# Where do you store your BC pills? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 15, 2001, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240 "2001-01-15T23:37:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![scout1222](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@scout1222](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scout1222)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2001, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/1 "2001-01-15T23:37:40Z")
Okay, so I’ve been on the darned things for 8 years. Ortho would be thrilled to know that only last week did I actually bother to read the package insert. It tells me that I shouldn’t store my pills in the bathroom. So of course that’s where I keep them. You know, first thing in the morning, use the toilet, brush the teeth, swallow the pill. It’s a great system. I’m afraid if I remove them from the powder room…out of sight out of mind. So…if you actually **follow** the directions, where do you keep them? ---
**Author:** ![Mauvaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mauvaise/32/11084_2.png) [@Mauvaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mauvaise)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2001, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/2 "2001-01-15T23:51:37Z")
I’ve been on and off them over the course of the last 11 years and I’ve read the insert and never remember reading not to store them in the bathroom. I’m not taking them right now, but will start again once I quit smoking. I usually either keep them in a spare drawer in the bathroom or if I don’t have one, a dresser drawer (the panty drawer). The current pack sits next to my computer so I remember to take it right before bed. ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2001, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/3 "2001-01-16T00:01:43Z")
12 years for me, and I’ve never seen the warning about the bathroom, either (and guess where I keep them?). Wouldn’t you know it, I already threw away the insert for this month’s pack. But a Google search on “store birth control pills” turns up a bunch of sites that say “Store birth control pills at room temperature, away from moisture and heat.” I suppose the chemistry can be affected. I’m not worried about mine, though – they’re in a closed drawer, and our bathroom is neither particularly warm nor moist (Mr. Scarlett’s morning shower is brief and not very hot, and I take baths.) ---
**Author:** ![CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crankyasanoldman/32/11670_2.png) [@CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrankyAsAnOldMan)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2001, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/4 "2001-01-16T03:59:01Z")
I store them in my bathroom. I need to see them when I’m brushing my teeth at night so I don’t forget. I don’t shower in there, so there’s no humidity problem–not that I think it would change my habits anyway. I’d like to tape them to the front door, because I still forget. I was on them for a long long time, then off for a long time. Now I’m back on and cannot for the life of me get consistent. I think the Fed Ex guy would find it off-putting, though. ---
**Author:** ![Rally\_Vincent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c37758/32.png) [@Rally\_Vincent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rally_Vincent)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2001, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/5 "2001-01-16T06:12:56Z")
I too have been on and off the pill - but since we have completed our family, I no longer take it. After the third child, I forgot to take it several times, which on the “mini-pill” is not a good thing. I usually have a good memory for these things but since I obviously was spacing it out somehow, I figured an alternate form of birth control would be better. I usually kept them in my purse (the active packet) and then another one in the bathroom. It’s really dry in AZ and the shower isn’t near the medicine cabinet. ---
**Author:** ![They\_Call\_Me\_Sneeze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/6a8cbe/32.png) [@They\_Call\_Me\_Sneeze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/They_Call_Me_Sneeze)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2001, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/6 "2001-01-16T06:20:20Z")
i keep mine taped to a poster of a screaming, horrible infant. havent missed one yet (knock on wood). ---
**Author:** ![corvidae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/898d66/32.png) [@corvidae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corvidae)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2001, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/7 "2001-01-16T14:39:04Z")
I usually keep them in my night table. The only times I ever missed one was when I wasn’t spending the night in my apartment, and my evening routines got all screwed up. ---
**Author:** ![racerx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/5e9695/32.png) [@racerx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racerx)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2001, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/8 "2001-01-16T14:54:10Z")
i keep mine in my purse. see, i go to bed in different places and at different times, but i always leave work at the same time every day ('sept weekends). so i take 'em when i get in the car to drive home. interesting. i didn’t know the biffy was the normal place. ---
**Author:** ![scout1222](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@scout1222](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scout1222)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2001, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/9 "2001-01-16T16:02:35Z")
They Call Me Sneeze: You must be my soul mate. I think a poster like you described would be enough to keep me remembering. Well, I think it’s settled then. They’re staying in the bathroom next to the toothbrush. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. ---
**Author:** ![Hello\_Again](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hello\_Again](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hello_Again)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2001, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/10 "2001-01-16T16:44:38Z")
I’m w/ racerx. Keep them in my shoulder bag so I always have em. I have a pathological fear of missing one, so much so that if I have done, I generally wake up at 2am all in a panic (I usually take them before bed so that’s not a bad miss). ---
**Author:** ![tsarina](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f4b2a3/32.png) [@tsarina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tsarina)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2001, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/11 "2001-01-16T17:15:08Z")
In a secret pocket in my backpack… so they go everywhere with me, but my mom won’t find them when I come home and flip out! ---
**Author:** ![Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/bc8723/32.png) [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unauthorized_Cinnamon)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2001, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/12 "2001-01-16T17:23:23Z")
I’ve been on them for :drumroll: 14 years, and I keep them in the kitchen, in a cabinet with my vitamins and other medicines. I’ve heard that all medecines should be kept away from humidity, so that’s probably why I started. It’s easy to remember because the cabinet is right near the fridge - I pour my juice, and pop a pill immediately. I very rarely miss one. For some reason though, I can’t bother to take the sugar pills - my doctor told me to because they have iron, but I have a mental block about it. **The Call Me Sneeze** , that’s hilarious! Sometimes if I feel like I want to have kids (can’t afford them yet!), I go to a busy mall on a Saturday afternoon - maternal urges cured! ---
**Author:** ![scout1222](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@scout1222](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scout1222)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2001, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/13 "2001-01-16T17:28:11Z")
The little green sugar pills…hmmm, now we can start discussing THAT aspect of things. When I first started on them, I took them all, even the sugar ones. Now, I just pop it out each morning, throw it in the toilet, and crank to the next day. I’m in enough of a routine that 7 days off doesn’t make me forget. I like the idea of keeping it with other vitamins - I’ve considered that option, but I’ve only in the past 6 months or so been real on the ball about taking my vitamins every day. I might give it a shot, though. As for the iron in the sugar pills, I’ve never heard of that. Anyone else ever hear of it? ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2001, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/14 "2001-01-16T18:10:33Z")
I win - I’ve been on them for 15 years so far. I keep 'em either in the bathroom drawer or in my nightstand drawer. Before Mr. Athena and I co-habitated, I’d trim the package and stick it in a pocket in my wallet so when I was at his house it wasn’t an issue. ---
**Author:** ![Rebo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rebo/32/13005_2.png) [@Rebo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rebo)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2001, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/15 "2001-01-16T20:26:20Z")
Oh no, Athena, I win. I’ve been on them for 26 years, minus 1-1/2 years for pregnancy/breast-feeding. I’ve actually started menopause, but the doctor keeps me on them for the estrogen, along with some testosterone pills (for the hot-flashes.) I have always kept them in my purse because I have a terrible memory. I try even harder to remember them now. Hot flashes suck big time! (I also have never heard of keeping them out of the bathroom.) As far as the green ones go, I don’t take them. I never was told they have iron in them. ---
**Author:** ![Stella\_Fantasia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/74df32/32.png) [@Stella\_Fantasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stella_Fantasia)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2001, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/16 "2001-01-16T20:51:42Z")
I keep mine in a drawer in my vanity, which is in my bedroom. I’m with racerx on this one…the problem with taking them in the morning is, if you don’t take them at the same time every day, you compromise their effectiveness. I have to get out at 6:30 during the week, but there ain’t no way I’m getting up then on Saturday or Sunday. Back when I worked more irregular hours, I’d keep them in my purse. I don’t know why people freak out so much about people seeing their pills…I mean, so what if people know that I’m having sex? There is no iron in the placebo (green) pills, though I think that would be a pretty cool idea. ---
**Author:** ![Tansu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/67e7ee/32.png) [@Tansu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tansu)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2001, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/17 "2001-01-16T21:51:04Z")
I keep them in the top drawer of my bedside table. I don’t have a problem forgetting, because I always take them just before I take my night dose of asthma medication. I’m not awake and with it enough in the morning to remember to take the pill along with the asthma inhalers. Mine are a 21 day variety with no placebo pills — so I do have to remember to start a new pack 7 days after finishing the old one. ---
**Author:** ![Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/bc8723/32.png) [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unauthorized_Cinnamon)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2001, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/18 "2001-01-16T22:04:13Z")
**scout1222** asked: > [@](#): > > As for the iron in the sugar pills, I’ve never heard of that. Anyone else ever hear of it? I’m now on Loestrin Fe 1.5/30, which comes on a little card, with level-dose green pills for three weeks, and brown dummy pills for during menstruation. AFAIK, Ortho-Novum does not have iron in the sugar pills. Sorry for the confusion. ---
**Author:** ![scout1222](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/34f0e0/32.png) [@scout1222](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scout1222)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2001, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/19 "2001-01-16T22:29:13Z")
Okay, okay, I think I’m an old fart before my time. Sounds like you gals are all night owls. I, on the other hand, wake up at the crack-o-dawn even on the weekends, so for me the regularity is in the AM more so than taking them before bed (although I’m pretty consistent now on when I go to bed, but in college I was not). I guess that’s the price I pay for having a freaky running habit. I think between all of us, we’ve been popping these pills for a couple of lifetimes. Eight years for me - I’m just a wee pup. You folks are veterans! ---
**Author:** ![DeskMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f14d63/32.png) [@DeskMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DeskMonkey)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2001, 11:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240/20 "2001-01-16T23:14:10Z")
I’ve kept them by my alarm clock for the past 5 1/2 years because I take them when I get up, but I was thinking it would just be easier to keep them in the bathroom since that’s where I take them. I guess I won’t now. I used to keep a glass of water by my bed so I could take them from the comfort of the bed, but I got a cat and she kept drinking out of my glass, so now I carry the teeny tiny pill from my room to the bathroom. Not a good idea when you’re mostly asleep and trying to find your way to the can! My stupid insurance company stopped allowing brand name pills, so instead of the nice dial pack that I used to love, I get a lousy blister card that you have to pop the pill out of. I don’t know how many times I’ve spent the morning searching for a pill in the sheets because of that damned thing! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/where-do-you-store-your-bc-pills/50240.md?page=2)