Health

An Easy & Safe Way to Dispose of Prescription Drugs

This shop has been compensated by Inmar Intelligence and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #AprilDrugTakeBackDay

I have a long family history when it comes to substance abuse. Unfortunately while growing up I witnessed how it can destroy families and relationships. While there were many relatives on both sides of my family that suffered from substance abuse, it was my uncle that left me with the strongest memories. I have so many fond memories of him from my childhood and I am so thankful for them. As I grew older and his addiction worsened, we grew apart and I went years without seeing him. My final moments with him were in a hospital room where he was in the final stages of liver failure from hepatitis. Losing him was devastating for our family and not even a year later, his wife (my aunt) died unexpectedly due to her own substance abuse issues.

I moved out at a young age and was not there when my younger sisters were teenagers. Unfortunately one of them started abusing prescription pills very heavily. This led to her abusing much stronger drugs and things really spiraled out of control for a while. This lifestyle led to multiple near-death OD incidents, homelessness, and rehab. While my sister is currently clean and on the road to recovery, she has been left with some long-term health issues that will affect her for the rest of her life. Not to mention the pain and hurt she caused to her family during those years that have left our family split and some of us not speaking.

I have always been very open and honest with my children about the traumas that I experienced growing up around substance abuse. There is such a fine line between wanting to completely shelter them from that scary world… but also wanting to make sure they completely understand the danger and harm. I want to stop this cycle in my family and do everything in my power to prevent it from happening to my own children. Prescription drugs can be the gateway to substance abuse and it is our responsibility to make sure it doesn’t happen… and that starts in our own homes.

Keeping your current prescription drugs locked up in a place that only you can access is so incredibly important if you have children of any age in the home. I had dental surgery several years ago and was prescribed a pain killer that just upset my stomach too much to use. Like many, I was left with unused prescription pills and wondered how to safety dispose of them.​ Whether your prescriptions have expired or have gone unused, there is a simple and safe way to dispose of them!

The kiosk in my community is located in my local Publix, near the pharmacy. I was so pleased to discover through the LifeInCheck™ Consumer Drug Take-Back Program that there are many locations that host safe drug take-back kiosks alongside their pharmacies. My local kiosk was in a private and discreet area of the pharmacy, where I could safely dispose of some expired drugs. If you are interested in finding a kiosk in your area, just enter your zip code on the LifeInCheck Safe Medicine Drop​ and they will provide you with a list of safe drug take-back locations.

LifeInCheck Consumer Drug Take-Back is a program​ that works to provide consumers with a safe option to discard their unused or expired prescription medications in secure kiosks located across the US​. This ultimately helps to protect public health and to protect the environment. This is so important to our communities because properly disposing of these unused medications can both save lives and protect our water supply (unused drugs that are flushed or thrown in the trash contaminate the water supply). Unused medications can also lead to accidental poisoning and drug misuse/overdose/abuse.

I recently visited my local kiosk to dispose of some expired prescription drugs. I wanted to lead by example in hopes to inspire you to do the same. April 30, 2022 is National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day and a great time to talk to your family and children about this subject. While I know my parents did all that they could to keep the effects of substance abuse out of our lives, I think that their biggest mistake was not talking about it enough. If I can leave you with any bit of advice, it is to not be afraid to talk about the tough stuff with your kids.

2 thoughts on “An Easy & Safe Way to Dispose of Prescription Drugs

  1. I read many articles to know how to safely dispose of prescription drugs, but none could satisfy me. In your article, you share details which is beneficial to me. Thanks for sharing this article.

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