questions

[Mrblueskys]

Hi, I am peri menousal and feel like I have little control with food or drink. I am tempted with injections. However I have 2 big questions.. ..

1. is it possible to hide the injections from your DH or do they need to be supportive. I know he will have opinions.

2. is it possible to have a week off and enjoy food & drink whilst on holiday/ Xmas.

?

Yes it's possible to hide it from your DH, but I would question the urge to hide it. You'd have to explain the financial outlay monthly, unless you don't share finances or have a high enough income that the cost isn't a noticeable spend. Also, if you were very unlucky and experienced severe side effects then your DH wouldn't know what you'd taken and what the risks are. You'd have to explain your change in eating habits and any mild side effects that you might get. I get cold all the time now for example, so my DP might have wondered why I'm sat with two hot water bottles and several blankets in a warm house.

You still enjoy food, you just eat less of it. I don't feel like I'm missing out or not having an enjoyable time. Yes, you can delay or bring forward a weekly dose if you need to, but I wouldn't just because I'm on holiday or it's Xmas. I went on holiday in the summer and didn't skip an injection. Losing weight long term is more urgent for me than any one holiday or Christmas.

Hi op,

the injection comes in a small needle that most of us hide in the fridge without anyone noticing. I have told my dp who is supportive.

you can stretch the injections or have a week off, but once you start you may decide not to and to just be moderate over Christmas. Who you get them from will have guidance.

mostly the jab reduces your food noise, so you have less desire for lots of food.

there is a lot of information on the weight loss boards especially for first timers.

You don’t have to tell anyone, I didn’t tell DH for the first month.

If you start using the pen within a couple of days of it arriving you don’t need to keep it in the fridge.

While it is possible to hide, I would suggest an honest conversation with DH. He may surprise you, and honestly if you do have a rougher start it is so nice to have the support of your loved one!
Re Christmas, my advice would be to continue as you have started and not deviate. It is a very indulgent season, between all the drinks and rich foods it is very easy to pile the weight back on and undo your progress. I’d suggest you continue over the festive period- you can still enjoy food and drink but you will eat less and you may find you naturally gravitate towards healthier options. And either way, if you hope not to be on this for life, it will be good to learn how to enjoy in a balanced way, without overindulging and ending up right where you started.

dh had his opinions (or rather concerns). If you have done your research into the drug you should be able to elevate any safety concerns he has, he hopefully (otherwise you have bigger problems) should understand your explanations of your weight loss struggles and respect your choice and/or privacy (not tell anyone else).

I am 15 weeks into MJ. I usually inject on a Saturday, I am toying with the idea of injecting one day earlier as through experience I know the days I am most suppressed, I will enjoy my Christmas food and drink in moderation. This is life changing medication for me and I am committed to it. I can live with and still enjoy one Christmas without the over indulgence.

For what I read on here and for most people MJ and over indulgence don't go well together and they have very unpleasant side effects. You might be one of the lucky ones who doesn't get significant side effects, you might not, you might need to wait more than a week for the drug to leave you body at Christmas depending on how you responded to it. There are some posts where people have gone on holiday for a fortnight and not taken their pen and still felt fairly suppressed. Everyone responds differently.

You can still enjoy food and drink, you just enjoy less of it. One of the things you learn is that over indulgence is just that, and is unnecessary. I started end of March and my attitude to food has totally changed. I'd rather indulge in other ways that don't involve food now.

Peri and now menopause put paid to alcohol for me.

I told my DH as I knew he would be supportive, but that's up to you if you think it would be more of a negative than a benefit.

Regarding Christmas, I think it's a mistake to have the mindset of taking 'time off' from this. The whole point of Mounjaro is that you are permanently changing your lifestyle to incorporate times like these so that you can manage when you come off the injections.

There will always be a reason to overeat- Christmas, birthdays, holidays, bad day at work. You need to think of this as a long term change rather than something you take time off from.

However, most people on Mounjaro don't want to overeat unhealthy stuff anyway so you might find you naturally eat healthily at Christmas. You can have a nice time and enjoy good food without stuffing yourself, that's what I'm learning on Mounjaro.

1. how big is your fridge and how separate are your finances?

2. you won’t want to feel the desire to have a week off and will just enjoy smaller portions

It's a shame you don't feel able to speak with your dh about it. I do from a safety point of view you feel he should know in case you end up in the hospital unwell and they need to know what medication you are taking.

I've not told DH we have separate finances so he doesn't see what I spend my money on! He would simply not be able to keep it a secret.

I hid the pen in a Tupperware of lettuce when it arrived until I needed to use it. It's now in my knicker drawer.

I was taking it last Christmas and enjoyed everything fine. It was the first Christmas in memory that I didn't gain at least ten pound. I stayed the same. Also went on holiday in June and lost a couple of pounds, still had a cocktail at night, an ice-cream and enjoyed my meal.

I didn't tell my partner for a while, then he caught me throwing up everyday when I went up a level and I had to be honest. He thought I had cancer poor love as I was losing a lot of hair as well.

Thanks for the replies.

We have some separate finances so I would be ok with that. I think I could put it in the fridge without it being detected.

DH doesn't struggle with food, he has lost weight himself and isn't really bothered by food, he eats when he is hungry but doesn't get excited by it or emotionally eat. He is a bit of an 'eat less / walk more - it's simple' type so I just don't think he would get why I needed it.

I think he would have concerns about injecting something which he would view as 'needlessly'. Has spoken similar when talking about Botox etc

He cannot hold a secret so would end up telling my parents who would have an opinion.

I could lie and say the Dr has prescribed it but I would feel awful for telling a lie (worse than just not telling him anything). That probably sounds daft.

I wouldn't compare Botox to weightloss injections at all (one is for cosmetic purposes, the other isn't so for people who're legally prescribed it) so if it was only his opinion on Botox making you think he may have a similar one about MJ, then I'd say you could be wrong.

However, your other reasons are understandable and I wouldn't tell mine if it were those too, especially with not being able to keep things to himself that you've shared in confidence.

@Mrblueskys I bought the pen before I told dh, but I told him before I injected.

It was a bit of a weepy conversation where I explained to him my cravings and food obsession, my feeling of helplessness, I am 55 and told him I thought I was seriously heading toward being disabled or worse. He listened, was a bit shocked but was then supportive.

I explained how they worked, how I still had to do the work of staying in calorie deficit and their might be unpleasant side effects but I was so concerned about my health now I felt I had to try it.

I also told him I was embarrassed and felt ashamed by my weight, my weaknesses and needing this drug to help, and I didn't want anyone else to know. Not even joking, and if the subject ever came up I would need him to keep it between us and play dumb even to your parents or family. Maybe help him with what to say that isn't too awkward for him if anyone does ask when they see the weight coming off.

I would hope if you explained all that (or your own feelings and circumstances) to your dh he would absolutely respect your privacy and support you. Very few, if any, of us here are doing this because we have a happy relationship with food.

Just an update... Thank you so much everyone for your replies, I really took them on board.

A friend of mine (that DH knows) was very open about that she had started to take WLI (she had very little to lose). As a result it let me open up to DH just before Xmas that I was thinking of taking it. My blood pressure had risen again so I had to book an appointment with GP (which is a few weeks) which I explained was part of the reason for wanting to try WLI.

He was really supportive and has said that he will keep it to himself.

I thought about waiting to see the GP before requesting a prescription but yesterday decided to go ahead and it has been approved and I pick it up on Weds! My hope is that I can see if it suits me before discussing with the GP.

I didn't tell DH about requesting the prescription but have now it's been approved and explained about potential side effects and again he has been fine.

It's such an emotional subject and part of me feels that I should be able to do it without it injections. But I have accepted that since about 15 I've had weight issues so realistically what is suddenly going to change if I don't do something different.

I'm going to see how it goes and fingers crossed if it works well I may eventually share how I am doing it to others - but have got to the point it's about my health and I need to not give a damn about what others think.

@Mrblueskys congratulations on taking the plunge! Terrifying isn’t it?! I hope it works as well for you as it has me as it has completely changed my life.

And it’s nobody else’s business but yours what meds you are on!