Why is Monjaro not working?

[FlorenceB19]

I am feeling completely gutted.
Been on MJ since 25th Oct & 12 weeks later I've only lost 7 lously lbs!!!

SW 12.6
CW 11.12.8
GW 9.6

I'm 5ft1, 50 yrs old & 3 years post menopause.

I have fibromyalgia/ ME, insomnia all treated with antidepressants & antipsychotic medications (used as a sedative for insomnia) to manage my symptoms. I work 2 part time jobs.
I'm generally a night owl!

I don't eat meals generally a bowl of fruit & fibre for breakfast,
a banana, protein yogurt & or a handful of almonds or blueberries for lunch
& scrambled egg, beans & cheese in wholemeal bread for tea.
I try to drink more water & probably not enough but at least a litre or water & probably 4 black coffees & 2 cups of tea!

I'm now on 7.5mg MJ & although my appetite does feel suppressed at times it wears off post 5 days! (I then may eat extra snacks like a packet of crisps or some mixed nuts) but nothing excessive)

Any thoughts or suggestions appreciated as the jabs cost so much & the lousy half a pound loss here & there doesn't feel worth the £'s being spent!

Why isn't it working for me??
12 weeks in & I'm still the same clothes size! (I have to wear my partners XL clothing as some 16's are too small!!

Feeling very deflated in spirt but not in body!! 🤦🏽‍♀️

Have you been counting calories? I’ve found this the only way to go. Mounjaro has made it easier than ever before but I need to count calories.

I feel similar. Maybe it doesn't work for everyone?

When I first started MJ, I spoke with a nutritionist who gave me some great advice which may also help you. She said my diet was very healthy but not right for a menopausal woman who wanted to lose weight as there was not enough food generally to fill me up, not enough protein and, what protein there was, was not split throughout the day so I'd get hungry and snack. Also not enough fresh veg.

Your breakfast has very little protein, your lunch is very small with no fibre plus where's your fruit and fresh veg?

She suggested I set a calorie limit per day using a TDEE calculator and taking off 500 which should give a weight loss of 1-2lb a week then use a tracker app. She told me to aim for 100g protein and 30g fibre a day but not to panic if I didn't reach them, just try.
My day, which might have been a bit like yours now looks like:
B: Greek yoghurt mixed with 1/4 scoop vanilla protein (as I don't like the texture of protein yoghurts but you could do that), with berries or a chopped kiwi and a sprinkling of nuts, seeds or granola
L: 2 scrambled eggs and small slice seeded toast or tuna/salmon/chicken salad
D: Chicken or fish with veg e.g stir fry, curry served with cauliflower rice, traybake, etc
If I need a snack I have carrot sticks and hummus, apple slices with peanut butter, a small piece of cheese or a protein shake/bar
From struggling to lose and always hungry, I am now eating more than before and almost 4st down in 8 months which is a healthy, steady loss. Obviously MJ plays a big part in that but the eating habits have really helped, especially as I cannot exercise properly at the minute

Have you got it from a legitimate source? A couple of friends had great weight loss so quite a few more are on it now. It isn't working for some and they got it from a less than reliable source and I do wonder if it's the real deal or correct strength.

Agree with PP that you might have to combine it with some more conventional diet method.

You need to still track diet and calories , a few nuts , dried fruit and cheese etc all mount up quite quickly and also drink a lot more water

Interesting that you say that
my friends have found the opposite

I take Mounjaro for diabetes and saw zero difference in weight/blood sugar until I got to 7.5. Even these results aren't where they need to be so I'm going up to 10 soon.

Some people need more to get decent results.

High protein all the way, when I have a carby day and week, I don't lose anything. I had a phase of a few weeks when it was snowing and very cold lately, eating maybe upto 60g protein but fair few carbs like chips with hot protein meal for lunch (free canteen work meal through january) and rice with dinner, often skipping breakfast and only eating upto 1000 calories and the scales were shifting maybe 100-200g fir 3 weeks it was so frustrating. Then had a really good effort cut out chips for lunch and dropped over 2lbs that week easily.
It's really worth using a calorie tracker like my fitness pal. Can see lots of snacks in your meals but not much protein. I've lost 18lbs and I started at 13 stones in October 16 weeks now. I am a slow loser too but I definitely need to eat better. I'm also on 7.5mg. 5 days is normal for suppression to wear off as its a 5 day half life. I'm actually almost on day 8 as I have a work meal tomorrow and didn't want to be too suppressed to eat it so taking it later today.

I'm the same 3 months and 7lbs.

I'm tempted to try and switch back to wegovy.

Agree with others track everything calorie wise and focus on protein.

Also use a tdee calculator and find out your calories for loss

You need to change what you are eating, your diet is not great. Are you tracking?

Your friends have found that counterfeit Mounjaro works BETTER? I doubt that.

OP it is well known that GLP-1 type drugs do not work for everyone. Around one-third will not respond. This applies to blood sugar and weight loss.

It’s interesting you mention your return of appetite and snacking on days 6 & 7. Could it be that all of your hard work is being undone on those two days? I saw this on another thread when an OP mentioned similar issues and hunger returning on day 5.

I know you say nothing excessive but mixed nuts and healthy snacks are one of the reasons I’m on MJ now - thank you Zoe testing/app 🙄

There's no such thing as a medication that works for everyone. We don't understand enough yet to always know why medications dont work for some people. I have a chronic illness and none of the medications that work for people with my illness work for me, even the one my specialist was sure would help. Medical science is still a new field and we just don't understand enough. If you mean more in the philosophical sense, yes it sucks and its unfair. Some people don't see any effects until they get the 15mg dose. FX for that. What antidepressants are you on? Don't need to say but maybe google their side effects, some antidepressants make it really to lose weight. Everytime I go back on mine I gain around 60 pounds, if I come back off it I can and do lose weight again. Unfortunately the only ones that help me all have weight gain as a possible side effect.

Hi OP,
I'm sorry your weight loss has been a struggle. I just wanted to say if you lose another 2lb and get to 11st11 then you will have lost 5% of your body weight which is something to be celebrated.

I also wondered if your weight loss has been slow perhaps you will find improvement as your Mounjaro dose gets higher as you move through the schedule.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m001sg0w/the-skinny-jab-uncovered

I wonder if it could be the meds you are on in particular the antipsychotics can cause food cravings, maybe this means you might need a higher dose of MJ to help.

I'm on them too and wondering about this.

Doesn’t it not work in about 10% of people who take it. Maybe you are one of the unlucky ones.

But I think what others have suggested is wise. This isn’t a silver bullet - diet and exercise need to be monitored.

Kinda glad I'm not the only one, started early October and lost 8lbs. Just ordered my 10mg pen, I live in hope!

I don't post much as you just get smug people saying "but have you changed your diet?" Well yes but the whole point is that mounjaro is meant to suppress my appetite and turn down the food noise to help me stick to it but it's just not.

I've gone this far so I'll probably keep going to 15mg as if I don't I'll always wonder!

15 percent it has no impact on in clinical trials.

The dosages from the clinical trials were 12.5mg and 15mg. You may need to get up to this level before you see an impact.

The dosages from the clinical trials were actually 5mg, 10mg & 15mg. They all worked, with the higher doses showing more average weight loss - although the trial data raises some questions for me about that.

Anecdotally some people can get to goal weight easily on 2.5mg, and some people have no real loss until the highest doses.

Mounjaro requires a recommeneded 2 liters per day water intake, to avoid kidney stones and dehydration. Some people say increasing water made a big difference for them. They also add protein and fiber powder sprinkled on top of meals to bring the protein levels above 30gr per day. They also recommend regular exercise because you need muscle to lose weight, and Mounjaro can deplete muscle mass.

I had an improvement in a slow Mounjaro response by walking 10,000 steps x 3 days per week.

If you have metabolic issues you may need additional help with added meds.

Just a reminder how much fat 7lbs actually is.... 😉