Can I Compound My Own Medication?

Have You Ever Wondered About Compounding Medicine?

Have you heard of compounding medication, but aren’t really sure what it is? Or even why someone would want to do it? You aren’t alone. If you’re new to compounding medicine, it can be hard to understand why someone would want to venture outside commercially available medication and get prescriptions customized at a compounding pharmacy like Strive Pharmacy.

That leads some people to also wonder: can I compound my own medication? Let’s take a look at what medication compounding is and why you might want to compound a medication.

What Is Medication Compounding?

Medication compounding is a service provided by a compounding pharmacy. The pharmacist formulates a medication specifically for an individual patient, based on a prescription from their doctor and on their health and medical needs. The compounded medicine is one that is not available commercially, and may be formulated differently, like compound pills instead of liquid medicine, or made with gluten-free ingredients for a patient with Celiac Disease.

Why Compound Medication?

Many people choose compound medication for the benefits of customized medicine, including:

Medication formulated to exclude an ingredient such as sugar, alcohol, gluten, dyes, preservatives, and more.
The option to combine the active ingredients of many pills into one or two compound pills, to reduce the amount of medication a person takes.
Custom strengths or dosages, if an appropriate dosage is not commercially available. Sometimes children, babies, or adults need lower or custom doses.
Hormone treatments can be customized to the exact needs of each patient. Strive Pharmacy specializes in these and other services.
Help for children or pets who may struggle to take needed medicine, which can be compounded into a different form or flavor.
Customized pain relief, including topical medication.
Side effects can be reduced—for example, if a medicine causes an upset stomach, it can be reformulated to a smaller dose, a topical medication, or without the triggering ingredient.