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Last August, I had some serious surgery. Everything turned out great especially considering how bad of muscle separation I had. The doctor took a photo during surgery of my stomach because it was one of the worst she had seen. Having surgery on my core plus adding in a mommy makeover was a painful event. As with most operations, many drugs were required to help me heal and cope with the pain. Hydrocodone was one of the prescriptions sent home with me.
A year later, and I still had an almost full bottle of this opioid sitting in my bathroom closet. I’m well past being healed and actually only used it for not more than a couple days after surgery. Problem is that I didn’t know how to dispose of it properly, and I didn’t want this in my house because I have kids. My kids have been taught over and over about the importance of medicine safety. Being that I’m a card carrying nerd, I’ve talked in length about the science behind why we do or do not take medicine and quantities. Still, I always worry that prescription and over the counter medications can be accidentally ingested somehow.
So how do we safely dispose of prescription drugs and even over the counter medicines that are expired?
THE ANSWER: DRUG DISPOSAL LOCATIONS
Disposal of unused medications today takes many forms, from flushing down the toilet or pouring in the drain, to throwing in the garbage, or worse. More often than not, the end result is damage to our environment, drug diversion or the drug being abused by others. In an effort to assist in reducing these issues and bringing awareness to the massive opioid crisis that is plaguing many families, LifeInCheck created a Consumer Drug Take-Back program that provides consumers with a safe option to discard their unused or outdated prescription medications in secure receptacles located across the US.
I dropped off the unused prescriptions and also dropped off some over the counter medicines that had expired. Want an easy way to identify if your medicine is expired check out this article here. Dropping off was super easy here…
Saturday, October, 26th 2019 is National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day and luckily you can take unneeded prescription and medicine most any days. Not sure where to take them? You can use the LifeInCheck Consumer Drug Take-Back Program and click here to check out this handy LifeInCheck search tool. It’s super easy to use to find all known drug disposal locations and the most convenient location near you. This handy map will pop up with the location address below…
DRUGS ACCEPTED AT RECEPTACLES
- Unused or expired prescription medication (Including Schedule II-V controlled substances)
- Unused or expired over-the-counter medication
- Pet medication
HOW TO USE THE RECEPTACLE
It’s simple to use the LifeInCheck Consumer Drug Take-Back receptacle. Simply pull open the drawer. Place the medication inside (The medicine label does not have to be removed from medication container; although I did scratch out my prescription number and name). Close the drawer. Yep! That simple!
WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT
Discreet, safe, and responsible drug disposal is critical in the fight against the opioid crisis. Did you know 192 Americans die every day from a drug overdose(*CDC.gov)? Did you know that 83% of people who misuse prescription pain relievers including opioids get them from a friend, relative or other (SAMSHSA.gov). Here’s a scary statistic – 46 million Americans are exposed to trace amounts of medications in their drinking water (Associated Press). Crazy statistics right?!
According to DrugAbuse.gov, 18 million people in the U.S. over the age of 12 have misused medications at least once in the past year. LifeInCheck has created this tool to help you safely dispose of unused or expired medications. Simply enter your city and state or zip code and search radius and we will provide a list of safe drug take-back locations in your area.
Thank you for helping to protect your family and our communities. One way to help beat the opioid epidemic is for every person to be more responsible with their medications. Use the LifeInCheck Drug Disposal Search tool to find a LifeInCheck Drug Disposal location near you.
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Please note: all articles are written on SimpleStepsForLivingLife are ONLY my opinions and should NEVER replace that of a medical professional. This series of posts are about what I have learned from having surgery and being about to have surgery again. I am not a medical professional at all, please consult with your doctor or a medical professional when it comes to anything to do with your health.
For more helpful Prepping for Surgery series articles, click here.
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