To consider Mounjaro to lose a stone

[Piccalino3]

Before we get started, I appreciate that I may not even be able to find anywhere to prescribe it…..

For context my BMI is 23, but I am a stone heavier in the last 6 months and just feel so shit. I can’t stop eating absolute rubbish all the time due to stress.

I have successfully dieted in the past and lost weight, but peri, going through a very brutal divorce from a horrible man and all the uncertainty it brings, solo parenting 3 young kids (2 with SEN who are in crisis) and trying to work full time just means I have no capacity at all. I never get a moment to myself and am just utterly mentally and physically exhausted. I have the kids 95% of the time as their Dad refuses to see them apart from every other weekend.

I want to feel good again, in my clothes, I want to stop
annoying myself with terrible stress related food choices. My cholesterol is high and this is not helping.

Any words of wisdom? Not even sure I would find anywhere that would prescribe it, I’d much rather rather just lose the weight but just can’t right now.

Words of wisdom please anyone?

Did this too, took it for 6 weeks only, at lowest dose and dropped a stone. Have kept it off, it was a game changer for me, it gave me SO much back so I could get myself sorted out.

If you have mounjaro money couldn’t you put it towards getting some help around the house to give yourself more time.
Most people I know on mounjaro, myself included still calorie count and exercise.
It’s not a quick jab you forget about then lose weight. It didn’t start working for me until I was on the full dose about nine months in. It’s worked more quickly for most of my friends but they’ve all had side effects which I haven’t really.
Calorie counting doesn’t have to be hard. My DD lost a stone by looking up the calories of two breakfasts and lunches and buying one of the new M&S ready meals for dinner. She works two jobs and is also studying so has little time for cooking. It probably took her the same amount of time to research as writing this post took you and cost loads less than mounjaro.

I did it to go from 9stone to just under 8stone. Worked amazingly.
I didn't buy it from some dodgy person - all online pharmacy but just faked the tests.
I got down to 7.5 stone. I felt great.
Then I stopped being able to poo... I now have damage to my sigmoid colon and have to take laxatives for life... I have pain every day and worry about travel.

I also put all the weight back on with in months of coming off it.

Good luck.

Unfortunately you have to prioritise it and find the time for it. There is no easy way. I personally would start by finding some time to exercise a few times a week as that will do so much for your mental and physical health and you may see some pounds dropping as a side effect

No judgement from me on the moral side. Plenty of people on a weight loss journey with WLIs are down to their goal weight and still injecting, and you can be certain Hollywood celebs and wealthy people in general are using the drugs to lose tiny amounts of weight. I don’t agree with the attitude that only obese people “deserve” the help of medication to lose weight.

The more important point is safety … only you can know how comfortable you are taking risks with your health.

I see where the OP is coming from. I think about it a bit myself (I could do with losing a stone myself, though I'm not officially overweight).

It seems like lots of people are getting it on the black market somehow. I'm not sure how anyone goes about this or whether it's a good idea, but it's definitely happening.

I think just do some minimal calorie counting OP.
Count one or two breakfasts and use a scoop or Tupperware to measure it so it's quick on day to day basis.
Do the same with two lunches and three dinners. Batch cook said dinners and portion in freezer. Eat one every night.
After you've done the initial calorie counting you don't need to do it again.

It'll be boring of course, but low mental effort after you've done the initial weighing the first day. If you aim for a pound a week loss, you should be much more comfortable in your clothes within a month, so hopefully you can be bored for that long! Then you can decide if you want to continue to ideal weight or not.

The benefits of WLI outweigh the risks if you are obese but not if you are a healthy weight. I am on MJ but when I started, my BMI was 37.

While for some, they loose weight without doing anything else (especially at the start), it wouldn't have worked for me if I hadn't calorie counted alongside it so it may be pointless anyway if you have no capacity for that. Ideally you also need to exercise.

You need to get your head in the game and if it isn't right now, then give yourself a break. Just deal with it as soon as you feel able. Don't leave it like I did. I put weight on after separating from my husband and then in covid and for a while was loosing 10lb and gaining 12. Over 7 years it got completely out of hand.

Minor adjustments may stop further gains so maybe start there.

BMI of 23 means you are a health weight..
Don't put unnecessary drugs into your body. You don't need it and you may find in the long term it makes things much worse

That’s really interesting that it took so long to work for you.

re the Mounjaro money, so, one evening a week to go to the gym would end up costing me membership £50, plus at least £160 a month just for an hour of exercise. One hour exercise a week isn’t going to do anything. I think we need to be realistic about this. I have no family help at all and the youngest is 6 so can’t stay on his own.

It’s not the calorie counting I can’t do, it’s the stress eating when I can’t get kids to bed, when they’ve attacked me, when I’m told I’m a bitch by my 12 year old, or when my 6 year old can’t attend school reliably or my 12 year old refuses to go into school. Respectfully, my life is probably quite different to what it was years ago when I had more capacity.

The health effects scare me and @wishingonastar101I’m so sorry. Why did that happen to you? That sounds terrible.

I’m similar. Had a really rough year last year and just ate shite all year. Weighed myself at the start of the year and I was about 22lbs heavier than I would like to be. Started my diet Jan 1st, very quickly lost 8lbs through restrictive calorie counting and then just couldn’t keep it up and I’ve stalled. So I’m sitting at about a stone over where I want to be at a BMI of 24.
First thing I would gently (and completely hypocritically) say is not to stress a stone too much. Especially since you’re still a healthy weight. You’ve got so much going on, cut yourself some slack.
Productive tips for the question you actually asked. No you can’t get mounjaro and shouldn’t but you know that.
Dont focus on dieting. Just don’t buy crap in your weekly shop. Maybe if you can find 15 mins one night you could do a very simple meal plan for the week or even use an app to do it for you. I think MyFitnessPal premium has that function.
How about fasting? I’m doing 14/10 at the minute to try and kick start that last stone and the calorie calculation for the ten hours is quite generous so I don’t really feel like I’m dieting and don’t have to put any thought into it. I just don’t eat between 6pm and 8am and try to eat as healthy as possible the other hours!
Be kind to yourself, life is hard right now but it won’t always be like this.

It’s the story of my life that things don’t work as they should for me!

I wasn’t meaning putting the money towards a gym. It sounds like you have so much to do after work I was thinking more of a cleaner, getting someone to do the laundry or a meal prep service to take the pressure off you on that side of things.
It sounds like you’re having a really shitty time of it. I’m sorry for you. I can completely empathise with the stress eating, it’s a hard cycle to break. I can see why you are considering the jabs.

OP, I am similar with a very hectic life and no head space.

Tried WLI for 6 months, they didn’t work for me on the lower doses and I didn’t like the side effects I was getting - nor the escalating cost! - so I stopped using them.

Fasting is the only thing I can cope with! You just don’t eat for a specified amount of time so no need to worry about calorie counting or cooking even for me some days (I do 3x42 hr per week). The first week will probably be tough with cravings but then the cravings disappear .

I find that abstinence is much easier than moderation!

I fully sympathise OP, there is finally a solution to losing weight easily and it’s hard for (normal- as in not rich) people to obtain. Plenty of very slim celebrities are getting a hold of it.

I went on it with a BMI of 25. I basically took some very unflattering photos and was able to exaggerate my figures to a BMI of 28, I didn’t declare any health conditions and was surprisingly prescribed (thought I had to have health conditions). This is with one of the big reputable companies.

The thing is I’ve found it works really well with me, I already eat relatively healthy (hence being a healthy BMI my whole life until this slight slip), I exercise regularly so am keeping muscle mass. It’s just curbed the snacks and seems to magically work anyway with zero effort (presumably little effort as little effort was required).

Weight came off steadily, no side effects (probably helped by already having a decent diet, you do feel it if you over indulge), dipped into 5mg for a month but frankly could have stayed on 2.5mg.

Back to a much healthier BMI. Feeling amazing, no long term issues as I was only on for 2 months. And am keeping it off for now as I felt ‘reset’ but wouldn’t hesitate to take a again for a short while if I could get a hold of it.

Hi OP. I too have a pretty shitty life at the minute so sympathise

i actually find the control calorie counting gives me quite comforting as it feels like the only parting of my life I can control. I’m not strict on myself so if I eat more one day or I am going out for whatever reason I just don’t worry about it.

agree with pp that taking meds you don’t need is never wise. Give yourself 10 mins a day to plan your meals etc - get ready meaning you don’t have time to meal prep. Simple breakfasts (I make overnight oats so easy) and easy lunches

i also sympathise about the kids behaviour - it is really tough to switch the emotions off and it hurts when you are the family whipping boy

I’ve lost a significant amount of weight over the last few months by calorie counting and it really hasn’t been at all onerous to do. I downloaded the NutraCheck app the day I started and it has been very easy to use. I’ve still not found anything that isn’t in their database, and it takes literally a few seconds to add the food that I eat to my total for the day. It also has a barcode scanner for any pre packaged foods, and you can set it to record calories, fat, carbohydrates, fluids etc. it cost me about £10 for a year and is probably the best value for money thing I’ve ever purchased.

That BMI isn't overweight, is it?

Why would you want to take a horrible medication you're not even overweight

I know it's horrible. I'm on it! And about to stop because it's horrible.

They shouldn't even be a consideration for someone like you and where would you get it anyway only somewhere dodgy! They could be selling you anything and you're injecting it into yourself

My friends husband started the keto diet at the beginning of November 2025 and was 202lbs, he's now 173lbs and enjoyed a 2 week break over Christmas and New Year.... Just saying as an alternative to the injections..🤷🏼‍♂️

I would give anything to have a b.M I of 23. Mine is 28.

You won't get the drug and I think you need support in your life.Rather than weight loss drugs. So you lose the stone.What I guarantee you won't feel any better.But as soon as you stop taking the drug, you will regain all of the weight and more and also risk some terrible side effects.

A friend of mine is regularly sick and she's lost all her motivation and all her energy.Because she can't eat anything. She won't stop taking it though.

OP I can empathise with how hard things are. I am totally sole parent to 3 children (2 with SEND) and there is no contact with their dad due to safeguarding concerns: I have no family in the UK it really is just me. He continues to abuse me through all and any means since I left him. I know how relentless it must feel, managing your emotions, work, the household, and on top of that your children’s emotions and processing etc. it’s a hell of a lot to cope with and despite feeling really crap you are coping with it. You are getting up every day, doing what needs to be done and engaging with all the support available while also keeping your lives running. Well done for that, I think it is important that you acknowledge the pressure you are under and how well you are doing despite it.

I hear you about wanting to feel better in yourself with weight and not feeling able to find the time. It’s so hard. I get up and get on my treadmill for 30mins every morning at 6. I sometimes have to drag myself to do it, but I never regret it and this helps motivate me when I’d rather stay in bed. Carving out some time for yourself is so important with all the stress you must be carrying, but it doesn’t have to be punitive. Try to be kind to yourself. Don’t beat yourself up for what you are all going through. You are carrying your kids through fire right now and even though you are running on fumes you are still doing it. Try to treat yourself the way you would treat a friend. I’m sorry if this is coming across as patronising - it’s the advice I was given that I struggled (and still struggle now) to follow, but I do believe it is this that will make a tangible difference to your recovery and healing. Try to give yourself a break, even if that means just having a break from the negative self talk and the consideration of all the struggles you are facing. Try to flip the focus and look at the positives and strengths. I’m willing you on from afar, happier days lie ahead.

I wouldn't as it can have serious health consequences. Which is ok to take on if you were facing serious health consequences from being very overweight anyway.. but if you've only a stone to lose i wouldn't risk it.

I went on mounjaro and I was obese and I had quite horrific side effects that im still recovering from a year later. And I was only on the lowest dose for 6 weeks.
For some its absolutely fine but it IS a risk

It’s not for that small weight loss as there are risks that are only considered worth it if you are morbidly obese

Just for balance / another perspective - I've been on it 2 years (since it was ozempic) at a pretty stable and slim weight. I found a clinician who would prescribe a maintenance dose.

It's transformed my life. I always had very disordered eating, binging, purging - now I just eat normal portions of healthy food and drink way less alcohol. I don't much think about food between meals, before I was always starving hungry. My mental and physical health is the best it's ever been and yes, I look great in a bikini.

Tosh to the 'terrible side effects' - I know loads of people who take it like I do. The only 'side effect' is the one it's intended for - it makes you less hungry.

If you can get it, do. Your body, your choice. I imagine you have already considered the options like 'eat less' or 'go to the gym' or maybe (shock) tried them already.

It’s so hard OP!

One good recommendation for losing weight when you don’t have a lot of headspace for it is meal repetition, lots of people who have lost a good amount of weight would have eg the same breakfast and lunch every day so after the fist time there’s no calorie counting required.

When you’ve got a lot going on it’s so hard to get into the headspace of losing weight but the only way to lose weight is to eat less and having a lot going on doesn’t make you eat more. Sorry to be brutal! Of course there’s emotional eating and the fact that it’s easier to grab a takeaway than cook a meal but even an oven pizza can be part of a calorie controlled diet.

I am losing weight myself at the moment and you do have to constantly make good choices when it would be easier to make ‘bad’ ones.

No you aren’t obese, you are a healthy weight.