Continuing Mounjaro Thread 11

[FlappyFish]

Please note: Mounjaro can only be taken if your BMI is above 30.

Pointers for newbies:

1 - For taking your first dose you need to twist the pen a lot to get to 1! The instructions say prime each time you take a dose, but actually Eli Lilly have confirmed you only need to prime for the first ever use of a pen. (The video posted says every use, but this isn't true!)

2 - When injecting, hold down the button until the number goes back to 0. Once at 0, keep holding down the button and count to 5 with the needle still in so no medication is lost!

3 - Your first dose may not have an immediate effect. For some people the effects build slowly. It could take 3 or 4 days to notice anything, it could take a few weeks. Some people don't feel the meds working until they get to 5mg. See titration chart which shows how the medication builds up in your system. Also below you can plot the effect of your doses.
glp1plotter.com/

4 - 2.5mg isn't a therapeutic dose, meaning you aren’t meant to lose on 2.5mg. You need to start on 2.5mg to get your body used to the drug and gradually introduce it into your system and get used to any side effects.

5 - Not everyone loses a lot in the first few weeks. Don't feel discouraged if you don't lose a lot initially. Again, you might need a higher dose to start losing. Also, inches can be lost without anything showing on the scales. Start your journey by taking measurements and check them as you go along.

6 - If you do lose a lot in the first few weeks, please don't assume you will continue losing at this rate. The first few weeks it is usually water weight that is lost, after than a good weight loss is about 2lbs a week. Some weeks you might not lose anything, but this is ok too…again, taking measurements might show inches lost instead.

7 - Constipation, coldness, nausea, diarrhea, headaches, aches, are side effects. There may be be other side effects also. Read info here :

www.medicines.org.uk/emc/product/15481/pil#about-medicine

8 - Once you take your first dose you can choose to keep your pen in the fridge or somewhere else. It's up to you.

9 - Don't reuse any needles as this could risk infection. If you damage a needle or one isn't working, you can buy a pack of about 100 spares. www.chemist-4-u.com/carepoint-pen-needles-31g-4mm-pack-of-100?gclid=Cj0KCQjwiYOxBhC5ARIsAIvdH51rLZBVFQxuvS7mDJooegtK8BMiyT0PwREMRHhH_1atfQIo8TEbsmkaAkA0EALw_wcB

Also there is a 5th dose in each pen. To extract it you can either try a hard twist or use an insulin needle.
medbasic.co.uk/bd-micro-fine-30g-1ml-syringes-needles

10 - Protein is important as eating less protein can cause muscle wastage and hair loss. Try to have at least 100g a day.

11 - Some natural sources of protein:
www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/best-sources-protein
www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/321522#high-protein-foods

12 - You can use supplements, some that people use are magnesium(for sleep and constipation), protein(to reduce muscle wastage), collagen (skin elasticity), aloe vera(for constipation), electrolytes.

13 - Drink lota of water. Water helps with the weight loss. Drink at least 2ltrs a day. Preferably 3ltrs.

14 - Don't be afraid to feel hungry. It is entirely normal and healthy to feel hungry. Just eat something. Treat it as an opportunity to start good habits around hunger. Eat a nice balanced snack or a meal if it's a meal time. It's ok.

15 - Does it makes any difference where you inject? yes it does! Drugs get absorbed at different rates depending on injection site

In order of fastest absorption, it goes:
• Tummy
• Arms
• Thighs
furthet reading about injection sites and the effects: www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/316618

16 - Abdominal side-effects are much easier to control with smaller meals. For example, having 4 small meals in the day vs 2 big meals can have an improvement in nausea and burps.

17 - You can track your calories / protein on apps such as My fitnessPal, Carb Manager or Nutracheck. Nutracheck is quite useful and easy to find foods /build recipes.

18 - Some of the places you can order from are:

MedExpress 2.5mg and 5mg. £149.99. 7.5mg £169. Use code STARTNOW. Ask for other codes if that doesn't work.
The Family Chemist 2.5mg and 5mg -£149. 7.5mg £169.
Simple online pharmacy - £159 2.5mg £179 5mg
Bolt pharmacy 2.5mg £125, 5mg £179. 7.5mg £189
Asda 2.5mg and 5mg £184. 7.5mg £189
Boots £219 +
Chemist4U £179 +
Superdrugs

19 - If you want to switch suppliers, make sure you have pics of your Mounjaro box with your name and dose. This will come in useful when other suppliers ask for evidence.

1st thread:

www.mumsnet.com/talk/weight_loss_chat/5007744-mourjano-starting-soon?page=1

2nd thread:

www.mumsnet.com/talk/weight_loss_chat/5028495-continuing-murnjaropart-2?page=1

3rd thread:

www.mumsnet.com/talk/weight_loss_chat/5037623-continuing-mounjaropart-3?page=1

4th thread:
www.mumsnet.com/talk/weight_loss_chat/5044316-continuing-mounjaropart-4?page=1

5th thread:
www.mumsnet.com/talk/weight_loss_chat/5048290-continuing-mounjaropart-5?page=1

6th thread:
www.mumsnet.com/talk/weight_loss_chat/5057916-continuing-mounjaropart-6?page=1

7th thread:
www.mumsnet.com/talk/weight_loss_chat/5062935-continuing-mounjaropart-7?page=1

8th thread:
www.mumsnet.com/talk/weight_loss_chat/5068850-continuing-mounjaropart-8?page=1

9th thread
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/weight_loss_chat/5074054-continuing-mounjaropart-9

10th thread
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/weight_loss_chat/5080755-continuing-mounjaro-thread-10

Thread for newbies just starting out:

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/weight_loss_ch
at/5057475-mounjaro-and-wegovy-newbies-april-2024

Courtesy of Flappy, deputising for the wonderful Obsidian.

I've seen people switching from Wegovy have had to get to higher doses for Mounjaro to work. I know you weren't yet on higher doses of Wegovy but with the month wait inbetween (when you still have some in your system) and then starting on the lowest dose of Mounjaro it's almost like you have been on the lowest does of a GLP-1 for several months so it's not surprising for it to not have much effect.

I really don't know but I suspect if you were to switch back to the dose of Wegovy you were on chances are you would find it is ineffective now too, so give the higher doses of Mounjaro a chance, frustrating though I know it is. Perhaps you could use the bonus dose to move up a little faster if you feel it's appropriate?

There is only really data comparing 2.4mg of Wegovy with 12-15mg of MJ in which MJ was deemed more effective.

But if you’ve never got to the therapeutic dost of Wegovy, and lost 2stone in an eye wateringly short space of time, why on earth would you change drugs
to loose weight even faster?

Thanks, I just wish I could find out more about this given all the talk about glp-1 meds and muscle loss. As far as I can tell GLP-1 does reduce leptin which is positive.

From what I have read of other people's experiences, it seems that if you were on wegovy and switched, you seem to have to get to the higher doses of mounjaro to start feelings the effects. Maybe your body has built a tolerance to glp medication so you need a higher dose to feel the same effects you did on wegovy. I think you need to persevere. Build up to 5mh/7.5mg and you should start feeling more of the benefits

I'm up at stupid o clock again. Jetlag is still kicking me in the ass!

I am ready to confess my weight gain from holiday!

So Monday morning I decided to brave the scales after returning from my holiday(Sunday late night). I was planning to wait a day or two so I wouldn't get too much of a shock, but decided to just weigh to hold myself accountable.
I weighed 14st 8lbs 😱. I was 13st 13lbs the day I left. Now I knew a lot of this was probably water weight but did feel it was mostly my fault from eating /drinking too much on holiday so decided it was mostly fat.

Since then I have been weighing daily.
Tuesday I lost 3lbs I was 14st 5lbs
Wednesday I lose 2lbs I was 14st 3lbs

Weighed myself this morning and I am
14st 1lb! So 2lbs from my start weight in less than a week! I guess most of the gain must have been water. I am surprised how quickly the weight has come off again. I thought it would take at least a few weeks. Maybe it still will and I will now stall for the rest of the week, but I am happy how fast it's gone back down again.

From being on here and seeing others that have come back from holiday and have barely gained or actually lost, I felt like a big failure! So wanted to come on here and share this for those that might go on holiday in future and worry about gaining etc. So even if you do gain, it is probably mostly water weight and will come off pretty quickly anyway.

Have a good Thursday all 😊

@GingerNugget
There are 2 books by Dr Andrew Jenkinson - Why we eat (too much) and How to eat which go into depth about sugar, insulin, UPFs, etc.

I listened to them both just as I was starting MJ and they’ve been really helpful in curbing my sugar addiction.

I haven’t eaten any UPFs since starting MJ either and am now totally cooking from scratch.

@ObsidianTree i always find the plane causes me to retain water and swell. So glad you lost it all quickly, great result after a holiday!

Yes I have super dry skin at the moment.

Yes I think this must be it. Crazy what going on a plane can do!

Long haul flight, salt, carbs, maybe sugar can all cause temporary weight gain. Glad it's all pretty much disappeared for you @ObsidianTree.

I was thinking earlier about suppliers and prices - I think about this far too much now I no longer think about food! Anyway, unlike Bolt and MedExpress, ZAVA did not require a photo of my driver's license.

I also have on my ZAVA account a copy of the letter for my GP / to use if traveling with my pen. I think it says I should give it to my doctor so I am not sure they are going to do it. My NHS account already has 2 MJ letters from other suppliers but am now wondering if this is because the requirement is to notify when you start on 2.5 and 5 but by 10mg they know there will already be a letter on file at the GP so the supplier isn't obliged to notify again. Will have to see if ZAVA send it to the surgery anyway.

Voy are driving me cuckoo...
Anyone had any luck with getting through to them on the phone ever?!

I've recommended a couple of friends, and so have a decent discount, but can't order on the website, says to call them, but they don't answer 🤬

Also annoyed that my weight has gone up 3lb since Saturday..... hoping that will disappear before I lose all hope and raid the cheese & wine 🤣

Weigh in day for me at the end of week 2. 1.4kg loss this week, total loss since starting of 3.6kg.

Morning all.

I am just being quiet as I am rather reflective at the moment. This week’s check in.

SW:14.1
CW: 10.13

BMI is now 24.

Morning all… a scale victory this morning, I’m down a kilo this week & my BMI is now 31.7. Feels unreal.

And a NSV… went round to my friend’s last night, who was the first person to notice my weight loss last month and he said he could really, really tell, which was nice. Then he said ‘right. What is it?? Ozempic? So I told him MJ and he was fascinated. I never expect judgement from him and never get it, just total support. Anyway, it was nice to chat GLP-1 science for a bit.

My next mini goal is a party in 2 weeks. I’d like to be about 77kg for that.

well done losers!
I better weigh in. Feeling ovulatory so not a good start.

Thank you @AgathaMystery and @Wonkypictureframe
You are both of course correct and have got me thinking. Why would I want to hide this from my DR? I suppose it's the old shame or doing it the "easy way".
I dont think this but we all know that many people do.
Anyway, cheers for making me mull it all over. Yes, I do want my Dr to know.

Morning
It's now been over 24 hours without D or V. Yippee! Near total appetite suppression which I am finding disconcerting & also potentially dangerous as, as always happens when I've had gastric issues, I have a mental block about consuming anything so am having to really force myself to even drink water. Yesterday was very bland food; today I am going to make sure I have a day of proper meals involving protein & green veg.
Unsurprisingly, I have lost weight and am now at one of those meaningful weights as it's the same as the heaviest I ever was before I had DC and also the weight I was when I first joined nutracheck a couple of years ago.
An NSV - in my gym class last night, we did a 2 min plank and I found it noticeably easier.
Have a good day, everyone

@ObsidianTree you must delighted to have dropped down again so soon. That's an amazing result for a long holiday and in a country where the food is so delicious
@FlappyFish you have done so well and are a pioneer for so many of us on here. Your reflections will be of benefit to all of us I am sure
Has anyone seen the poster who had to go into hospital intermittently recently? I remember her saying she was about to reduce her morphine dose again which was amazing but was struggling with some other side effects

I think it’s deep, internalised shame. Shame because of how society views people with obesity/people who are fat. Our own internalised shame at having gotten fat, and our lived experiences of being fat.

I bet everyone in this thread is an expert dieter. WW? SW? Keto? Fast 800? Intermittent Fasting? Cambridge? Where do we begin? I bet most of us know the SW points in a Fererro rocher AND how to make our own from Weetabix and wallpaper paste.

And now we have discovered a medication that means we can successfully loose weight. We are being mindful about food and looking to long term goals and muscle building etc. And for most of us, this is the first time ever we have dared to hope it might work.

So there is a lot of shame. We are the first, remember. We are the women that our GP will tell another GP about. Every time we share this with our GP it makes it easier for the next person.

It’s a lot!!

Have had a 2lb gain today (husbands birthday had me eating a kfc and 2238calories in total)
I know it's not real weight gain and thanks to Mounjaro I can keep going and not give up.

I do wish I had more appetite suppression though.

@AgathaMystery you are so right about the shame. There is also the shame in taking medication from those that 'really' need it. I qualify for weight loss surgery on the NHS, why am I not seen as needing it too?

Ah how annoying for you - but glad it’s not just me. It’s not itchy so don’t think it’s a reaction… time to stock up on a good moisturiser 😂

Another 0.5lb down this morning which takes me to bang on 11 stone, I haven't been this light in about 6 years!

NSV: I'm no longer a sweaty, panting mess after a 35 minute fat burn session on the cross trainer 😀

Morning all. I've not been able to keep up with the threads recently. Have been diving in when I can though.

I've now lost two stone (in roughly 2.5 months). When I think back to the weeks of plateauing early on and my determination to just keep plodding onwards it seems unreal. I'm in shock that I've got here.

I do still have a long way to go. Keep telling myself that the time will pass anyway so I need to stick at it.

I'm on week three of 7.5mg and have another 7.5mg after that. I'm trying not to go too fast up the doses but I'm starting to get hunger and food noise returning towards the end of the week.

When I start my next 7.5mg pen if I feel the effects starting to drop off even more I may bring my doses slightly more closely together. Not sure if anyone has tried this? Do let me know if you found it was a good/bad idea.

@AgathaMystery I want to nominate you for 'Most Insightful and Sensible Poster' of Thread 11!

So often when I read something that I think is so true or so useful on this thread it has been posted by you. Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us as we realise finally winning the struggle with our bodies doesn't mean we automatically solve the struggle with our minds. That last post is a case in point. Thanks!