I realized in one of my circuits I have an electrolytic capacitor in parallel with my battery but on the same side of the switch as the battery... I also noticed that the battery is dead despite not using it much. Could the cap be why?

 

Electrolytic capacitors do have a small leakage current.

What is the voltage, size and type of battery? What is the capacitor size and voltage rating.

 

It's an MnO2-Li 3v cr2032 battery (225mAh?) and a 10uf 16v electrolytic capacitor.

 

That's a small battery so a leaky capacitor could drain the battery.

Can you put the battery on the switched side of the switch?

If not, you might check the capacitor for leakage by putting an ammeter in series the capacitor.