When I went away to university at the age of 18, my parents bought me a MedicAlert bracelet and membership. This was a step to keeping me just that little bit safer in a big city, several miles away, with multiple chronic conditions. A few years after university, I allowed my membership to expire – a variety of reasons that I’ll discuss below. When Elise was born, two years ago, I renewed my membership and ordered a new bracelet. So it’s high time I sat down and wrote a MedicAlert review for you all.
At the time of going to university, my list of diagnoses looked very different to what it does now. We knew that I had constant migraine that had the ability to cause me to lose consciousness (later diagnosed as basilar type migraine with aura), as well as hemiplegic migraine. We knew that I was photosensitive and that my glasses must not be removed if I lost consciousness. We were also aware that I had more than a few allergies, with the potential to cause anaphylactic shock. Plus, I was on various, some unusual, vital medication.
My MedicAlert bracelet and membership was my parents way of giving me a means to communicate my conditions to medical professionals, when unconscious. I was unconscious a loooooot during my years at university.
Unfortunately, no one looked at my MedicAlert bracelet during my time at university – professionals or members of the public. To the extent that I remember coming round and hearing “check to see if she’s wearing medic identity jewellery” (I can’t remember the exact wording – it was more than 10 years ago and I was rather unwell). Only they checked the wrong wrist and didn’t find my medic alert bracelet. This isn’t MedicAlert’s fault and is a reflection on medical professionals and members of the public, not the service MedicAlert provides.
After university, I let my MedicAlert membership subside. I was being investigated for a number of conditions (notably hEDS and PoTS) and felt there wasn’t much point in renewing, given my experience mentioned above and that I would likely need to order a new bracelet with engraving that included the new diagnoses and an updated wallet card..
When Elise was born, I renewed my MedicAlert membership and bought a new bracelet with all the relevant information engraved on it.
You may be wondering why I decided to renew my MedicAlert membership after not having benefited from it previously. The simple answer is Elise. I have to be realistic – It’s possible that Elise may have to alert people that I’m unwell. I don’t want her to feel a pressure to remember everything that medical professionals need to know. I want to do everything I can to minimise the effects my conditions have on Elise. As she grows up, I will teach her to tell medical professionals that Mummy wears a MedicAlert bracelet and that telling them this is how she can get me help.
MedicAlert have a wide range of jewellery options available, including watches, bracelets and necklaces. Some are made from low allergen materials, while others are suitable for wearing while participating in sports. There are also various sizes of discs available, which allow for 3-6 lines of text to be engraved.
I was planning on getting two bracelets. One metal, the other on a sports band. My thinking was that I could wear the sports band over my wrist splints when needed. Unfortunately, and this probably won’t come as a surprise to regular readers, I need a large disk to be able to fit as much information on as possible (we’ve still had to condense with the large disk). At the time, MedicAlert didn’t offer a large disk on their fabric sports bands. So I wasn’t able to get a sports band. When checking specific details for this post, I was very pleased to find that Medic Alert have brought out a large disk version of their sports band.
The bracelet I chose was MedicAlert’s Silver Classic bracelet, with a lobster clasp. I chose Classic over other, prettier chain designs because it was the lightest option. I decided not to have enamel in the disk’s MedicAlert text and medical snake symbol. Enamelling can be done in black or red and I like that this draws people’s attention to the jewellery, which is what you want in an emergency. However, I’ve previously found that the enamel starts to come off. This is just through general wear and tear, as I don’t take my MedicAlert bracelet off. At all. I sleep in it, shower in it and have swum in it.
When placing an order (for jewellery and subscription), you speak to one of MedicAlert’s wonderful nurses. In all my years as a MedicAlert member, I’ve always had an excellent experience with the nurses. They’re kind and patient, with an have always treated me as an expert in my conditions – particularly with my basilar type migraine and the loss of consciousness this can cause.
The nurses can help with deciding what needs to be engraved on your MedicAlert jewellery, be put on your wallet card and make sure more in depth details are on your file, should medical professionals need to access it in an emergency – this includes medication you are on and any allergies you may have. This file can be accessed by first responders in an emergency, by calling MedicAlert’s emergency telephone number and quoting your Identification code (both of which are engraved on your disk.
The wording on my MedicAlert bracelet is:
“Hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, Photosensitive Basilar Migraine – may lose consciousness, PoTS, Anaphylaxis”
My MedicAlert bracelet arrived in under 48 hours and has been on my wrist ever since.
I followed MedicAlert’s sizing guide for my bracelet and have been really pleased with the fit. It’s tight enough that the disk stays facing outwards on my wrist, but not so tight that I notice it on my wrist. It is a little awkward to put on, because it’s a snug fit and I’m bendy. Which, along with my poor memory, is one of the reasons that I don’t take my MedicAlert bracelet off.
I didn’t expect my MedicAlert membership to be useful until Elise is older. But then I didn’t bank on a medication reaction triggering a flare up of my asthma either.
About 6 months ago, I had to phone for an ambulance. There was just me and Elise in the house. When the paramedics arrived, I could barely speak because of my asthma. I was so relieved to have my MedicAlert subscription, as I was able to pull the wallet card out of my purse and give it to the paramedics, rather than having to try and tell them about my complex conditions. My wallet card communicated better than I could at the time and saved me precious energy.
MedicAlert subscription costs £32 per year, with identity jewellery starting at £9.95. You can find out more about MedicAlert and see their jewellery options at medicalert.org.uk.
I would highly recommend MedicAlert for those with complex conditions, particularly if there’s an increased risk that you may not be able to communicate effectively with medical professionals in an emergency.
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