<p>As it gets closer, I'm thinking more of what hasn't been figured out yet. If any of your kids take meds on a regular basis, how/where do they keep them in a residence hall room, especially if it's for ADD? My DS has been advised to keep his out of sight, preferable either locked, or on him, so it's not stolen for "other uses". I've already told him that he will have to figure out a routine of when/where to take it so it becomes a habit, like at home. Only there, it won't be sitting out in the open, before him at breakfast, as a reminder. He needs to figure that one out (not me) but I was wondering how others store meds while at school, for ideas to suggest.</p>
<p>You might ask your child's school and/or disability department and/or student health centerabout how other students deal with this issue. I really don't recall any of my friends (or me) EVER having problems with theft in the dorm or our apartments. I know it was 20+ years ago, but my nieces haven't mentioned any problems with theft when they were in school--one recently graduated from UCDavis & is now in her last year at UH Law school, the other is at UOregon.</p>
<p>I think we need to be able to trust our kids to take their meds in college because there is no one who will be there to nag or keep after them. If they're not ready to take that responsibility, maybe they're not ready for a residential dorm situation? It's something your child, family, & docs will have to help determine. Good luck--we'll be facing some of the same issues in our home for my son's meds & health issues.</p>
<p>You should contact the college health service before your child heads to school and ask for advice about your son's meds. They might be able to check in on him periodically.</p>
<p>Thanks. I'm not worrying about him taking it, that is his problem. I was just wondering how or where others actually keep them in their room. It doesn't sound practical to keep them on him. I guess the trick is just get a solid colored box, so it's not obvious what's stored in it. He's also in a substance free dorm, so hopefully it won't be an issue of theft. Ritalin now days is used as speed by some, or even just to get the extra "edge" when it comes to studying. As the doctor said, if he cames up short, then the suspicion will be on him, rather than others.</p>
<p>Do you, or anyone, really think that I should be contacting the health service? It is on his medical report. I haven't done that, mainly because I do see it as his problem, that he'll have to deal with and to decide if/when he talks to others about it. I really don't want anyone checking on him, he doesn't need that (I hope!) and he needs to be independent about this. I'm making sure he knows about the mental health services available and how to access them, and am encouraging him to do that if he even thinks he needs to, but I didn't see the need to go running to them ahead of time myself.</p>
<p>I am a physician at a university, and, yes, you should contact the health service. They may wish to give him a week of medicine at a time, etc., to prevent the issues related to theft.</p>
<p>My Doc suggested keeping my meds in my dop kit zipping it up ....stick it in the closet....and dont mention that i have medicine. and be discrete about taking it. Do you think i need to do more than that?</p>
<p>My son left his ADD meds on his desk in his dorm; he never had a problem. He only had a month at a time as that is all we can get due to insurance. I mail him the new bottle each month. Once he moved off campus with a car I would mail him the RX and have him fill it.</p>
<p>There are so many students these days on ADD meds that it is not as much an issue. Just keep them out of sight and take them when a lot of folks are not around.</p>
<p>Where do students keep their cash in the unlikely event they have some? ;)
I would think your son just needs to be discrete. He shouldn't flash around his meds the same way one shouldn't flash around money or jewelry and keep them in a secure location known only to him.</p>
<p>Hmmmmm, good point to compare it to having cash on hand. We've talked about it, and I think he'll get something figured out, and my emphasis here is on <em>him</em> figuring it out!</p>
<p>My D has pain meds that she occassionly needs to take. She plans to keep a low profile with them and to take a locking file cabinet. She can cover it and use it as a night stand. It will also give her a safe place to stow other items out of sight.</p>
<p>Buy a locking file cabinet. It will look like any file cabinet, and it won't be obtrusive.</p>
<p>Last year the local paper had an article on ADD meds being used (abused) in several schools. Son's school was one listed :(. I asked son about it & he had no idea. I would guess that it might be tempting to a thief. The students in the article said they bought them from friends.</p>
<p>I second calling the health center for info.</p>
<p>I'd treat important meds the same way I treat money when traveling: I would not put all my supply in a single place, in case it got lost or stolen. I'd keep a small supply in a separate place to tide me over until I could get replacement.</p>
<p>My son has attended summer college pgms the past 2 yrs and we faced this issue. He takes numerous prescription meds 4 times per day. We originally arranged to keep some of the meds at the student medical center because he needed a backup supply in case of theft or whatever. He cannot miss a day; even missing a single dose can cause significant symptoms. Although he didn't request a single room, he was given one so he decided to keep the meds in his room. Like at home, he kept his meds in one of those weekly packs, with a day's worth broken down into 4 sections (so he just kept one day's worth accessible). He kept each week's worth in a different location just to play it safe. </p>
<p>Originally he didn't want a single room because he felt it would be isolating, but it worked out fine and now he's considering a single for college. He appreciated having a quiet place to rest when he wasn't feeling well. Good luck to the all the parents dealing with this. It's just one more thing we have to let go of (I try very hard not to ask "have you taken your meds").</p>
<p>My daughter takes Adderall but she never advertised that fact so noone really knew she had it in her room. She didn't hide it - just kept it with all her other personal type "girl" stuff - including hair products, blow dryer, deodorant, pills, etc. Just kind of buried in the rubble, so to speak.</p>
<p>She is responsible for filling her own prescriptions. The doctor's office had her leave self-addressed stamped envelopes with them before she left for school. Every month she would have to call and they would then mail her a prescription which she then filled at a local pharmacy (using the family credit card). It was totally on her - I have no idea if she was late ordering prescriptions (she'd have to know to call several days before she ran out to allow mail processing time). But the dr's office wouldn't obviously fill it if it was too soon since the last prescription re-fill.</p>
<p>When my son finally figures out where he wants to go to college, we'll probably get his doc(s) to write that he has a medical necessity for a single room because he HAS to be able to sleep in a quiet place to keep from having his health problems really mushroom out of control. When he's doing poorly, he only gets out of bed to use the bathroom & sometimes to eat. Not too many roommates can tiptoe around such a situation. The suites sound very inviting, as they allow each person to have an individual place to sleep while sharing a bathroom & living room--hopefully the school he ends up at will have a similar situation available. Having a single room to sleep in also minimizes medication theft issues, I would think.
HImom</p>