill in each compartment and set an alarm for lunchtime, that way you’ll remember to take them, and you’ll be at the start of your ‘forming a habit’ journey!
8.Festive Special: Use an Advent Calendar!
We’ve got a great idea that focuses on reusability! Many people buy advent calendars for a festive treat and then discard them but why not use them as a make-shift pill box? Advent calendars are a great way to remember to take your pills and can be used as a motivation technique as you will associate the advent calendar with positive thoughts and therefore release dopamine which is the ‘feel good’ chemical in your brain. This also offers a sustainable alternative to a pill box as you won’t be discarding the plastic mould. This way of taking your capsules can also be paired up with number 5, you could take your pills with the chocolate inside the advent calendar as this will associate the pill with the chocolate and make you want to take it more.
Was this blog helpful? We’ve got more blogs on a variety of eye health topics we think you might enjoy, here are some more:
How You Can Naturally Maintain Your Vision