This post is sponsored by Walgreens. All opinions are my own.

If you’re a long time reader here you’ll know that health and wellness is incredibly important to me as both a nurse and a mother. A few years ago I shared my story about being diagnosed with a rare thyroid condition called Postpartum Thyroiditis. You can read that story by clicking here. Since then i’ve been on a journey to be as healthy as I can possibly be, which included changes to my diet, exercise and trying to decrease my stress levels. Part of that journey has been through medication for my thyroid.

I always joke that i’m half hippie and half nurse as I much prefer to heal myself and my family naturally. While we wait for that to happen though, medication when prescribed by a physician, is an essential part of our well being. As a nurse i’ve seen countless patients forgetting to take their medication. In fact nearly 100 million Americans do not follow their prescription requirements correctly. They either forget, feel they are inconvenient or lack the understanding and education about their medication. Even more shocking is that nearly 33% of prescriptions are never filled.

I care about this because I care about people. I’ve used this blog as a platform to help others and i’ll continue to do so and share this important PSA with you. Adherence is so important when it comes to medication, especially with chronic conditions. We all want to live long lives and be around for our children, do better at work etc… So, taking care of our health first is one of the most important things we can do in our lives.

When I was diagnosed with my thyroid condition some of the first thoughts running through my head were how this would impact my life as a mother. The symptoms I was experiencing made it difficult to function, thankfully after meeting with my doctor I was put on a beta blocker which helped keep some of the worst symptoms under control. Because of my medication adherence during that time I was able to get through the worst of it and still be a great mother.

Some reasons I hear for people not wanting to take their medication is that “they’ll be fine if they miss just one dose”- not true. Missing a dose of medication can throw off everything in your healing. I’ve also seen many elderly patients struggle to remember to take their medication each day. A nurses aid may be covered by your health insurance and if so, they can check in on patients at their homes each day. Setting up medications in a pre labeled daily container is another easy way to ensure medication and the correct dosage is taken when needed.

I encourage anyone struggling with a chronic condition to seek medical help and adhere to the medication schedule your doctor has prescribed to you. Answer the Walgreens Wake Up Call and get on or stay on the path to recovery! Be sure to check out the Walgreen app by clicking here. Do you have any tips to help with medication adherence? If so, leave a comment below.