Besides a spoonful of sugar, what else helps the medicine go down?

A conversation in a online doc group earlier today about hacks reminded me of an old hack – but a good one. So – I know there are some really bad ideas out there – I want to share some good ones:

1. The Ice Cube. Best for older children and adults. How it works? Suck on an ice cube until your tongue is numb. This one is fun if you have your children try to talk after their tongue is numb. Then take the medicine while the taste buds are numb. Follow immediately with a small bit of something tasty. Got a week of antibiotic doses ahead of you? Consider freezing ice cube tray of juice or squash to use for this.

2. The Pharmacist Save: Best for “I Can’t Swallow Pills”: Ask your pharmacist if your medication comes in syrup form (like paracetamol and ibuprofen). If not, ask your pharmacist if your medication is suitable for crushing. If so, s/he can sell you a pill crusher and proceed to 3.

3. The Buried Treasure: Best for very tiny pills for adults or crushed pills for children. You crush and add pill on top of something to help you swallow it, like mashed banana or yogurt. (Note: effective for my sons’ steroids but this does not work for my dog. She finds and spits the worming tablet every time no matter how I hide it.)

4. The Reward: Sticker charts work. If you have a course of antibiotics, a small chart on the fridge will also remind you to take the medication at key points during the day. Satisfying completed checklist also is great for some sorts of adults (just me?)

5. The Syringe. Best for young babies/toddlers. By putting medication carefully, in an upright child, slightly farther back of the mouth than tipping it in with spoon, makes it harder (not impossible) to spit out. If baby pauses, contemplating spit v. swallow, stroking cheek while talking calmly might induce a swallow. Maybe.

6. The Psychologist: Make it fun. Make it happy. Make it positive. No matter how it all went down last time. Was the fight about strawberry Calpol? Try the orange. Let them give medicine to teddy. You pretend to taste it and declare it delicious or magical. Control: let them control something about it: where they sit, who gives it to them, what spoon, what tasty “chaser”.