Continuing Mounjaro... Part 22

[Jimmyneutronsforehead]

It's thread 22 time! As usual please fill up the previous thread before we make a start on this one.

Huge congratulations to every one who has made losses, and well done to those who have graduated the mounjaro club! We would love you to come back and share your tips for maintenance so we can all continue to learn and grow from each other.

Pointers for newbies:
Please note: Mounjaro will only be be prescribed initially if your BMI is above 30. If you have additional health conditions you can get the medication with a BMI 27. (Prediabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol or heart problems)
Mumsnet does not allow promo codes. Please do not post any. If you want one, ask and someone will PM you a code or there are now threads on the promo page that have codes for Mounjaro link below:
Promo codes :
https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/promo-codes-bargains
Linking Wallywobbles site, as theyve very kindly compiled all threads so far, pointers for newbies, weightloss tracker, links to discount codes, tips and tricks and high protein recipes.
Site with all the info :
https://wattnext.notion.site/e880d9342b7a4bab94c244b34e0e5841?v=cc1edc3f1c2b41dab3011c8d9063df0a

Miss Mounjaro UK has the most up to date price comparison charts: https://www.missmounjarouk.com/

This one's the most recent I will also post the image.

Just to copy from the previous thread as it's highly useful information:
https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/enjoy-food/carbohydrates-and-diabetes/carbs-and-cooking
https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/cooling-resistant-starch#TOC_TITLE_HDR_6

MabelSpan:
For those who love their carbs, I grow my own veg, including lots of potatoes so eat them most days. You can dramatically increase the amount of resistant starch, a type of fibre, in your potatoes, rice and pasta and bread simply by cooking then cooling, ideally overnight or freezing in the case of bread and then reheating or toasting in the case of bread.

Please remember to do this safely if this is something you would like to do.

In light of being in close proximity to someone who has had complications from Mounjaro, I just want to say for any newbies: We are a wonderful community of Mounjaro users with a wealth of knowledge between us, but we're not a medical service. We are all people who have acknowledged the risk to benefit ratio, and are following our clinicians advice. If you do have any serious side effects listed on the information sheet that comes with your medication, please seek medical advice.

There are no questions too silly, no loss too small to celebrate, no hurdle not worth the challenge and huge congratulations to everyone who has made it this far in their journey and once again, welcome to thread 22.

I think one of the reasons I’m very cautiously optimistic about maintenance is that I’ve never really yo yo’d. I was a size 8-10 throughout my 20s and early 30s. Then a series of life events and health conditions saw me put on 3 stone in my mid 30s. I then maintained that (too high) weight for 6 years, before MJ. I know it’s going to be a lot harder to stay slim than it was before I put the weight on, but I’m prepared for that, I think!

From what I've read around hair loss from dieting is that it's your body in panic mode but that in time it calms down and the hair grows back. One of the main things suggested seems to be prioritising eating lots of protein. And a supplement like Viviscal can help slow down shedding.

I think it was @MounjaroMunchie mentioned medication. The one her DH is on is a monoclonal antibody drug which will not be used lightly and they are usually reserved for "if all else fails"
Just as an aside, there is no antihistamine that is stronger than any other, it is just what suits you and how your body reacts. Loratadine, cetirizine and terfenadine are all similar but worth trying in case one gives a better result. They used to say that the older antihistamines like chlorphenamine have a stronger effect on skin but they do cause drowsiness and I'm not sure if updated evidence has disproved that.

@Soulstirring I have seen a lot of people mention Biotin for hair but no personal experience

Sorry for all your struggles… but it did make me feel better to read this! I have never been a healthy weight, but in 2022/2023 through a lot of hard work I lost 2 stone. Then over the course of 9 months I regained all of that plus another stone - so 3 stone in 9 months ☹️ the earlier post about the pizzas etc I don’t identify with (although that is no disrespect to those posters of course!), it honestly wasn’t like that, it was a couple of extra cakes during the week, an evening snack, a slice of garlic bread with my pasta etc. I have been so upset about how easy it was to gain such a large amount of weight in such a short period of time, and sort of wish I had some great food memories to show for it 😂 I also rarely drink alcohol in the house.

I have just this week got back to the weight I was before I started gaining, and I have mixed feelings about this. I feel great of course and relieved that I’ve “paid it back” but also really sad that I’ve put in so much effort and I’m still only where I was last year. Maintenance really frightens me because of how easily I regained the weight last year, my husband has said similar to me, that I may need to accept that I might have to be on and off this medication longer term, though I would like to try without MJ. Thankfully I still need to lose 4st just to not be obese so it’s not something I need to worry about for a while 😂

I hope my post doesn’t offend anybody, I don’t mean it to!

Has anyone else found their weight loss stalled/slowed down on 5mg, then once they went up to 7.5mg, things started moving then?

Have you had a look at minoxidil?

I got it from superdrugs online hair loss pharmacy section after I'd had DS in 2019, have been considering it again but just don't know if I can afford the expense right now. The mousse also made my hair very greasy, but I think you can get an oral tablet of minoxidil these days instead. Basically it stimulates dormant follicles to start producing so can make hair grow back thicker.

I have also got some hair mask with amodimethicone in. I think it's called Fino, by a Japanese brand called shishito. It was a bit of a splurge, but it has helped keep the hair I've got in a good condition so it doesn't snag and snap prematurely. Really any conditioner or mask with amodimethicone in should do the same job. I also changed my normal hairbrush to a wet brush.

I can't afford the bonding treatments like redken or olaplex but they helped me years ago too, although I am loving the Fino hair mask right now enough to not care that I can't splash on expensive branded hair care.

I also got a satin bonnet but I can't get the thing to stay on my head without giving me a headache. It might just be my head shape because I also can't get soft headbands to stay on my head either. If you can though, worth it to make sure your hair isn't snagging. I have had much better luck with Bun Bons but the con to that pro is that I just don't have enough time on an evening to commit to putting them in. They do only take 5 minutes though, I just mis-spend my free time or assume I will have more free time later and then never do.

Never leave your hair wet but try not to use heat, and don't wear the same hairstyle if you tie your hair up, repeatedly as repeated bobble tension can also cause premature snappage and I've noticed that it's been worse for me on mounjaro.

I'm not a hair expert, but I have lost a lot of hair, and I've been making a little diary of tips and tricks to try and I will also be adding them to thread 23.

I am a blonde haired white woman though so if your hair isn't straight to mildly wavy, you might have other hair care needs. If any one here has different hair textures and has some wonderful tips for others please let me know because I'd love to make a help sheet that has something for everyone on it.

Just my two cents on the topic of maintenance:

While I have also yo-yo’d up and down the past decade or more, today I am the lowest weight I’ve been in the past 10 years, thanks to MJ. And I had this come-to-Jesus moment, that maintenance won’t ever mean that I can just eat whatever whenever.

For me, maintenance will always be about consistency. Both in my eating habits and movement/exercise.

You know, it’s funny that in theory, consistency is about being disciplined, determined, and unwavering.
But in practice, consistency is about being adaptable. Don't have much time? Scale it down. Don't have much energy? Do the easy version. Finding different ways to show up depending on the circumstances. Letting my habits change shape to meet the demands of the day.
And you know what else?It doesn’t have to be perfect, good is enough. I’m done with the toxic all or nothing mentality.
Little steps every day.

@OrangeWire @NewLifter
I totally agree with both of you and it is depressing to think it’s such a battle to keep weight off, what will maintenance and the next few years look like. I haven’t overeaten for a long time and I put weight on so easy, eat small portions even before MJ it’s reduculous. No idea if it’s my age or metabolism now, probably both and I know I won’t be able to eat like normal so for me it’s about finding a healthy weight and trying to find a way to keep the weight off. I’ve still got 2 stone to go and it’s really slow going recently, but will try various things, perhaps on and off MJ, who knows in the future. Maybe people will help share their stories on maintenance, not being on MJ and that may help us all.

Just did my bonus dose and that was a trauma. There was 80ml left in my pen but decided to stick with 60ml as I don't want to move up from 5mg. Syringe felt blunt; could I get that in my skin?! So had to try and decant and switch to another syringe. Not sure that I got a full dose in the end and I'm probably half full of air bubbles but as I'm wanting to move down to 3.75mg next week I'm not too worried. I'll have had around 50ml today I think.

For me, maintenance will always be about consistency. Both in my eating habits and movement/exercise.

I think that's the key generally. For anyone, not just those on MJ. That's where it goes wrong for me - when I don't pay attention to food or exercise. The truth is I don't think there are many people who can neglect those areas and maintain a healthy weight.

I read somewhere (could have been a post on here) that they realised their "normal" meals was what their slim friends would consider a treat meal and that resonated with me as I was the same. Pizza one night, burger and chips, curry the next - with a Maccies in the day. All washed down with a bottle of wine and averaging 3000 steps a day. I'd think nothing of it but I mean, come on.

This is stuck in my mind now so I'm confident that I'll maintain the lifestyle changes I've made as I'm actually disgusted jn myself for how I used to eat and I enjoy eating a more balanced diet now and looking forward to that pizza every 3-4 weeks (instead of twice a week!)

It HAS to be a life change, not a diet.

Haven't updated in a while but weight loss is steady and usually 1-2lbs per week which is perfect. Yesterday I hit the 1 stone loss mark which felt so good! My current weight is 11 stone 5lbs.

I have been continuing with a 2.5 dose but taking it every 6 days (2 doses so far). I think I'll order a 5 pen next, and take 3.75 out of it. My suppression has started to wane and I have been wondering about taking 2 x 3.75 out of this 2.5 pen (hoping the hard twist works!) Can anyone confirm, would this be 90 clicks i.e. one and a half doses? Also does anyone know how easy or hard it might be to twist the pen again whilst the needle is still in my thigh? Or would I need to remove, change the needle and then add the extra half dose?

It's weigh day today and I seem to have completely shaken my stall (-3lbs) 😮‍💨. I definitely recommend changing up the injection site to anyone who's stalling.

SW: 240.8lbs (17.2 stone)
CW: 188lbs (13.6 stone)

Over 50lbs lost now.

I ordered a dress for the weekend and ordered it in a size 16... had a pep talk to myself before trying it on that if it didn't fit, it just didn't fit yet. It was only too bloody big!

34lbs to go.

Official weigh-in day

SW: 11st 7.8lb
CW: 9st 12.2lb

But I've been stuck here now for 10 days. So frustrating.

Morning... Quick question pls... need to reorder MJ and wanted to ask if anyone knows the current expiry dates of 12.5 and 15mgs. Many thanks.

@simb You'd need to remove, add a new needle, twist the number of clicks for your extra dose, and then inject. And yes, a 1.5x dose would be 90 clicks.

Whenever I've done a bridging dose, I've done it in two separate and equal injections so for 3.75mg from a 2.5mg pen, I would have counted 45 clicks, injected in one side of my stomach, changed the needle and repeated on the other side.

Good luck!

Hi wondering if anyone can help me! I have accidentally squirted out my whole remaining pen for the next 3 weeks when trying to take my second starter dose last night! I have messaged company but they probably won’t believe me so not sure what I can do until I can reorder in 3 weeks??

I'm curious as to how? Did you wind out to 1 multiple times, and press the plunger down all the way each time?

I don't think the provider is going to care about what is a user error, rather than a fault or an issue that they've caused. If you really have used up the whole pen, then I would simply order another pen now, rather than wait 3 weeks.

Yes I kept turning and pushing and couldn’t see that it was coming out I’ve only done it once before and didn’t stupidly use the instructions for the second time.

@Bakedpumpkin ah, that's a shame. Has the plunger moved all the way along the pen to the position of the last marker line on the glass vial?

So you wound to 1, pushed down plunger, wound to 1 again, pushed down plunger and wound to 1 and pushed down plunger a final 3rd time? I don't understand where all the liquid went if you didn't see it squirting out - it's a lot of fluid to miss. Is the grey plunger now at the bottom of the barrel?

I'm gonna need you to walk me through this, because how did you manage to do this??
Also, not to sound unhelpful, but it's not the company's problem if the user misuses the medication...I'm sure they will emphasize...but you can't expect more than that.

Oh I see...never mind my previous post.

Did you inject it all into yourself?

No I didn't inject it I’ve only had one starter dose last week in total.

Yes it’s empty at the bottom - I thought the pen had broken! Have messaged the supplier.