Helen: Taking complementary medicines – Evidence of effectiveness
Listen to patients and health professionals speak about their experience with taking multiple medicines.
Helen
Female
Age at interview: 58
Number of medicines: 10
Cultural background: Anglo-Australian
Helen trusts conventional, prescribed medication the most, but is willing to try complementary medicines for herself.
I think … there's probably a difference in my mind between so-called complementary medicines, or alternative medicines, and other non-complementary medicines. I think I have greater faith in prescribed medication, and I still have a little bit of a cynicism about complementary medications or whatever we want to call them. But I have enough optimism to say they might make a difference, and if they might make a difference, I will give it a go. I have noticed slight reduction in pain with my arthritis about three to four months after starting to take a couple of the complementary medications that I take. So I like to think that that's because they're having some sort of an effect. If there's a chance that that's what it is, I'm going to keep taking them.
The Living with multiple medicines project was developed in collaboration with Healthtalk Australia.