Dealing with drug side effects

January 2004     View PDF     En español

The key to coping with your side effects

The key to coping with side effects is knowing what to watch out for and having a plan in place to respond if problems occur. If a drug you are taking or are planning to take has a side effect that may be life-threatening, it’s important to know what early symptoms of that effect are and to monitor for them. It is also possible to prevent or reduce the seriousness of some side effects by taking certain preventive therapies a few days before or at the same time as starting a new regimen.

Before starting any therapy, talk to your doctor about the risk of side effects from various drugs. This information usually comes from studies conducted on the drug. Ask how often side effects were reported.