Daily Medication Storage Ideas

If you’re like me, not all of your mediations come in tidy uniform bottles. I have nasal sprays, inhalers, and varying sized pill bottles for my allergy meds…. prescriptions and over-the-counter.

​When pill box organizers aren’t an option, here are free space-saving and time-saving tips for organizing medications you use on a daily basis.

Whether seasonal, throughout a temporary illness, or for everyday maintenance and management… nobody wants the clutter and chaos of bottles and boxes and inhalers... let alone the space they take up. So here are free functional, space-saving tips (and, yes, even stylish) for storing everyday meds.

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Medications with tapered dosing instructions need to be kept in original packaging. 

Estimated Time to Complete

Less than 30 seconds per medication.

Level of Difficulty

Very easy.

Items Needed

• scotch tape
• bowl or container for comfortably storing daily med

Instructions

• Lay out all everyday meds (not including vitamin supplements which I organize separately... in another post)

For Prescription Meds

• Remove from original box and packaging
• Place medications in (clearly labeled) bottles to the side for now
• Carefully peal off/ remove prescription label from original box (it came in from the pharmacy)

• Trim label to fit item.  Make sure the cut label includes name of medication, dosage instructions, Rx/ prescription #, remaining refills, refill-by date, and expiration date.

• Adhere trimmed label to item

And here are cut-to-size prescription labels wrapped on nasal spray bottles:

For Non-Prescription Meds

• Remove container or item from original box and packaging. 
• Ensure name of medication, dosage instructions,  and expiration date are clearly legible on bottle or item.
• If not, create small label with info either from original packaging and loose instructions...  or write missing info on item. 

• Find bowl or vessel from your existing supply to comfortably accommodate the your varying shapes and sizes of daily meds.  It can be more decorative (and why not)...

... or just functional... 

So here's how it turned out with my daily meds including those odd-shaped inhalers:

During those cough, colds, and other temporary illnesses involving more medications, I use one of the larger bowls shown earlier.

Storage for Additional Inventory and "Not-Daily" Medications  
A cardboard wine case (which is FREE for the asking at your local grocery store) is great for storage of additional inventory of medications and first aid supplies. The separators (originally for protecting the wine bottles) serve as dividers for organizing inventory. I check my inventory box before buying additional meds and first aid supplies... many times saving money and a trip to the drugstore. 

For those less frequently use prescriptions, I write on the bottle the symptom or ailment the mediation was originally prescribed for.

Finally, where you store your daily medications is up to you based on the activity in your household. Some keep their meds on their kitchen counter as a reminder. Others with small children, for example, need to keep their dailies safely hidden and secured in an out-of-reach cabinet. For me personally, I keep them in my space-saving vessel in a kitchen cabinet. 

Heat and moisture from your shower, bath, and sink may damage your medicine... making them less potent or going bad before the expiration date. If possible, store your medications in a cool, dry place like a high shelf or cabinet in your kitchen away from heat.

Convenience created simply in a matter of seconds. Now that’s functional stylish living! 

​And check out even more uses for those free wine cases.

Having Trouble Getting Started

I used to feel the same way too. After all, who wants to put time into a project that may not work in their specific home? That's why I created this Quick DIY Check Prep (List) for getting you started on those projects that actually enhance your home. I use this when starting any home DIY endeavor... big or small. 
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Knowing the "whys" of your home projects not only helps you with the "hows" but keeps you focused on the DIY endeavors that will matter for you... saving you time and money.