Micaela: Adjusting to multiple medicines – Adapting to loss of freedom, independence and capacity
Listen to patients and health professionals speak about their experience with taking multiple medicines.
Micaela
Female
Age at interview: 38
Number of medicines: 21
Cultural background: Anglo-Australian
Micaela feels that she can’t be spontaneous in the way that other people in their 30s can be, because of her medicines.
I mean, I'm getting older anyway and settling down, but I sometimes feel like I can't be very spontaneous, because if I've forgotten to bring my pills, you know, if I'm over at someone's place and they say, ‘Oh, just stay over.’ ‘Oh, but I don't have my pills.’ God forbid, I may again have, you know, a one-night stand or something, but I don't have my pills. Look, it's not ... that particular aspect, it's not a huge issue, but ... and I know I could prepare myself, like, if I'm somewhere where I am going to a dinner party at a friend's place or something and, you know, I know that it may come up that I stay over, then I can prepare myself for that and have the extra pills on hand. Sometimes, it just feels like you have to be too damn organised!
The Living with multiple medicines project was developed in collaboration with Healthtalk Australia.