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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

I want to try mounjaro

94 replies

Shwish · 29/03/2025 15:28

There I've said it. It doesn't seem fair that I can't and just have to work and still stay a little bit fat but others are allowed to use it down to a much lower BMI than me. I'm BMI of around 25.5 / 26 so overweight but not THAT big. But I have constant food noise that I really want to switch off. I eat way more than I should and I can't seem to stop. The only way I've been managing to keep my BMI at the level it's at right now is by exercising ALL THE TIME. I walk 3 miles every morning before the kids get up, do push ups and squats and sit ups the minute I get out of bed in the morning and go to the gym 5 times a week. It's exhausting. I have PCOS and insulin resistance which I think might be the cause of my constant hunger tbh.
Meanwhile my cousin started with a BMI of about 28 so got prescribed mounjaro, she is now MUCH slimmer than me with - she says herself - pretty much no effort. And she's allowed to stay on it till her BMI is down to 22, then she'll switch to a maintenance dose to keep her there.
Why can't I use it? I don't really understand the logic. I actually have been thinking of stopping the exercise for a month or two to push me over the 27 BMI (I have high cholesterol so would qualify at 27) just to make my life easier. Is that nuts?

OP posts:
BakelikeBertha · 29/03/2025 15:34

There are other ways of losing weight that your GP can help with OP, have you tried talking to them about this, or are you just going by what you've read online?

Shwish · 29/03/2025 15:51

I haven't seen a GP no, I used to take Metformin to help with the insulin resistance. I lost a lot of weight on that with no effort. But that was because I was trying to conceive. They won't prescribe it indefinitely because of the risk of kidney problems (fair enough).

OP posts:
Jesswebster01 · 29/03/2025 16:19

So are you saying your not able to order it online putting in your height and weight? I have a friend who used a photo of her partner who was overweight and put his details in to get it she only used the one on she'd a few pounds now she is the size she wants.

hoarahloux · 29/03/2025 16:41

Jesswebster01 · 29/03/2025 16:19

So are you saying your not able to order it online putting in your height and weight? I have a friend who used a photo of her partner who was overweight and put his details in to get it she only used the one on she'd a few pounds now she is the size she wants.

That's disgusting. Fortunately, providers are cracking down on stupid, irresponsible shit like this and requiring photo ID and video calls at least.

BakelikeBertha · 29/03/2025 16:47

Jesswebster01 · Today 16:19
'I have a friend who used a photo of her partner who was overweight and put his details in to get it she only used the one on she'd a few pounds now she is the size she wants.'

-------

This is an INCREDIBLY STUPID thing to do, does your friend realise she was actually putting her life at risk, just for the sake of losing a few pounds?

LaurieFairyCake · 29/03/2025 16:57

OP, I think it’s fine to do what you’re considering. You have health conditions which you are constantly fighting with a huge amount of exercise. At some point that’s going to become very difficult if you get injured/pregnant/age etc.
plus the food noise is different for everyone so there is something very useful in this drug which quietens it.
My BMI is now 25.6 after being on MJ for 10 months and unfortunately I will have to stay on it for life on a maintenance dose as I have a very low calorie intake without putting on weight. Without MJ life would be unbearable.

Scarlettpixie · 29/03/2025 17:01

For someone who is obese and has the health risks that come with that, the risks that come with taking Mounjaro are worth it. They are not worth it if you are only a little bit overweight. Yes people stay on it until they reach a lower weight than you are now but they are more at risk of becoming obese again than you are and I guess already know they can tolerate the drug. You need to look at other ways to loose a few pounds. It is not for that. It is for people who have serious health risks which is not something to be envious of.

Dramatic · 29/03/2025 17:04

Yeah I don't see why not op, like you say it wouldn't take much to tip you over that point and then you could quite easily get down to the weight you want

Shwish · 29/03/2025 17:08

The thing is though @Scarlettpixie my BMI is at best 1.5 off being at the level where it would be prescribed and it's only as low as it is because of the almost CONSTANT exercise. I can't really keep that up forever. I'm 50 now. Would I still be able to do this in 10 years?

OP posts:
stealthsquirrelnutkin · 29/03/2025 21:37

Don't gain weight on purpose just to qualify for the prescription, because it doesn't work for everyone.

Around 15% of all the people who take the injections find they don't have any effect, their bodies just don't respond to the drug. A fair few of the remaining 85% find the side effects intolerable and are forced to give up.

If you can be patient and wait a few more years the tablet versions are already in the pipeline and will soon become available. The tablets will be much cheaper and won't have to be kept refrigerated in the supply chain.

Once that happens the NHS will work out the cost benefit ratio and roll them out to everyone who has weight issues, as well as all the people at increased risk of Parkinsons and dementia, and everyone who is at risk of heart attack and stroke, and all the other categories of people whose health outcomes improve when they are on GLP-1 medication. Just like they already do with statins, low dose aspirin and a few other drugs that save the NHS money by keeping people from needing expensive interventions.

Readingismyfirstlove · 29/03/2025 21:41

Just go online and order it. Of course you won't get It free from your GP but complaining isn't solving anything.

I've been on wegivy since August. You put In Height and wright it calcuates bmi and you send 2 photos.

Just try it.

Iudncuewbccgrcb · 29/03/2025 21:58

I agree with you. I qualified for them with a just and so BMI of 30 and a size 14 -16 (I'm short) and I'm now sitting at a BMI of 24 and maintaining on 5mg of Mounjaro.

Even then I'm still a size 12 so not mega slim but certainly miles away from qualifying for the drugs as a new user. It's been life changing for me as I just feel normal now and eat like a normal person with 3 meals a day and the occassional treat instead of a constant obsession with what I'm going to eat next and constantly having to deprive myself of everything because everything I ate seemed to pile weight on.

I always had a good diet but I just ate too much of it because I always felt really hungry. I've probably halved my weekly calorie intake on Mournjaro just because I now just want a smaller portion and I longer feel the need to snack between meals.

I don't plan on stopping until I'm forced too clearly for me it's a wonky hormone/blood sugar issue and Mournjaro corrects it.

Pussycat22 · 29/03/2025 22:24

Oh God!!

hoarahloux · 29/03/2025 23:43

So gain a kilo or two if you really think it'll solve all your problems. No one's stopping you. But the attitude of "I'll just take it for a month and then never worry about my weight again" is going to cost you far more than paying for Mounjaro.

Just please buy it from a reputable pharmacist, not your local beauty salon.

PinkArt · 29/03/2025 23:58

What you are jealous of is obese people, who are only able to successfully able to manage our weight down to a healthy level through using prescription medication with multiple side effects. That's what has bizarrely become aspirational (while also at the same time being derided as the lazy fatties 'cheating and not losing weight the proper way').
Nothing stopping anyone eating their way to obesity, but I really wouldn't recommend it to anyone.

TeaAndTattoos · 30/03/2025 03:57

It’s not a magic cure my mums on it for her diabetes and she’s not lost any weight in a month because she hasn’t been eating right it will only work if your eating a healthy diet.

TeaAndTattoos · 30/03/2025 04:05

Readingismyfirstlove · 29/03/2025 21:41

Just go online and order it. Of course you won't get It free from your GP but complaining isn't solving anything.

I've been on wegivy since August. You put In Height and wright it calcuates bmi and you send 2 photos.

Just try it.

Please don’t encourage people to buy it online that’s really dangerous and stupid it’s much safer to get it from the pharmacy where you can be monitored while you’re using it.

LadyOfTheCanyon · 30/03/2025 06:27

Weight loss is something like 90% down to your diet, so the first thing I would do is look at cutting back so much exercise ( unless you hugely enjoy every second of it, but you say you’re exhausted) and count calories like a MF. You don’t mention how much you’re eating - you say a lot but have you checked your TDEE and gone down about 500cals below that? Cut out alcohol, sugar and refined carbs, drink a couple of litres of water a day and prioritise protein and fibre in meals.

To be fair, that’s the life of most people on WLIs - the drug increases satiety and slows gastric emptying, it doesn’t make you lose weight. There seems to be a lot of misconceptions around this area. WLIs make you feel that it is physically impossible to carry on eating past the point of satiety so you naturally eat less, and for some people there comes less interest for greasy or sugary foods. But it would still be possible to make bad food choices on Mounjaro and sabotage your own weight loss.

I also think age has a lot to do with the amount of weight people seem to lose - I see a lot of women in their 20s and early 30s on social media who are shedding weight fast - but then so could I at 25 if I went down to 1000-1200 calories a day. Your metabolism takes a hit as you age, so if you did everything above AND used a WLI, you might hit a 1-2 pound loss per week. Which is the recommended target to avoid gallstones, loose skin etc.

Im not trying to gatekeep the stuff, I’m on it myself. I’ve been overweight my whole life to some degree or another. Using it doesn’t stop me fancying chips, for example. But my weight loss has increased when I make better choices about the food I eat, even if it amounts to the same calories I stay within each day. And fundamentally, when I look at my family and my ancestors, we have all been short chunky peasant stock for generations -I have the DNA and fat stores of someone who needs to survive freezing Highland winters on nothing but neeps and tatties and the odd rat. You can’t outrun your genetics.

WLIs are not to be taken lightly. By all means lie on your form, exaggerate your weight etc in order to be approved. But be aware you’ll most probably need to be on it indefinitely to keep the weight off. Your life won’t magically transform by losing the weight and then you can just go back to how you were before because you will immediately put the weight back on if you haven’t used the time on mounjaro to reorganise your attitude to food. We all need far, far fewer calories than we think we do, which is the depressing truth of the matter.

I recognise that my attitude to food is disordered and am using my time on MJ to help with that. But I also know that I will probably have to be on it forever because I have deep rooted issues around eating that won’t just be solved by losing four stone either.

OiBonita · 30/03/2025 07:09

I don’t agree with WLis (I really do believe in years to come there’s going to be a whole host of issues caused by these drugs), but I can of course see and understand the appeal to people who are obese. And I do agree with your logic about obtaining them at your bmi.

Shwish · 30/03/2025 07:44

PinkArt · 29/03/2025 23:58

What you are jealous of is obese people, who are only able to successfully able to manage our weight down to a healthy level through using prescription medication with multiple side effects. That's what has bizarrely become aspirational (while also at the same time being derided as the lazy fatties 'cheating and not losing weight the proper way').
Nothing stopping anyone eating their way to obesity, but I really wouldn't recommend it to anyone.

I'm not sure this comment is fair. People who qualify at the lower BMI of 27 really aren't in a different position to me. I am almost definitely having the exact same food issues as they are, the only reason I'm not the same size is because of the amount of exercise I do. THAT'S why I'm jealous and want to try it to. Because of COURSE it's easier if you don't have to burn 1000 calories a day through exercise to stay just under the obese level. It's the food noise I want gone. Same as you, I'm sure.

OP posts:
xanthomelana · 30/03/2025 07:53

When I started taking it my BMI was 38. It’s now 28 and I’m still losing but it’s took a year, not everyone responds quickly to the drug and some people can’t tolerate it and the side effects it gives so what would you do if that happens to you and you have put on weight for nothing then have to try and shift it on your own?

BillyBoe46 · 30/03/2025 07:57

You need to weigh up the risks versus the benefits. In your case, I think the weight loss benefits you your health wouldn't warrant the risk to your pancreas and gall bladder. My mum was given it for her diabetes (she's a little overweight, but it wasn't given for weight loss but to help lower her HBC1), and she had terrible side effects. She was covered in a rash. Her eye lids swelled up. She felt depressed, irritable, and anxious. Everyone wants a quick fix but I wouldn't be injecting shit that could have serious health consequences to lose a few lbs when you could do it via diet and exercise. If you had 40kg to lose and that weight was impacting your mobility, heart health maybe but not in your case.

Shwish · 30/03/2025 07:59

Honestly I guess I'd just go back to the same level of exercise I'm currently doing. And try (again) to be better with food. But I know that bit won't work. I just can't do it.
I'm sure it would work for me. Metformin worked for me (I was taking it to help conceive, not for weight loss) The weight fell off and I just wasn't really thinking of food the whole time. But I have asked for that to be prescribed again and understandably the doctor won't because I'm not diabetic.
There really isn't a logic - that I can see - that I can't take it with a BMI of 26(ish) but someone who was previously 27 can take it down to a BMI of 22 and then maintain.

OP posts:
MjStartsToday · 30/03/2025 08:02

I had the exact same.feelings as you OP.

So I just bumped up my weight on the online form and I've now been on mounjaro for 4 months.

Life changing! I love fitting back into my smaller clothes!

I've had no side effects really beyond some tiredness at the start.

Cliffwheat00 · 30/03/2025 08:06

I was on Wegovy for a while; the side effects for me personally were awful. Shame though as I lost 3 stone in 2 months. But I did some research and gave berberine a go after that. It definitely makes me less hungry and when I think of food it makes me feel sick rather than the ‘mmm’. Maybe worth some research for you?

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